The APA
6th Edition
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Title Page
- APA requires a title page
- The title page must include:
Title of Paper (mixed upper and lower case letters)
Your Name (first and last name without including academic or license information such as BSN or RN)
Course Abbreviation and Number
Due Date (month, day, and year)
Instructor’s Name
- Center all of the above 1/3 of the way down the page
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Running head: TITLE OF PAPER 1
Title of Paper
Author’s name
Course Abbreviation and number
Due Date
Faculty member’s name
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This is an example of how the title page should look. APA, 6th edition. The Customized Little Brown Handbook has additional requirement for the title page.
Header
- The page header includes an abbreviated paper title (Not more than 50 characters ALL UPPERCASE) and page number
- In MS Word 2003 Select “view” then “header and footer” from the main toolbar
- Full justify the line
- Add enough ‘tabs’ after the abbreviated title for the page number to land near the right margin
- Choose “insert page number” on the header and footer toolbar
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Abstracts
- Although the Publication Manual (2010) requires an abstract to precede the text, an abstract is not used in most student papers. Instructors 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.
Text
- Do not include Introduction as a level heading. Instead, begin the text of the paper by repeating the title from your title page. The title of the paper is centered but not bolded.
- All lines are double-spaced throughout the entire document. Use black, 12-point Times New Roman font throughout the document. Do NOT add additional line spacing
- Margins should be 1” all around, with the allowance of 1 ½ inches on the left if binding is expected.
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3 Easy Rules on Quotes
- 1. Short quotes with fewer than 40 words are incorporated into text and enclosed by quotation marks.
- Example: “Approximately 27% of the workforce displays poor emotional intelligence” (APA, 2001, p. 121).
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If quote ends the sentence, the punctuation goes outside the final parenthesis, APA, 5th edition, page 121 and see example on page 118, quotation 2.
If the quote is mid sentence, end the passage with quotation marks, cite the source in parentheses immediately after the quotation marks, and continue the sentence.
At the end of a block quote, insert the punctuation and then cite the source. Example:
Xxxxxx
The placebo effect which
verified in previous studies. (p. 276)
The Quote and the Period Rules
- Quote in Mid sentence. End the passage with quotation marks, cite the source in parentheses immediately after the quotation marks, and continue the sentence with no period.
- Example:
She claims, “The placebo effect disappeared” (APA, 2001, p. 118), but she does not clarify.
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Per APA, 5h edition, page 121 In Mid Sentence: End the passage with quotation marks, cite the source in parenthese immediately after the quotation marks, and continue the sentence. Use no other punctuation unless the meaning of the sentence requires such punctuation. See example on page 118, quotation 1.
Quote at the end of the sentence
- End quote with the punctuation outside the final parenthesis.
- Example:
- Miele (1993) found “the placebo effect disappeared” (p. 276).
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At the end of the sentence. Close the quoted passage with quotation marks, cite the source in parentheses immediately after the quotation marks, and end with the period or other punctuation outside the final parenthesis. APA, page 121. See example on page 118, quotation 3.
Long Quotes: 40 or more words
- Example:
Miele (1993) found the following:
John lost his dog on a long dusty road
early last year during a boy scout
outing. The dog was white with
black paws and answers to the name
of Tom. (p. 276)
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See APA, 5th edition page 212 and the example is on page 118, quote #3.
In-text Citations
- Citations should have the last name of the author and the year of publication
- Page numbers are required for direct quotes when using text sources
- For internet sources, use paragraph numbers for direct quotes
- There are several different ways to format in-text citations
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In-text Citations
- If the author is named in the text, only the year published (and page number, if required) should appear in parentheses:
Smith (2003) notes, “Too many students don’t understand the APA” (p. 27).
or
Smith notes, “Too many students don’t understand the APA” (2003, p. 27).
- Note that the period is placed after the parentheses
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In-text Citations
- If the author is not named in the text, the author’s name must appear in the parentheses along with the year published and and page number:
As one professor has pointed out, “Too many students don’t understand the APA” (Smith, 2003, p. 27).
or
As one professor (Smith, 2003) has pointed out, “Too many students don’t understand the APA” (p.27).
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In-text Citations
- If your source has two or more authors, be sure to list them all (up to six)
Example: Hill, Halstead, Anderson, and Wallace (1994) found
Next Citation: Hill et al. (2005) also found
- If you use more than one source by the same author published in the same year, use a, b, c, (etc.) to indicate which source you are referencing. For example, use (Smith, 2002a) for the first and (Smith 2002b) for the second
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Electronic References
- For citations, give similar information as a print source. Use the paragraph symbol or abbreviation para.
- Reference page: Documents retrieved from the Internet should include Internet source, document title, date retrieved, and URL (uniform resource locator).
- Electronic Example:
- As Myers (2000, para 5) aptly phrased it, “positive emotions are great.”
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APA, 5th edition, page 120 states: Many electronic sources do not provide page numbers (unless they are PDF reproductions of printed material. If paragraph numbers are visible, use them in place of page numbers. Can use the Paragraph symbol or the abbreviation para.
Paraphrasing
- Fenton (2002) compared reaction times and found …
- In a recent study of reaction times (Gardiner & Auman, 2002) there was found …
- In 2002, Wilson compared reaction times and found that …
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Personal Communication
- Personal interviews and email communications are the only ones cited in the text and not in the reference list (J. Mitchell, personal communication, January 21, 2005).
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In-text Citations
- Remember: ALL in-text citations, except for the personal communications, MUST have a corresponding entry on the References page!!!
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Basic guidelines for formatting citations in the text
- Place the complete citation within parentheses.
- 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.
- Use the author’s last name and year for the citation: (Smith, 2008).
