Formatting GuidelinesFormatting Guidelines

Based on the 6th Edition of the American Psychological Association

(APA) Publication Style Manual

General Document Guidelines General Document Guidelines • Paper size & type: 8.5” x 11” - heavy white

bond• Font size: 12 pt• Preferred font type: Times New Roman• Spacing: The entire document is double-

spaced• Margins: 1” on ALL sides• Text justification: Left justified (not full)• Line length: 6.5” (78 characters)• Lines per page: No more than 27 (not counting

header).

General Document Guidelines General Document Guidelines

• Page numbering: Upper right hand corner, right justified (MS Word header location is acceptable).

• Paragraphs & Indentations: Indent the first line of every paragraph 5-7 spaces (.3-.4 inch). The only exception are abstract, block quotations, titles and headings, table title and notes, and figure captions.

Order of PagesOrder of Pages

1. Title page (separate page, numbered page 1)

2. Abstract (separate page, numbered page 2)

3. Text (start on a separate page, numbered page 3)

4. References (Start on a separate page)5. Tables (start each on a separate page)6. Figures (start each on a separate page)*7. Appendices (Start each on a separate

page)* include caption on page with figure

Note: In a manuscript submitted for publication, figures, tables and footnotes are placed at the end of the manuscript; in academic work, such material is incorporated at the appropriate point in text as a convenience to readers.

Title PageTitle Page• Pagination: The Title Page is page 1.

• Key Elements: Paper title, author(s), and affiliation(s) of author(s).

• Article Title: Uppercase and lowercase letters, centered and positioned in the upper half of the paper.

• Author(s): Uppercase and lowercase letters, centered on the line following the title.

• Institutional affiliation: Uppercase and lowercase letters, centered on the line following the author(s).

• Running head: The running head is typed flush left (all uppercase) following the words "Running head:” in the same line showing the page number. Do not exceed 50 characters, including punctuation and spaces.

Title PageTitle Page

Running head: MY FIRST APA PAPER 1

My First APA Paper

Author

St. Thomas University

Flush left, do not

exceed 50 character

s;ALL

CAPS!

Author

Affiliation

Optional Information:Course number and title

Professor’s nameDue date

Title Page is page No. 1

Author Note(Refer to pp. 24 and 25)

AbstractAbstract

• Begin the abstract on a new page• Include page header and page number 2• Page title is “Abstract” (Title Case, centered)• Single paragraph in block format (no indentation)• Do not exceed 120 words• Type all numbers as digits – except those that begin a sentence

Note: Abstracts are a faculty option

Begin the abstract on a new page (i.e., page 2 of your

document). Type the word “Abstract.” as a centered subtitle

with upper and lower case letters. Do not indent the

paragraph. The entire abstract should not exceed 120 words.

Abstract

Running head: MY FIRST APA PAPER 2

AbstractAbstract

TitlesTitlesTitles should be clear and concise. They should not contain more than

12 words.Titles should reflect the main topic being discussed in the report.Capitalize major words in your title, including words containing four

letters or more.Type the title in uppercase and lowercase letters, centered between the

left and right margins, and positioned in the upper half of the page.Note: Conjunctions, articles, and short prepositions are not considered major words.

Refer to Title, 2.01, p. 23

TitlesTitlesException: In titles of books and articles in reference lists, capitalize only: the first word the first word after a colon (normally the subtitle) proper nouns

Lui, D., Wellman, H.M., Tardif, T., & Sabbagh, M. A. (2008). Theory of mind development in Chinese children: A meta-analysis of false-belief understanding across cultures and languages. Developmental Psychology, 44, 523-531. doi: 10.1037/0012-1649.44.2.523

Do not capitalize the second word of a hyphenated compound:

Cantor, A. B. (1996). Sample-size calculations for Cohen’s kappa. Psychological Methods, 1, 150-153. doi: 10.1037/1082-989X.1.2.150

