1. APA Citation Style for Academic Writing
Center for Writing Excellence
Alexis Antico

2. What is APA Style?
Manuscripts in the social sciences most commonly use American Psychological Association (APA) citation style.
APA regulates—
In-text citations
References
Formatting and punctuation
Construction of tables
Presentation of statistics

3. APA General Format Double-spaced throughout 1” Margins
12 pt. Times New Roman (however, Arial, a sans serif font, is now preferred for accessibility reasons)
2 spaces after period in text; 1 space after period in references
Printed on standard-sized paper (8.5” x 11”)

4. Major Paper Sections APA Style Includes Four Major Sections:
Title page
Abstract
Main body (can include subsections)
References
Two Common Formats for Manuscripts:
Literature review
Experimental report/general research study

5. Literature Review Title Page
Include running head, title, author’s name and institution affiliation, author note
Abstract
Provide if appropriate
Introduction (note that “Introduction” does not appear as a heading)
Define and clarify problem
Main Body
Present discussion of sources
Organize chronologically, thematically, or methodologically
Conclusion/Future Research
Identify relations, contradictions, gaps, and inconsistencies in the literature
Suggest next steps in solving the problem
References
Include all sources cited
Conclusion/Future Research could be separate sections

6. Experiment/General Research Study
7. Discussion
Interpret results, discuss implications, and draw inferences related to hypotheses
8. Implications/Conclusions
9. References
10. Footnotes
11. Appendices/Tables/
Figures
1. Title Page
2. Abstract
3. Introduction (no heading)
4. Literature Review
5. Method
Include participants, sampling procedure, materials, measures, research design, etc.
6. Results
Summarize collected data, data analyses, and results

7. Title Page A title page should include:
The title of the paper (preferably no more than 12 words)
Author’s name
The institutional affiliation
Page header/running head—example below for title page
Running head: TITLE OF YOUR PAPER

8. Title Page Example 1 Running head: TITLE OF YOUR PAPER
Title of the paper
Your Name
Institution’s Name 1

9. Running Head and Page Numbers
The running head should use—
Capital letters
Left justification at top of page
A maximum of 50 characters, including spaces.
Pages after the title page should have a running head that looks like this:
TITLE OF YOUR PAPER
Page numbers:
May include author’s last name
Right justification at top of page

10. Abstract Center the title (Abstract) at the top of page
Do not bold or underline title
Provide a concise summary of the key points of your research
Write a single paragraph, double-spaced, flushed to the left
Limit the abstract to words
Use keywords, if appropriate
Place on page 2 of paper after title page
Don’t underline or bold ‘Abstract’
For keywords: look at journal references you are using to help

11. Abstract Example Keywords: example TITLE OF YOUR PAPER 2 Abstract
Example of abstract… … … …
Keywords: example

12. Main Body Center manuscript title at the top of the page
Do not bold or underline title
Double-space text and begin on page 3 after abstract
Use 12-point type
Do not use “Introduction” as a heading title
Align left

13. Reference Page Center the title (References) at the top of page
Do not bold or underline title
Double-space reference entries
Flush left the first line of the entry and indent subsequent lines (hanging indent)
Order entries alphabetically by the last name of the first author of each work

14. In-Text Citation Two Methods
Signal Phrase: Author name in running text
Knight (2012) reported that …
Parenthetical Citation: Author name in parentheses at end of sentence
The study indicated …(Knight, 2012).

15. In-Text Citations Work by One Author
Example 1: Signal Phrase
Smith (2012) found… Example 2: Parenthetical Citation
…school mascots boosted school spirit (Smith, 2012).
Parenthetical citation is preferred**
Signal phrase is used when you WANT TO HIGHLIGHT the author/research

16. In-Text Citations Work by Two Authors
Example 1: Signal Phrase
Smith and Jones (2012) found that…
Example 2: Parenthetical Citation
… (Smith & Jones, 2012).

