Think of a topic
Using your textbook, Google, or your own personal experiences for ideas, find some introductory information on something you're curious about (and that might lend itself to designing an experiment around).
Refine it into an actionable research question
Using ideas from the information you found, what is one possible research question or an experiment you could do. Write one or two sentences max about it.
Make it database search-ready
What are the two or three main concepts in your research question/experiment? These will be your initial search words. Get rid of any extraneous words.
Do an intial search in PsycINFO to see what you find
Using those main concepts, conduct an initial search in the PsycInfo database and scan the titles and/or some abstracts.
Refine your search strategy
Add synonyms, acronyms, and variant spellings to your search strategy.
Try another PsycInfo search
Select one empirical research article. Be prepared to describe your process.