APA Format
APA Format
APA Format
This resource, revised according to the 5th edition of the APA manual, offers examples for the general format of APA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the reference page. Please use the example at the bottom of this page to cite the Purdue OWL in APA.
1. General Format
General APA Guidelines
our essay should !e typed, dou!le-spaced on standard-si"ed paper (#.$% x &&%) with &% margins on all sides. ou should use &'-&( pt. Times )ew *oman font or a similar font. +nclude a page header in the upper right-hand of every page. To create a page header, type the first (-, words of the title of the paper, insert five spaces, then give the page num!er.
Abstract
0egin a new page. our a!stract page should already include the page header (descri!ed a!ove). /n the first line of the a!stract page, center the word 1A!stract3 (otherwise unformatted, no !old, italics, underlining, or 7uotation mar6s). 0eginning with the next line, write a concise summary of the 6ey points of your research. (8o not indent.) The a!stract should !e a single paragraph dou!le-spaced of less than &(' words.
Please see our Additional !esources page for e"amples of APA papers. :ite the Purdue /;< in APA. Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL) (Last edited date available in the gray box at the top of the resource). Title of resource. Retrieved month day year from
Always capitali"e proper nouns, including author names and initials. 8. Aones.
+f you refer to the title of a source within your paper, capitali"e all words that are four letters long or greater within the title of a source. Permanence and Change. @xceptions apply to short words that are ver!s, nouns, pronouns, ad-ectives, and adver!s. Writing New Media, There s Nothing Left to Lose. ((ote' in your *eferences list, only the first word of a title will !e capitali"ed. ;riting new media.)
;hen capitali"ing titles, capitali"e !oth words in a hyphenated compound word. Natural!"orn C#borgs. :apitali"e the first word after a dash or colon. %8efining Dilm *hetoric. The :ase of 2itchcoc6Cs $ertigo.% +talici"e or underline the titles of longer wor6s such as !oo6s, edited collections, movies, television series, documentaries, or al!ums. The Closing of the American Mind E The Wi%ard of O%E &riends. Put 7uotation mar6s around the titles of shorter wor6s such as -ournal articles, articles from edited collections, television series episodes, and song titles. %?ultimedia )arration. :onstructing Possi!le ;orlds%E %The /ne ;here :handler :anCt :ry.%
Short ,uotations
+f you are directly 7uoting from a wor6, you will need to include the author, year of pu!lication, and the page num!er for the reference (preceded !y %p.%). +ntroduce the 7uotation with a signal phrase that includes the authorCs last name followed !y the date of pu!lication in parentheses. #ccording to $ones (%&&') ()tudents often had difficulty using #P# style especially *hen it *as their first time( (p. %&&). $ones (%&&') found (students often had difficulty using #P# style( (p. %&&)+ *hat implications does this have for teachers, -f the author is not named in a signal phrase place the author.s last name the year of publication and the page number in parentheses after the /uotation. )he stated ()tudents often had difficulty using #P# style ( ($ones %&&' p. %&&) but she did not offer an explanation as to *hy.
/ong ,uotations
Place direct 7uotations longer than >' words in a free-standing !loc6 of typewritten lines, and omit 7uotation mar6s. 9tart the 7uotation on a new line, indented five spaces from the left margin. Type the entire 7uotation on the new margin, and indent the first line of any su!se7uent paragraph within the 7uotation five spaces from the new margin. ?aintain dou!le-spacing throughout. The parenthetical citation should come after the closing punctuation mar6. $ones.s (%&&') study found the follo*ing! )tudents often had difficulty using #P# style especially *hen it *as their first time citing sources. 0his difficulty could be attributed to the fact that many students failed to purchase a style manual or to as1 their teacher for help. (p. %&&)
Summar or Paraphrase
+f you are paraphrasing an idea from another wor6, you only have to ma6e reference to the author and year of pu!lication in your in-text reference, !ut APA guidelines encourage you to also provide the page num!er (although it is not re7uired.) #ccording to $ones (%&&') #P# style is a difficult citation format for first2time learners. #P# style is a difficult citation format for first2time learners ($ones %&&' p. %&&).
