omit the page number.
APA references generally include information about the author , publication date , title , and source . Depending on the type of source, you may have to include extra information that helps your reader locate the source.
Citing a source starts with choosing the correct reference format. Use Scribbr’s Citation Example Generator to learn more about the format for the most common source types. Pay close attention to punctuation, capitalization, and italicization.
Generate APA citations for free
It is not uncommon for certain information to be unknown or missing, especially with sources found online. In these cases, the reference is slightly adjusted.
Missing element | What to do | Reference format |
---|---|---|
Author | Start the reference entry with the source title. | Title. (Date). Source. |
Date | Write “n.d.” for “no date”. | Author. (n.d.). Title. Source. |
Title | Describe the work in square brackets. | Author. (Date). [Description]. Source. |
On the first line of the page, write the section label “References” (in bold and centered). On the second line, start listing your references in alphabetical order .
Apply these formatting guidelines to the APA reference page:
On the reference page, you only include sources that you have cited in the text (with an in-text citation ). You should not include references to personal communications that your reader can’t access (e.g. emails, phone conversations or private online material).
Are you a teacher or professor looking to introduce your students to APA Style? Download our free introductory lecture slides, available for Google Slides and Microsoft PowerPoint.
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The AI-powered Citation Checker helps you avoid common mistakes such as:
When no individual author name is listed, but the source can clearly be attributed to a specific organization—e.g., a press release by a charity, a report by an agency, or a page from a company’s website—use the organization’s name as the author in the reference entry and APA in-text citations .
When no author at all can be determined—e.g. a collaboratively edited wiki or an online article published anonymously—use the title in place of the author. In the in-text citation, put the title in quotation marks if it appears in plain text in the reference list, and in italics if it appears in italics in the reference list. Shorten it if necessary.
When you quote or paraphrase a specific passage from a source, you need to indicate the location of the passage in your APA in-text citation . If there are no page numbers (e.g. when citing a website ) but the text is long, you can instead use section headings, paragraph numbers, or a combination of the two:
(Caulfield, 2019, Linking section, para. 1).
Section headings can be shortened if necessary. Kindle location numbers should not be used in ebook citations , as they are unreliable.
If you are referring to the source as a whole, it’s not necessary to include a page number or other marker.
The abbreviation “ et al. ” (meaning “and others”) is used to shorten APA in-text citations with three or more authors . Here’s how it works:
Only include the first author’s last name, followed by “et al.”, a comma and the year of publication, for example (Taylor et al., 2018).
APA Style usually does not require an access date. You never need to include one when citing journal articles , e-books , or other stable online sources.
However, if you are citing a website or online article that’s designed to change over time, it’s a good idea to include an access date. In this case, write it in the following format at the end of the reference: Retrieved October 19, 2020, from https://www.uva.nl/en/about-the-uva/about-the-university/about-the-university.html
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APA Style, currently in its 7th edition, is a citation protocol established by the American Psychological Association. APA is most often used in the disciplines of:
Be sure to check with your professor as to what citation style is required for each assignment!
What does APA Style Include?
If you need help citing sources your best resource is the Wolak Learning Center This link opens in a new window (Campus Students) or the Academic Support Center This link opens in a new window (Online Students). However, the library has a number of resources that can help and librarians can lead you to web resources that may also be useful. The following are some recommended resources to help you cite sources:
These web resources may be helpful if you need assistance citing sources in APA Style. However, be sure to evaluate any sources you use--the Shapiro Library cannot vouch for the accuracy of information provided on external websites.
Visit these links to see examples of citing sources in APA. Check out the OWL at Purdue This link opens in a new window website for more examples of APA style formatting.
Still struggling.
Conversing with someone else about your research and writing process can be incredibly helpful. Contact staff at McKillop Library or the Writing Center using the links below.
Book with one author:
Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of book: Subtitle of book . Publisher.
Chojnacki, M . (2013). Alternative movie posters: Film art from the underground . Schiffer Publishing.
Books with 2-20 authors:
Lastname, F. M., Surname, F. M., & Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of book: Subtitle of book . Publisher.
An edited book:
Editor, F. M. (Ed.). (Year). Title of book: Subtitle of book . Publisher.
Article found in a database or open web with one author:
Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume (issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxxx
Öztürk, F. Ö. (2017). The impact of science-fiction movies on the self-efficacy perceptions of their science literacy of science teacher candidates. Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice , 17 (5), 1573-1603. https://doi.org/10.12738/estp.2017.5.0058
Article found in print with one author:
Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume (issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxxx
Article found on the open web with one author:
Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume if available (issue if available), pages if available. https://doi.org/xxxx
Article (from the open web) with two authors:
Lastname, F. M., & Surname, F. M. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal , volume (issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxxx
Article with 2-20 authors:
Lastname, F. M., Surname, F. M., & Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume (issue), pages.
Article with 21 or more authors:
Author1, F. M., Author2, F. M., Author3, F. M., Author4 , F. M., Author5 , F. M., Author6 , F. M., Author7 , F. M., Author8 , F. M., Author9 , F. M., Author10 , F. M., Author11 , F. M., Author12 , F. M., Author13 , F. M., Author14 , F. M., Author15 , F. M., Author16 , F. M., Author17 , F. M., Author18 , F. M., Author19 , F. M., ... Finalauthor , F. M. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume (issue), pages.