17. In-Text Citations Work by Three to Five Authors
The first time you cite the work:
Example 1: Signal Phrase Research by Smith, Jones, Adams, Brown, and Cook (2012) …
Example 2: Parenthetical Citation … (Smith, Jones, Adams, Brown, & Cook, 2012).
In subsequent citations:
Research by Smith et al. (2012)… … (Smith et al., 2012).

18. In-Text Citations Work by Six or More Authors
Example 1: Signal Phrase
Research by Smith et al. (2012)…
Example 2: Parenthetical Citations
… (Smith et al., 2012).
Use the first author's name followed by et al. in the signal phrase or in parentheses

19. In-Text Citations Unknown Author
“Title of work” … (2012). OR
… (“First words of title,” 2012).
Cite the source by its title in the signal phrase or use the first word or two of the title in the parentheses.

20. In-Text Citations Organization as an Author
According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA; 2015), … OR
… (Food and Drug Administration [FDA], 2015).
If the organization has a well-known abbreviation, include the abbreviation in brackets the first time the source is cited and then use only the abbreviation in later citations.
In subsequent citation:
… (FDA, 2015).

21. (Smith & Jones, 2014; Williams, 2008)
In-Text Citations
Two or More Works in the Same Parentheses: Order the works alphabetically, separated by a semi-colon
(Smith & Jones, 2014; Williams, 2008)
Authors with the Same Last Name:
Use initials with last name
(T. Adams, 2011; J. Adams, 2003)
Two or More Works by an Author in the Same Year:
Use lower-case letters (a, b, c) with the year
(Cook, 2012a) (Cook, 2012b)

22. In-Text Citations Quoting Sources
Use direct quotes sparingly and only when critical for meaning
Instead summarize argument or evidence
Include page number in the in-text citation
Examples:
According to Jones (1998), “Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time” (p. 199). OR
According to the researcher, “Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time” (Jones, 1998, p. 199).
Apa priviledges the argument/evidence
Mla priv the author

23. References Crediting Authors
Single Author:
Last name first, followed by author initials
Berndt, T. J. (2002). Friendship quality and social development.
Current Directions in Psychological Science, 11, Two Authors:
List by last names and initials; use the ampersand instead of “and”
Wegener, D. T., & Petty, R. E. (1994). Mood management across affective states: The hedonic contingency hypothesis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 66,
(Paiz et al., 2012)

24. References Crediting Authors
Three to Seven Authors:
List by last names and initials; separate with commas; last author name preceded by ampersand
Kernis, M. H., Cornell, D. P., Sun, C. R., Berry, A., Harlow, T., & Bach, J. S. (1993). There's more to self- esteem than whether it is high or low: The importance of stability of self esteem. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65,

25. References Crediting Authors
More Than Seven Authors: After the sixth author's name, use an ellipsis in place of the author names; provide the final author name
Terracciano, A., Abdel-Khalek, A. M., Adam, N., Adamovova, L., Ahn, C., Ahn, H., McCrae, R. R. (2005). National character does not reflect mean personality trait levels in 49 cultures. Science, 310, 96–
List by last names and initials; separate with commas. After the sixth author's name, use an ellipses in place of the author names. Then provide the final author name. There should be no more than seven names. 

26. References Crediting Authors
Two or More Works by the Same Author:
Use the author's name for all entries and list the entries by the year (earliest comes first)
Berndt, T. J. (1981).
Berndt, T. J. (1999).
When an author appears both as a sole author and in another citation as the first author of a group, list sole author entries first
Berndt, T. J., & Keefe, K. (1995).
list the one-author entries first.
(Paiz et al., 2012)

27. References Crediting Authors
Two or More Works by the Same Author:
For references that have the same first author and different second and/or third authors, arrange alphabetically by last name of second author
Wegener, D. T., Kerr, N. L., Fleming, M. A., & Petty, R. E. (2000). Flexible corrections of juror judgments: Implications for jury instructions. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 6,
Wegener, D. T., Petty, R. E., & Klein, D. J. (1994). Effects of mood on high elaboration attitude change: The mediating role of likelihood judgments. European Journal of Social Psychology, 24,
Arrange alphabetically by the last name of the second author, or the last name of the third if the first and second authors are the same.

