THE WONDERFUL
WORLD OF APA
An Introduction to the
American Psychological Association’s
Style of Citation
Adapted from Medicine Hat College Library Services
WHY USE APA?

It will help you to:

Organize your ideas.

Communicate more effectively with your audience.

Develop consistent documentation/writing style.

Avoid issues regarding plagiarism.
PLAGIARISM

What is it?



It is intellectual theft – the conveyance of another
person’s ideas or words as your own.
Includes: art, lyrics, music, photography, programming,
research material (graphics and statistics)
Consequences?
Failure of assignment or class.
 Removal from program or institution.


How can I avoid it?
Take accurate and complete notes.
 Cite all borrowed information.
 Use quotation marks around borrowed phrases and
words.

•What is Plagiarism?
BASIC RULES (PT. 1)
Use standard 8.5 x 11 inch good quality white
paper.
 Font Style: 12-pt Times Roman
 Double space throughout the paper.
 Use a 1 in. (2.54 cm) margins on all sides of each
page.
 Left justify your margins
 Indent the first line of every paragraph five– seven
spaces (½ in. [standard <Tab> key]).
 2 spaces following the conclusion of a sentence. 1
space after other punctuation marks.

BASIC RULES (PT. 2)
Paper is single sided.
 All pages are numbered and have a running head.
 Visuals may include graphs, photographs, tables,
etc. Clearly label each visual with a title that
concisely describes its subject. In the text of your
paper refer to the visual by the title.

BASIC RULES (PT. 3)

There is an order to the paper:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Title page
Abstract
Text
References
Footnotes
Tables
Figures
Appendices
HEADINGS
Used to organize the content of a paper.
 Provides a visual cue to the reader – allows them to
recognize the idea(s) that are to follow.
 The 5 headings:

Centered, Bold, Title Case Heading [Level 1]
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Flush Left, Bold, Title Case Heading [Level 2]
Indented, bold, sentence case, paragraph heading ending with
a period. . . . . [Level 3]
Indented, bold, italicized, sentence case, paragraph heading
ending with a period. . . . . [Level 4]
Indented, italicized, sentence case, paragraph heading ending
with a period. . . . . [Level 5]
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CITING MATERIAL

Two major components:

In-text/parenthetical citation
Placed in narrative of paper (when information is borrowed)
 Directs reader to “References” page


“References” page citation (bibliographic information)
Contains the detailed bibliographic information about borrowed
source material
 Allows readers to verify source material

QUOTING


When employing a quote, you must display the author, year of
publication and page number in your narration.
Sample:
Some management theorists suggested, “that successful corporations must
primarily produce brands, as opposed to products” (Klein, 2000, p. 3).
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[Version 1]
OR
Klein (2000) noted that some management theorists suggest, “that successful
corporations must primarily produce brands, as opposed to products” (p. 3).
[Version 2]
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BLOCK QUOTING


When block quoting, you must display the author, year and
page number in your narration.
Sample:
Klein (2000), in the book No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies, wrote:
The astronomical growth in the wealth and cultural influence of
multinational corporations over the last fifteen years can arguably be
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½”
traced back to a single, seemingly innocuous idea developed by
management theorists in the mid-1980s: that successful corporations
must primarily produce brands, as opposed to products. (p. 3)
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PARAPHRASING


When paraphrasing, you must display the author and year of
publication in your narration.
Sample:
It is suggested that management theories, developed in the mid-1980s, put forth
the idea that branding is as important to corporate success as the actual product
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that is produced (Klein, 2000). [Version 1]
OR
Klein (2000) suggested that management theories, developed in the mid-
1980s, put forth the idea that branding is as important to corporate success as
the actual product that is produced. [Version 2]
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BIBLIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION

Where do I find it?

Books
Title and publisher page
 Online Public Access/Library Catalogues (OPACs)


Periodicals (journals, magazines, & newspapers)
Cover, table of contents, or publication page in periodical
 Database’s (a.k.a. Online Periodical Index) abstract or citation


Web Pages


Scour the page and/or site (it will rarely be in one place)
Others (pamphlets, posters, audiovisual media, etc.)

Search carefully and provide as much information as possible
CITATION – ONE AUTHOR

Example:
Klein, N. (2000). No logo: Taking aim at the brand bullies. Toronto,
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Double spaced.
Canada: Vintage Canada.
Hanging indent.
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CITATION – TWO AUTHORS

Example
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Cushing, C. E., & Allan, J. D. (2001). Streams: Their ecology and life.
San Diego, CA: Academic Press.

In-text:
Cushing and Allan (2001) compared…
 (Cushing & Allan, 2001)

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CITATION – THREE TO FIVE AUTHORS

Example:
Hayes, S. C., Stosahl, K. D., & Wilson, K. G. (1999). Acceptance
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and commitment therapy. New York, NY: Guilford
Press.