Basic guidelines for formatting citations in the text
- Use et al. for additional citations of a source with three to five authors: first citation – (Smith, Levy, & Jones, 2008), additional citations – (Smith et al., 2008).
- Use et al. along with the first author in the citation when a source has more than six authors: (Smith et al., 2008).
- Place the year in the citation, but do not include the month and day.
Basic guidelines for formatting citations in the text
- Use only the last name of the author, and never include the first name or initials except in a personal communication.
- Place the name of a group author (corporations, organizations, and government agencies) first when no individual author is listed in the source.
Basic guidelines for formatting citations in the text
- 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.
- Use italics for titles of books, periodicals, and reports. Use quotation marks for titles of articles, chapters, or web pages.
Basic guidelines for formatting citations in the text
- Include the page or paragraph number for a direct quotation: p. or pp. for page numbers, para. for paragraph numbers.
- Place any necessary punctuation after the final parenthesis of the citation unless it is a block quotation.
- Never use a URL address in the citation.
Conclusion
- TIP: Always include a conclusion that summarizes the main points of the paper. Check with your instructor regarding the preference for the inclusion of a Conclusion heading.
References
- Reference page must be double-spaced throughout
- Alphabetize references by author’s last name.
- If an unknown author, use the first word of the title in your alphabetical list
- Do not separate sources by type
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References
- APA requires that sources be listed by last name and initial; do not use first names
- If more than one author, list all authors’ names
- Use a hanging indent
- Give full publication information according to APA guidelines for the specific type of source
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References
- It is important that you determine the type of source: book, journal, magazine, newspaper; online website; print publication available through the UOP library database
- Match the type of source with the appropriate entry following APA style and follow the template
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Example of an Electronic Retrieved Article
- Fredrickson, A. (2000, March 7). Cultivating positive emotions to
optimize health and well-being.
HR Focus Journal. Retrieved
November 20, 2000, from http://journals.apa.org.html.
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APA, 5th edition page 272.
Title of journal is italicized and in blue.
Tell reader the date the material was retrieved
Provide URL so reader can find your research.
References are listed in alpha order by authors last name. Also, never, never, use the authors first name – only initials.
Example of a Journal Article Retrieved from an electronic database
- Wilkins, J. (2005). The myths of the only child. Psychology Update, 11(1), 16-23. Retrieved February 5, 2005, from ProQuest database.
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References for Books and Journals
Elkind, D. (1978). The child's reality: Three developmental themes. New York: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Issac, G. (1995). Is mumps the most common diagnostic entity in hospitalized adolescents and children? Adolescents, 30, 273-276.
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First line of reference is flush left with lines 2,3, etc indented 5 spaces.
Basic guidelines for formatting the References page
- Place the references in alphabetical order in one list. (Do not number references or separate them into categories.)
- Use periods to separate each major element in the reference: Name, A. (Year). Article title. Journal Title, 24(4), 13-16.
- Include the author’s last name and first and middle initials: Smith, G. Q. (Always use initials instead of authors’ first/middle names.)
Basic guidelines for formatting the References page
- Use ellipses between the sixth and final author’s name when the source has more than eight authors: Smith, G. Q., Levy, J., Jones, B., Arthur, N. S., Banks, E., Adam, C., . . . Arnold, A.
- Place the year in parentheses after the author’s name: Smith, G. Q. (2008). If no year is available, put (n.d.) in parentheses.
- Place the title of a book or article first when no author is listed in the source.
Basic guidelines for formatting the References page
- 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.
- Capitalize all major words of the second title mentioned in the reference (e.g., journal titles, newspaper titles, book titles)
- Use italics for titles of books, journals, newspapers, and movies.
- Never use quotation marks or italics for article titles.
Basic guidelines for formatting the References page
- Include a retrieval date only for Internet sources that contain content that can change over time, such as Wikis.
- 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: Retrieved from http://www.xxxxxx. (Do not use periods at the end of a DOI number or URL address.)
Basic guidelines for formatting the References page
- Include database retrieval information only for sources with limited circulation.
- Never include a source that is not mentioned in the paper.
Appendix
- Type the word Appendix in upper and lower case with the identifying capital letters (A, B,) at the top of the page.
- Appendix contains detailed info that would be distracting to read in the text, such as a list of survey questions, but info included here must be discussed in text.
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Appendixes contain items like questions asked of participations during a study that would distract if the reader read them in the text.
Order of APA Pages
- Title page with Running Head
- Abstract if required by professor: page 2
- Text
- References on a separate page
- Appendices on separate page
- Tables on separate page
- Figures on separate page
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Idiosyncrasies
- The presentation of titles of articles in journals, newspapers, or magazines differs depending on where they appear.
- In-text, enclose article titles in quotation marks and capitalize all principal words: “On Being a Good Student.”
- On the reference page, article titles have neither quotes nor capitals: On being a good student.
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Idiosyncrasies
- In in-text citations, precede page numbers with “p.”
- On the reference page, page numbers are not preceded by “p.” except when referencing newspaper articles
- Titles of journals, magazines, and newspapers are italicized and all primary words capitalized both in-text and on the reference page
- Titles of books are italicized in both places, but in-text, all primary words are capitalized, while on the reference page, capitalize only the first word of the title.
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Common APA Felonies
FAILURE to:
- Double space EVERYTHING
- Have ragged right edge
- Include 3 things in in-text citation (author’s last name, year of publication and pg/para number)
- Use hanging indent for reference page
- Use author’s initials instead of first names.
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These are the most common errors
And Finally…..
- Use your tools! APA book, the APA website (www.apa.org) and the Center for Writing Excellence offer specific guidelines for using the APA
- Perlla (make sure that your ‘source’ is correct).
- Remember that ALL direct quotes, paraphrases, or summaries must be documented
- All in-text citations must have a matching entry on the references page
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