Refer to Major Words in Titles and Heading, 4.15, p. 101

Writing Clearly Writing Clearly and Conciselyand Concisely

Avoiding Biased and Pejorative LanguageIn general, avoid anything that causes offense. The style manual makes the following suggestions:

DO NOT use . . . when you can use . . .

ethnic labels geographical labels (for example, Hispanic)     (Mexican Americans)

"men" (referring to all adults) "men and women“

"homosexuals“ "gay men and lesbians“

"depressives" "people with depression“

Refer to General Guidelines for Reducing Bias, pp. 71-77

Reducing Language BiasReducing Language Bias

Verbs: Active or Passive Voice?Verbs: Active or Passive Voice?

Use the Active rather than the Passive voice in your writing:

Active: The researcher did not consider the age of the participants.

Passive: The participants’ age was not considered by the researcher.

Refer to Verbs, 3.18, p. 77

Verbs: Select Tense CarefullyVerbs: Select Tense Carefully

Correct:Sanchez (2000) presented similar results.

Incorrect:Sanchez (2000) presents similar results.

Correct: Since the 1980s, researchers have used this method.

Incorrect: Since the 1980s, researchers used this method.

Refer to Verbs, 3.18, p. 78

Verbs: Subject-Verb AgreementVerbs: Subject-Verb Agreement

Correct:The number of participants was 45.

Incorrect:The number of participants were 45.

Correct:The news is discouraging.The data show strong correlation between variables.The phenomena occur every 100 years.

The Mechanics The Mechanics of Styleof Style

SpacingSpacing Double-spacing is required throughout most of the

manuscript.

Single spacing can be used for table titles and headings, figure captions, references (but double-spacing is required between references), footnotes, and long quotations"

Insert one space after◦ commas, colons, and semicolons;◦ periods that separate parts of a reference citation; and◦ Periods of the initials in personal names (e.g., M. T.

Adams).Exception: Do not insert a space after internal abbreviations (a.m.,

e.g., i.e., U.S.)

CommasCommas Do not use commas to separate parts of measurement (9 lbs 5 oz).

Use the metric system, as a rule.

Use commas before "and" in lists, for example: height, width, and depth.

Use commas to set off a reference in a parenthetical comment (Patrick, 1993).

Use commas for seriation within a paragraph or sentence. For example, "three choices are (a) true, (b) false, and (c) don't know." Use semicolons for seriation if there are commas within the items. For example, (a) here, in the middle of the item, there are commas; (b) here there are not; (c) so we use semicolons throughout.

Refer to Comma, 4.03, p. 88

AbbreviationsAbbreviations Explain what an abbreviation means the first time it occurs:

American Psychological Association (APA). If an abbreviation is commonly used as a word, it does not

require explanation (LSD, REM, ESP). Use periods when making an abbreviation within a reference

(p. 6, 2nd ed.) Do not use periods within degree titles and organization titles

(PhD, APA). Do not use periods within measurements (lb, ft, s) except inches

(in.). To form plurals of abbreviations, add s alone, without apostrophe

(PhDs, IQs, vols., Eds). Use two-letter postal codes for U.S. state names (GA).

Refer to Abbreviations, 4.22, pp. 106-111

NumbersNumbers Spell out common fractions and common expressions (one-half,

Fourth of July). Spell out large numbers beginning sentences (Thirty days hath

September . . .). Spell out numbers which are inexact, or below 10 and not grouped

with numbers over 10 (one-tailed t test, eight items, nine pages, three-way interaction, five trials).

Use numerals for numbers 10 and above, or lower numbers grouped with numbers 10 and above (for example, from 6 to 12 hours of sleep).

To make plurals out of numbers, add s only, with no apostrophe (the 1950s).

Treat ordinal numbers like cardinal numbers (the first item of the 75th trial . . .).

Refer to Numbers, 4.31 through 4.38, pp. 111-114

Use combinations of written and Arabic numerals for back-to-back modifiers (five 4-point scales).

Use combinations of numerals and written numbers for large sums (over 3 million people).