28. References Crediting Authors
Two or More Works by the Same Author in the Same Year:
Organize sources alphabetically by the title of the article or chapter; assign lower-case letter suffixes to the year
Berndt, T. J. (1981a). Age changes and changes over time in prosocial intentions and behavior between friends. Developmental Psychology, 17,
Berndt, T. J. (1981b). Effects of friendship on prosocial intentions and behavior. Child Development, 52,
If you are using more than one reference by the same author (or the same group of authors listed in the same order) published in the same year, organize them in the reference list alphabetically by the title of the article or chapter. Then assign letter suffixes to the year

29. References Books Basic Form: Example:
Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Location: Publisher.
Example:
Calfee, R. C., & Valencia, R. R. (1991). APA guide to preparing manuscripts for journal publication. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Publisher name should be as brief as possible, but write out university presses and association names. If the publisher name includes books or press, those words are included. Include state or country in location.
Incorrect: APA
Correct: American Psychological Association

30. References Articles in Periodicals
Basic Form:
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number if needed), pages.
Example:
Scruton, R. (1996). The eclipse of listening. The New Criterion,15(3), 5-13.
Use issue number only if a journal paginates by issue, and not by volume. Check journal website or database to find this information.

31. References Journal Articles in Electronic Sources
General principles:
Include the DOI in the reference if one is assigned
Do not include the name of the database; Use this format: Retrieved from
Do not include retrieval dates unless the source material is likely to change over time such as Wikipedia or the UpToDate database.

32. Whatever style is used should be consistent in format.
References DOI Style
Recommended DOI Style:
Older DOI Styles:
doi:10.xxxx/xxxxxxx
Whatever style is used should be consistent in format.

33. References Journal Articles Online (DOI Display)
Basic Form:
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number if needed), pages.
Example:
Morey, C. C., Cong, Y., Zheng, Y., Price, M., & Morey, R. D.
(2015). The color-sharing bonus: Roles of perceptual organization and attentive processes in visual working memory. Archives of Scientific Psychology, 3,  
(American Psychological Association, 2010)

34. References Journal Articles Online With No DOI
Basic Form:
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number if needed), pages. Retrieved from
Example:
Knight, M. (1999). Writing and other communication standards in undergraduate business education: A study of current program requirements, practices, and trends. Business Communication Quarterly, 1(1), Retrieved from

35. References Journal Articles Advance Online Publication
von Ledebur, S. C. (2007). Optimizing knowledge transfer by
new employees in companies. Knowledge Management
Research & Practice. Advance online publication.
If no DOI is assigned and you retrieved the article electronically, give the URL of the journal home page:

36. References Dissertations/Theses Online
Doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis retrieved from a database service:
Author, A. A. (year). Title of doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis (Doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis). Retrieved from Name of Database. (Accession or Order No.)
Author, A. A. (year). Title of doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis (Doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis). Retrieved from
Unpublished dissertation or master’s thesis:
Author, A. A. (year). Title of doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis (Unpublished doctoral dissertation or master’s thesis). Retrieved from

37. References Other Electronic Sources: Basic Form
Provide website name and URL:
Include the name of the website to which the article was posted in the retrieval statement
If this information is not part of the URL, use the following format…
Retrieved from Site Name Website:
Provide document type if relevant

38. References Electronic Sources: Other Periodicals
Magazine Article:
Clay, R. A. (2008, June). Science vs. ideology: Psychologists fight back against the misuse of research. Monitor on Psychology, 39(6). Retrieved from
Newspaper Article:
Brody, J. E. (2007, December 11). Mental reserves keep brains agile. The New York Times. Retrieved from
For magazines and newspapers, include the month or day of publication.
(American Psychological Association, 2010)

39. References Electronic Sources: Websites
Citing an Entire Website, Feed, and Page:
If not citing a particular document on a website:
It is sufficient to give the address of the site in the text
No reference list entry is needed
Examples:
KidsPsych is a wonderful interactive website for children (
President Obama often used Facebook ( Twitter ( to keep citizens up to speed on his initiatives.