A 1or2 b Three to Fi4e Authors' <ist all the authors in the signal phrase or in parentheses the first time you cite the source. (5ernis 6ornell )un 7erry 4 8arlo* %&&9)
+n su!se7uent citations, only use the first authorCs last name followed !y %et al.% in the signal phrase or in parentheses. (5ernis et al. %&&9)
+n et al., et should not !e followed !y a period. Si" or More Authors' Fse the first authorCs name followed !y et al. in the signal phrase or in parentheses. 8arris et al. (:;;%) argued... (8arris et al. :;;%)
.n2no3n Author' +f the wor6 does not have an author, cite the source !y its title in the signal phrase or use the first word or two in the parentheses. Titles of !oo6s and reports are italici"ed or underlinedE titles of articles and chapters are in 7uotation mar6s.
# similar study *as done of students learning to format research papers ((Using #P# ( :;;%).
(ote. +n the rare case the %Anonymous% is used for the author, treat it as the authorCs name (Anonymous, (''&). +n the reference list, use the name Anonymous as the author. )rgani*ation as an Author' +f the author is an organi"ation or a government agency, mention the organi"ation in the signal phrase or in the parenthetical citation the first time you cite the source. #ccording to the #merican Psychological #ssociation (:;;;) ...
+f the organi"ation has a well-6nown a!!reviation, include the a!!reviation in !rac6ets the first time the source is cited and then use only the a!!reviation in later citations. <irst citation! (=others #gainst >run1 >riving ?=#>>@ )econd citation! (=#>> :;;;) :;;;)
T3o or More 1or2s in the Same Parentheses' ;hen your parenthetical citation includes two or more wor6s, order them the same way they appear in the reference list, separated !y a semi-colon. (7erndt :;;:+ 8arlo* %&'9)
Authors 1ith the Same /ast (ame' To prevent confusion, use first initials with the last names. (A. $ohnson :;;%+ L. $ohnson %&&')
T3o or More 1or2s b the Same Author in the Same 5ear' +f you have two sources !y the same author in the same year, use lower-case letters (a, !, c) with the year to order the entries in the reference list. Fse the lower-case letters with the year in the in-text citation. Research by 7erndt (%&'%a) illustrated that...
$ntroductions+ Prefaces+ Fore3ords+ and After3ards' ;hen citing an +ntroduction, Preface, Doreword, or Afterward in-text, cite the appropriate author and year as usual. (<un1 4 5olln %&&:)
Personal &ommunication' Dor interviews, letters, e-mails, and other person-to-person communication, cite the communicators name, the fact that it was personal communication, and the date of the communication. 8o not include personal communication in the reference list. (A. Robbins personal communication $anuary 3 :;;%).
#. P. )mith also claimed that many of her students had difficulties *ith #P# style (personal communication Bovember 9 :;;:).
(ote';hen citing material in parentheses, set off the citation with a comma, as a!ove.
6lectronic Sources
+f possi!le, cite an electronic document the same as any other document !y using the author-date style. 5enneth (:;;;) explained...
.n2no3n Author and .n2no3n 7ate' +f no author or date is given, use the title in your signal phrase or the first word or two of the title in the parentheses and use the a!!reviation %n.d.% (for %no date%). #nother study of students and research decisions discovered that students succeeded *ith tutoring ((0utoring and #P# ( n.d.).
(ote' )ever use the page num!ers of ;e! pages you print outE different computers print ;e! pages with different pagination.
APA does not recommend the use of footnotes and endnotes !ecause they are often expensive for pu!lishers to reproduce. 2owever, if explanatory notes still prove necessary to your document, APA details the use of two types of footnotes. content and copyright. ;hen using either type of footnote, insert a num!er formatted in superscript following almost any punctuation mar6. Dootnote num!ers should not follow dashes ( H ), and if they appear in a sentence in parentheses, the footnote num!er should !e inserted within the parentheses. )cientists examinedEover several years%Ethe fossiliFed remains of the *ooly2*ooly ya1.: (0hese have no* been transferred to the 6hauan =useum.9)
All footnotes should appear on the final page of your document (usually this is after the *eferences page). :enter the word 1Dootnotes3 at the top of the page. +ndent five spaces on the first line of each footnote. Then, follow normal paragraph spacing rules. 8ou!le-space throughout.
