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Writing Support

About APA 7th Ed.

This guide is a quick introduction to the American Psychological Association (APA) Style for references and citations. Be sure to consult the Publication Manual of the APA or the APA Style website for detailed standards and procedures. 

In-Text Citations

When you reference another source use an in-text citation in the body of your paper. 

Basic Format:
(Author's Last Name(s) or Organization, Year).

I'm using...

Paraphrasing or summarizing the main findings or takeaways from a research article is the preferred method of citing sources in an APA paper. Always include the last name of the author(s) and the year of the article, so your reader can find the full citation in the reference list.

According to Shavers (2007), limitations of studying socioeconomic status in research on health disparities include difficulties in collecting data on socioeconomic status and the complications of classifying women, children, and employment status.
 

In-text citations differ depending on the number of authors listed for a work, and if there is a group author.

I'm citing a work with...

References

Include the complete citation at the end of your paper in a references section. References are organized by the author's last name in alphabetic (A-Z) order. Use an hanging indent to separate each list item.

Basic Format:
Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date). Title of the work. Source where you can retrieve the work. URL or DOI if available

I'm citing a...
 


Check out more examples for citing dissertations and theses on the APA Style site.
 

Sample Papers

The following papers were published in annotated format in the APA Publication Manual:

The following are student paper templates in Word format:

Formatting Tips

 How do I make a hanging indent in Word?

1. Highlight the citaiton with your cursor. 

2. Right click. 

3. Select Paragraph.

4. Under Indentation, select Special and Hanging.

 

 How can I save time formatting my paper? 

Microsoft Word and Google Docs have a Format Painter tool that will copy and apply basic formatting to any text! 

1. Highlight the formatting you want to apply. 

2. Select Format Painter

3. Highlight the text you want to change. 

Note: If using the Format Painter on the Reference List, you'll need to go back and add italics. 

CC Attribution

Creative Commons License CC by NC 4.0 This guide was adapted from one created by Tessa Withorn, Carolyn Caffrey Gardner, Maggie Clarke, and Jillian Holt Eslami at CSUDH Library and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.