About APA Style

When an assignment asks you to write a paper, you must properly cite any references within the
text and provide a reference page for them. As a University student, you must use the APA Style
format.

APA Style refers to the editorial style established by the American Psychological Association
that many of the social and behavioral sciences have adopted to present written material in the
field. APA consists of guidelines that a publisher observes to ensure a clear and consistent
presentation of written material. These guidelines apply to the following elements:

 citation of references
 punctuation and abbreviations
 construction of tables
 selection of headings
 presentation of statistics

In-Text Citations and Reference Page Entries

Basic Guidelines for Formatting Citations in the Text
1. Place the complete citation within parentheses.
2. Use the words in the first part of the citation exactly as they appear in the References so
that the source in the text can easily be located in the References.
3. Use the author’s last name and year for the citation: (Smith, 2008).
4. Place the year in the citation, but do not include the month and day.
5. Use only the last name of the author, and never include the first name or initials except in
a personal communication.
6. Place the name of a group author (corporations, organizations, and government agencies)
first when no individual author is listed in the source.
7. Use the first two or three words of the title of the work when no author is listed: (Writing
Executive Summaries, 2007) or (“Evaluating a Case Study,” 2008). Capitalize all major
words of the title.
8. Use italics for titles of books, periodicals, and reports. Use quotation marks for titles of
articles, chapters, or web pages.
9. Include the page or paragraph number for a direct quotation: p. or pp. for page numbers,
para. for paragraph numbers.
10. Place any necessary punctuation after the final parenthesis of the citation unless it is a
block quotation.
11. Never use a URL address in the citation.
Basic Guidelines for Formatting the References Page
1. Place the references in alphabetical order. (Do not number references.)
2. Use periods to separate each major element in the reference: Name, A. (Year). Article
title. Journal Title, 24(4), 13-16.
3. Include the author’s last name and first and middle initials: Smith, G. Q. (Always use
initials instead of authors’ first/middle names.)
4. Place the year in parentheses after the author’s name: Smith, G. Q. (2008). If no year is
available, put (n.d.) in parentheses.
5. Place the name of a group author (corporations, organizations, and government agencies)
first when no individual author is listed in the source.
6. Place the title of a book or article first when no author is listed in the source.
7. Capitalize the following elements of the first title mentioned in the reference: first word,
proper nouns, and the first word after a colon or a dash.
8. Capitalize all major words of the second title mentioned in the reference (e.g., journal
titles, newspaper titles, book titles)
9. Use italics for titles of books, journals, newspapers, and movies.
10. Never use quotation marks or italics for article titles.
11. Include a retrieval date only for Internet sources that contain content that can change over
time, such as Wikis.
12. Use the DOI number for electronic sources rather than the name of a database:
doi:xxxxxx. If the document does not contain a DOI number, use the URL of the
publisher’s home page: If the document does not contain a DOI number, use the URL of
the publisher’s home page: http://www.xxxxxx. (Do not use periods at the end of a DOI
number or URL address.)
13. Include database retrieval information only for sources with limited circulation.
14. Never include a source that is not mentioned in the paper.
In-Text Citations

Direct Quotations [Level three heading: Left margin, bold, italic, title

case. The text begins as a

new paragraph. Level three headings are usually only necessary in longer

papers, most

commonly in master’s and doctoral papers.]

Direct quotations must mirror the original source word for word, even if

errors are

contained in the original text. To alert the reader that errors are part of the

original material, the

word [sic], enclosed in brackets and italicized, must follow the erroneous

material. The source of

the quotation must be cited. The format of direct quotations may vary with

the placement of the

quoted material in the sentence. The following is an example of how you

may use a parenthetical

citation for a direct quotation from a website with an author: “Diversity is

emerging as one of the

most serious issues in the workplace today, yet most employers are not

prepared to deal with it”

(Copeland, 1988, p. 48). [Citation with a page number: One space

between the p. and the

number.] The author’s last name, the year of publication, and the page

number or, if no page

number is available, the paragraph number, are included in the citation.

The following is an example of how you may use a narrative citation for

a direct

quotation from a book with one author: Venes (2001) stated, “The types of

influenza doctors

must prepare for fall into three categories” (p. 106). If the author’s name is

stated before the

quotation, include the date of publication (in parentheses) after the author’s

name, and follow the

quotation with the page or paragraph number (in parentheses). For a source

with three or more

authors, include the name of only the first author and the abbreviation “et

al.” in every in-text

citation, including the first time a citation appears.

Quotations that contain fewer than 40 words are enclosed in double

quotation marks

within the text. Use single quotation marks for quotations contained within a

direct quotation.

Quotations of 40 words or more are indented in a block format without

quotation marks. Use

double quotation marks to indicate a quotation within the block quotation.

