APA Style Guidelines
Getting Started
Physical Format
No title page necessary.
 Black ink on white paper.
 Non-descript font (Times Roman—12).
 1-inch margins all around (except for
page #s).
 Double-spaced throughout.
 Fasten pages with a paper clip.

Heading, Title, and Page Number

(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
Heading—top line, flush left (ds)
Your name
Professor’s name
Course title and number
Date
References Page
 New
Page
 Double-spaced
 Center References at the top.
 Alphabetical Order--If no author,
alphabetize by the title.
References
 Indent
all but the first line in
each entry by one-half inch.
 Italicize the titles of books and
periodicals.
 Go through your paper to make
sure all sources are on the list
Works Cited—Authors
Ball, E. (2000). Slaves in the family.
New York: Ballantine Books.
 If an editor:
Rasgon, N. L. (Ed.). (2006). The effects
of estrogen on brain function.
Baltimore: John Hopkins University
Press.
 Do not include titles of authors—e.g.
PhD, Dr., Sir.

Works by the Same Author

Arrange according to date, earliest first:
Jules, R. (2003). Internal memos and
other classified documents. London:
Hutchinson.
Jules, R. (2004). Derelict Cabinet.
London: Corgi-Transworld.
Works Cited—Two Authors

Hardt, M., & Negri, A. (2000). Empire.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University
Press.
Works Cited—Journal Article

Kellogg, R. T. (2001). Competition for
working memory among writing
processes. American Journal of
Psychology, 114, 175-192.
Works Cited—Electronic Sources

Online publication by known author:
Carr, A. (2003, May 22). AAUW
applauds Senate support of title IX
resolution. Retrieved from
http://www.aauw.org/about/newsroom
/press_releases/030522.cfm
Online Publications

Newspaper:
Erard, M. (2001, November 16). A
colossal wreck. Austin Chronicle.
Retrieved from
http://www.austinchronicle.com
Online Publications

Article in an online magazine:
McClure, L. (2003, February 18). The
Salon interview: Molly Ivins. Salon.
Retrieved from: http://www.salon.com
Review of Capitalization

Manuscript page header:
Just the Important Words


The Remains of the Day
Review of Capitalization




Book Edition
(ed.)
Person is an editor
(Ed.)
Punctuating Quotations
[. . .] – use within brackets to show
omissions within a quote.
[
] – use brackets around your
comments or explanations in a quote.
(
) – use parentheses outside the
quote.

In-Text Citations
Author named in your text: “The
influential sociologist Daniel Bell (1973)
noted a shift in the United States to the
‘postindustrial society’” (p. 3).
 Author not named in your text: “In 1997,
the Gallup poll reported that 55% of
adults think secondhand smoke is ‘very
harmful’” (Saad, 1993, p. 4).

In-Text Citations
Work by a single author:
(Bell, 1973, p. 3).
 Work by two authors:
(Suzuki & Irabu, 2002, p. 404).
 Work by six or more authors:
(Francisco et al., 2006, p. 17).

In-Text Citations
Work by an unknown author:
(“Dealing the Peace Process,” 2003, p.
44).
 Parts of an electronic source:
(Robinson, 2007 ¶7).
 Work quoted in another source:
Saunders and Kellman’s study (as cited
in Rice, 2006a)

Punctuating Block Quotes
In a rare circumstance your quote runs
more than four lines. . .
 Set it off beginning a new line.
 Indent ten spaces from the left margin.
 Type it double-spaced without quotation
marks.
 Place the page number after the final
period.

Ending Quotes
What to do when the quote has ending
punctuation such as “?” or “!”
 “How can I describe my emotions?”
wonders the doctor in Mary Shelly’s
Frankenstein (42).
 “You’ve got to be carefully taught,” wrote
Oscar Hammerstein II about how racial
prejudice is perpetuated.

Annotations

Provide a brief summary of the chapter,
article, book, or website here. Use
quotations sparingly. Use words such as
claims, explains, or suggests to
introduce the thesis of the article. For
example, Dibattista claims that there are
many sides to Chloe.
Annotations

In your second paragraph, assess the
work and its value. Is it factual,
unbiased, well documented? Is the
source current? Then mention if you will
be using the source in your research
paper.
Reducing Bias in Language
Be more specific, not less
- Age ranges rather than broad
categories.
- Men and women—rather than
‘mankind’
- Avoid the generic ‘he’
- Specific ethnic or race labeling
 Mention differences only when relevant.

Be Sensitive to Labels
Respect people’s preferences.
 Avoid labeling when possible
Example: the depressed, LDs, the
elderly
 Use ‘people first’ language
Example: people over the age of 65,
people with learning disabilities.

Standards of Comparison
Be aware of hidden standards that
compare the study group to an invisible
(standard) group.
Example: “culturally deprived” (by what
standard?)
 Unparallel nouns
Example: man and wife—instead of
husband and wife.

Standards of Comparison

Avoid abnormal/normal comparisons
Example: Lesbians and the general
public—instead, Lesbians and women
identified as heterosexual.
Example: People with disabilities and
normal people—instead, People with
disabilities and people without
disabilities.