APA Formatting &

Style Guide

Edward Christian R. Gan

Ma. Corazon Salazar
Why In-text citations important?
 Show where you got your information from.
 Adds credibility to your paper.
 Helps to protect you from plagiarism.
What is APA Style?
• The American Psychological Association (APA) citation style is the most
commonly used format for manuscripts in the social sciences.

• APA regulates:
• Stylistics
• In-text citations
• References
POINT OF VIEW
– First-person pronouns rather than third-person

• : “We conducted an experiment…”

• : “The authors conducted an experiment….”
VOICE
– Active voice when stressing the actions of the research

• : “We asked participants questions.”

• : “The participants have been asked questions by the researchers.”

– Passive voice when stressing the recipient or object of the action

• : “The tests were inconclusive.”

• : “We found the tests inconclusive.”
TYPES OF APA PAPERS
• Quantitative Articles
 Report quantitative research, which uses empirical and numerical
information often analyzed through statistical means.
Ex. Experiments, Surveys with closed-ended questions.

• Qualitative Articles:
 Report qualitative research, which uses scientific practices to learn more
about human experiences that cannot be numerically quantified.
Ex. Interviews with open-ended questions
TYPES OF APA PAPERS
• The Literature Review:
• Summarizes scientific literature on a particular research topic.

• While the APA Publication Manual does not require a specific order for
a literature review, a good literature review typically contains the
following components:
• Introduction
• Thesis statement
• Summary and synthesis of sources
• List of References
GENERAL APA FORMAT
• Your essay should:
• Be typed
• Double-spaced
• Have 1” margins
• Use 10-12pt. Standard font (ex. Times New Roman)
• Be printed on standard-sized paper (8.5”x 11”)
GENERAL APA FORMAT
• Every page of your essay should include:
• The page number in the upper right
• If it is a professional paper: A page header (shortened title, all caps) in
the upper left-hand corner.
• Student papers do not require running headers.
GENERAL APA FORMAT
• Your essay should include four major sections:

Title page Abstract

Abstract Main
Main Body
Body References
References
GENERAL APA FORMAT
Note that APA 7 has slightly different formatting rules for professional and
student papers. Professional papers are those intended for
academic/commercial publication, while student papers are those written for
credit in a course.

Most of these differences extend to the title page and the running header.
TITLE PAGE – STUDENT PAPER
Page header:
Student papers contain no
running head. Simply
insert a page number
flush right.

Title:
(in the upper half of the
page, centered)
name (no title or degree)
+ academic department,
course, instructor, and
date.
TITLE PAGE – PROFESSIONAL PAPER
Page header:
(use Insert Page Header)
Type short form of title flush
left in all capitals + page
number flush right.

Title:
(in the upper half of the page,
centered)
name (no title or degree) +
affiliation (university, etc.)
TITLE PAGE – PROFESSIONAL PAPER
Author Note:
> this may contain the following
items, each on a separate line:
- Links to ORCID IDs
- Any affiliation changes
- Any special disclosures or
acknowledgments
- Contact info for the corresponding
author
Omit any items that are irrelevant.
ABSTRACT
Page header continues on all
pages for professional papers
only. Student papers contain
only the page number.

Abstract: centered and bolded at

the top of the page.

Write a 150- to 250- word

summary of your paper in an
accurate, and concise manner.
Follow the abstract with a
short list of keywords.
MAIN BODY (TEXT)
1. Number the first text page as page number 3
2. Center and bold the (full) title of the paper at the top of the page
3. Type the text double-spaced with all sections following each other
without a break.
4. Identify the sources you use in the paper with either narrative citations
or parenthetical, in-text citations.
5. Format tables and figures
REFERENCE PAGE
• Center the title (References) at the
top of the page. Bold this title.

• Double-space reference entries

• Flush left the first line of the entry

and indent subsequent lines

• Order entries alphabetically by the

surname of the first author of each
work
REFERENCE (BASICS)
•Invert authors’ names (last name first followed by initials)

• EX:“Smith, J.Q.”

• Capitalize only the first letter of the first word of a title and subtitle, the first
word after a colon or a dash in the title, and proper nouns. Do not capitalize
the first letter of the second word in a hyphenated compound word.

• EX: The perfectly formatted paper: How the Purdue OWL saved my
essay.
REFERENCE (BASICS)
• Capitalize all major words in journal titles

• Italicize titles of longer works such as books and journals

• Do not italicize, underline, or put quotes around the titles of shorter works
such as journal articles or essays in edited collections
MAKING THE REFERENCE LIST
APA is a complex system of citation. When compiling the reference list, the strategy below might be useful:

1. Identify the type of source:

Is it a book? A journal article? A webpage?