The block quotation is

started on a new line, and it is indented five to seven spaces or one-half inch.

Paraphrased or summarized material

Paraphrasing or summarizing allows the writer to present someone

else’s ideas or

intellectual property and supply proper credit to the original author or

authors (Lawton, et al.,

2001). [Citing works with three or more authors: Include the name of

the first author and the

abbreviation “et al.”] When an author is paraphrased or summarized, the

source must be cited in

the text. A citation must be included each time a source is mentioned more

than once in a paragraph Page or paragraph numbers are not required for

paraphrased material, but the Publication Manual recommends that writers

include a page or paragraph number to help the reader easily locate the

information (APA, 2020, p. 269). If a writer were to paraphrase information

from an article located in an online database; the writer would format the

citation as follows: Daniels (2004) included Darden Restaurants on her list of

the 50 best companies for minorities. Here is an example where the author is

not mentioned within the text: A list of companies has been singled out as

best for minority employees (Daniels, 2004). Both examples include the

author’s last name and the date of publication. If the author’s name is not
provided within the paraphrased text (a narrative citation), it must be

included in the citation (parenthetical citation).

Deciding to summarize, paraphrase, or provide a direct quotation is an

important question you must consider when using sources in an academic

paper. Summarizing and paraphrasing

both consist of sharing a source author’s ideas by phrasing them in your own

words. A writer

should summarize or paraphrase source material when it is important to

capture the basic idea

but when the author’s exact words are not essential to the paper.

Conversely, a writer should

quote directly when the source verbiage is crucial, and stating it any other

way would cause it to

lose its meaning. Usually, writers will quote authors who are experts in their

field and whose

ideas support their own. However, excessive use of direct quotations should

be avoided. Writers

are encouraged to paraphrase when doing so will not change the meaning or

impact of a source

(Ede, 2010).

Plagiarism

Plagiarism constitutes a serious academic concern. According to

Lawton et al. (2001),

“Academic communities demand that writers credit others for their work and

that the source of

their material clearly be acknowledged” (para. 6). Internet access has

increased plagiarism

because it is easy to find information online. McCabe noted (as cited in

Sterngold, 2004), 41% of

students said they engaged in cut-and-paste plagiarism from online sources.

The sentences and

phrases used in your paper must be original or cited and referenced

properly. Although it may be

easier for you to use someone else’s words, doing so discredits you and your

work. When in

doubt, cite.

Other Format Issues

The recommended typeface for APA style is accessible to all users.

Fonts such as

black, 11-point Arial, 11-point Calibri, 10-point Computer Modern black, 11-

point Georgia, 10-

point Lucida Sans Unicode or 12-point Times New Roman are acceptable.

Avoid using any

software settings that reduce the spacing between words or letters or add

spacing between
paragraphs. Use double-spacing throughout the document. Use one space

after sentence-ending

punctuation in the body of your essay.

Although the Publication Manual (2020) requires an abstract to

precede the main content

of a paper, an abstract is not used in most student papers. Some

assignments may require an

abstract if students are submitting lengthy papers or project proposals. In

those cases, the

direction to submit an abstract will be in the assignment guidelines.

Writing Mechanics

Correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling, are essential components

of scholarly writing. Strunk (1918/1999) emphasized the

importance of being succinct:

Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary

words, and a

paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a

drawing should have no

unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This requires

not that the writer

make all his sentences short, or that he avoids all detail and treats his

subjects only in
 outline, but that every word tells. (para. 1) [Block quotation (40 or

more words): Indent

to the tab margin and do not include quotation marks. The in-text

citation occurs outside

of the punctuation that ends the sentence.]

Grammar

In addition to the provision of a standardized format for scientific

writing, the Publication

Manual (2020) emphasizes the importance of proper grammar. Important

basic grammar

principles are listed below.

Subject and Verb Agreement

A singular noun requires a singular verb, and a plural noun requires a

plural verb (APA,

2020). Words that intervene between the noun and the verb do not change

this basic rule.

Noun and Pronoun Agreement

APA recommends the use of “they” as a generic third-person pronoun

to ensure that the

writing is inclusive and bias-free. For example, the sentence “A student

applying for a job must

carefully proofread his/her application” may be reworded to read, “A student

applying for jobs

must carefully proofread their application.” The use of the singular “they”

helps writers reduce

bias, avoid stereotypes, and refrain from making assumptions about gender.

Passive Voice

Passive voice obscures the actor in the sentence, “The house was

painted,” because it

omits who applied the paint. In contrast, the same sentence written in active

voice is: “Our

the company painted the house.” The passive voice, which is a form of “be”

(is, was, were, will be, have been, etc.) and a participle (painted, etc.), is

useful for when the actor's identity is not important to the sentence or

context. Overuse of the passive voice causes the document to read similarly

to an instructional manual, dry and monotonous. According to Sigel (2009), it

weakens the essay’s argument and prevents clear and concise writing.

