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APA Quick Reference Style Guide

Tips for writing graduate research papers in the commonly used style and format of the American Psychological Association

Note to students: This guide is based on the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th Edition and related sources. r This guide is intended to provide you with a short, user-friendly guide for research papers. It should not, however, be used as the sole, definitive source for your work. Students are responsible for appropriate and correct sources, format and style in their papers. Links to comprehensive sources are found below. What is APA format? APA style is currently most commonly used for research papers, in-text citations, references and other formatting, especially in the social sciences field. Why use APA format?

The Document 1 margins all around 12 pt. font size Times New Roman or similar font Double-space all lines No contractions (e.g., dont), unless in quote Every page - header with short title in caps flush left + page number flush right. Indent paragraphs, 5 spaces Space twice after all punctuation ending a sentence. Style Basics Use third vs. first person point of view (The results were versus I found ) Use active vs. passive voice (The team managed it versus It was managed by the team)

Title page (first page)

Graduate level work requires both accepted academic rigor and format. Post University Graduate programs and courses require a consistent format be used for research papers, including the APA style. In-text citations and end-of-paper references are expected of an academic effort to discern your own thinking from others works and ideas. You should have your due, and so should the authors researched. Copyright law protects their authorship.

Sections of an APA Paper

Body (new page)

Title Page Papers in APA style a title page.

References (new page)

require

The formatted running head (page header) will be used as the header on each page. Use Running head on the title page only . Include the papers title, the authors name and affiliation, centered on the page.

More Comprehensive APA Sources: APA Style Guide: http://apastyle.apa.org/ OWL at Purdue: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/ resource/560/01

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APA Quick Reference Style Guide

Examples Fictitious Reference: Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). (2010). Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association
Type of Source Book-1 Author (Treat similarly as for books: reports, brochures, manuals, audiovisual media) In-Text Citation Format
Your text here (Smith, 2008). OR According to Smith (1999), your text continues. - Page # required only for quotation/close paraphrase, regardless of number of authors - Repeat year in same when parenthetical

Reference Format
Author, A. A. (year). Title of work. Location: Publisher Smith, T. J. (2008). Management of organizations. San Diego, CA: Sea Publishing

Book-2 Authors

Your text here (Sanchez & Rim, 1999). OR According to Sanchez and Rim (1999), your text continues. -Cite both names each time in text -Repeat year in same when parenthetical -Note & vs. and usage

Sanchez, J. A., & Rim, R. E. (1999). Business ethics. New York: ABC Books

Book-3-5 Authors

Your text here (Sanchez, Rim, Jones & Chou, 1999). OR According to Sanchez, Rim, Jones and Chou (1999), your text continues. - After 1st citation in paper: Sanchez et al. whether in text or parenthetical. - Repeat year in same when parenthetical

Sanchez, J. A., Rim, R. E., Jones, C. E., Jr., & Chou, L. L. (2001). Multi-authored books. Chicago: Krion

Book-6 or More Authors

Song et al. whether in text or parenthetical. - Repeat year in same when parenthetical

Song, A. C., Rite, L. A., III, Strong, M. W., Lee, O. V., Aci, S. T., Trion, W. S. et al. (1995). The team. Springfield, IL: University Press National Organization for Women. (1999).

Group Author

(The National Organization for Women [NOW], 1999) Subsequent citations: (NOW, 1999)

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Post University Online

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APA Quick Reference Style Guide

Type of Source No Author In-Text Citation Format (Merriam-Webster, 1993) OR (First Words of the Title, 1998) OR (Anonymous, 2003) whether in text or parenthetical Periodical (Allen & Weiss, 2005). According to Criol and Thom (2000), - See entries under other types of sources, above, as needed Personal Communications (Letters, emails, interviews, etc.) Electronic (includes aggregated databases, online journals, Websites/pages, newsgroups, Web/ email-based discussion groups/ newletters) General T.C. Cummings (personal communication, July 21, 2006) OR (T.C. Cummings, personal communication, July 21, 2006) (Archer, 1998, 5) OR (Archer, 1998, para. 5) Criol, D. & Thom, Y. O. (2000, June 28). Weekly blotter, The Guardian Newspaper, pp. 13-14. (Format for meetings, monthly magazines, newsletters, or newspapers) Not considered as recoverable data, so do not include in the reference list. Cite in text only and should be scholarly relevant. Allen, C. J., & Weiss, A. B. (2005). How to cite in APA style, Journal of Style. 7(3), 176-181. Reference Format Merriam-Websters collegiate dictionary (10th ed.). (1993). Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster OR Title in author position. (1998). Rome: Renieri OR Anonymous. (2003). Business writing. Ames, IA: University Press.

Archer, B. B. (1998). Management today. Management News Online, IX, 22-28. Webb, J. H., & Quidley, X. (n.d.) How to retrieve internet information. Retrieved from http:// www.internotconsults.org Or - May use DOI ( digital object identifier) vs. Retreived ( url). Ex. DOI:xxxxxx - n.d.=no date available - Every citation requires a reference. - References are double-spaced, with hanging Indent. - List sources alphabetically by first author. - Center the References title at the top of the page. - Capitalize only first word of a title/ subtitle + proper nouns.

- See entries under other types of sources, above, as needed - If no page #, use paragraph number - URL is not used in the citation

Every reference requires at least one citation. - Use block quotation for more than 40 words. New line Double space/ indent block Citation No quotation marks - In text: use italics and upper/lower case for titles of longer works. Use quotations marks for articles, episodes, songs, etc.

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