2. Find a sample citation for this type of source

Check a textbook or the OWL APA Guide:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa7_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general
_format.html

3. “Mirror” the sample

4. Make sure that the entries are listed in alphabetical order and that the subsequent lines are indented
(Recall References: Basics)
IN-TEXT CITATIONS - BASICS
In-text citations help readers locate the cited source in the References section of the paper.
In-text citations follow either a parenthetical format or a narrative format.

A parenthetical citation includes both the author’s last name and year of publication,
separated by a comma, in parentheses at the end of the sentence.

EX: Research suggests that the Purdue OWL is a good resource for students (Atkins,
2018).

A narrative citation includes the author’s name directly in the sentence, with the year of
publication directly following the author’s last name.

EX: Atkins (2018) suggests that the Purdue OWL is a good resource for students.
 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – PAGE NUMBERS
If the source you’re citing includes page numbers, add that information to your citation.

For a parenthetical citation, the page number follows the year of publication, separated by a
comma, and with a lowercase p and a period before the number (p.)

EX: Research suggests that the Purdue OWL is a good resource for students (Atkins, 2018, p.
12).

For a narrative citation, the page number comes at the end of the sentence, once again
preceded by a lowercase p and a period (p.)

EX: Atkins (2018) suggests that the Purdue OWL is a good resource for students (p. 12).
 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – QUOTATIONS
When quoting:
Introduce the quotation with a signal phrase

If using the parenthetical citation, include the author, date of publication, and page number at
the end of the quotation.

EX: As scientific knowledge advances, “the application of CRISPR technology to improve

human health is being explored across public and private sectors”(Hong, 2018, p. 503).

If using the narrative-style citation, include the author’s last name in the signal phrase, with
the page number at the end of the quote.

EX: Hong (2018) stated that “the application of CRISPR technology to improve human
health is being explored across public and private sectors” (p. 503).
IN-TEXT CITATIONS –
SUMMARY/PARAPHRASE
Follow the same guidelines for parenthetical and narrative citations when summarizing or
paraphrasing a longer chunk of text.

Parenthetical citation:

EX: In one study that consisted of 467 young adults, it was found that social media use
may not directly affect mental health; rather, it depends on how young adults use social
media (Berryman, Ferguson, & Negy, 2018).

Narrative citation:

EX: Berryman, Ferguson, and Negy (2018) sampled 467 young adults about their social
media use and mental health and found that social media use may not directly affect
mental health; rather, it depends on how young adults use social media.
 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – SIGNAL WORDS
Introduce quotations with signal phrases, e.g.:

According to Reynolds (2019), “….” (p. 3).

Reynolds (2019) argued that“……” (p. 3).

Use signal verbs such as:

acknowledged, contended, maintained,

responded, reported, argued, concluded, etc.

Use the past tense or the present perfect tense of verbs in signal phrases when they discuss
past events.
 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – 2 OR MORE
WORKS
When the parenthetical citation includes two or more works:
•Order them in the same way they appear in the reference list—the author’s name, the year of
publication—separated by a semi-colon.

EX: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet (Adams, 2018; Collins, 2017).
 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – 2 AUTHORS
When citing a work with two authors:
•In the narrative citation, use “and” in between the authors’ names

EX: According to scientists Depietri and McPhearson (2018), “Understanding the

occurrence and impacts of historical climatic hazards is critical to better interpret current
hazard trends” (p. 96).

•In the parenthetical citation, use “&” between names

EX: When examining potential climate threats, “Understanding the occurrence and
impacts of historical climatic hazards is critical to better interpret current hazard trends”
(Depietri & McPhearson, 2018, p. 96).
 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – 3 AUTHORS
When citing a work with three or more authors:
•list the name of the first author plus “et al.” in every citation.

EX: Lin et al. (2019) examined how weather conditions affect the popularity of the
bikesharing program in Beijing.

EX: One study looked at how weather conditions affected the popularity of bikesharing
programs, specifically the Beijing Public Bikesharing Program (Lin et al., 2019).
 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – UNKNOWN
AUTHORS
When citing a work with an unknown author:
•Use the source’s full title in the narrative citation.
•Cite the first word of the title followed by the year of publication in the parenthetical
citation.

EX: According to “Here’s How Gardening Benefits Your Health” (2018)

EX: (“Here’s,” 2018)

Titles:
Articles and Chapters = “ ”
Books and Reports = italicize
 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – GROUP AUTHORS
When citing a group author:
•Mention the organization the first time you cite the source in either the narrative citation or the parenthetical
citation.
•If you first mention the group in a narrative citation, list the abbreviation before the year of publication in
parentheses, separated by a comma.

