Mahoney Library

APA Style Guide College of Saint Elizabeth

https://www.cse.edu/library/
Updated: March 2020 – Ed. A.Bross

What is APA Style?

APA Style is the reference format used by the American Psychological Association. It is widely
accepted in the social sciences, as well as in other fields like business, education, and nursing. This
guide shows formats and examples for the most commonly used resources.
✓ For full details on citing sources, see the Publication manual of the American Psychological
Association: the official guide to APA style., 2020. – REF 808.06615 Am3574

General Rules of APA Style

✓ Paper Formatting
o Font: Use the same font throughout your paper. Options include:
▪ A sans serif font, such as 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, or 10-point Lucida
▪ A serif font such as 12-point Times New Roman or 11-point Georgia.
o Spacing: Your entire paper and works cited page (bibliography) should be double
spaced.
o Margins: 1” margins for top, bottom, right, and left.
o Your entire paper should be aligned to the left. New paragraphs get a 0.5” indent
for the first line. Reference list page (bibliography) should have a hanging indent of
0.5”.
✓ There are instances where you will cite something within your paper but will not list it in
your reference list (such as personal communications).
✓ General mentions of whole websites or periodicals and common software and apps do not
require a citation or reference list entry.
✓ Authors on your Reference list should be listed alphabetically.

Citation Style
APA uses the author-date citation system to cite references in the text. This means you will be
providing the surname of the author and the date of publication, and they should match the surname
and date used in your reference list. In-text citations have two formats: parenthetical and narrative.
✓ Parenthetical Citations: Author name and publication date appear in parenthesis.
✓ Narrative Citations: Author name and publication date are incorporated into the text as part of
a sentence.

Principles of Reference List Entries

Author: Who is responsible for the work?
Date: When was this work published?
Title: What is this work called?
Source: Where can I retrieve this work?

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All information is taken/adapted from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed.
Citations by Item Type – Periodicals
Journal Article with a Doi
McCauley, S.M. & Christiansen, M.H. (2019). Language learning as language use: A cross-linguistic
model of child language development. Psychology Review, 126 (1), 1-51.
https://doi.org/10.1037/rev0000126

Parenthetical citation: (McCauley & Christiansen, 2019)

Narrative citation: McCauley and Christiansen (2019)

Journal, magazine, or newspaper article without a DOI

Ahmann, E. (2018). A descriptive review of ADHD coaching research: Implications for college students.
Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 31(1), 17-39.
https://www.ahead.org/professional-resources/publications/jped/archived-jped/jped-volume-
31

Parenthetical citation: (Ahmann, 2018)

Narrative citation: Ahmann (2018)

Note: You do not need to include a URL or database name if you retrieve the journal, magazine, or
newspaper article from an academic database.

Blog Post
Klymkowsky, M. (2018, September 15). Can we talk scientifically about free will? Sci-Ed.
https://blogs.plos.org/scied/2018/09/15/can-we-talk-scientifically-about-free-will/

Parenthetical citation: (Klymkowsky, 2018)

Narrative citation: Klymkowsky (2018)

Editorial
Cuellar, N. G. (2016). Study abroad programs [Editorial]. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 27(3). 209.
https://doi.org/10.11777/1043659616638722

Parenthetical citation: (Cuellar, 2016)

Narrative citation: Cuellar (2016)

Citations by Item Type – Books & Reference Works

Book
Burgess, R. (2019). Rethinking global health: Frameworks of power. Routledge

Parenthetical citation: (Burgess, 2019)

Narrative citation: Burgess (2019)
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All information is taken/adapted from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed.
 Note: If the book has a DOI, simply include it after the publisher.

Book with Editor

Jacklin, C. N. (Ed.). (1992). The psychology of gender. New York University Press.

Note: If the book has more than one publisher, separate the names by using semicolons. If the
book has a DOI, simply include the DOI after the publisher.

Ebook (without a DOI and from a source outside of a database)

Christian, B., & Griffiths, T. (2016). Algorithms to live by: The computer science of human decisions.
Henry Hold and Co. http://a.co/7qGBZAk

Parenthetical citation: (Christian & Griffiths, 2016)

Narrative citation: Christian & Griffiths (2016)

Audiobook
Cain, S. (2012). Quiet: The power of introverts in a world that can’t stop talking (K. Mazur, Narr.)
[Audiobook]. Random House Audio. http://bit.ly/2G0Bpbl

Parenthetical citation: (Cain, 2012)

Narrative citation: Cain (2012)

Chapter in a Book
Bank, S. C., & Packer, I. K. (2007). Expert witness testimony: Law, ethics, and practice. In A. M.
Goldstein (Ed.), Forensic psychology: Emerging topics and expanding roles (pp. 421-445). John
Wiley & Sons.