%
While the method of examination for the *ooly2*ooly ya1 provides important insights this document does not focus on this particular species.
to this research
&ontent (otes
:ontent )otes provide supplemental information to your readers. ;hen providing :ontent )otes, !e !rief and focus on only one su!-ect. Try to limit your comments to one small paragraph. :ontent )otes can also point readers to information that is availa!le in more detail elsewhere.
%
Basic !ules
All lines after the first line of each entry in your reference list should !e indented one-half inch from the left margin. This is called hanging indentation. AuthorsC names are inverted (last name first)E give the last name and initials for all authors of a particular wor6 unless the wor6 has more than six authors. +f the wor6 has more than six authors, list the first six authors and then use et al. after the sixth authorCs name to indicate the rest of the authors. *eference list entries should !e alpha!eti"ed !y the last name of the first author of each wor6. +f you have more than one article !y the same author, single-author references or multipleauthor references with the exact same authors in the exact same order are listed in order !y the year of pu!lication, starting with the earliest. ;hen referring to any wor6 that is )/T a -ournal, such as a !oo6, article, or ;e! page, capitali"e only the first letter of the first word of a title and su!title, the first word after a colon or a dash in the title, and proper nouns. 8o not capitali"e the first letter of the second word in a hyphenated compound word. :apitali"e all ma-or words in -ournal titles. +talici"e titles of longer wor6s such as !oo6s and -ournals. 8o not italici"e, underline, or put 7uotes around the titles of shorter wor6s such as -ournal articles or essays in edited collections.
Single Author
<ast name first, followed !y author initials. 7erndt 0. $. (:;;:). <riendship /uality and social development. Current Directions in C2%;.
Psychological Science, 11
T3o Authors
<ist !y their last names and initials. Fse the ampersand instead of %and.% Wegener >. 0. 4 Petty R. A. (%&&3). =ood management across affective states! 0he %;932
self2esteem than *hether it is high or lo*! 0he importance of stability of self2 esteem. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65 %%&;2%:;3.
Writing labs and the 8olly*ood connection. Journal of Film and :3G.
riting, !!(9)
)rgani*ation as Author
#merican Psychological #ssociation. (:;;9).
.n2no3n Author
"erriam# e$ster%s Webster. collegiate dictionary (%;th ed.).(%&&9). )pringfield =#! =erriam2
()T6. ;hen your essay includes parenthetical citations of sources with no author named, use a shortened version of the sourceCs title instead of an authorCs name. Fse 7uotation mar6s and italics as appropriate. Dor example, parenthetical citations of the two sources a!ove would appear as follows. (Merriam!Webster's, &BB,) and (%)ew 8rug,% &BB,).
Fse the authorCs name for all entries and list the entries !y the year (earliest comes first). 7erndt 7erndt 0.$. (%&'%). 0.$. (%&&&).
;hen an author appears !oth as a sole author and, in another citation, as the first author of a group, list the one-author entries first. 7erndt 0. $. (%&&&). <riends. influence on students. adKustment to school. &ducational %G2:'. 5. (%&&G). <riends. influence on adolescents. adKustment to %9%:2%9:&.
4 5eefe
*eferences that have the same first author and different second and/or third authors are arranged alpha!etically !y the last name of the second author, or the last name of the third if the first and second authors are the same. Wegener >. 0. 5err B. L. <leming =. #. 4 Petty R. A. (:;;;). <lexible corrections
of Kuror Kudgments! -mplications for Kury instructions. Psychology, Pu$lic Policy, & *a+, 6 Wegener D:&2DG3. Petty R. A. 4 5lein >. $. (%&&3). Affects of mood on high elaboration &uro)ean Journal of
>. 0.
attitude change! 0he mediating role of li1elihood Kudgments. Social Psychology, ,! :G239.
De(elo)ment, 5,
<un1
R. 4 5olln
.nderstanding &nglish
Article in a Maga*ine
8enry W. #. ---. (%&&; #pril &). =a1ing the grade in today.s schools. Time, 1'5 :'29%.