Use numerals for exact statistical references, scores, sample sizes, and sums (multiplied by 3, or 5% of the sample). Here is another example: "We used 30 subjects, all two year olds, and they spent an average of 1 hr 20 min per day crying.

Use metric abbreviations with figures (4 km) but not when written out (many meters distant).

Use the percent symbol (%) only with figures (5%) not with written numbers (five percent).

Refer to Numbers, 4.31 through 4.38, pp. 111-114

NumbersNumbers

Narrative FormNarrative Form

Avoid the use of the first person singular or plural (I or We) in most college papers.

Faculty may make an exception to this rule when the

requirements of the assignment dictate a departure from the rule, such as writing narratives highlighting personal anecdotes.

Refer to Editorial we, 3.09, pp. 69-70

TextText•Begin on new page.

• Identify page with Running head and page number.

• Title of the paper centered at the top, double space then type the text.

• The sections of the text follow each other without a break; do not start a new page when a new heading occurs.

• Each remaining page should also show the Running head and page number.

Text

Text

The text of the document should be written following

standard writing techniques. The research should be conducted

from minor points to major points and written from major points

to minor points.

Every first sentence of every paragraph should be indented

five to seven spaces; approximately one half inch. Writing show

be grammatically correct and follow a smooth flow. There are a

number of excellent sources of information that can aide in the

proper preparation of all university essay papers.

I hope this guide provides the foundation for understanding

how the university expects papers to be formatted. There are also

numerous resources on the Internet that can be used as references

to ensure papers are written following the APA guidelines.

My First APA Paper

Running head: MY FIRST APA PAPER 2

Citation vs. ReferenceCitation vs. Reference

Citation◦ An in-text marker used to identify the source◦ All cited sources must be listed in the Reference List,

with the exception of personal communications

Reference List◦ An alphabetical listing of all sources used in the

development of the document◦ All References must be cited

When Should You Use Citations?

• When quoting any words that are not your own– Quoting means to repeat another source word for

word, using quotation marks• When summarizing facts and ideas from a source

– Summarizing means to take ideas from a large passage of another source and condensing them

• When paraphrasing a source– Paraphrasing means to use the ideas from another

source but change the phrasing into your own words

Writing In-Text Citations

• Author’s last name, publication year, and page number(s) of quote must appear in the text

Caruth (1996) states that a traumatic response frequently entails a “. . . delayed, uncontrolled repetitive appearance of hallucinations and other intrusive phenomena” (p.11).

A traumatic response frequently entails a “. . . delayed, uncontrolled repetitive appearance of hallucinations and other intrusive phenomena” (Caruth, 1996, p.11).

A quotation of 40 or more words should appear (without quotation marks) apart from the surrounding text, in block format, with each line indented five spaces from the left margin.

Miele (1993) found the following:The “placebo effect” which had been verified in previous

studies, disappeared when behaviors were studied in this manner. Furthermore, the behaviors were never exhibited again [emphasis added], even when reel [sic] drugs were administered. Earlier studies (e.g., Abdullah, 1984; Fox, 1979) were clearly premature in attributing the results to a placebo effect. (p. 276)

Cited verbatim from APA Manual (6th ed.), p. 92

Writing In-Text (Block) Citations

Handling Parenthetical Citations• If the source has no known author, then use an

abbreviated version of the title:

Full Title (as it appears in the Reference list):

Cigarette sales fall 30% as California tax rises. (1999, September 14). New York Times, p. A17.

In-Text Citation: (“Cigarette,” 1999)

Sometimes more information is necessary

• More than one author with the same last name(H. James, 1878; W. James, 1880)

• Two or more works in the same parentheses are alphabetized

(Caruth, 1996; Fussell, 1975; Showalter, 1997)

Refer to Citing References in Text, 6.11, pp. 174-179

Handling Parenthetical Citations

• Work with up to five authors, cite all the authors the first time the reference occurs. In subsequent citations, include only the surname of the first author followed by et al. and the year

(Smith et al., 1998)

• Work with six of more authors, cite only the surname of the first author followed by et al.