40. References Electronic Sources: Press Releases
The White House, Office of the Press Secretary. (2010).
Administration officials continue travel across the country
holding “Recovery Summer” events, project site visits
[Press release]. Retrieved from
officials-continue-travelacross-country-holdingrecovery- summer-eve
American Psychological Association. (2010). Today’s superheroes send wrong image to boys, say researchers [Press release]. Retrieved from stereotype-unhealthy

41. References Electronic Sources: Unpublished
Manuscript:
Author, A. A. (year). Title of manuscript. Retrieved from
Online Lecture Notes or PowerPoint Slides:
Author, A. A. (year). Title of presentation [Lecture notes or PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from
Paper or Poster Presentation:
Presenter, A. A. (year, month). Title of paper or poster. Paper or poster
presented at the meeting of Organization Name, Location.
Retrieved from

42. References Electronic Sources: Film or Video
Film: Producer, A. A. (Producer), & Director, B. B. (Director). (year). Title of motion picture [DVD, video file, etc.]. Retrieved from
YouTube:
YouTube Username. (date). Home [Video file]. Retrieved from
PsycINFO. (n.d.). Home [Video file]. Retrieved from

43. References Electronic Sources: TV
Entire Television Series:
Producer, A. A. (Producer), & Creator, B. B. (Creator). (years aired). Title of television series [Television series]. Retrieved from
Episode or Webisode:
Writer, A. A. (Writer), & Director, B. B. (Director). (year). Title of episode or webisode [Television series episode or webisode]. In C. C. Producer (Executive Producer),
Television series name. Retrieved from

44. References Electronic Sources: Timestamps for Audiovisual Materials
A timestamp is like a page number, showing the point at which the quotation begins.
In-Text Citation:
One patient who experienced the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy stated that it was so remarkable for her that “I began to think impossible things, like I could even invite people home” (OCD-UK, 2009, 4:50).
Reference:
OCD-UK. (2009, February 26). A guide to cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) [Video file]. Retrieved from

45. References Electronic Sources: Art
Work of Art:
Artist, A. A. (copyright year). Title of work [Painting, Drawing, Sculpture, Photograph, etc.]. Retrieved from
Wyeth, A. (1948). Christina’s world [Painting]. Retrieved from
Westinghouse Electronic Corporation. (2009). Lightning model [Photograph]. Retrieved from of-the-day/2009/10/lightning-model-westinghouse-pod/

46. References Electronic Sources: Music
Full Album:
Writer, A. A. (copyright year). Title of album [Recorded by B. B. Artist if different from writer; CD, MP3, Record, Cassette, etc.]. Retrieved from (Date of recording if different from album copyright date)
Single Track:
Writer, A. A. (copyright year). Title of song [Recorded by B. B. Artist if different from writer]. On Title of album [CD, MP3, Record, Cassette, etc.]. Retrieved from (Date of recording if different from song’s copyright date)

47. References Social Media
Basic Form:
Author, A. A. (year). Title of document [Format]. Retrieved
from
Examples:
Blog post
Blog comment
Electronic mailing list
Twitter update/Tweet
Facebook page/status update
Online forum comment