Article in a (e3spaper
Fnli6e other periodicals, p. or pp. precedes page num!ers for a newspaper reference in APA style. 9ingle pages ta6e p., e.g., p. 0(E multiple pages ta6e pp., e.g., pp. 0(, 0> or pp. :&, :,-:>. )chultF ). (:;;G >ecember :'). 6alls made to strengthen state energy policies. The pp. %# :#.
Country Today
0merican, ,1-(:)
!e4ie3
7aumeister R. <. (%&&9). Axposing the self21no*ledge myth ?Revie* of the boo1 The self# 3DD23DC.
Location! Publisher.
(ote. Dor %<ocation,% you should always list the city, !ut you should also include the state if the city is unfamiliar or if the city could !e confused with one in another state. 6alfee R. 6. 4 Malencia R. R. (%&&%). 0P0 guide to )re)aring manuscri)ts for 4ournal >6! #merican Psychological #ssociation.
)u$lication. Washington
A Translation
Laplace Amory P. ). (%&G%). 0 )hiloso)hical essay on )ro$a$ilities. (<. W. 0ruscott 4 <. L. 0rans.). Be* Lor1! >over. (Original *or1 published %'%3).
(ote. ;hen you cite a repu!lished wor6, li6e the one a!ove, wor6 in your text, it should appear with !oth dates. <aplace (&#&>/&B$&).
Aditor (Ads.)
(ote. ;hen you list the pages of the chapter or essay in parentheses after the !oo6 title, use %pp.% !efore the num!ers. (pp. &-(&). This a!!reviation, however, does not appear !efore the page num!ers in periodical references, except for newspapers. O.Beil $. =. 4 Agan $. (%&&:). =en.s and *omen.s gender role Kourneys! =etaphor for and transformation. -n 7. R. Wainrib (Ad.) /ender issues across
healing
transition
Multi4olume 1or2
Wiener P. (Ad.). (%&C9). Dictionary of the history of ideas (Mols. %23). Be* Lor1!
)cribner.s.
()T6' Iive the secondary source in the references listE in the text, name the original wor6, and give a citation for the secondary source. Dor example, if 9eiden!erg and ?c:lellandCs wor6 is cited in :oltheart et al. and you did not read the original wor6, list the :oltheart et al. reference in the *eferences. +n the text, use the following citation. -n )eidenberg and =c6lelland.s study (as cited in 6oltheart %&&9) ... 6urtis #t1ins 4 8aller
7issertation Abstract
Loshida L. (:;;%). Assays in urban transportation (>octoral dissertation CC3%#. 7oston 6ollege
Go4ernment 7ocument
Bational -nstitute of =ental 8ealth. (%&&;). Clinical training in serious mental illness (>88) Publication Bo. #>= &;2%DC&). Washington >6! U.). Jovernment Printing Office.
>.6.! #uthor.
&onference Proceedings
)chnase $.L. 4 6unnius A.L. (Ads.). (%&&G). Proceedings from 6)6L .&G! The First B$!
#uthor
#. #.
4 #uthor
Periodical, (olume num$er(issue number if available). Retrieved month day necessary) from http!""***.someaddress.com"full"url" 7ernstein "a2e
=. (:;;:). %; tips on *riting the living Web. 0 *ist 0)art3 For Peo)le e$sites, 1!:. Retrieved =ay : :;;D
ho from
http!""***.alistapart.com"articles"*riteliving
(olume num$er. doi!;;;;;;;";;;;;;;;;;;; 7ro*nlie >. 0o*ard effective poster presentations! #n annotated bibliography. &uro)ean %:3G2%:'9. doi!%;.%%;'";9;&;GD;C%;':%%D%
-. #. (:;;;). # 7uddhist response to the nature of human rights. Journal of &thics, 1.Retrieved <ebruary :; :;;% from
;uddhist
http!""***.cac.psu.edu"Kbe"t*ocont.html
+f the article appears as a printed version as well, the F*< is not re7uired. Fse %@lectronic version% in !rac6ets after the articleCs title. Whitmeyer $.=. (:;;;). Po*er through appointment ?Alectronic version@. Social Science G9G2GGG.
