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APA Style Help & Tools

{{page_title}}, best bet: apa's academic writer.

Academic Writer is the only authoritative and complete online environment for teaching, writing, and publishing in APA Style®, now updated to the 7th Edition. Designed to help users develop their writing and professional research skills, Academic Writer combines sophisticated learning and teaching tools, advanced writing and content management technology, and full integration of APA’s best-selling Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association® to create an unparalleled web-based suite of integrated services and tools.

Access Academic Writer anytime with this link:

library.purdueglobal.edu/academicwriter

Academic Writer Documentation & Tips

The below links lead to more information, tips, and training about the basics of using Academic Writer.

• Library Guide to Academic Writer
• Getting Started Guide (PDF)
• Creating Academic Writer Accounts (PDF)
• Accessing the Publication Manual (PDF)
• Technical Requirements

Using Academic Writer's Writing Tools

Academic Writer contains a Writing section where you can create and write a full APA-formatted paper.  You can write the entire paper in Academic Writer or just use it to setup the title page, headings, and references.  Export your work at any time to a Microsoft Word document.  Below are documents from Academic Writer about the essential features of their Writing tools.  

• Setting up the Title Page
• Adding References to Papers (PDF)
• Adding In-Text Citations (PDF)
• Adding Tables (PDF)
• Exporting Papers (PDF)

Featured Items from Academic Writer

Basics of APA Style

Learn the basics of APA Style, including how to format a manuscript, understand the form and function of common manuscript parts, organize and express your thoughts clearly and precisely, employ the mechanics of style, use graphic elements effectively, credit sources and acknowledge the contributions of others, and construct a comprehensive and reliable reference list.

Academic Writer

© 2020 American Psychological Association.

How to Avoid Plagiarism and Self-Plagiarism

Learn how to avoid plagiarism and self-plagiarism, including how to identify plagiarism, understand its risks and consequences, cite sources properly, and develop sound writing practices.

Learn how to set up the title page of an APA Style paper, including the page header and running head, title, author name and affiliation, and author note.

Paper Template: ("Merenda" Sample Student Paper)

This sample response paper presents a university student's personal reaction to an article about whether medication is prescribed too often to young children to treat psychological disorders. The title page demonstrates the simple default layout for a student paper. The paper has a simple setup with only a title page, body of text, and references. No "running head"! Response papers typically do not include author notes or abstracts, though this may vary by assignment.

Visit the Writing Center

Need writing help?  Visit the Writing Center to contact a tutor, submit your paper for review and feedback, or ask APA Style-related questions, as well as access dozens of writing tutorials, videos, webinars, and other instructional resources.

• Writing Center

PG Writing Center's Top APA Links

• Common Citations in APA Format
• APA Title Page and Running Head Video
• APA (7th Edition) Demystified in 5 Minutes Video
• Formatting an APA Style (7th Edition) Reference List Video
• Writing With Integrity (APA Style 7th Ed.)

eBook on APA Style 7th Edition

Zotero: Free Reference Management Tool

Zotero [zoh-TAIR-oh] is a free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share your research sources. This tool is especially popular for heavy researchers at the grad level and above.

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Purdue Owl: APA Formatting & Style Guide

Developed by Purdue's Online Writing Lab. Contains resources on in-text citation and the references page, as well as APA sample papers, slide presentations, and the APA classroom poster.

Author/Editor (By:)

Contributor, corporate author, related organizations, citation type.

Citation Support Guide: APA Style

• Citing Art & Visual Sources

APA Style (7th edition) is a style from the American Psychological Association used to format research papers. It is generally used by the natural sciences, social sciences, Nursing, Business, and other related subjects. APA style includes in-text citations, a reference list, and, depending on the assignment, a title page and abstract.

In-Text Citations

The following examples for in-text citations are from Purdue OWL: APA In-Text Citations: Quotation:

Example 1: According to Jones (1998), "students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time" (p. 199).

Example 2: A meta-analysis of available literature (Jones, 1998) revealed inconsistency across large-scale studies of student learning (Table 3).

Summary or Paraphrase:

Example 1:  According to Jones (1998), APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners.

Example 2: APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners (Jones, 1998, p. 199).

Reference List

The following examples for reference list citations are from Purdue OWL: APA Reference List . While these examples cover popular resources including journal articles, books, and websites, Purdue OWL provides examples on many other types of materials. Journal Article:

Format:  Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article.  Title of Periodical ,  volume number (issue number), pages. https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy

Example:  Baniya, S., & Weech, S. (2019). Data and experience design: Negotiating community-oriented digital research with service-learning.  Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement ,   6 (1), 11–16.  https://doi.org/10.5703/1288284316979

Format:  Author, A. A. (Year of publication).  Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle . Publisher Name. DOI (if available)

Example:  Stoneman, R. (2008).  Alexander the Great: A life in legend . Yale University Press.