(Butterworth et al., 2004)

• Specific part of a source(Jones, 1995, Chapter 2)

Refer to Citing References in Text, 6.11, pp. 174-179

Handling Parenthetical Citations

Handling Parenthetical Citations

• A reference to a personal communication (e-mail, interview, phone conversation, etc.):

Source: E-mail message from C. Everett Koop received on May 16, 1998

Citation:(C. E. Koop, personal communication, May 16, 1998)

Note: Personal communications, although cited, are not included in the reference page.

Handling Parenthetical Citations

(The first letter of the quote can be changed to lowercase as required of its placement in the document).

Recently, the history of warfare has been significantly revised by Higonnet et al. (1987), Marcus (1989), and Raitt and Tate (1997) to include women’s personal and cultural responses to battle and its resultant traumatic effects. Feminist researchers now concur that “it is no longer true to claim that women's responses to the war have been ignored” (Raitt & Tate, 1997, p. 2). Though these studies focus solely on women's experiences, they err by collectively perpetuating the masculine-centered impressions originating in Fussell (1975) and Bergonzi (1996). However, Tylee (1990) further criticizes Fussell, arguing that his study “. . .treated memory and culture as if they belonged to a sphere beyond the existence of individuals or the control of institutions” (p. 6).

ReferencesReferences

•Start on new page

•The title of the page is “References” centered, at the top of the page.

•Double space

•Hanging indent: second line and subsequent lines indented 5-7 spaces

•References are listed alphabetically by author’s last name

•The title of the publication must be in italics

• Book:

Shay, J. (1994). Achilles in Vietnam: Combat trauma and the undoing of character. New York:

Touchstone.

Note: Italicize book title

• Magazine Article:

Klein, J. (1998, October). Dizzy days. The New Yorker, 25(4), 40-45.

Note: Italicize the name of the Periodical

Sample References

• A magazine article:

Chamberlin, J., & Price, M. (2008, May). Enhancing worker well-being: Occupational health psychologists convene to share their research work, stress, and health. Monitor on Psychology, 39(5), 26-29.

• Newsletter article, no author:

Cigarette sales fall 30% as California tax rises. (1999, September). New York Times, p. A17.

In-Text Citation: (“Cigarette Sales,” 1999)

Sample References

Note: If no author is given, start with the title and follow with the date.

• Uniform Resource Locators (URLs)

http://www.apa.org/monitor/oct00/workplace.html

• Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs)

10.1037/0278-6133.27.3.379

Electronic Sources & Locator Information

Protocol

Host name Path to document

File name of specific document

Organization Publisher

• Journal Article with DOI:

Lopez, S. (2002). How to write following APA. APA Today, 2, 224-230.

doi:10.1037/0278-6133.24.2.225

Refer to Periodicals, 7.01, Examples 1, 2, and 5 (pp. 198, 199)

Full DOI

Sample References

AuthorDate of Article Title of

Article

Name of periodical

• Journal Article without DOI:

Sillick, T. J., & Schutte, N.S. (2006). Emotional intelligence and self-esteem early paternal love and adult happiness. E-Journal of Applied Psychology, 2(2), 38-48. Retrieved from

http://ojs.lib.swin.edu.au/index.php/ejap

Refer to Periodicals, 7.01, p. 199 (Example 3)

Full URL

Sample References

AuthorsDate of Article

Title of Document

Note: Use n.d. (no date) when a publication date is not available

• Monograph as part of journal issue:

Ganster, D. C., Shaubroeck, J., Sime, W. E., & Mayes, B. T. (1991).