6esearch, ,:
Abstract
+f you only cite an a!stract !ut the full text of the article is also availa!le, cite the online a!stract as other online citations, adding %4A!stract5% after the article or source name. +f only the a!stract is availa!le, write %A!stract retrieved from% and provide the data!ase name or F*<. Paterson P. (:;;'). 8o* *ell do young offenders *ith #sperger )yndrome cope in custody,!
0*o prison case studies ?#bstract@. ;ritish Journal of *earning Disa$ilities, '6 (%) G32G'. Retrieved from A7)6O 8ost database. 7ossong J. Argativity in 7as/ue. *inguistics, ,,(9) 93%29&:. #bstract retrieved from
(e3spaper Article
#uthor #. #. (Lear =onth >ay). 0itle of article. Title of Ne+s)a)er. Retrieved
http!""***.someaddress.com"full"url" Par1er2Pope 0. (:;;' =ay D). Psychiatry handboo1 lin1ed to drug industry. The Ne+ <or2
6lectronic Boo2s
@lectronic !oo6s may include !oo6s found on personal we!sites, data!ases, or even in audio form. Fse the following format if the !oo6 you are using is only provided in a digital format or is difficult to find in print. +f the wor6 is not directly availa!le online or must !e purchased, use %Availa!le from,% rather than %*etrieved from,% and point readers to where they can find it. >e 8uff A.W. Taytay=s tales3 Traditional Pue$lo 8ndian tales. Retrieved from
http!""digital.library.upenn.edu"*omen"dehuff"taytay" taytay.html >avis $. Familiar $irdsongs of the North+est . #vailable from http!""***.po*ells.com"cgi2
bin"biblio,in1eyN%2 &C';&9%D'D%;'2;
http!""***.someaddress.com"full"url". Angelshcall R. ). (%&&C). =odule modOre*rite! URL Re*riting Angine. -n 0)ache >TTP :;;D from
Ser(er ?ersion 1@' Documentation (#pache modules.) Retrieved =arch %; http!""httpd.apache.org"docs"%.9"mod"modOre*rite.html Pec1inpaugh
$. (:;;9). 6hange in the Bineties. -n $.). 7ough and J.7. >u7ois (Ads.)
()T6. Fse a chapter or section identifier and provide a F*< that lin6s directly to the chapter section, not the home page of the ;e! site.
Retrieved
2t.html,page*antedN: 6astle J. (:;;C). Be* millennial $oyce ?Revie* of the boo1s T+enty#first Joyce, Joyce%s
critics3 Transitions in reading and culture, and Joyce%s messianism3 Dante, negati(e
%D92%C9. #vailable
Retrieved
http!""***.hc2sc.gc.ca"ahc2asc"altOformats"hpb2dgps"
pdf"intactiv"hiv2vih2aids2sida2prison2carceralOe.pdf
7ata Sets
Point readers to raw data !y providing a ;e! address (use %*etrieved from%) or a general place that houses data sets on the site (use %Availa!le from%). United )tates >epartment of 8ousing and Urban >evelopment. 8ndiana income limits ?>ata file@. Retrieved from http!""***.huduser.org">atasets"-L"-L;'"inOfy:;;'.pdf
Graphic 7ata Ae.g. $nteracti4e Maps and )ther Graphic !epresentations of 7ataB
Iive the name of the researching organi"ation followed !y the date. +n !rac6ets, provide a !rief explanation of what type of data is there and in what form it appears. Dinally, provide the pro-ect name and retrieval information.
)olar Radiation and 6limate Axperiment. (:;;C). ?Jraph illustration the )OR6A )pectral Plot =ay ' :;;'@. Solar S)ectral Data 0ccess from the S8", S9*ST8C&, and EPS
8nstruments.
Retrieved
from
http!""lasp.colorado.edu"cgi2bin"ion2p,
pageNinputOdataOforO spectra.ion
transcript@. Retrieved from $ohnson )pace 6enter Oral 8istories ProKect Web site! http!"" histories.htm ***%%.Ksc.nasa.gov"history"oralOhistories"oralO
()T6. ;hen an +nternet document is more than one ;e! page, provide a F*< that lin6s to the home page or entry page for the document. Also, if there isnCt a date availa!le for the document use (n.d.) for no date.