48. References Facebook Facebook Status Update: Facebook Page or Note:
APA Style. (2011, March 10). How do you spell success in APA Style? Easy! Consult Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary or APA’s Dictionary
of Psychology. Read more over at the APA Style Blog [Facebook status update]. Retrieved from
In-Text Citation: (APA Style, 2011).
Facebook Page or Note:
Pinker, S. [Steven]. (n.d.). Timeline [Facebook page]. Retrieved March 19, 2012, from
In-Text Citations: (Pinker, n.d.)
American Red Cross. (2009, November 2). Red Cross workers in
American Samoa: 2 stories [Facebook note]. Retrieved from
In-Text Citations: (American Red Cross, 2009)

49. References Twitter Twitter Update or Tweet:
Obama, B. [BarackObama]. (2009, July 15). Launched
American Graduation Initiative to help additional 5 mil. Americans graduate college by 2020:
[Tweet]. Retrieved from 6
In-Text Citation: (Obama, 2009).

50. References Blogs Blog Post:
Laden, G. (2011, May 8). A history of childbirth and misconceptions about
life expectancy [Blog post]. Retrieved from and_mi.php
In-Text Citation: (Laden, 2011).
Blog Comment:
MiddleKid. (2007, January 22). Re: The unfortunate prerequisites and consequences of partitioning your mind [Blog comment]. Retrieved from rerquistes.php
In-Text Citation: (MiddleKid, 2007).
**for Blog Comment, use the individual’s “username” instead of his/her real name (e.g., “MiddleKid”)

51. Special Situations Citing Personal Communications
A personal communication is cited in the body of the paper but not included in the reference list.
The journal has reported a large increase in submissions (M. Knight, personal communication, October 3, 2018)

52. Centered, Boldface, Uppercase and
APA Headings
Level
Format 1
Centered, Boldface, Uppercase and
Lowercase Headings 2
Left-aligned, Boldface, Uppercase and Lowercase Heading 3
Indented, boldface, lowercase heading with a period. 4
Indented, boldface, italicized, lowercase heading with a period. 5
Indented, italicized, lowercase heading with a period.
For Levels 3, 4, and 5, begin body text after the period.

53. APA Style Basic Characteristics
Clear Be specific in descriptions and explanations
Concise Condense information when you can
Plain Use simple, descriptive adjectives and minimize the figurative language

54. APA Style Point of View Active Voice:
Active Voice vs. Passive Voice
APA Style encourages using active voice
Active Voice:
The subject of the sentence performs the action expressed in the verb.
Example: Researchers conducted an experiment to test the hypothesis.
Passive Voice:
The subject is acted upon.
Example: An experiment was conducted by researchers to test the hypothesis.
But, there are times when passive voice is preferred in some disciplines or for particular purposes. Look at relevant journals and studies to see what style is being used.

55. APA Style Verb Tense Past Tense or Present Perfect Tense:
Literature review
Description of procedure or method
Reporting of results
Present Tense:
Implications of results
Presentation of conclusions
Past Tense: Smith indicated Present Perfect: Smith has indicated

56. APA Style Avoiding Bias
Respect people’s preferences.
Call people by the pronouns or other designations they prefer if known.
Make an effort to determine what is appropriate for your situation; you may need to ask your participants what they prefer.
Singular “they/their” has become increasingly accepted in many publication venues.

57. APA Style Person-First Language
Person with disability (not disabled person)
Children with autism (not autistic children)
Individuals with mental illness (not mentally ill people)
Hard of hearing or deaf (not hearing impaired)
People lose individuality when you use such labels

58. New Edition of APA Style
A new edition of the Publication Manual, the 7th, is coming out in October, so some guidelines may change. Check our Digital Dashboard for a revision of this presentation.

59. APA Resources
American Psychological Association Online
APA Style Blog
CWE Digital Dashboard
dashboard/resources-for-writers/citing-sources/#APA
Online-Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue University
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

60. Q&A and Discussion
There is no great writing, only great rewriting. --Justice Brandeis
Writing is 1 percent inspiration, and 99 percent elimination Louise Brooks