Occasional use of the passive voice is acceptable, but documents written

primarily in the active voice are more enjoyable and more

persuasive to read (Sigel, 2009).

Punctuation

Correct punctuation establishes the rhythm and readability of

sentences. Use only one

space after commas, colons, and semicolons. Use one space after a period at

the end of a
sentence. When a hyphen or a dash is used, no space appears before or

after the hyphen or dash

(APA, 2020). In academic writing, use a comma to separate all words in a

series of three or

more, as in the following example: Tasks included reading, writing, and

analyzing the

information in the text. Correct use of commas and semicolons can be

challenging for students.

Writers should consider using a proofreading tool to aid in checking proper

comma use.

Capitalization

Capitalization is used to designate a proper noun or trade name, as

well as major words in

titles and headings. Instances, where capitalization is not used, include laws,

theories, models, or

hypotheses, such as ethical decision-making models, and names of

conditions or groups in an

experiment, such as experimental or control groups (APA, 2020). A common

error in

capitalization is its use with the name of a job title or department. An

example is human
resources, which is not capitalized, versus the specific title of ACME Human

Resources

Department, which is capitalized.

Seriation (Elements Written in a Series)

Items contained in a list help to clarify the point being made or help to

clarify

components of a subject. Lettered, numbered, and bulleted lists may be

used in academic writing

according to APA standards (2020). To show the seriation of separate

paragraphs, number each

paragraph with an Arabic numeral followed by a period that is not enclosed

in or followed by

parentheses.

Numbers

Spell out numbers one through nine that appear in the body text. Use

Arabic numerals to

express numbers 10 and above. Exceptions to this rule are discussed in the

APA Style 7th

Edition Numbers and Statistics Quick Guide. [Hyperlinks: This link is

included for reference

only. Hyperlinks are not used in academic papers per APA, except in your

references list.]

Third Person Versus First Person

 Person refers to the point of view or the source of the writer’s opinions.

Use the third

person (they) in academic writing. When referring to yourself, however,

stating “The writer

instructed the patients” is ambiguous and may give the impression that you

did not participate.

Instead, use a first-person personal pronoun: “I instructed the patients.” For

the most part, a

reference to self in the first person should be limited to personal reflection or

opinion papers.

Conclusion

[Conclusion: Always include a conclusion that summarizes the main points

of the paper; use a

centered and bold heading.]

By understanding mechanics and usage requirements and by

referencing materials

appropriately with in-text citations and reference entries, you will clearly

communicate the

content of your work. Use the information included in this paper to develop

effective academic

papers.
 References

[Reference Page: Use a separate page to list the references and double-

space the entire page.

The section labeled References is centered, bold, and title case, at the top of

the page. Italicize the titles of books and journals (including journal volume

numbers).]

American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the

American Psychological

Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037 [Example: A book with a

corporate author

and an edition number.]

Copeland, L. (1988). Learning to manage a multicultural work force. Training,

25(5), 48-56.

[Example: An online journal article.]

Cuddy, C. M. (2002). Demystifying APA style. Orthopaedic Nursing, 21(5), 35-

42.

https://doi.org/10.1097/00006416-200209000-00007 [Example: A

journal article with a

digital object identifier (DOI).]

Daniels, C. (2004, June 28). 50 Best companies for minorities. Fortune,

149(13), 136-146.

[Example: A journal article without a digital object identifier (DOI).]

Ede, L. (2010). The academic writer: A brief guide (2nd ed.). Bedford/St.

Martin’s. [Example:

A print version of a book.]

Lawton, K. A., Cousineau, L., & Hillard, V. E. (2001). Plagiarism: Its nature

and consequences.

Duke University. http://www.lib.duke.edu/libguide/plagarism.htm

[Example: A source

available on a university program or department website.]

Sigel, T. (2009). How passive voice weakens your scholarly argument.

Journal of Management

Development, 28(5), 478-480.

https://doi.org/10.1108/02621710910955994 [Example: A
 source with a digital object identifier (DOI).]

Sterngold, A. (2004). Confronting plagiarism: How conventional teaching

invites cybercheating.

Change, 36(3), 16. https://doi.org/10.1080/00091380409605575

Strunk, W., Jr. (1999). Elementary principles of composition: Omit needless

words. In The

elements of style. http://www.bartelby.com/141/strunk5.html#13

(Original work

published 1918) [Example: An electronic version of a republished

book.]

Venes, D. (2001). Taber's cyclopedic medical dictionary (19th ed.). F.A.

Davis.