9oftware that is downloaded from a ;e! site should provide the softwareJs version and year when availa!le. 8ayes 7. 0esar 7. 4 Pura* 5. (:;;9). O0)oft! Optimality 0heory )oft*are (Mersion :.%)
6%mail
@-mails are not included in the list of references, though you parenthetically cite them in your main text. (@. *o!!ins, personal communication, Aanuary >, (''&).
http!""***.spring.org.u1" the%sttransport. (:;;3 )eptember :D). Psychology Mideo 7log S9 ?Mideo <ile@. Mideo posted
to http!""***.youtube.com"*atch,vNl/=&;eQiG2=
1i2is
Please note that the APA (t#le )uide to *lectronic +eferences warns writers that wi6is (li6e ;i6ipedia, for example) are colla!orative pro-ects which cannot guarantee the verifia!ility or expertise of their entries. OLP6 Peru"#rahuay. (n.d.). Retrieved =ay % org"go"OLP6OPeru"#rahuay :;;' from the OLP6 Wi1i! http!""*i1i.laptop.
Audio Podcast
Dor all podcasts, provide as much information as possi!leE not all of the following information will !e availa!le. Possi!le addition identifiers may include Producer, 8irector, etc. 7ell 0. 4 Phillips 0. :;;' =ay D). # solar flare. Science F N0S0 Podcast. Podcast
=ideo Podcasts
Dor all podcasts, provide as much information as possi!leE not all of the following information will !e availa!le. Possi!le addition identifiers may include Producer, 8irector, etc. )cott >. (Producer). (:;;C $anuary G). 0he community college classroom ?Apisode C@.
Dor more help with citing electronic sources, please use these lin6s.
7ocumenting 6lectronic Sources APA st le 3eb siteCs co4erage of electronic references APA FreDuentl As2ed ,uestions
#. P. )mith also claimed that many of her students had difficulties *ith #P# style (personal communication Bovember 9 :;;:).
Motion Picture
0asic reference list format. Producer P. P. (Producer) 4 >irector >.>. (>irector). (>ate of publication). Title of
(ote. +f a movie or video tape is not availa!le in wide distri!ution, add the following to your citation after the country of origin. (Availa!le from 8istri!utor name, full address and "ip code).
episode ?0elevision series episode@. -n P. Producer (Producer) origin! )tudio or distributor. Wendy ). W. (Writer) ape 4 =artian series
-.R. (>irector). (%&'D). 0he rising angel and the episode@. -n >. >ude (Producer) Creatures and
falling
?0elevision
Tele4ision Broadcast
-mportant
-.
=.
(Producer).
(%&&;
Bovember
%).
The
nightly
ne+s
hour
?0elevision
A Tele4ision Series
7ellisario >.L. (Producer). (%&&:). &Aciting action sho+ ?0elevision series@. 8olly*ood!
Music !ecording
)ong*riter W. W. (>ate of copyright). 0itle of song ?Recorded by artist if different from
song *riter@. On Title of al$um ?=edium of recording@. Location! Label. (Recording date if different from copyright date). 0aupin 7. (%&CG). )omeone saved my life tonight ?Recorded by Alton $ohn@. On Ca)tain
fantastic and the $ro+n dirt co+$oy ?6>@. London! 7ig Pig =usic Limited.
Dor more a!out citing audiovisual media, see pages (KK-(KB of the Pu!lication ?anual. Dor information a!out citing legal sources in your reference list, see the 1estfield State &ollege page on &iting /egal Materials in APA St le .
Print !esources
2ere are some print resources for using APA style. :lic6 The Purdue /;< does not ma6e any profit from nor does it endorse these agenciesE lin6s are merely offered for information. ?ost of these !oo6s are pro!a!ly availa!le in your local li!rary. Drom the American Psychological Association.
Publication Manual of the American Ps#chological Association ($th edition) &$$=B#=B&() Mastering APA (t#le, (tudent's Wor-boo- and Training )uide (+90). &$$=B##B&B) Mastering APA (t#le, nstructor's +esource ) uide (+90). &$$=B##B'')
(+90).
