What are the guidelines for writing an APA paper?

Question

What font and size font do I use?

Do I include a title page?

What about an Abstract? What is it?

Headings? What's that?!

In-text Citations?

Reference Section: Is it the same as MLA?

Answers to these questions and MORE!

Answer 1

Hello! My best resource for confusion with writing guidelines is the OWL Purdue Website. It provides clear instructions and examples of how a paper should look with specific guidelines.

Just Google "OWL Purdue APA Guidelines" and select the first option that comes up on your browser. There is a lot there, especially if you look at the many pages it has to describe APA style, but just take it step by step. The resources are there to help and not hinder. The authors of the site know the process can be complicated and do their best to explain it all fully.

Answer 2

These are the answers to the questions:

Writing in APA requires the Fonts of 12, preferably in Times New Roman. The Title Page is needed, which includes the page title on the left margin and the page number on the right margin and below the title the student information.

A page title is required across all the pages of the research paper, and it is all in caps. In the sixth edition and those before it, the phrase "Running head" precedes the page title in the Title Page only.

In the recent version of APA (7 th), the phrase "Running head" is no longer required, and the page title is centralized.

An Abstract is the summary of the main points in the paper. it is usually a single paragraph around 250 words. It is usually not indented.

Headings are usually bolded. Thy are of three types:

Type 1 heading, in which every first letter in each word is capitalized (except short prepositions and conjunctions).

Type 2 headings are sentence-capitalized, and Type 3 headings are capitalized the same way as Type 1 and they end with a period.

The in-text citations in APA are usually formatted using the author last name followed by a comma followed by the year of publication, all in parentheses. An example is (Faulkner, 1926). It is different from MLA in the sense that in MLA the year is replaced by the page number with no need of a comma. The MLA example would be (Faulkner 13).

The Reference page in APA is where we reference the same citations inside the text in the order they are given .It is a separate page on top of which we put the word "References" in bold and centralized. For more details on APA and how to distinguish APA from MLA, you can refer to this link:

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_formatting_quotations.html

Answer 3

What font and size font do I use?

As long as it's readable, APA does not designate any specific font or size (however, in my experience professors almost always specify one). It's best to stick to "professional-looking" fonts (read: not comic sans, sorry).

Here's some good examples (from the APA manual):

1. Sans-serif fonts
2. Calibri (11-point)
3. Arial (11-point)
4. Lucida Sans Unicode (10-point)
5. Serif fonts
6. Times New Roman (11-point)
7. Georgia (11-point)
8. Computer Modern (10-point)

Do I include a title page?

Yes! It should include:

1. A title
2. 1-2 lines max
3. keep it as concise as possible
4. do not use abbreviations
5. Your name
6. Your affiliation (for example, your university or school)
7. If this is NOT a student paper:
8. an author note
9. If this IS a student paper:
10. Course name and number
11. Instructor
12. Due date

The title goes right in the middle in bold.

Add a space, then (each on separate lines) your full name, affiliation, course number and name, instructor, and the due date.

If you are not a student, you will obviously leave off the course number, course name, instructor, and due date. Instead, you will add an author's note. An example can be found here: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/images/20200127APAProfTitlePage.png (source: Purdue Owl; see below)

What about an Abstract? What is it?

An abstract is a short summary of your paper.

A person should be able to read the abstract and get a sense of what the paper is about, the major points, and the takeaway.

If you're writing a scientific research paper, that will look like a couple sentences of background, your research question, a short overview of your methods, highlights from your results, and the gist of your conclusion.

Otherwise, you will want to include your main argument (with a little bit of context to set it up), and a couple sentences each summing up your main points.

Unless the assignment states otherwise, try to keep your abstract below 250 words.

Reference Section: Is it the same as MLA?

Not quite, but similar!

Like MLA, the reference section is always located at the end of the paper, and uses hanging indentation (1/2 inch).

However, the specific syntax of each citation is slightly different. What information you include depends on the type of source; Purdue OWL's webpage (see link below) is an excellent resource to refer to for individual guidelines.

In general, citations will start with the author's name (last name first, followed by first and middle initials), the publication date in parentheses, the title of the work, the source of the work, and other type-specific information.

For example, a single-author academic journal paper would be cited as follows:

Wills, R. V. (2021). The Finer Points of Kangaroo Clothing. Journal of Australian Wildlife Fashion.

The section should be titled "References," centered and bold at the top of the page.

Headings? What's that?!

An APA header is called the "Running Head." It includes the title and page number. the header, you'll need to add the title in ALL CAPS (aligned left) and the page number (aligned right).