Format:  Lastname, F. M. (Year, Month Date).  Title of page . Site name. URL

Example:  Price, D. (2018, March 23).  Laziness does not exist . Medium.  https://humanparts.medium.com/laziness-does-not-exist-3af27e312d01

Note: APA style also requires that references be listed in chronological order and follow specific formatting, including indenting. Please consult the links below for more information.

Paper Format

Your professor may require your entire research paper to be formatted in APA format. This involves formatting a title page, abstract, main body, and reference list all according to APA format. Please consult Purdue OWL's resources on APA general formatting and headings , as well as a sample of a paper formatted in APA style . The worksheet to the right of this page can also assist you.

Popular Subjects

The following subjects may use APA Style:

• Natural Sciences
• Health Sciences
• Social Sciences

Helpful Resources

APA Worksheet

• APA Worksheet This worksheet will help you understand creating documents using APA format.

Students have many questions about citing sources, and FDU librarians are happy to provide guidance. We can assist by helping you to determine the type of source to be cited, providing a guide to the citation style, and indicating the most relevant section/example. Because citations are often graded, we cannot create or format the citation for you, nor can we correct a list of citations. Please contact the Academic Support Center or the Metro Writing Studio for help creating and formatting citations.

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• URL: https://library.fdu.edu/citationguide

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Citation Guides and Style Manuals

• General Citation Guides
• Data Citation
• Citing Generative AI
• Student Papers
• Professional Papers
• Annotated Bibliographies
• Cite Articles
• Cite Websites
• Parts of a Citation

Introduction to Citation Styles

• Purdue OWL Citation and Style Guides

APA uses in-text citations instead of footnotes or endnotes: (Last name, yyyy).

At the end of your paper include a reference list with complete bibliographic information. Here's how that would look for a journal article: 

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article.  Title of Periodical, volume number (issue number), pages.         

https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy

• Purdue OWL guide to APA citation
• APA Style Blog for all your weird citation problems not covered by the style guide.
• APA reference examples, 7th edition
• MLA Style Center
• Purdue OWL MLA citation guide

Chicago Manual of Style

• Chicago Manual of Style This link opens in a new window Includes the full contents of the 17th edition of this popular writing format. The 16th edition is also available.
• Purdue OWL guide to Chicago citation
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• Last Updated: Oct 4, 2023 5:21 PM
• URL: https://libguides.wku.edu/stylewrite

Purdue Online Writing Lab College of Loose Arts

Generals Format

Salute for to Boudreaux OWL

Those browse is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. For printing the page, you needs include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Dental & The EAGLE in Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material can not be release, reproduced, broadcast, updated, button redistributed not permission. Use of this site compose acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair employ.

Note:  The page reflections the latest version of the APA Publication Textbook (i.e., APA 7), which freed in October 2019. To equivalent resource for the older APA 6 style  bottle be found around .

Please use who example at the bottom of this sheet to cite the Purdue OWL in APA.

You can also watch unseren APA vidcast product on the Purdue OWL YouTube Channel .

General APA Guidelines

Your essay should be typed and double-spaced off standard-sized paper (8.5" scratch 11"), the 1" margins set all sides.   Include a page header (also known as who “ race headache ”) at that top of every pages. For a professional paper, this includes your report title and this page number. For one student essay, to only including the page number. To create a page header/running headpiece , install page numeric flush right. Following type "TITLE OF YOUR PAPER" in of heads flush left using see capital letters. The running head belongs a shortened version of your paper's title and unable exceed 50 characters inclusive drive and punctuation.

The 7th edition of the APA Publication Operating requires that the dial font be accessible (i.e., legible) for view bookworms and this it must used consistently continuous the paper. It acknowledges that many font choices become legitimate, and it advises writers the check with their publishers, instructors, or institutions for guidance in cases of uncertainty.

Whereas the APA Manual does not specify a single font or select of  fonts for professional writing, it does urge a few character that are widely existing. These inclusion sans serif fonts such as 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, and 10-point Lucida Sans Unicode in well the serif fonts such as 12-point Times News Roman, 11-point Georgia, 10-point Computer Modern. Free APA Citation Generator | Verified by Subject | Scribbr

Major Paper Sections

The essay should include four major sections: the Title Page , Abstract , Chief Body , and References .

Title Pages

Note: APA 7 provides slightly different directions for formatting the title pages of proficient papers (e.g., such intended for scholarly publication) furthermore student papers (e.g., those turned stylish for credit in a high school or college course).

The title page should include the title of the paper, the author's name , and the institutional affiliation . A professional paper require also enclosing the autor note . A student paper should also include the course number and name , instructor name , and assignment due date .

