American Psychology
Association (APA)
Formatting Basics
When to Use APA
O Business
O Criminology
O Economics
O Education
O Nursing
O Psychology
O Social Work
O Sociology
Generally, the
social sciences.
Similarities with MLA
O Double spacing
O Parenthetical in text citations MUST relate to
the reference page.
O Give credit where credit is due – Any words
or thoughts not your own MUST be cited.
Setting up the page
O 1” Margins on all sides
O 12 pt. font – Most often Times New Roman
O Double Spaced
O No UNDERLINES allowed
O BOLD only for allowed headings or tables
Parts of the Paper
O Title Page (includes “running head”)
O Abstract
O Body (including in-text citations)
O References
Title
Page
Running
Head:
• Shortened
version of
title
• ALL CAPS
• No more
than 50
characters
Body
Full title is
centered on
the first page
of the body
Body
Bold:
only for
headings
In-text citation
• Author (s)
• Year
• Pg # (for
quotes, if
available.)
NOT:
“Works Cited”
Still listed in
alphabetical
order and has
hanging inden
MS-Word Tips: Page Layout
MS-Word: Editing Header
Insert page
numbers first,
then header.
Be sure to
click
“Different First
Page” for the
running head.
MS-Word: References
Be sure to
choose APA
6th Edition
Click “Insert
Citation” to
get fields
Citation Creators
O Look for APA options on database articles
O www.bibme.org (example of one website)
RESOURCES:
Walden University Online Writing Center – “Ten Common APA Nuances”
(Includes links to how-to videos)
http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/17.htm
Sample APA Paper with annotations
http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/resdoc5e/RES5e_ch09_s1-0009.html
Purdue Owl – Online Writing Lab – APA Format
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/