APA Basics: What You Need to Know Welcome to the APA Basics guidebook for your writing journey here at Full Sail University! Using research and creating APA style documents and citations can seem scary and complicated at first, but it’s really not so difficult once you understand the basics of APA format and style. This guidebook aims to help you improve your basic knowledge of APA document format and citation requirements so that you have a solid foundation to build on. For best results, read this guide over carefully and then refer to it whenever you need to cite sources or create a document in APA style.

Click on any of the items below to jump directly to the page that you want. General Information What is APA Style, and why do we use it? What needs to be cited? References What is a reference list, and where does it go?

Table of Contents

Reference Entries: Parts Reference Entries: Formatting Guide Reference Entries: Order of Content Reference Entries: A Few Examples Why URLs are not enough In-text Citations What is an in-text citation, and why do I need one? In-text Citations: Parts & Format In-text Citations: Location Document Format Document Format requirements Layout example

What is APA Style, and why do we use it? Common Citation Styles

Why APA Style?

A Visual Comparison

MLA (Modern Language Association)

Each style serves a different purpose, relevant to the fields in which it is used.

As you can see from the examples below, APA puts greater emphasis on publication/copyright dates of sources by placing the date immediately after the author’s name in the reference entry and including it in the in-text citation. This helps readers to see at a glance if the source is current.

Used in literature, the arts, and the humanities; most students are familiar with this style from high school English class. APA (American Psychological Association) Used in science- and social science-related fields, like psychology, technology, and education; standard for Full Sail Chicago Style (journalistic style) Used in books, magazines, newspapers, and other non-scholarly publications, regardless of subject matter Turabian (a collegiate style, similar to Chicago Style) Used for all subjects by students whose instructors do not require another style of citation

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MLA Style - less emphasis on dates. The humanities endure. New knowledge does not invalidate older interpretations of the arts or of events. The Mona Lisa will always be the Mona Lisa —even 10,000 years from now, and even if the canvas rots. APA Style - more emphasis on dates. Science and technology evolve—constantly—and in fields where rapid advances are common, the date of any publication or piece of media has significant bearing on its accuracy and value as a source. What we knew about computers 10 years ago is completely out of date today. Full Sail = technology The majority of degrees at Full Sail are related to the fields of computer science and technology, so we use APA style.

MLA Style In-text Citation: (Light 15) Reference Entry: Light, Alan. "Superbad!" Rolling Stone 29 Apr. 1993: 15. Academic Search Complete. Web. 18 Aug. 2013. APA Style In-text Citation: (Light, 1993, 15) Reference Entry: Light, A. (1993). Superbad! Rolling Stone, 655, 15.

What needs to be cited? All content that you did not originally create needs to be cited (unless it is common knowledge1 among your readers).

There are three ways to use others people’s words, information, ideas, images, or other content in your writing. All must be cited.

Original words, information, ideas, or other content

Quote:

‣ Comes from your own self, including your personal observations, experiences, ideas, insights and opinions ‣ AND is expressed in your own words Borrowed words, information, ideas, or other content ‣

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Comes from outside yourself—from someone you have talked to or from something you have read, seen, or heard

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Includes any and all copied words, even when those words express thoughts like your own

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Includes any and all copied ideas, even when you put the ideas into your own words

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Includes any and all copied media (e.g. images, charts, data, programming code, sounds, video)

Common knowledge consists of things that everybody knows, or that every reader in your audience can be expected to know. If you are not 100% certain that something is common knowledge, it is best to cite your source to avoid accidental plagiarism.

‣ When you copy exact words from your source ‣ These require “quotation marks” or block formatting for longer quotes. Paraphrase: ‣ When you put ideas or information from a source into your own words2 but keep the content approximately the same length ‣ No quotation marks are used, but citation is required. Summarize: ‣ When you put ideas or information from a source into your own words2 and condense the content down to its main ideas ‣ No quotation marks are used, but citation is required.

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Note that merely swapping words for synonyms is not sufficient. In order to properly paraphrase or summarize, you must change the words and the sentence structure to avoid plagiarizing the source’s method of expressing ideas. You may even need to change the order in which data is presented.

Purpose Reference entries… ‣ Inform your readers about which sources you used and how to find them ‣ Go on a new page (your references page) at the end of your document

APA Basics: References Page

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‣ Provide detailed publication information for each source as dictated by current APA citation standards

When do I need them? Any time you have an in-text citation ‣ If you cite a source in-text, you must also have an entry for that source in your References list. Any time you mention/use a source in your work ‣ For example, if you talk about a book, album or film in order to review it, you must include the item in your list of references. Never when you did not use or refer to the source ‣ If you look at a potential source and decide not to use any part of it (no words, images, sounds, ideas or data), then you do not include the source in your references list.

Reference Entries: Parts Part 1: Who

Part 2: When

Part 3: What

Part 4: Where

Who created the source?

When was this source copyrighted/ published?

What is this source called?

Where can this source be found?