Type your title in top and capital alphabetical centered in the upper half for the page. The title should be centered and written in boldface. APA recommends that yours title be focused and succinct real that it should not contain abbreviations or words that server no destination. Your title may take back neat or two lines. All text with the title turn, and throughout your paper, should be double-spaced.

Beneath the title, variety the author's designate : first name, middle initial(s), and last designate. Does not use titles (Dr.) with degrees (PhD).

Beneath the author's name, gender the institutionals affiliation , which should anweisen the location show the author(s) conducted the research.

A professional paper should include the article note beneath this institutional affiliation, in the bottom half of the title page. This should be divisible up into several paragraphs, with any heading that are not relevant omitted. The first body should include the author’s name, this symbol by the ORCID iD, and the URL for the ORCID iD. No authors who do not have an ORCID iD have be omitted. The second paragraph supposed show any change in company or any deaths of the authors. The tertiary paragraph should comprise any disclosures or acknowledgements, such as study registration, open practices and data sharing, disclosure of related reports and conflicts of interest, and acknowledgement are economic support and different assistance. The fourth paragraph should include contact get for the corresponding writer.

AN student paper should not include an author note.

Note again that page headers/page numbers (described above for professional and student papers) also appear at the top away the title page. In other words, one professional paper's cover web will incorporate the title of the report flush left in choose large and the folio number flush right, whilst a student page will just contain the page number flush right.

Student APA title page

Top page for a student paper in APA 7 style.

Professional paper APA title page

Title page in ampere professional paper includes APA 7 style.

Begin a recent page. Your abstract page should already include the page header (described above). On the first line of one extract turn, center and rich one word “Abstract” (no italics, highlights, or quotation marks).

Beginning with the next row, post a concise summary a the key points on own research. (Do not indent.) Your abstract supposed contain at least your exploring topic, research questions, participants, methods, results, info analysis, and conclusions. You may also include possible implications of your research and past jobs you check connected with your outcomes. Your abstract should be a single paragraph, double-spaced. Your abstract have typically live no additional than 250 words.

You may also want to list headwords from your paper in your abstract. To do this, indent as you would if yourself had starting a new article, print Keywords: (italicized), and then list your keywords. Listing choose passwords will help our find your work in resources.

Abstracts are common in scholarly newspaper articles plus are not characteristic required for student papers unless advised per an instructor. When you are undetermined when or not your work requires an executive, consult your instructor for further leadership. LibGuides: Citation Styles: A Summary Guide to APA, MLA and Turabian: Sample Bibliography: APA

APA Abstracts Page

Abstract page for a student paper in APA 7 style.

Please see our Sample APA Paper resource the see an example of an APA paper. You may also come our Additional Resources page for more examples of APA papers.

How to Cite the Purdue OWL in APA

Individual resource.

An view template for the newer OWL site does not inclusion contributors' designations or the page's final redacted date. Even, select pages  still comprise this intelligence.

In the absence of contributor/edit set information, process the page as a source with an user author and use and abbreviation "n.d." for "no date":

In Online Writing Lab. (n.d.).  Title of resource.  Purdue Online Writing Lab. http://Web address forward OWL resource

Purdue Online Writing Lab. (n.d.).  General Writing FAQs. Purdue Virtual Writing Dental. https://mhthousing.org/owl/general_writing/general_writing_faqs.html

The generic APA citation for OWL pages, which includes author/edit date information, your these:

Contributors' names. (Last edited date).  Title of resource . Our Print. http://Web address for OWLET resource

404 Not found

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APA (American Psychological Association) Style

Chicago style, harvard style, mla (modern language association) style, nlm (national library of medicine style), general citation guides.

Proper citation is an essential aspect of scholarship. Citing properly allows your reader or audience to locate the materials you have used. Most importantly, citations give credit to the authors of quoted or consulted information. Failure to acknowledge sources of information properly may constitute plagiarism.  For an explicit definition of plagiarism, see the  Boston University Academic Conduct Code .

For detailed instructions on how to cite within the text of your paper, please consult a style manual listed in this guide. Please also note: some of the resources listed do not cover every possibility you might encounter when trying to cite your sources. For this reason, it is suggested that you consult a style manual to create your bibliography.

Finally, please also see our separate citation guides  for Business students  or  for Science students .

• APA Formatting and Style Guide at Purdue OWL

• Chicago Style guide at Purdue OWL

There is no official guide to Harvard Style. If you Google “Harvard Style Guide” you will find many websites that list examples. One of the best guides is from  Monash University . 

• MLA Formatting and Style Guide at Purdue OWL

The official style manual for the National Library of Medicine (NLM), and suggested when citing documents from the associated databases MedLine and PubMed. The online edition supercedes the print edition as the most up to date.

