Resources from the American Psychological Association
Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). (2010). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
(Ask at the Information Desk; a circulating copy is available at BF 76.7 .P83 2010)
DOIs
Some database articles may include a DOI, a Digital Object Identifier, a unique alphanumeric string that is assigned to an entity that is available on a digital network. The DOI allows networks to keep track of objects such as electronic journal articles, even when the objects are moved from one Internet location to another. (For more information, see http://www.doi.org/.) When an electronic resource contains a DOI, APA style includes the DOI at the end of your citation. Here's an example of an APA citation that uses a DOI: Wainberg, M. (2009, March 17). Criminalizing HIV transmission may be a mistake. CMAJ: Canadian Medical Association Journal, 180(6), 688-688. doi:10.1503/cmaj.090249
Citing References in Your Text
Detailed information on citing references is found in sections 6.11 to 6.21 of the publication manual. The in-text citations must refer to sources in your reference list and vice-versa. Citations always include the author and year, and if you quote or paraphrase a source, the page or paragraph number. Some examples are (Purcell, 1997, pp. 111-112) [one author quoted], (Walker & Allen, 2007) [2 authors], (Walker, Allen, Bradley, Ramirez, & Soo, 2008) [5 authors], (Wasserstein et al, 2005) [more than 5 authors].
Formatting Your Paper
Information on formatting a paper is found in section 8.03 of the publication manual as well as figures 2.1 through 2.3.
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Preferred Typeface: Times New Roman, 12 point font size
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Margins: at least 1 in. at the top, bottom, left, and right of every page.
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Line spacing: double-space, aligned to the left margin only (right margin is uneven); no hyphenation to break words at the end of lines
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Paragraph: indent the first line of each paragraph .5 in. except for the abstract, block quotations, titles and headings
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Major sections: each section starts on a separate page
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Title page: contains title, running head (flush left, all caps, at the top of title page and all subsequent pages), page number (at the top right of title page and all subsequent pages), author byline, institutional affiliation, and author note
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Abstract: numbered as page 2
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Text: numbered as page 3
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References: see sections 6.22 through 6.26. Double-space entries in a hanging indent format (first line of references is set flush left and subsequent lines are indented).
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Additional sections (tables, figures, appendices)
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Changes from the 5th Edition
The APA website contains an online tutorial, "What's New in the Sixth Edition."
Here are websites from other libraries that give good summaries of major changes:
APA Style - Print Sources
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Books |
Example |
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One author (7.02, ex. 18) |
Fairbanks, C. (1986). Prairie women: Images in American and Canadian fiction. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. |
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Two to seven authors (6.27) |
Davidson, W., Sweeney, D., & Stampfl, R. (1988). Retailing management (6th ed.). New York, NY: Wiley. |
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More than seven authors (6.27; 7.01, ex. 2) |
After the sixth author’s name insert 3 ellipses (…) and the last author’s name. |
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No author or editor (6.27) |
New York Public Library American history desk reference. (1997). New York, NY: Macmillan. |
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Anthology or compilation (6.27) |
Feldman, P. (Ed.). (1997). British women poets of the Romantic era. Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press. |
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Two editors (6.27) |
Larson, G. S., & Pepper, G. (Eds.). (1998). How to read a book (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Sage. |
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Work in an anthology (6.27) |
Shutte, N., & Tangley, L. (2000). Problem drinkers can learn moderation. In J. A. Hurley (Ed.), Addiction: Opposing viewpoints (pp. 93-100). San Diego, CA: Greenhaven. |
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Encyclopedia article (6.27) |
MacMahon, J. A. (2001). Desert ecosystems. In Encyclopedia of biodiversity (Vol. 2, pp. 37-59). San Diego, CA: Academic Press. |
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Articles |
Example |
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Magazine articles (6.27) (Do not abbreviate months.) |
(The first article below is from a weekly magazine; the second is from a monthly magazine.) Mathews, J. (2005, May 16). How to build a better high school. Newsweek, 145(20), 52-57. Wright, K. (2003, March). The first earthlings. Discover, 24(3), 24-25. |
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Journal article with continuous paging (6.27, 6.30) |
(Continuous pagination means that pages are numbered continuously throughout each annual volume; if the first issue ends on page 174, the first page of the second issue will be 175. This example is from the 19th issue of volume 294.) Cnattingius, S., Torrang, A., Ekbom, A., Granath, F., Petersson, G., & Lambe, M. (2005). Pregnancy characteristics and maternal risk of breast cancer. JAMA, 294, 2474-2480. |
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Journal article with issues paged separately (6.27, 6.30) |
(Each issue begins on page 1. This example is from the 4th issue of volume 50.) Albada, K. F. (2000). The public and private dialogue about the American family on television. Journal of communication, 50(4), 79-110. |
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Encyclopedia article (6.27) |
Civil disobedience. (2004). In The encyclopedia Americana. Danbury, CT: Scholastic Library. Mohanty, J. N. (1998). Indian philosophy. In The new encyclopaedia Britannica: Macropaedia. Chicago, IL: Encyclopaedia Britannica. |
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Newspaper article (6.27, 6.30) |
Harris, N. (2002, March 27). Airports in the throes of change. Wall Street Journal, p. B1. Elections could change the game for contractors. (2008, September 15). Washington Post, p. D2. |
APA Style - Electronic Sources
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Electronic Source |
Example |
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Online book (7.02, ex. 19) |
Ambler, T., & Witzel, M. (2000). Doing business in China. Retrieved from http://site.ebrary.com |
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Magazine article from a subscription service (6.32, 7.01) |
Kluger, J. (1996, February). Dr. Sigmund Doolittle. Discover, 17(2), 84-87. Retrieved from http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com |
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Journal article from a subscription service (with and without DOI) (6.30, 6.32, 7.01, ex. 1, 3) (Note in the examples to the right that the Hébert and Thompson citations include the issue number in parentheses after the volume number, as those journals paginate each issue separately; that is, each issue begins with page #1 rather than one higher than the last page of the previous issue.) |
Hébert, R. (2008). What's new in nicotine & tobacco research. Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 10(3), 399-405. doi:10.1080/14622200801986758 Lappan, G. (1999). Revitalizing and refocusing our efforts. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 30, 568-78. Retrieved from http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com/hww Thompson, M. D., & Riggs, R. O. (2000). Institutional expenditure patterns and the facilitation of mission. Community College Review, 27(4), 1-15. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost |
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Newspaper article from a subscription service (6.32, 7.01, ex. 11) |
Olson, E. (2005, December 14). Something new: A 4-year degree at a 2-year college. New York Times. Retrieved from http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb |
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Encyclopedia article or work in anthology from a subscription service (6.32, 7.02, ex. 9) |
Howard, L. (1987). Zora Neale Hurston. In T. Harris (Ed.), Dictionary of literary biography: Afro-American writers from the Harlem Renaissance to 1940. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com/ps |
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Website (from APA’s website) |
Bio. (2009). Retrieved from http://www.biography.com |
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Article on website (No specific instruction is listed; so follow the general guidelines in 6.32) |
Musinsky, G. (1998). Animal spirits. Encyclopedia Mythica. Retrieved from http://www.pantheon.org/animal-spirits.html |
APA Style - Non-print Sources
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Nonprint Source |
Example |
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Personal Interview (6.20) |
Personal communications, such as personal interviews, are not included in the reference list. They are cited only in the text; for example: (L. Prince, personal communication, April 25, 2009) |
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Videotape or DVD (7.07, ex. 49) |
Collins, M. (Writer/Producer), & Wolfinger, K. (Director). (2002). Bioterror [VHS]. United States: WGBH Boston Video. |
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