‣ Text-based sources: the title of the source

‣ On its own (it is a standalone piece, not part of a larger work)

‣ Sources other than text: the title and the medium (e.g. film, DVD, podcast, photo)

‣ Inside of a larger work (e.g. in a magazine, on an album)

A person or group of people A corporation, organization, or government body

‣ Annual publication: year only

An unknown creator

‣ Monthly publication: year and month

Provide this information about the source’s creator:

‣ Weekly or daily publication: year, month and day

Person as author: Last name and first initial of all known creators

Some sources have hard-to-find dates. For web content, search the whole page and the site’s home page carefully.

Not all sources will have a title, particularly if the source is an editorial or is found online. If no title is provided, you will need to substitute (see below).

Provide this information about the source’s date:

Provide this information to identify the source:

‣ Date known: year, month and day as required.

‣ Title known: Title of the source, along with subtitle (if there is a subtitle)

Non-person as author: Full name of corporation, organization, or government body Unknown author: Title of the piece When the creator is unknown, the piece is identified in the reference list by title instead of author. See Part 3: What and examples on next page.

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‣ Date unknown: Use the abbreviation for “no date” (n.d.).

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‣ Title unknown: Identify the article with a short descriptive phrase in square brackets: [Price list] ‣ Medium of the source, if dictated by the rules of APA Style

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This part varies the most; these are the most common elements: ‣ Book or part of a book: name and location of publisher ‣ Magazine, newspaper or journal: publication title, volume and issue numbers ‣ Found in a database: all data for magazine, newspaper, or journal plus (in order of preference) doi, accession number, or permalink ‣ Web page: name of website and full URL for the specific page ‣ If source is only part of a larger work: include the page numbers on which the content appears

Reference Entries: Formatting Guide Use these tips to format each section correctly:

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What. Book or full-length work: Title written as a sentence in italics.

Who.

Article, short work, or partial work: Title written as a sentence.

A person or group of people: Last name, first initial.

Untitled source: [Description of source in square brackets].

‣ One: Gaiman, N. ‣ Two: Smith, J. & Jones, A. ‣ Three or more: Gaiman, N., Smith, J. & Jones, A. Corporation, organization, government body: write out as normal ‣ Academic Institute of Awesome ‣ Department of Education Author’s name given as “Anonymous”: use Anonymous Author unknown: replace with full title of source

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(When). Date known: (Year, month day). ‣ (2012, January 28) Date unknown: use n.d. (the abbreviation for “no date”)

Non-text source: Title written as a sentence. [Medium of source].

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Where. Book: City, State: Publisher ‣ New York, NY: HarperCollins. Magazine, newspaper, or journal in database: Publication Title in Italics. Volume(issue), pages. doi:98.7654321/S12345678 ‣ Awesome Journal, 42(9), 25-27. doi:10.8888/S123456789 Online newspaper or magazine: Publication Title in Italics. Retrieved from http:// www.full-URL-from-browser-address-bar ‣ New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nyt.com/fullURL Website: Sitename.com. Retrieved on DATE from http://full-URL ‣ GoodCitations.com. Retrieved on June 6, 2015 from http:// www.goodcitations.com/ullURL/somestuff/pageID

Reference Entries: Order of Content This order is typical for most sources:

Use this order for when the author is unknown:

Who. (When). What. Where.

What. (When). Where.

Gaiman, N. (1999). Stardust. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

Why do wallabies wannabe rock stars? (2007). Journal of Kangaroo Literature, 42(13), 6-8.

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Academic Institute of Awesome. (2003). The best article ever written on writing. Awesome Journal, 42(9), 25-27. doi:10.8888/S123456789

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Smith, J. & Jones, A. (n.d.). Cite right! GoodCitations.com. Retrieved from http://www.goodcitations.com/fullURL/somestuff/articleID

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Broccoli, B. (Producer), & Mendes, S. (Director). (2012). Skyfall. [Motion picture]. United States of America: MGM.

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The fastest man on earth. (2012, August 13). FasterThanGeorge.com. Retrieved from http://fasterthangeorge.com/news/47478someotherstuff/etcANDso-on

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Wallaby picture [digital photograph]. (n.d.). Kangaroos Unlimited. Retrieved from http://www.Kanga.com/fullURL/somestuff/pics

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[Wallaby price list]. (2013). Kangaroos Unlimited. Retrieved from http://www.Kanga.com/fullURL/somestuff/articleID

Reference Entries: A Few Examples Book, single author:

Article on website, multiple authors, no date:

Gaiman, N. (1999). Stardust. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

Smith, J. & Jones, A. (n.d.). Cite right! GoodCitations.com. Retrieved from http://www.goodcitations.com/fullURL/somestuff/articleID

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Journal article found via database, organization as author: Academic Institute of Awesome. (2003). The best article ever written on writing. Awesome Journal, 42(9), 25-27. doi:10.8888/S123456789

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Magazine article, author unknown: Why do wallabies wannabe rock stars? (2007, March). Kangaroo Literature, 12-17.

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Print newspaper article, single author: Soxx, B. (2003, January 23). Sock hops: So 50s, or so awesome? Ypsilanti Times, p. C7.