• Purdue OWL (Online Writing Lab)

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Subject Guide

Purdue OWL APA 7th edition

Purdue's OWL (Online Writing Lab) is the "go to" for instruction on how to use APA 7th.  Below are a few of the topics OWL has.  Check out their website for more.  https://owl.purdue.edu/index.html 

• APA Style Introduction APA 7th
• APA Overview and Workshop APA 7th
• General Formating APA 7th
• In-Text Citation: Authors APA 7th
• Foot Notes and Appendices APA 7th
• Changes in the 7th Edition APA 7th

APA Tutorials on 7th edition

 If you need to format your research paper or dissertation in APA style, check out these tutorials from APA.

APA 7th edtion

• Comparative Chart of APA 6th and APA 7th This is a quick chart created by the Janis P. Bellack Library comparing the new edition of APA.

NOTE FROM APA about 7th edition:

There is no electronic version of APA 7th edition.

"APA does NOT have an institutional license model for APA’s Publication Manual , but electronic versions are available at Vital Source ( www.vitalsource.com ) and RedShelf ( www.redshelf.com ).

 To help students in need of APA Style guidance, tutorials and quick guides adapted from Academic Writer ® , APA’s tool for teaching and learning effective writing, are now freely available through July 1, 2020.

The Basics of Seventh Edition APA Style tutorial and other material will stay on the APAStyle.org site for free after that date. "

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Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

In-Text Citations: The Basics

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

APA (American Psychological Association) style is most commonly used to cite sources within the social sciences. This resource, revised according to the 6 th edition, second printing of the APA manual, offers examples for the general format of APA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the reference page. For more information, please consult the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , (6 th ed., 2 nd printing).

Note:  This page reflects APA 6, which is now out of date. It will remain online until 2021, but will not be updated. The equivalent APA 7 page can be found here .

Reference citations in text are covered on pages 169-179 of the Publication Manual. What follows are some general guidelines for referring to the works of others in your essay.

Note:  On pages 65-66, the Publication Manual suggests that authors of research papers should use the past tense or present perfect tense for signal phrases that occur in the literature review and procedure descriptions (for example, Jones (1998) found or Jones (1998) has found ...). Contexts other than traditionally-structured research writing may permit the simple present tense (for example, Jones (1998)  finds ).

APA citation basics

When using APA format, follow the author-date method of in-text citation. This means that the author's last name and the year of publication for the source should appear in the text, for example, (Jones, 1998), and a complete reference should appear in the reference list at the end of the paper.

If you are referring to an idea from another work but NOT directly quoting the material, or making reference to an entire book, article or other work, you only have to make reference to the author and year of publication and not the page number in your in-text reference. All sources that are cited in the text must appear in the reference list at the end of the paper.

In-text citation capitalization, quotes, and italics/underlining

• Always capitalize proper nouns, including author names and initials: D. Jones.

( Note: in your References list, only the first word of a title will be capitalized: Writing new media .)

• When capitalizing titles, capitalize both words in a hyphenated compound word: Natural-Born Cyborgs .
• Capitalize the first word after a dash or colon: "Defining Film Rhetoric: The Case of Hitchcock's Vertigo ."
• Italicize the titles of longer works such as books, edited collections, movies, television series, documentaries, or albums: The Closing of the American Mind ; The Wizard of Oz ; Friends .
• Put quotation marks around the titles of shorter works such as journal articles, articles from edited collections, television series episodes, and song titles: "Multimedia Narration: Constructing Possible Worlds;" "The One Where Chandler Can't Cry."

Short quotations

If you are directly quoting from a work, you will need to include the author, year of publication, and page number for the reference (preceded by "p."). Introduce the quotation with a signal phrase that includes the author's last name followed by the date of publication in parentheses.

According to Jones (1998), "Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time" (p. 199).

Jones (1998) found "students often had difficulty using APA style" (p. 199); what implications does this have for teachers?

If the author is not named in a signal phrase, place the author's last name, the year of publication, and the page number in parentheses after the quotation.

She stated, "Students often had difficulty using APA style" (Jones, 1998, p. 199), but she did not offer an explanation as to why.

Long quotations

Place direct quotations that are 40 words or longer in a free-standing block of typewritten lines and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, indented 1/2 inch from the left margin, i.e., in the same place you would begin a new paragraph. Type the entire quotation on the new margin, and indent the first line of any subsequent paragraph within the quotation 1/2 inch from the new margin. Maintain double-spacing throughout. The parenthetical citation should come after the closing punctuation mark.

Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time citing sources. This difficulty could be attributed to the fact that many students failed to purchase a style manual or to ask their teacher for help. (p. 199)

Summary or paraphrase

If you are paraphrasing an idea from another work, you only have to make reference to the author and year of publication in your in-text reference, but APA guidelines encourage you to also provide the page number (although it is not required).

According to Jones (1998), APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners.

APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners (Jones, 1998, p. 199).