This document provides an overview of the American Psychological Association (APA) citation and formatting style. It discusses the key elements of APA papers such as the title page, abstract, headings, in-text citations, references, and appendices. Examples are provided to illustrate how to format these sections, including title pages, in-text citations, quotations, references for different source types, and appendices. Guidance is also given on writing style, avoiding bias, evaluating sources, paraphrasing versus quoting, and citing secondary sources in APA style.
2. APA refers to the formal and
citation standards of the
American Psychological
Association.
The sixth edition is the most
current.
Used in fields such as
psychology, nursing,
medicine, etc.
3. Title page
Abstract
Text
◦ Introduction
◦ Discussion
◦ Summary
References
Appendices
4. EXAMPLE OF Title Page
The title page must
include a running head,
the title, your name, the
institutional affiliation, and
date.
The running head is a
shorter version of your
title.
Running head: THE ISSUE OF ENTRY 1
The Issue of Entry Level into Practice
Your Name
University of Mary Hardin Baylor
Scott and White College of Nursing
Number and Name of Course
Instructor's Name
Date of Submission (e.g., April 12, 2013)
5.
6. On the title page, the running head must contain the words
“Running head:”. However, these words should not appear on
subsequent pages of the text.
The words “Running head” should appear in lower case with only
the first letter capitalized.
The shortened version of the title should appear in all caps after
“Running head:”.
Your running head should not exceed 50 characters.
Example:
Running head: THE ISSUE OF ENTRY LEVEL INTO PRACTICE
7. In MS Word 2015, click
on the Insert tab.
Choose “edit header”
from the “header” drop
down menu. In the
“header & footer tools”
section, check the box for
“Different first page.”
8. Page number
Move cursor to far right
Click on Current position
SHORT FORM OF TITLE 2
Title of Paper
Indentation and Headings
Indent paragraphs ½ inch (not five spaces). Use the Tab key, which is preset to
indent ½ inch. All lines in the paper are separated by one double space—never more,
never less. Repeat the paper's title, centered, on the first line of the first page of text.
APA papers never contain underlined text.
Headings are bolded (except for the title of the paper and titles of the abstract page,
table of contents page, reference page, and appendix pages). Capitalization and format of
headings depend upon level of heading (see APA manual). Do not begin a new page
with each new heading. (Only the abstract, table of contents, first page of paper,
reference page, and appendixes begin on new pages.) This paper illustrates three levels
of heading: styles, 1, 2, and 3. The paragraphs have been shortened in this model in
order to illustrate headings in a brief space. Paragraphs in an actual paper should never
be shorter than three sentences.
In-text citations
Example One
Rogers and Hewitt (2009) reported that . . . (paragraph continues)
Level 1 heading
Place title on first page of text, 1 double-space
above the first line or first heading. Title does not
count as a level of heading.
Level 1 heading
Level 2 heading
9. Should begin on a new page
Should be double-spaced
The title should appear centered at the top of the
page and is NOT bolded.
10. Primary goal: clear communication
Choose precise language
Avoid:
◦ Bias--schizophrenics
◦ Colloquial expressions
◦ Slang
◦ Contractions
Use active vs. passive voice
◦ e.g. The nursing researchers conducted the survey in a controlled
setting. (preferred) versus
◦ The survey was conducted in a controlled setting.
(APA, 2010, p. 77)
11. http://umhblib.umhb.edu/
Avoid wikis (such as
Wikipedia, etc.)
Avoid biased sources
Use the most current
research
Use scholarly sources
A great place to start is the
collection of databases
through the UMHB library.
http://umhblib.umhb.edu/
13. A scholarly source is
◦ Peer-reviewed
◦ Published by a reputable scholarly association or society,
university or recognized scholarly publisher
A scholarly source is NOT
◦ An article in a popular magazine
◦ From a popular website like Yahoo, Google or WebMD
◦ From a community edited document like
Wikipedia
14. You must give credit to any use of ideas, theories
or research that directly influenced your work.
This includes definitions, statistics and theoretical
support for your claim.
Include the APA manual.
15. When referring to the author in the text of the
paper, use the specific name rather than “the
author”.
For example, use “According to Smith and
Johnson (2015)…” rather than “According to the
researchers…”
16. The author’s name can be cited in the text with the
year in parenthesis:
◦ Smith (2015) found that…
◦ Both author(s) and year can be cited in a parenthetical
citation at the end of the sentence:
…was supported by the study (Smith, 2015).
17. Group as author
◦ When a group appears as an author, the last name is spelled
out the first time cited
◦ When a group appears as an author, first citation in text list all
up to 5 authors. If six or more authors state primary author only
and use et al.
◦ Examples:
Walker, Allen, Bradley, Ramirez and Soo (2008)
Walker and associates (2008) in text ;
(Walker et al., 2008) at end of sentence
Wasserstein and colleagues (2009) for 6 authors or
(Wasserstein et al., 2009) for 6 authors
(American Nurses Association [ANA], 2014)
APA (2010) pp. 176-177.
18. Require author, year, and page number in the in-
text citation
Example: (Smith, 2011, p. 46).
40 words or less: incorporate into text
More than 40 words, use block quoting
Must be completely accurate
Mark changes by using brackets
Example: … they [women]
19. Block quoting is used when a quote is longer than forty
words. Example :
These would be the actual words from your source. This quote is
longer than 40 words and therefore cannot be quoted in the text.
Using the format allows you to incorporate longer quotes into
your work. Notice that this quote is indented and does not begin nor
end with quotation marks. The citation will fall at the end of the
quote in parenthesis. The final punctuation mark will fall before the
parenthetical citation. (Potter & Perry, 2010, pp. 92-93)
APA (2010) p. 171.
20. http://www.texasnurses.org/?page=PAC
The TNA (2015) explained that the “…RN/APRN PAC
identifies candidates deserving of nurses' endorsement
and financial support in races for the Texas Senate,
Texas House of Representatives, and selected statewide
races including the governor and lieutenant governor
races” (para. 2).
APA Manual (2010) p. 172
21. Use sparingly and only when you cannot obtain
the primary source.
Provide the secondary source in the reference list.
In text, provide the name for the original work and
a citation in the reference list for the secondary
source.
Example:
Nightingale’s diary (as cited in Watson, 2011)
stated that …
APA (2010) p. 178
22. References begin on a new page with the word
“Reference” or “References” centered at the top
of the page. It should NOT appear in bold.
The reference page should be double-spaced with
a hanging indent.
References should appear in alphabetical order.
23. Basic format for books:
Author, A. A. (year of publication).Title of work:
Capital letter also for subtitle. City and state of
publication: Publisher.
Keep in mind that not all
words in the title of a book
will be capitalized.
24. Journal with doi:
Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (year of
publication). Title of article. Title of Periodical, xx(i), pp-
pp. doi: xx.xxxxxxxx
Journal without doi:
Mancino, D. (2009). Entry level positions for new graduates:
Real-time dilemma requires real-time solutions. The
Journal of Nursing Education, 31(1), 1-7. Retrieved from
http://0-
search.ebscohost.com.umhblib.umhb.edu/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=rzh&AN=2010419740&site=ehost-live
NOTE: a retrieval date is unnecessary.
25. Appendices should be referenced in text within
parenthesis (see Appendix A).
Appendices will be included after the reference page.
Use a separate page for each appendix.
The work “Appendix” with the identifying letter should
appear centered at the top of the page and is not
bolded.
APA Manual (2010) p. 39