EX: “The data collected by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA, 2019) confirmed…”

•If you first mention the group in a parenthetical citation, list the abbreviation in square brackets, followed by
a comma and the year of publication.

EX: (Food and Drug Administration [FDA], 2019).

 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – SAME LAST NAME/AUTH
When citing authors with the same last names:
•Use first initials with the last names.

EX: (B. Davis, 2018; Y. Davis, 2020)

When citing two or more works by the same author and published in the same year:
•Use lower-case letters (a, b, c) after the year of publication to order the references.

EX: Chen’s (2018a) study of bird migration…

 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – PERSONAL COM.
When citing personal communication (interviews, letters, e-mails, etc.):
•Include the communicator’s name, the fact that it was personal communication, and the date of the
communication.
•Narrative citation:

EX: B. E. Anderson (personal communication, January 8, 2020) also claimed that many of her students had
difficulties with APA style.

•Parenthetical citation:

EX: One teacher mentioned that many of her students had difficulties with APA style (Anderson, personal
communication, January 8, 2020).

•Do not include personal communication in the reference list.

 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – NO PAGE NUMBER
When citing a text with no page numbers: parenthetical citation
•Use any of the following four methods
•List the heading or section name
EX: One scientist noted that “A cup full of kale can help your body out in a number of ways” (London,
2019, Health benefits of kale section).
•List an abbreviated heading or section name in quotation marks (if the heading is too long)
EX: One scientist noted that “A cup full of kale can help your body out in a number of ways” (London,
2019, “Health benefits” section).
•List the paragraph number
EX: One scientist noted that “A cup full of kale can help your body out in a number of ways” (London,
2019, para. 2).
•List the heading or section name and the paragraph number
EX: One scientist noted that “A cup full of kale can help your body out in a number of ways” (London,
2019, Health benefits of kale section, para. 2).
 IN-TEXT CITATIONS – NO PAGE NUMBER
When citing a text with no page numbers: narrative citation
•Use any of the following four methods
•List the heading or section name
EX: Scientist Jaclyn London (2019, Health benefits of kale section) noted that “A cup full of kale can help
your body out in a number of ways.”
•List an abbreviated heading or section name in quotation marks (if the heading is too long)
EX: Scientist Jaclyn London (2019, “Health benefits” section) noted that “A cup full of kale can help your
body out in a number of ways.”
•List the paragraph number
EX: Scientist Jaclyn London (2019, para. 2) noted that “A cup full of kale can help your body out in a
number of ways.”
•List the heading or section name and the paragraph number
EX: Scientist Jaclyn London (2019, Health benefits of kale section, para. 2) noted that “A cup full of kale
can help your body out in a number of ways.”
 HEADINGS
APA uses a system of five heading levels (taken directly from the APA Publication Manual, 7th edition):

APA Headings
Level Format
1 Centered, Bold, Title Case Headings
Text begins a new paragraph

2 Flush Left, Bold, Title Case Heading

Text begins as a new paragraph

3 Flush Left, Bold Italic, Title Case Heading

Text begins as a new paragraph

4 Indented, Bold, Title Case Heading, Ending with a Period. Text begins on the same line and
continues as a regular paragraph.

5 Indented, Bold Italic, Title Case Heading, Ending with a Period. Text begins on the same line and
continues as a regular paragraph.
 HEADINGS
Here is an example of the five-level heading system:
 TABLES
Label tables with an Arabic numeral and provide a brief but clear title. The label and title appear on separate
lines above the table, flush-left and single-spaced.

Cite a source in a note below the table.

Table 1
Top 3 NBA Season Leaders 2019

Team Points Per Game

Milwaukee Bucks 119.8
Houston Rockets 119.1
Dallas Mavericks 116.8

Note: This data was collected on December 31st, 2019. Retrieved from https://stats.nba.com/teams/
 FIGURES
Label figures with an Arabic numeral and provide a brief but clear title. The label and title appear on separate
lines above the figure, flush-left and single-spaced. You might provide an additional title centered above the
figure. Figure 1.
US Primary Energy Consumption by Energy Source, 2018
Cite the source in a note below the figure.
REFERENCE
The Purdue OWL: http://owl.purdue.edu

The Purdue Writing Lab @ Heavilon Hall 226

Composition textbooks

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed.

APA’s website: http://www.apastyle.org

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MELON
KIWI
ORANGE
SUNFLOWER
PASTA
Thank You!

Edward Christian R. Gan

Ma. Corazon Salazar