In-text:

First time citing work:
Hayes, Strosahl and Wilson (1999) found…
 (Hayes, Stroshal, & Wilson, 1999)


Subsequent Citations:
Hayes et al. (1999) discovered….
 (Hayes et al., 1999)

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CITATION EXCEPTIONS

Six or More Authors

In text:
Cite only the surname of the first author then et al. and the year
 Example:
 Wasserstein et al. (2005) found…
 (Wasserstein et al., 2005)


Eight or more Authors in REFERENCE LIST
Use the first six authors, then three ellipses and last authors
name
 Example:


Gilbert, D. G., McClernon, J. F., Rabinovich, N. E., Sugai, C., Plath, L. C.,
Asgaard,G., …Botros, N. (2004). Effects of quitting smoking on
EEG activation and attention last for more than 31 days and are
more severe with stress, dependence, DRD2 A1 allele, and
depressive traits. Nicotine and Tobacco Research, 6, 249-267.
CITATION – COMPANY/ORGANIZATION AS AUTHOR

Example:
 In-text:
.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2009). CDC
: recommendations for the amount of time persons with
influenza-like illness should be away from others. Retrieved
from http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/guidance/exclusion.htm

In-text:
(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009)
 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2009)

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CITATION – MULTIPLE WORKS BY THE SAME
AUTHOR

Example:
Koriat, A. (2008a). Easy comes, easy goes? The link between learning and
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remembering and its exploitation in metacognition. Memory &
Cognition, 36, 416–428. doi:10.3758/MC.36.2.416
Koriat, A. (2008b). Subjective confidence in one’s answers: The consensuality
principle. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory,
and Cognition, 34, 945–959. doi:10.1037/0278-7393.34.4.945

In-text:


(Koriat, 2008a) and (Koriat, 2008b)
References are alphabetized by title
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BOOKS & EBOOK CITATION

Entire Book - Print Version

Greenburg, B.H. (2010). Management of heart failure. West Sussex,
London: Wiley-Blackwell.

Electronic Version of Print Book

Greenburg, B.H. (2010). Management of heart failure. Retrieved from
http://www.ebrary.com/corp/
PRINT JOURNAL ARTICLE CITATION

Example:
Sockett, H. T. (1987). Has Shulman got the strategy right? Harvard
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Double spaced.
Educational Review, 57(2), 208– 219.
Hanging indent.
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WEB SITE CITATION

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Example:
Garth, P. E. (2004). Research advances in the nursing sciences.
Retrieved from http://www.cc.gatech.edu/gvu/usersurveys/
survey1997-10/
Hanging indent.
Double
spaced.
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ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

Chapter/Section of a Book
Regulus, T. A. (1995). Gang violence. In R. L. Edwards (Ed.),
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Encyclopedia of social work (19th ed., Vol. 2, pp. 1045–1055).
Washington, DC: National Association of Social Workers.

In-text:
Regulus (1995) determined . . . .
 . . . (Regulus, 1995).

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ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

Journal Article with DOI
Yu, H., Zhou, Y.-J., Li, G.-X., Zhang, G.-H., Liu, H.-L., Yan, . . . &
Tong, G.-Z. (2009). Further evidence for infection of pigs with
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human-like influenza viruses in China. Virus Research, 140,
85–90. doi:10.1016/j.virusres.2008.11.008

In-text:
Yu et al. (2009) discovered that . . . .
 It was discovered that . . . (Yu et al., 2009).

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WHERE CAN I FIND THE DOI?
ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

Journal Article with no DOI
Sillick, T. J., & Schutte, N. S. (2006). Emotional intelligence and self-
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esteem mediate between perceived early parental love and adult
happiness. E-Journal of Applied Psychology, 2(2) 38-48. Retrieved
from http://ojs.lib.swin.edu.au/index.php/ejap

In-text:
According to Sillick and Schutte (2006) . . . .
 . . . (Sillick & Schutte, 2006).

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ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

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Newspaper Article – no author
Rotor blades fail inspection. (2002, July 27). Medicine Hat News,
p. A1.

In-text:
In the article “Rotor Blades Fail Inspection” (2002) . . . .
 . . . (“Rotor Blades Fail Inspection,” 2002).

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ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

Wikis
American Psychological Association [Wiki article]. (2009, July 9).
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Retrieved July 20, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
American_Psychological _Association

In-text:
The article titled “American Psychological Association”
(2009) suggests that . . . .
 It has been suggested that . . . (“American Psychological
Association,” 2009).

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ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

Video Blogs (e.g., YouTube)
myredroom. (2007, June 10). Paul sings Nessun Dorma high
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quality video/sound widescreen 16:9 [Video file]. Retrieved
from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k08yxu57NA

In-text:

Simon Cowell, a notoriously difficult judge, said that Paul
Potts's performance on Britain's Got Talent, "was a complete
breath of fresh air" (myredroom, 2007). Cowell went on to
say that, "I thought you were absolutely fantastic."
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ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

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
Brochure
Travel Alberta. (2002). Official Alberta vacation guide [Brochure].
Edmonton, Canada: Author.
In-text:
In the brochure by Travel Alberta (2002) . . . .
 . . . (Travel Alberta, 2002).

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ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

Video
Gillespie, M. (Producer), & Ashworth, S. (Director). (2000). Faces of
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reality [Videotape]. Edmonton, Canada: Alberta Alcohol and Drug
Abuse Commission.

In-text:
In the video Faces of Reality produced by Gillespie and
directed by Ashworth (2000) . . . .
 . . . (Gillespie & Ashworth, 2000).

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ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES

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
No Date
Rosenthal, R. (n.d.). Social research procedures. Newbury Park, CA:
Sage.
In-text:
In the text by Rosenthal (n.d.) . . . .
 . . . (Rosenthal, n.d.).

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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
American Psychological Association. (2010).Publication
manual of the American Psychological Association
(6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
 American Psychological Association. (2010). Concise
rules of APA style (6th ed.). Washington, DC:
Author.
 APA Style.org - http://apastyle.org/