Note: this is for websites only—online newspapers/magazines articles are similar to articles above
Web site with one author:
Lastname, F. M. (Date published). Title of page. Name of Website. URL
Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M., Soderland, L., & Brizee, A. (2010, May 5). General format . Purdue Online Writing Lab. https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Web site with a corporate or organizational author:
Organization name . (Date published). Title of page. Name of Website (if different from organization name). URL
IMAGES
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Plan and write an effective APA-style research report. In this section, we look at how to write an APA-style empirical research report, an article that presents the results of one or more new studies. Recall that the standard sections of an empirical research report provide a kind of outline. Here we consider each of these sections in detail ...
To reference a report with an individual author, include the author's name and initials, the report title (italicized), the report number, the organization that published it, and the URL (if accessed online, e.g. as a PDF). Author last name, Initials. (Year). Report title: Subtitle (Report No. number).
Indent the first line of every paragraph of text 0.5 in. using the tab key or the paragraph-formatting function of your word-processing program. Page numbers: Put a page number in the top right corner of every page, including the title page or cover page, which is page 1. Student papers do not require a running head on any page.
Include these in your results section: Participant flow and recruitment period. Report the number of participants at every stage of the study, as well as the dates when recruitment took place. Missing data. Identify the proportion of data that wasn't included in your final analysis and state the reasons.
To format a paper in APA Style, writers can typically use the default settings and automatic formatting tools of their word-processing program or make only minor adjustments. The guidelines for paper format apply to both student assignments and manuscripts being submitted for publication to a journal. If you are using APA Style to create ...
To structure your methods section, you can use the subheadings of "Participants," "Materials," and "Procedures.". These headings are not mandatory—aim to organize your methods section using subheadings that make sense for your specific study. Note that not all of these topics will necessarily be relevant for your study.
APA Style is primarily used in the behavioral sciences, which are subjects related to people, such as psychology, education, and nursing. It is also used by students in business, engineering, communications, and other classes. Students use it to write academic essays and research papers in high school and college, and professionals use it to ...
Title page. (see sample on p. 41 of APA manual) Title should be between 10-12 words and should reflect content of paper (e.g., IV and DV). Title, your name, and Hamilton College are all double-spaced (no extra spaces) Create a page header using the "View header" function in MS Word. On the title page, the header should include the following:
Use one-inch margins on all sides of the paper. 3. The text should be left-justified (a straight line), and the right side should be "ragged" (do not justify on both sides) 4. Paragraphs should be indented at the beginning (please use paragraphs!) 5.
This article walks through the formatting steps needed to create an APA Style student paper, starting with a basic setup that applies to the entire paper (margins, font, line spacing, paragraph alignment and indentation, and page headers). It then covers formatting for the major sections of a student paper: the title page, the text, tables and ...
Report (see p. 329-330 in Manual) After the report title, include any report number if available and the Source, which can be thought of like the Publisher of a book. Group Author or Government Report (see p. 329-330 in Manual) In governmental reports, you can have multiple "levels," or offices/departments, in the Source element, separated by a ...
In this section, we look at how to write an APA-style empirical research report, an article that presents the results of one or more new studies. Recall that the standard sections of an empirical research report provide a kind of outline. Here we consider each of these sections in detail, including what information it contains, how that ...
Resources on writing an APA style reference list, including citation formats. Basic Rules Basic guidelines for formatting the reference list at the end of a standard APA research paper Author/Authors Rules for handling works by a single author or multiple authors that apply to all APA-style references in your reference list, regardless of the ...
Throughout your paper, you need to apply the following APA format guidelines: Set page margins to 1 inch on all sides. Double-space all text, including headings. Indent the first line of every paragraph 0.5 inches. Use an accessible font (e.g., Times New Roman 12pt., Arial 11pt., or Georgia 11pt.). Include a page number on every page.
Media Files: APA Sample Student Paper , APA Sample Professional Paper This resource is enhanced by Acrobat PDF files. Download the free Acrobat Reader. Note: The APA Publication Manual, 7 th Edition specifies different formatting conventions for student and professional papers (i.e., papers written for credit in a course and papers intended for scholarly publication).
Things to know before you begin: Font & Font Size: Be sure to use the same font throughout your entire paper.APA 7th Edition allows for the use of the fonts listed below. Sans serif fonts: Arial (11-point), Calibri (11-point), or Lucinda Sans Unicode (10-point)
These sample papers demonstrate APA Style formatting standards for different student paper types. Students may write the same types of papers as professional authors (e.g., quantitative studies, literature reviews) or other types of papers for course assignments (e.g., reaction or response papers, discussion posts), dissertations, and theses.
The sections in APA-style paper are as follows: 1. Title Page. As per the APA research paper format, the title should be between 10-12 words and should reflect the essence of the paper. After writing the title, write your name followed by name of the college.
Abstract. Should include a basic description of the study in about one sentence per section of an APA paper. Should be between 150 - 250. Should look like: d:" is now removed for all remaining sectionsThe abstract should be the 2nd page of your pap. r, and should be the only thing on that page.Listing keywords.
On the first line of the page, write the section label "References" (in bold and centered). On the second line, start listing your references in alphabetical order. Apply these formatting guidelines to the APA reference page: Double spacing (within and between references) Hanging indent of ½ inch.
Types of APA Papers. APA (American Psychological Association) style is most commonly used to cite sources within the social sciences. This resource, revised according to the 6th 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.
If you need help citing sources your best resource is the Wolak Learning Center This link opens in a new window (Campus Students) or the Academic Support Center This link opens in a new window (Online Students). However, the library has a number of resources that can help and librarians can lead you to web resources that may also be useful.
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The seventh edition has been thoroughly revised and updated to reflect best practices in scholarly writing and publishing. Excelsior OWL APA Resource provides an overview of paper formatting, in-text citations, and bibliographic entries.