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Online newspaper article, single author: Smith, J. (2015, April 1). The article as click-bait: Why are you reading this? The KalamazooTimes. Retrieved from http://www.tkt.com/ 2014/03/18/article-clickbait/readthis

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Article on website, author unknown: The fastest man on earth. (2012, August 13). FasterThan.com. Retrieved from http://www.fasterthan.com/news/47478-morestuff/and-so-on

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Online image, no title, creator unknown, date unknown: Wallaby picture [digital photograph]. (n.d.). Kangaroos Unlimited. Retrieved from http://www.Kanga.com/fullURL/somestuff/pics

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Retail website, no title or author, prices fluctuate: [Wallaby price list]. (2013). Kangaroos Unlimited. Retrieved on May 3, 2015 from http://www.Kanga.com/fullURL/somestuff/articleID

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Film, multiple creators: Broccoli, B. (Producer), & Mendes, S. (Director). (2012). Skyfall. [Motion picture]. United States of America: MGM.

My Source is a Web Page… So why isn’t the URL enough?

Don’t make this mistake!

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Information on the web can and does move. That link may be good today, but what about tomorrow?

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Giving someone a link that doesn’t work makes you seem unreliable, and can even give the impression that you lied about your sources. It also makes it hard for readers to find the source if they want more information.

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OH NO! THIS IS BAD.

THIS DOES NOT LOOK VERY TRUSTWORTHY.

For best results, always give proper, complete citation information, even if your source can be found online. This way, if the link breaks, you can rest assured that readers’ trust in you will remain intact.

Purpose In-text citations… ‣ Signal your readers (like little flags) that you have used research in your writing ‣ Go in the body of your essay (in the text)

APA Basics: In-text Citations

‣ Are very short to keep from disrupting readers’ attention ‣ Indicate which sentences contain words, or ideas that are not your own

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‣ Give just enough information to connect readers to the matching entry on your References page

When do I need them? Every time you copy someone else’s words, sounds, images, video, or other media ‣ Any single word, if the word is significant to the author’s expression of an idea or opinion ‣ Any phrase of three or more words, regardless of how significant it seems ‣ This includes all borrowed tables, figures, and other visual examples, beats, hooks, code, etc. Every time you use borrowed information or ideas ‣ This applies even if you have restated the borrowed ideas or information in your own words (aka summary or paraphrase).

In-text Citations: Parts & Format Note:

Part 1: Who

Part 2: When

Part 3: Where

Refer to your references list when

Provide this information about

Provide this information about the

This part is not necessary but is

creating in-text citations. If you

the source’s creator:

source’s date:

strongly recommended if you are

‣ One or more named people as

‣ Date known: year only

have created thorough reference entries, then you will already have all of the information that you need to create proper in-text

author(s): Last name(s) only ‣ Non-person as author: Full name of corporation, organization, or

citations.

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government body ‣ Unknown author: First 2-3 words of the piece’s title, in quotation marks

‣ Date unknown: Use n.d. (the

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abbreviation for “no date”)

using a direct quote: ‣ Multi-page work: Include the page number(s) on which the content appears, preceded by p. (the abbreviation for “page”) ‣ Single-page work: Include the paragraph number(s) in which the content appears, preceded by para. (the abbreviation for “paragraph”)

Note:

Author is known:

Author is unknown:

This format is used when the complete in-text citation appears at the end of a sentence (when no attribution phrase is used). The format differs slightly when using an attribution phrase.

Paraphrase or summary: (Who, when)

Paraphrase or summary: (“What,” when)

See the next page for details.

‣ (Academic Institute of Awesome, 2003) Direct quote: (Who, when, where)

‣ (“Whiskers on kittens,” 2013) Direct quote: (“What,” when, where)

‣ (Gaiman, 1999, p. 36)

‣ (“Why do wallabies,” n.d., p. 7)

‣ (Smith & Jones, n.d., para. 7)

‣ (The fastest man,” 2012, para. 3)

In-text Citations: Location Author’s name used in an attribution phrase:

No attribution phrase:

If you mention the author’s name when introducing research, split the citation1. Put the date in parentheses after the name, and the page/paragraph number (if needed) at the end of the sentence.

If you don’t mention the author’s name when introducing research, the complete citation goes at the end, outside the quotation marks and before the period.

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Quoted material: ‣

According to John Smith (2007), “Punk rock is better than rock operas” (para. 7). Smith also thinks….

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The American Academy of Bat Fanatics (2013) voted to make vampire bats their mascot.

1 When

using attribution phrases, always use an author’s full name the first time he/she is mentioned in your essay. After that, use the author’s last name only (unless you have multiple authors with the same last name).

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One article suggests that “Kalamazoo, Michigan was built on a portal to Hell” (Smith, 2007, p. 7).

Paraphrased or summarized material: ‣

Most people interviewed for the article don’t really believe that such portals exist (Smith, 2007).

APA Basics: Document Format

A Visual Example Cover Page

Body with In-text Citations

References Page

For a more detailed visual guide with instructions, see the Visual Guide to APA Document Format.