Parenthetical citation: (Bank & Packer, 2007)

Narrative citation: Bank & Packer (2007)

Entry in a dictionary, thesaurus, or encyclopedia, with group author

American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Positive transference. In APA dictionary of psychology.
Retrieved August 31, 2019, from https://dictionary.apa.org/positive-transference

Parenthetical citation: (American Psychological Association, n.d.)

Narrative citation: American Psychological Association (n.d.)

Note: When an online reference work is continuously updated and the versions are not archived, use
“n.d.” as the year of publication and include a retrieval date.

Wikipedia Entry
List of oldest companies. (2019, January 13). In Wikipedia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_oldest_companies&oldid=878158136
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All information is taken/adapted from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed.
 Parenthetical citation: (“List of Oldest Companies,” 2019)
Narrative citation: “List of Oldest Companies” (2019)

Note: Cite the archives version of the page so that readers can retrieve the version you used. Access the
archived version on Wikipedia by selecting “View history” and then the time and date of the version you
used. If a wiki does not provide permanent links to archived versions, include the URL for the entry AND
the retrieval date.

Citations by Item Type – Dissertations & Theses, Conference Sessions, &

Presentations
Dissertation or thesis from a database
Hollander, M. M. (2017). Resistance to authority: Methodological innovations and new lessons from the
Milgram experiment (Publication No. 10289373) [Doctoral dissertation, University of Wisconsin-
Madison]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

Parenthetical citation: (Hollander, 2017)

Narrative citation: Hollander (2017)

Dissertation or thesis published online (not in a database)

Hutcheson, V. H. (2012). Dealing with dual differences: Social coping strategies of gifted and lesbian,
gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer adolescents [Master’s thesis, The College of William &
Mary]. William & Mary Digital Archive.
Https://digitalarchive.wm.edu/bitstream/handle/10288/16594/HutchesonVirginia2012.pdf

Parenthetical citation: (Hutcheson, 2017)

Narrative citation: Hutcheson (2017)

Conference Session
Fistek, A., Jester, E., & Sonnenberg, K. (2017, July 12-15). Everybody’s got a little music in them: Using
music therapy to connect, engage, and motivate [Conference session]. Autism Society National
Conference, Milwaukee, WI, United States.
https://asa.confex.com/asa/2017/webprogramarchives/Session9517.html

Parenthetical citation: (Fistek et al., 2017)

Narrative citation: Fistek et al. (2017)

Paper presentation
Maddox, S., Hurling, J., Stewart, E., & Edwards, A. (2016, March 30-April 2). If mama ain’t happy,
nobody’s happy: The effect of parental depression on mood dysregulation in children [Paper

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All information is taken/adapted from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed.
 presentation]/ Southeastern Psychological Association 62nd Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA,
United States.

Parenthetical citation: (Maddox et al., 2016)

Narrative citation: Maddox et al. (2016)

Citations by Item Type – Audiovisual Works

Film or Video
Forman, M. (Director). (1975). One flew over the cuckoo’s nest [Film]. United Artists.

Parenthetical Citation: (Forman, 1975)

Narrative Citation: Forman (1975)

TV Series
Simon, D., Colesberry, R.F., & Kristoff Noble, N. (Executive Producers). (2002-2008). The wire [TV series]. Blown
Deadline Productions; HBO.

Parenthetical citation: (Simon et al., 2002-2008)

Narrative citation: Simon et al. (2002-2008)

TED Talk
Giertz, S. (2018, April). Why you should make useless thing [Video]. TED Conferences.
https://www.ted.com/talks/simone_giertz_why_you_should_make_useless_things

Parenthetical citation: (Giertz, 2018)

Narrative citation: Giertz (2018)

YouTube Video
Fogarty, M. [Grammar Girl]. (2016, September 30). How to diagram a sentence (absolute basics) [Video].
YouTube. https://youtu.be/deiEY5Yq1ql

Parenthetical citations: (Fogarty, 2016)

Narrative citations: Fogarty (2016)

A Quick Note & Additional Resources

This is by no means an exhaustive guide to APA. There are many more nuances and different situations
explained within the text of the style guide itself, which is available in the Reference section of
Mahoney Library. Please refer to it for more complicated questions or examples regarding citations
and formatting.

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All information is taken/adapted from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed.
Some additional resources are:

APA Style website

Official website of the APA style. Has instructional aids, handouts with quick-reference guides,
and a blog with updated news and information.

Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL)

Extensive Reference resource that is regularly updated and checked. This has more extensive
information regarding formatting for paper, citations, and references.

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All information is taken/adapted from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed.