How did you find your area/topic of interest in research?

[neurologic]

My grad school applications are a whiles away but I'm trying to get as much research experience as I can because I eventually want to apply to PhD programs. I've figured out that I'm very interested in neuropsychology and cognitive psychology. I'm struggling to narrow it down a specific area I really love (everything is so interesting!!l)

I was wondering how other people eventually found a specific research topic they have a passion for?

[PsyDuck90]

Doing research within the general area of interest and reading more about certain topics that I thought sounded cool. I don't think there's a surefire way to find your niche. It just comes with exposure. You start more broad and just keep following the paths that interest you.

[luna314]

I was feeling the similar way. I volunteered in different labs using different methodologies/studying different topics. I also believe having this experience in different schools is important since the schools may have different cultures, and that may also help you to judge better when you need to choose between schools when you get your acceptences. 

If you are in your 2nd year or so, and if it is hard to comprehend the research papers, you can first read textbooks or take some courses from coursera.

Another thing I did was to attend some conferences. Those may be very basic undergrad conferences, or a national congress. I think it's worth it even it is expensive, because you can compare different topics and also have the chance to go talk to professors/researchers and get a summer internship.

[dancedementia]

I started out working in a clinical setting pertaining to my research interests (adolescent eating disorders and personality disorders). Found myself constantly asking "why?" and "how can I do this better?" while going through the day-to-day and finally decided - screw it, I'm going to go research the answers myself!

[Clinpsyc01]

I narrowed down my interests by doing research. I joined a lab that sounded interesting to me, and as I became more familiar with the topics and methodologies within that area, I was able to define my interests.

That’s not to say that my particular research area is my only interest, or that I don’t find other topics equally interesting. But I find it harder to come up with research questions in other areas because I don’t know the theory or methods. 

[Mickey26]

Been working in labs since two months into my first year of undergrad--so get started as early as you can!  I've dabbled in a wide range of fields: personality & I/O, health psych, social + cognitive psych, addictions. I know right--literally EVERYTHING is interesting to me!! ((high five)) Realized social & cognitive psych isn't for me, and that's OK! Currently debating b/w 2 fields for grad school: health psych vs addictions! 

[psychology_student_]

i got into vocational psych because my assigned advisor was into it and i looked up to her. if she was expert in something else then i probably would have just latched onto whatever that thing was too tbh ? #follower

[hlr20]

My research interests turned out to be some sort of mixture of my research experience. I would say reading is extremely important, if you find yourself interested in a topic then read about it. This also helps you find people you would like to work with as well as methodology you like. Second, seek out research opportunities that can help you narrow down your interest. If there is not a lab at your university that does that, I would suggest finding a lab at another university and working there over the summer. 

Also, It is important to find out what you would like to study but it is just as important to find out what you DON'T want to study. All research is good to grab some experience from, and you will learn from any lab you work for. Can't go wrong:) 

[Neurophilic]

My interests evolved from what I was exposed to. During my undergraduate degree, I really had no idea how to narrow it down. I started working in emergency med doing some cognitive research in two labs (more epi than psych), then I went into corrections in the government (addiction research, radicalized offenders), then I went into oncology and memory/sleep and finally cardiology. 

It was a whirlwind experience but it helped me understand what research is and what I enjoy versus what I don't. My area of interest became quite obvious after dipping my toes in each lab.