APA Documentation Style for
Research Papers
Observing APA Documentation Style
 In-text Citation of Sources
= Textual and Parenthetical Citations
 Bibliographic Citation of Sources
= “References”
APA Style
• American Psychological Association (APA)
• 7th edition of The Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association (APA)
• Author-Year Format
• Last name of the author
• Page number for a direct quotation
• p. or pp. before page numbers
APA Style
Sample 1: In-text Citation (Paraphrase)
Nguyen (2000) has advanced the idea of combining
the social sciences and mathematics to chart human
behavior.
APA Style
Sample 2: In-text Citation (Short Quotation)
Nguyen (2000) has advanced the idea of “soft
mathematics,” which is the practice of “applying
mathematics to study people’s behavior” (p. B4).
APA Style
Sample 3: In-text Citation (Long Quotation)
Albert (2011) reported the following:
Whenever these pathogenic organisms attack the human
body and begin to multiple, the infection is set in motion.
The host responds to this parasitic invasion with efforts to
cleanse itself of the invading agents. When rejection
efforts of the host become visible (fever, sneezing,
congestion), the disease status exists. (pp. 314-315)
APA Style: Sample Bibliography
References
Adelman, H., & Taylor, L. (2008). Attention problems:
Intervention and resources. UCLA Center for Mental
Health
in
Schools.
Retrieved
from
http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/Attention/
attention.pdf
Mancall, P. C. (2010). Fatal journey: The final expedition of
Henry Hudson. New York, NY: Basic.
Matthews, J. (2004, April 9). Federal education law sneezes out
recess. Washington Post, p. A22.
Web Sites: Guidelines on Citations
• Citation Machine (MLA & APA Styles)
http://citationmachine.net
• Long Island University (Major Styles)
www.liu.edu/CWIS/CWP/library/workshop/citation.htm
• The Writing Center at the University of WisconsinMadison (Chicago Manual Style)
www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/DocChicago.html
IN-TEXT CITATION
GENERAL RULE
Information considered to be of Common
Knowledge and is in the public domain
does NOT need a reference.
Types of Information for Reference
Contested Knowledge
•Origin of an idea
•Opinion
•Research finding
•Theory open to challenge or debate
Common Knowledge vs. Contested Knowledge
• Common Knowledge
Christopher Columbus sailed across the Atlantic Ocean
in 1492.
• Contested Knowledge
According to recent research involving DNA samples
from 500-year-old bones, it has been claimed that
Christopher Columbus is buried in the cathedral in
Seville, Spain and not in the Dominican Republic.
(Associated Press, 2006).
Integral Reference
• A citation where the author’s name has a
grammatical function in the sentence
• Its various ways:
1 Cited author as the subject of a sentence
2 Cited author included in an adjunct phrase at
the beginning of the sentence
3 Cited author as the agent of the verb in a
passive sentence and follows the preposition
by
Integral Reference: Sample
• Cited Author as Subject
Donna Haraway (1991, 1997), amongst other
scholars, has argued that knowledge is embodied
and situated, that the content of a scientific text
is shaped by the place of its production.
Integral Reference: Sample
• Cited Author in Initial Adjunct Phrase
According to Barone et al. (1997), it is part of the
current agenda of social cognitive psychology to
acquire a better understanding of individual
differences in self-regulation.
Integral Reference: Sample
• Cited Author as Agent in Passive Sentence
One cross-sectional study that may support this
hypothesis was conducted by Gyurcsik and
Brawley (2001).
Integral Reference
• Emphasizes the cited author’s ownership of the idea cited
• Illustrates a comparison of viewpoints of different authors
SAMPLE
According to Milroy and Milroy (1997:52), language maintenance
(LM) can signify the ‘process of consciously maintaining – if
necessary by government intervention – a particular form of a
language in a population where there is linguistic diversity…’ or it
can refer to non-institutional practice in small-scale communities to
ensure the survival of the community language. Thieberger
(1992:334) views LM as either (i) a description of the state of shift
that a language has undergone that is, how much of a language is
actually maintained, or (ii) those activities engaged in with an aim of
maintaining languages. For Fase et al. (1992), LM refers to keeping
the language in use as well as maintaining the users’ proficiency in
the language. For the purpose of this study, LM can be viewed as …
Non-integral Reference
• Cited author’s name in brackets/parentheses outside
the structure of the sentence in the text
• No grammatical function within that sentence
• Emphasis on the idea, theory, or finding NOT author
• Its various ways:
1 Single Reference
2 Generalization: Combined Attribution
3 Attribution to Different Authors
Non-integral Reference: Sample
Single Reference
There are four broad categories of issues that
affect commitment: personal characteristics, rolerelated characteristics, structural characteristics,
and work experiences (Mowday et al. 1982).
Non-integral Reference: Sample
Generalization: Combined Attribution
Role-related characteristics of organizational
commitment are also discussed in terms of job
scope or challenge, role conflict, and role
ambiguity (Mowday et al. 1982; Allen and
Meyer, 1990).
Non-integral Reference: Samples
Attribution to Different Authors
Other notable effects [of organizational change]
include reduced job satisfaction and distrust (Baleman
and Strasser, 1984), a decline in motivation (Mowday,
Porter and Steers, 1982; Bennett and Durkin, 2000),
absenteeism (Mowday et al., 1982; Clegg, 1983),
health (Begley and Czajka, 1993), union issues and job
insecurity (Worral et al., 2002).
