How To Use APA Style
What is APA?
American
Psychological Association
A way to cite your sources
Why Cite Your Sources?
To
avoid plagiarism
To add credibility to your work
When Should You Cite?
When
using a direct quote
When paraphrasing what someone
said
When using an image that you
borrowed from another source
Correct vs. Incorrect Paraphrase
Direct Quote: “Multitasking is not real; the human mind,
sophisticated though it may be, is capable of attending to
no more than one task at a time” (Nestor, 2013, para. 7).
Incorrect paraphrase: Multitasking is not possible because
our brain, complex as it may be, is not able to attend to
more than one task at a time (Nestor, 2013, para. 7).
Correct paraphrase: According to Nestor (2013), our
brains cannot multitask (para. 7).
Characteristics of APA
Times New Roman, 12 pt. font
 1” margins-top, bottom, left, right
 Double space
 Title page
 Abstract
 Headings
 In-text-citations
 Reference page

In-text Citations
Use
signal phrases
Use author, year, page number
Examples of In-text citations

According to Perez (2014), “A good education opens the
door to a successful future” (p.25).

A good teacher once said, “A good education opens the
door to a successful future” (Perez, 2014, p.25).

Perez (2014) mentions how obtaining a good education
can secure a good future (p.25).
Unavailable Citation Information
 No
author:
(“Making the Grade,” 2014)
 No
date:
(“Making the Grade,” n.d.)
 No
page number:
(“Making the Grade,” n.d., para. 3)
Indirect Source

When an author quotes someone else in his work

The quoted author should be acknowledged in the
signal phrase

The author of the work where the quote is found
should be mentioned in the in-text citation
Example of an Indirect Source

McConnell (1994) states, “Opportunities for alternate
forms of interaction such as time to work on task and
time to develop online relationships are also important”
(as cited in Guldberg & Pilkington, 2007, p. 61).
Note: The Reference page will include citation information for Guldber &
Pilkington, but not for McConnel
Blocked Quotations
Are
longer than 40 words
Do not need quotation marks
Are completely indented and
double-spaced
Must have in-text citations
Example of a Blocked Quote
Using technology and participating in discussion groups does not ensure that a
person is learning, According to Guldberg and Pilkington (2007):
The type of question posed to students has an impact on subsequent
discussion patterns and leads to particular types of contributions from
students. We found that some questions were better at enabling dialogue
and reciprocity. These were questions that asked students to reflect on a
specific personal experience and to express an opinion about an area of
practice. (p.70)
References
List
of Sources
Alphabetized
Hanging indentations
Examples of References
 Online
publications (with DOI):
Watson, S.R. & Gable, R.A. (2013). Unraveling the complex nature of
mathematics learning disability: Implications for research and practice.
Learning Disability Quarterly, 36(3), 178-187.
doi:10.117/0731948712461489

Online publications (no DOI):
Bieler, D. (2013). Strengthening new teacher agency through holistic
mentoring. English Journal 102(3), 23-32. Retrieved from
http://www.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Resources/Journals/EJ/1023jan2013/EJ1023Strengthening.pdf
References Cont’d
Online stand alone document:
Homework/study tips. 2013. Retrieved from
http://homeworktips.about.com
Organization
as author:
Mothers Against Drunk Driving. (2013). Tips to protect children from
drunk driving. Retrieved from
http://www.madd.org/blog/2013/september/child-endangerment- tips.html
References Cont’d
 Archived
Survey
Pew Hispanic Center. (2008). 2007 Hispanic healthcare survey
[Data file and code book]. Retrieved from
http://pewhispanic.org/datasets/
 Personal
Survey
Personal surveys do not need to be cited in-text or in the reference page.
However, you should introduce your survey noting the methods, data, and
participants included
References Cont’d

Graphs, Charts, Tables
 From
a book:
New Strategist Editors . (2008). Women’s time use by age, 2007 [Table]. In New Strategist
Editors, American women: Who they are and how they live (4th ed.) (p.45). Ithica, N.Y:
New Strategist Publications, Inc.
 Online:
U.S Census Bureau. (2002). Industries in which California ranks first in terms of sales or
receipts per capita [Table]. 2002 Economic Census. Retrieved from
http://www.census.gov/econ/census02/data/tops/capital/TOPSTCA.htm
Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment. (2007). [Graph illustration the SORCE Spectral Plot
May 8, 2008]. Solar Spectral Data Access from the SIM, SOLSTICE, and XPS
Instruments. Retrieved from http://lasp.colorado.edu/cgi-bin/ion-p?page=input_data_for_
spectra.ion
Unavailable Source Information

No date:
In-text: (O’Keefe, n.d.)
 Reference:
O’Keefe, E. (n.d.) Egoism & the crisis in western values. Retrieved from
http://www.onlineoriginals.com/showitem.asp?itemID=135
Unknown author:
 Use the first few words of the article title
In-text: (“Merriam-Webster’s,” 2000, p. 7)
 Reference:
Merriam-Webster's collegiate dictionary (10th ed.).(2000). Springfield, MA:
Merriam-Webster.



No page number:
According to Jones (2014),…(Discussion section, para. 4).
Finding Credible Sources
 Avoid Wikipedia
 Use
library databases
 Scholarly articles
Online Writing Lab at Purdue University

https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
References
Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M., Soderlund, L., &
Brizee, A. (2010, May 5). APA formatting and style guide. Retrieved from
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Avoiding plagiarism: A writer’s perspective. (n.d.). Retrieved from
http://www.winthrop.edu/uploadedFiles/writingcenter/centerHandoutAvoidingPla
giarism.pdf
Paraphrase: Write in your own words. (2013). Retrieved from
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/owlprint/619/
Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.).
(2010).Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Compiled by Magdalena Flores, Marshall Saenz, Eliza
Esquivel, and Ayla Galvan for the University of Texas-Pan
American Writing Center