APA citation style is a set of rules created by the American Psychological Association that establishes standards of written communication (college research papers; articles, books and other documents submitted for publication) including:
APA citation style is often used in the following classes/fields:
We keep a copy of the manual at the Library Reference Desk at all three Reynolds campuses. |
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DOI or URL is required for journal articles if available. A DOI (Digital Object Identifier) is a string of numbers, letters and symbols used to permanently identify an article or document and link to it on the web. A DOI will help your reader easily locate a document from your citation. Think of it like a Social Security number for the article you’re citing — it will always refer to that article, and only that one. While a web address (URL) might change, the DOI will never change. Example: https://doi.org/10.1044/2015_AJA-15-0021.
Period should be placed at the end of the References list, except after a URL or DOI.
Formatting changes:
More Citation examples:
eBooks and articles databases:
Hyperlinks/URLs:
Publisher information:
Student papers in APA style require the following:
Not required for student papers (unless required by instructor):
Microsoft Word instructions:
Google Docs instructions:
Though not labeled as such, APA citations are composed of 4 core elements: who, when, what, where.
who -- author field
when -- date field (in parentheses)
what -- title of the source
where -- where the source lives
Example:
Anderson, A. K. (2005). Affective influences on the attentional dynamics supporting awareness. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 154, 258-281. https://doi.org/10.1037/0096-3445.134.2.258
Who = Anderson, A. K.
When = (2005)
What = Affective influences on the attentional dynamics supporting awareness.
Where = Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 154, 258-281. https://doi.org/10.1037/0096-3445.134.2.258
Image taken from the APA Referencing 7th Edition guide is used with permission from the University Library, The University of Notre Dame, Australia.
Video created by Bob Hoffman from the School of Education, The University of Notre Dame Austrailia.
Always check with your instructor on what format specifications to use for a particular class or assignment, especially when citing online resources including material found in library databases.
This guide was adapted from the APA Style 7th Edition pages in the Citation Styles Playbook created by Piedmont Virginia Community College Library.