Types of Citation
• Summary
• Generalization
• Short direct quotation
• Long direct quotation
Types of Citation
• Summary
… several research programs have challenged the
assumption that intentions are an important cause of
behaviour. For example, Wegner and Wheatley (1999)
proposed that the subjective experience of intentions
causing behaviour is an illusion.
Types of Citation
• Generalization: Combined Attribution
Wegner and Wheatley pointed to an influential program of
research by Bargh and colleagues (e.g., Bargh and
Charlrand,1999; Bargh, Chen, and Burrows, 1996; Bargh and
Ferguson, 2000; Bargh et al., 2001) which suggests that
behaviour is determined by mental processes that are put into
motion by features of the environment and that operate
outside of conscious awareness and guidance. In sum, whereas
several models of health and social behaviour assume that
intentions cause behaviour, recent research into automatic
behaviour and the illusion of conscious posits little or no causal
role for intention.
Types of Citation
• Short direct quotation
Wegner and Wheatley (1999) proposed that the
subjective experience of intentions causing
behaviour is an illusion; both intention and
behaviour are caused by a third variable;
‘unconscious mechanisms of the mind’ (490).
Types of Citation
• Long direct quotation
… Muraven et al. (1998) suggest that:
It is good to exert self-control on a regular basis
because in the long run, these exercises will
strengthen self-control and make a person less
susceptible to the depleting effects of a single
exertion. (456)
Blending/Integrating Notes
• Blended poorly
Chung-Tzu describes a sage as “suppose there is one who
insists on morality in all things, and who places love of
truth above all other values” (58).
• Properly integrated
Chung-Tzu describes a sage as “ one who insists on
morality in all things, and who places love of truth above
all vaues” (58).
Blending/Integrating Notes
• Badly blended
The poet showed his belief in self-criticism by writing that
“ I am a man driven myself over every trivial error” (15).
• Poorly handled
The poet showed his belief in self-criticism when he wrote
this about himself: “ I am a man driven to scold myself over
every trivial error” (15).
Poor Blending/Integrating Notes
According to McCullough “ the groundswell of public opinion against
the Japanese started in the early 1900s “ (191) . This is when the
United States Industrial Commission issued a report stating that the
Japanese “ are more servile than the Chinese, but less obedient and
far less desirable” (Conrat 18). At about the same time, the slogan of
politician and labor leader Dennis Kearney was that “ the Japs must
go!”(10). The mayor of San Francisco wrote that “the Japanese cannot
be taken into the American culture because they are not the stuff of
which American citizens are made (Daniels 9-10). In 1905, writes
McCullough, “the Japanese and Korean Expulsion League held its first
meeting and spawned many other such similar organizations” (102).
Good Blending/Integrating Notes
The anti-Japanese movement in America goes back to the turn of the
century, when the United States Industrial Commission claimed that
the Japanese “ are more servile than the Chinese, but less obedient
and far less desirable “ (Conrat 18). At about the same time, the
slogan of politician and labor leader Dennis Kearney was “ the Japs
must go!” while the mayor of San Francisco insisted that it was
impossible for the Japanese to assimilate into American culture and
that they were “not the stuff of which American citizens are made”
(Daniels 9-10). In this xenophobic atmosphere, the Japanese and
Korean Expulsion League was formed in 1905, and a number of other
anti-Japanese societies followed (McCullough 102).
Disciplinary Differences in Reporting Verbs
Discipline
Philosophy
Most frequent forms of reporting verb
say, suggest, argue, claim, point out, propose,
think
Sociology
argue, suggest, describe, note, analyse, discuss
Applied Linguistics suggest, argue, show, explain, find, point out
Marketing
suggest, argue, demonstrate, propose, show
Biology
describe, find, report, show, suggest, observe
Electronic
propose, use, describe, show, publish
Engineering
Mechanical
describe, show, report, discuss
Engineering
Physics
develop, report, study
Reasons for In-text Citations
• Acknowledging and showing respect for other
researchers’ contributions to the field
• Demonstrating allegiance to a particular research
community
• Establishing one’s credibility
• Providing justification and support
Reasons for In-text Citations
• Giving an illustration of the development of one’s
argument
• Creating a niche for one’s research
• Comparing, contrasting, and evaluating others’
works in the field
• Illustrating one’s understanding of the subject matter
Reasons for In-text Citations
• Enabling readers to track down one’s source texts
easily for more information
• Allowing the accuracy of one’s work to be checked
• Avoiding plagiarism
References
Lester , J. D., & Lester J.D. Jr. (2012). Writing research papers: A
complete guide (14th ed.). New Jersey: Pearson Education,
Inc.
Quaratiello, A. R. (2007). The college student’s research companion
(4th ed.). New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc.
Ridley, D. (2012). The literature review: A step-by-step guide for
students (2nd ed.). London: SAGE Publications Ltd.
Winkler, A. C., & McCuen, J. R. (2012). Writing the research paper:
A handbook (8th ed.). Singapore: Harcourt Asia Pte Ltd.