This header should appear on every page of the document (including the title and reference pages).

In-text Citations?

In-text citations are similar to MLA:

Kangaroos rarely wear sweaters (Wills, 2021, p. 124).

If you mention any of these elements within the sentence itself, you don't need to repeat them. Likewise, if you quote them again later in the paragraph (and haven't cited anyone else in between), you only need to add the page number.

For example:

According to Wills (2021), "sweater-wearing behavior is not typical of kangaroos" (p. 124).

If you are citing a large block of text, give it its own separate paragraph and indent it by 1/2 inch. There should be a "signal phrase" ending in a colon to introduce it, and a normal parenthetical citation at the end (once again, any parts of the citation mentioned in the signal phrase do not need to be included again). Refer to the example image given here: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/images/20200127APA7Blockquote.png (source: Purdue Owl; see below).

Some other formatting specifications to keep in mind:

1. 1-inch margins on all sides
2. Your entire paper should be double-spaced (including title and reference pages)

Here's a handy APA checklist for your final draft:

Entire Paper

1. 1-inch margins on all sides
2. Double-spaced (including title and reference pages)
3. Page numbers
4. Running Head (aka header)

Title Page

1. All of the following centered on page:
2. Title
3. Bold
4. 1-2 lines max
5. No abbreviations
6. Concise as possible
7. Name
8. First name, middle initial(s), last name
9. No title or degree (i.e. Dr., MD)
10. Affiliation (for example, your university or school)
11. If this is NOT a student paper:
12. Author note
13. If this IS a student paper:
14. Course name and number
15. Instructor
16. Due date

Abstract Page

1. "Abstract"
2. Bold
3. Centered
4. No other formatting
5. Written abstract
6. No indent

In-Text Citations

1. Parenthetical citations
2. Author name
3. Year
4. Page number
5. Block quotations
6. Signal phrase (followed by colon)
7. 1/2 inch indent
8. Parenthetical citation

References Page

1. "References"
2. Bold
3. Centered
4. No other formatting
5. Hanging indent

The best resource for APA-style format (other than the APA manual itself) is Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (AKA Purdue Owl):

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_format.html

There you can find examples, specific citation formats, etc.

Answer 4

Font: Times New Roman, 12 pt., 1 inch margins, double spaced, 8.5x11 paper

Title Page: Yes! You must have a title page: Title of your paper should be placed in the header (in MicroSoft Word just double click towards the top of the page it will open the header).

Page number should be on the right side of the header. Double click again to go back to main page

Front and center should be title, your name, course number and name, affiliation (school you are attending), professor name, date due ALL on separate lines - centered. (Occasionally you will have Professor's who will require a variation of this. Follow their lead).

EX:

Strategies in Taming Teenagers

Deanna Olsen

Psychology 101

National University

Dr. Ruby Olsen

1/1/2021

Abstract: The abstract is the "summary" of your paper. It should be no more than 250 words. It is next in the line up after the title page. Front and center type "Abstract" then write a short synopsis of your paper. Consider key words that might be searched if others were looking for information on your paper/research. (Occasionally professors will let students know that abstracts are not necessary, once again, follow their lead).

Headings: Confusing I know....here is a link to "see" what it looks like: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/apa_headings_and_seriation.html

APA uses a 5 heading system.

Level 1: Centered, Boldface, Titlecase Heading

Level 2: Left aligned, Boldface, Titlecase Heading

Level 3: Left aligned, Boldface italic, Titlecase Heading

Level 4: Indented, Boldface, Titlecase heading with period

Level 5: Indented, Boldface Italic, Titlecase heading with period.

In-Text Citations: Use past tense or present perfect tense when using phrases to describe previous research: "established or had established". IMPORTANT: DO NOT forget to check your commas. You will be graded on it.

Follow author/date method for in-text citation: (Jones, 2009)

A work with one or two authors: Jones and Olsen 2018) found...... OR at the end of the sentence (Jones & Olsen, 2018)

Three or more Authors: Name of the first author plus "et al.": Olsen et al. (2018) discovered.... OR at the end of the sentence .....discovered....(Olsen, et al. 2018).

No Author: No Problem. Cite the source by its title or first word or two in its signal phrase: (The Birds of Asia, 2001)

More on -

in-text citations: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_the_basics.html

Reference List:

This shows up at the end of your paper in its own section. It provides all of the necessary information for the person reading your paper to find your sources. Each source you cite in your paper MUST be listed in your reference list. Following is an example APA style reference of an in-text citation:

In-text: (Smith, 2016)

Reference List:

These are the basics. You will find more on the reference list here:

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_basic_rules.html