.ispla#ing /our &indings, A Practical )uide for Creating &igures0 Posters0 and Presentations (+90). &$$=B#B=##)
The World's *asiest )uide to 1sing the APA (+90). 'BK>,#$,&=) Writing With (t#le, APA (t#le Made *as# (+90). '$,>,K,K$() Writing With (t#le, APA (t#le for (ocial Wor- (+90). '$,>(K,&&B)
o o
APA St le Tips Tip of the 1ee2 FreDuentl As2ed ,uestions about APA St le APA St le Eelper (software programE re7uires purchase)
!esources'
7ocumenting
and
!eferencing
.sing APA St le to &ite and 7ocument Sources (from 0edford 9t. ?artinCs Online2) APA St le crib sheet (from the Fniversity of ?innesota at :roo6ston) Eo3 to &ite )nline (ursing !esources .sing APA St le (from the Fniversity of )evada at *eno) APA &itation St le' 6"amples for (ursing Students (from :ollege of 9t. 0enedict/9t. AohnCs Fniversity)
/iterature !e4ie3
A literature review is a summary of what the scientific literature says a!out your specific topic or 7uestion. /ften student research in APA fields falls into this category. our professor might as6 you to write this 6ind of paper to demonstrate your familiarity with wor6 in the field pertinent to the research you hope to conduct. A literature review typically contains the following sections.
9ome instructors may also want you to write an a!stract for a literature review, so !e sure to chec6 with them when given an assignment. Also, the length of a literature review and the re7uired num!er of sources will vary !ased on course and instructor preferences. ()T6' A literature review and an annotated !i!liography are not synonymous. +f you are as6ed to write an annotated !i!liography, you should consult the Publication Manual for the APA Dormat for Annotated 0i!liographies.
6"perimental !eport
+n many of the social sciences, you will !e as6ed to design and conduct your own experimental research. +f so, you will need to write up your paper using a structure that is more complex than that used for -ust a literature review. ;e have a complete resource devoted to writing an experimental report in the field of psychology here. This structure follows the scientific method, !ut it also ma6es your paper easier to follow !y providing those familiar cues that help your reader efficiently scan your information for.
why the topic is important (covered in your introduction) what the pro!lem is (also covered in your introduction) what you did to try to solve the pro!lem (covered in your methods section) what you found (covered in your results section) what you thin6 your findings mean (covered in your discussion section)
title page a!stract introduction method results discussion references appendixes (if necessary) ta!les and/or figures (if necessary)
?a6e sure to chec6 the guidelines for your assignment or any guidelines that have !een given to you !y an editor of a -ournal !efore you su!mit a manuscript containing the sections listed a!ove. As with the literature review, the length of this report may vary !y course or !y -ournal, !ut most often it will !e determined !y the scope of the research conducted.
)ther Papers
+f you are writing a paper that fits neither of these categories, follow the guidelines a!out General Format, consult your instructor, or loo6 up advice in the Pu!lication ?anual. ;hen su!mitting a manuscript to a -ournal, ma6e sure you follow the guidelines descri!ed in the su!mission policies of that pu!lication, and include as many sections as you thin6 are applica!le to presenting your material. *emem!er to 6eep your audience in mind as you are ma6ing this decision. +f certain information is particularly pertinent for conveying your research, then ensure that there is a section of your paper that ade7uately addresses that information.
you should !e aware of how your choice of terminology may come across to your reader, particularly if they identify with the population in 7uestion. ou can find an in-depth discussion of this issue and specific recommendations for how to appropriately represent people in your text on the APA we!site on the following pages.
!emo4ing Bias in /anguage' 7isabilities !emo4ing Bias in /anguage' !ace F 6thnicit !emo4ing Bias in /anguage' Se"ualit
*ephrase the sentence Fse plural nouns or plural pronouns - this way you can use %they% or %their% *eplace the pronoun with an article - instead of %his,% use %the% 8rop the pronoun - many sentences sound fine if you -ust omit the trou!lesome %his% from the sentence *eplace the pronoun with a noun such as %person,% %individual,% %child,% %researcher,% etc.