The nomological validity of the Type A personality among

employed adults [Monograph]. Journal of Applied Psychology,

76, 143-168. doi: 10.1037/0021-9010.76.1.143

Refer to 7.01, example 13, p. 201

Sample References

• Electronic version of print book:

Schiraldi, G. R. (2001). The post-traumatic stress disorder

sourcebook: A guide to healing, recovery, and growth

[Adobe Digital Editions version]. doi: 10.1036/0071393722

Refer to 7.02, example 19, p. 203

Sample References

• Message posted to a Newsgroup:

Lopez, S. (2002, September 12). Re: How to write following APA [online forum message].

Retrieved from http://www.alt.teaching.apa

URL of Newsgroup

Sample References

Author Date of MessageTitle or Subject

of message

Reference List entry to a case:

Lessard v. Schmidt, 349 F. Supp. 1078 (E.D. Wis. 1972).

In-Text Citation: Lessard v. Schmidt (1972)

Reference to case decided by the U.S. Supreme Court:

Brown v. Board of Educ., 347 U.S. 483 (1954).

In-Text Citation: Brown v. Board of Educ. (1954)

Refer to Appendix 7.1, pp 216-224

Sample References of Legal Materials

A Sample Reference Page

References

Fussell, P. (1975). The Great War and modern memory. New York:

Oxford UP.

Mott, F. W. (1916). The effects of high explosives upon the central

nervous system. The Lancet, 20, 331-38.

Showalter, E. (1997). Hystories: Hysterical epidemics and modern

media. New York: Columbia UP.

Reminder: Double space!

Running head: MY FIRST APA PAPER 17

Levels of HeadingsLevels of Headings

• Headings are used to divide a paper into sections.

• Levels of headings establish the hierarchy of sections to orient the reader.

• All topics of equal importance have the same level of heading throughout the paper.

• Avoid having only one subsection within a section; use at least two subsection headings within any given section, or use none.

Refer to 3.03 Levels of Headings, pp. 62

Levels of HeadingsLevels of Headings

Centered, Boldface, Uppercase and Lowercase Heading

Flush Left, Boldface, Uppercase and Lowercase Heading

Indented, boldface, lowercase paragraph heading ending with a period.

Indented, boldface, italicized, lowercase paragraph heading ending with a period.

Indented, italicized, lowercase paragraph heading ending with a period.

Level 1

Level 4

Hea

ding

sH

eadi

ngs

Management Theories

Contingency Theory

System Theory

Basically, contingency theory asserts that when

managers make a decision, they must take into

account all aspects of the current situation and act on

those aspects that are key to the situation at hand.

A system is a collection of part unified to

accomplish an overall goal. If one part of the system

is removed, the nature of the system is changed as

well.

Level 1

Tables• Tables usually present quantitative data.

• Occasionally, a table that consists of words is used to present qualitative comparisons.

• Tables are labeled in the upper left hand corner and numbered sequentially as they appear in the paper.

• Tables must include a title and headings, as appropriate.

• Tables must be mentioned in the text prior to appearing.

Sam

ple

Tab

le Surveys have been conducted to determine the

populations preference to eating candy. Table 1

illustrates the average results of those surveys.

Table 1 Average Candy Eating Habits of Floridians

Age Income1 Frequency2

5-15 None 3-516-20 10-12 5-821-30 25-45 2-330-40 50-85 1-2

1 Income in thousands of dollars per year2 Number of time a candy is ate per day

Running head: MY FIRST APA PAPER 41

Figures

• In APA papers, any type of illustration other than a table is called a figure

• A figure may be a chart, graph, photograph, drawing, or other depiction

• Figures are numbered sequentially as they appear in the paper

• Figures must be mentioned in the text prior to appearing

• Figures must include a caption

Sam

ple

Figu

re Recently, school teachers have set out to teach

students the proper way to hold a writing utensil: be it a

pen, pencil, marker, or any other writing tool. Figure 1

illustrates Mr. Write It All’s method.

Figure 1. The proper way to hold a pen as presented by Mr. Write It All.

Running head: MY FIRST APA PAPER 42

Where to Find APA Format

• Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th ed.

• www.apastyle.org

• Composition textbooks

Questions & Questions & AnswersAnswers

Thank you!!!Thank you!!!