APA STYLE ESSENTIALS
6th Edition (2010)
APA STYLE RESOURCES
http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/
http://www.apa.org/journals/authors/man
uscript_check.html
http://www.vanguard.edu/faculty/ddegelm
an/index.aspx?doc_id=796
General Document Guidelines
• Margins:
– 1 inch on all sides
• Font:
– 12-pt Times New Roman
• Line Spacing:
– Double space throughout
• Text Spacing:
– Single space after commas, colons, semicolons
– Double space after end of sentence punctuation
General Document Guidelines
• Paragraph indent:
– 5-7 spaces
• Alignment:
– Flush Left (uneven right margin)
• Pagination
– Page # on every page, 1 inch from right edge of
paper, top line
• Running head
– < 50 characters total
– Top line (header), flush left, on every page
Document sections: TITLE PAGE
1. Running head + pagination (1)
2. Title:
• Upper- & lower-case, centered, upper half of page
• Recommended < 12 words
3. Author(s)
• Line below title, centered
• Name(s) only—always use same name format
4. Institutional affiliation
• Line below title, centered
5. Author Note (not needed for class essays)
Document sections: ABSTRACT
1. Running head + pagination (2)
2. Heading:
• Abstract (centered on line below running head)
3. One paragraph
• Usually 150-250 words (varies by journal)
• No paragraph indent
• NOTE: ABSTRACT NOT NEEDED FOR
CLASS ESSAYS
Document sections: BODY
1. Running head + pagination (3)
2. Title
•
•
Upper- & lower-case, centered
1st line below running head
3. Introduction (not labeled)
4. Headings
•
Level 1:
–
–
•
Method, Results, Discussion, References
Centered, bold, upper- and lower-case
Level 2
–
–
Subheadings (Participants, Procedure, Measures…)
Flush Left, bold, upper- & lower-case
Text Citations (IF USED)
• In sentence:
– Wirth and Mitchell (1994) found that….
• In parentheses:
– One study found…. (Wirth & Mitchell, 1994)
• 1 or 2 authors:
– Always list both
• 3-5 authors:
– List all last names the first time
– After that: Smith et al. (2007)
Text Citations
• 6 or more authors:
– Smith et al. is used every time
• Direct quotations
– Include page number after reference
– (Smith et al., 2007, p. 231)
– If under 40 words:
• Place quotation in text between “ “ marks
– If over 40 words:
• Display in freestanding block, indented, without “ “
marks
References
• Hanging
– 1st line of each reference flush left
– Subsequent lines indented
• References listed alphabetically
– If more by exact same author(s): list in
chronological date of publication, earliest first
References: Article
McAnulty, R.D., McGuire, L.E. & McAnulty, D.P. (1989). A crosscultural comparison of attitudes toward alcohol among
French and United States college students. The
International Journal of the Addictions, 24(12), 1229-1236.
If more than 7 authors:
McAnulty, R.D., McGuire, L.E., McAnulty, D.P., Rappaport, N.B.,
Waggoner, C.E., Ruggerio, L., . . . Brantley, P.J. (1986).
References: Books
BOOK:
Diamant, L. & McAnulty, R. D.,. (1995). The psychology of sexual
orientation, behavior and identity: A handbook.
Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
CHAPTER IN EDITED BOOK:
Long, P. J. (1995). Perpetrators of incest. In L. Diamant & R. D.
McAnulty (Eds.), The psychology of sexual
orientation, behavior and identity: A handbook.
Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.