Dor more a!out addressing gender in academic writing, visit the /;<Cs handout on non%se"ist language use.
ad-ective (e.g., %elderly people,% %amnesic patients%). Another way is to mention the person first and follow this with a descriptive phrase (e.g., %people diagnosed with amnesia%), although it can !e cum!ersome to 6eep repeating phrases li6e this.
Example: 0he above list of hypotheses might be rephrased concisely as! (0he authors *anted to investigate *hether marital conflict *ould predict behavior problems in children and they *anted to 1no* if the effect *as greater for girls than for boys particularly *hen they examined t*o different age groups of girls.( 0alancing the need for clarity, which can re7uire unpac6ing information, and the need for conciseness, which re7uires condensing information, is a challenge. 9tudy pu!lished articles and reports in your field for examples of how to achieve this !alance.
1ord &hoice
ou should even !e careful in selecting certain words or terms. ;ithin the social sciences, commonly used words ta6e on different meanings and can have a significant effect on how your readers interpret your reported findings or claims. To increase clarity, avoid !ias, and control how your readers will receive your information, you should ma6e certain su!stitutions.
Fse terms li6e %participants% or %respondents% (rather than %su!-ects%) to indicate how individuals were involved in your research Fse terms li6e %children% or %community mem!ers% to provide more detail a!out who was participating in the study Fse phrases li6e %The evidence suggests ...% or %/ur study indicates ...% rather than referring to %proof% or %proves% !ecause no single study can prove a theory or hypothesis
As with the other stylistic suggestions here, you should study the discourse of your field to see what terminology is most often used.
minimi"e the amount of figurative language used in an APA paper, such as metaphors and analogies unless they are helpful in conveying a complex idea avoid rhyming schemes, alliteration, or other poetic devices typically found in verse use simple, descriptive ad-ectives and plain language that does not ris6 confusing your meaning
Le3el 4 5eadings Are Centered and talici%ed with (tandard Capitali%ation Le3el 6 5eadings Are talici%ed0 &lush!Left with (tandard Capitali%ation Le3el 7 headings are indented, onl# first words and words after colons capitali%ed8 end with a period.Text follows immediately. <@L@< $ 2@A8+)I9 A*@ :@)T@*@8 +) A<< :AP9 8etermine how many headings your paper will re7uire. The introduction of a paper is never given its own section name (e.g. +ntroduction). ou may only need one level of !asic headings (i.e. ?ethods, *esults, etc.). 2owever, you may re7uire su!-headings within those !asic headings and su!-headings !elow those sections. ?ost undergraduate papers will use three levels of headings or less. After determining how many headings your paper will re7uire, follow these guidelines. Dor one level of headings, use /e4el 1. +n the example !elow, we use 1Principal Dindings3 and 1*ationale3 as our only headings.
For t3o le4els of headings+ use /e4els 1 and 0. <evel , will act as a su!-heading to <evel &. +n the example !elow, 1Principal Dindings,3 a <evel & heading, re7uires two su!sections with <evel , formatting 1Fsing APA for our Paper3 and 1Proper 2eadings.3 The next section of the paper, 1*ationale,3 returns to <evel & formatting.
For three le4els of headings+ use /e4els 1+ 0+ and 9. <evel & serves as the main heading. <evel , goes under <evel &, and <evel > goes under <evel ,. +n the example !elow, we 1Ieneral guidelines.3 and 19pecial cases.3 as <evel > headings under our existing <evel , heading 1Fsing APA for your paper. )either 1Proper 2eadings3 (<evel ,) or 1*ationale3 (<evel &) re7uire additional headings at this time.
For four le4els of headings+ use /e4els 1+ #+ 0+ and 9. <evel & acts as the main heading. <evel ( wor6s under <evel &. <evel > wor6s under <evel ,. +n the example !elow we !rea6 up <evel &Js 1Principal Dindings3 into two <evel ( sections 1Fsing APA in the Fniversity3 and 1Fsing APA in the Dield.3 <evels , and > follow <evel (.
For fi4e le4els of headings+ use /e4els 5+ 1+ #+ 0+ and 9. <evel $ serves as the main heading. <evels &, (, ,, and > then wor6 in order. <evel $ adds an upper level. /ften this level is the title as in the example !elow. This method is employed more in pu!lishing than in standard university papers.
9ample of Dive