Learn more about APA referencing style
As academic writers, we know and comprehend the importance of using the correct referencing styles. We also understand that there are various styles, and it is important to know the format behind each one.
Why is the APA style of referencing important?
If you are a psychology or any other social sciences student, you would have noticed that any academic publication follows the American Psychological Association (APA) style. This is done to ensure consistency and for readers to systematically identify the information they need.
The APA format
Every format of presenting an academic paper is different. Little things like margins, fonts, spacing, page numbers, breaks- they all differ. So, make sure to look into each little aspect of your paper before sending it along for a review or publication.
The APA referencing style
When you provide references under the APA referencing style, you will need to look into your in-text citations and your reference list. Remember to cite all authors you take information from in your text and index.
In-text citations
Whenever you use information from another author, you must provide a citation to let the reader know where you found your idea. These in-text citations form an integral part of your APA citations, and they must be done to let the reader know that you’re not plagiarizing and give the author credit for their work instead.
Under the APA style, you must provide the last name of the author and the date of publication in parentheses, like this: (Second Name, 1983). In the event of a quote you’re using directly, also mention the page number, and use the letter ‘p’ to denote the page number. Here is an APA referencing style example: (Second Name, 1983, p.21).
If there are two authors, use the ampersand symbol between their last names in the in-text citation, like this: (Name 1 & Name 2, 1972). However, if it’s in the body of your essay, use the word ‘and,’ like this: Name 1 and Name 2 posit that….
If there are three or more authors, you may use the phrase ‘et al.’ to indicate so, like this: Name 1., et al., 2013). In the list of references, don’t forget to mention the names of all the authors.
Reference List
Make sure to add these pointers to your APA referencing style book.
- Start with a new page.
- Center-align the heading ‘References.’
- Use the surname first and then the initial and alphabetically based on surname.
- Align the first line in each entry with the left margin and indent any corresponding lines using the TAB key.
- Double-space the reference list.
- Italicize the titles of journals, books, magazines, and newspapers.
- Mention the surnames and initials of all authors. If there are more than seven for a single source, provide surnames and initials of the first six and follow up with the seventh name after an ellipsis (…).
- Capitalize only the first word and any proper nouns when providing titles and subtitles