Running head: CITING SOURCES 1 Paper Formatting Tip: All parts of the paper should: have 1-inch margins be double-spaced use only normal double spacing after paragraphs (no extra spaces) use 12-point Times New Roman font Header Tip: The first page s header section is different than the headers on the rest of the paper. This header should include: a page number (right justified) Running head: (left justified) TITLE in ALL CAPS (shorten if more than 50 characters) Be sure to left justify the text in the header. Double check to make sure it is 12-point Times New Roman font in the header! Citing Sources in American Psychological Association Style Your Full Name Rasmussen College Title Tip: APA says to position the title in the upper half of the paper. Our advice: start approximately 6-8 lines down from the top of the paper (hit enter 3-4 times when double spacing). The title should concisely summarize the topic of the paper. Author Note The title should be in upper and lower case and be centered. It should be followed by your name and institutional affiliation (Rasmussen College). This research is being submitted on August 7, 2013, for John Smith's G124 English Composition course. Author Note Tip: APA does not require an author note, but Rasmussen does. So yes, it must have the words Author and Note. Author Note should be below the title information. Start approximately 8 lines down (hit enter 4 times when double spacing) from the title/author/institutional affiliation section. The words Author Note are centered, but the actual note is left justified and indented like a normal paragraph. It is also double spaced, just like the rest of the paper. For Rasmussen student papers, it is required that the Author Note includes: the type of project being submitted (e.g. research, essay, or poem) the date the name of the instructor the course number (and section number, if appropriate) the name of the course This sample paper was last updated August 7, 2013. If there are any errors, please notify librarians@rasmussen.edu so we may investigate and update the handout as necessary. Abstract Sometimes APA papers begin with an abstract that summarizes the paper in 150 to 250 words. If an abstract is required, place it on page two and begin the paper on page three.
Title Tip: The title should be in upper and lower case and centered at the beginning of the paper. It should not be boldface. Header Tip: CITING SOURCES This header is different than the header on the title page. While it 2 does include the title and page number, it does NOT include the words Running head: Citing Sources in American Psychological Association Style A basic paper consists of an introduction, body, and conclusion. The introductory paragraph introduces the topic and typically summarizes the main points and ends with a thesis statement. The body of the paper should address each of the main points and include personal insights or conclusions. Each of the points should be supported by facts, statistics, or examples. When using outside information, include both an in-text citation and a matching entry in the references section that give credit to the original author(s) of the idea. Information from outside sources can be integrated into the paper using paraphrases, summaries, or direct quotes. This paper explains in detail the many types of in-text citations and the importance of creating them using correct APA formatting. Types of In-Text Citations for Paraphrases and Summaries In-text citations are shortened versions of the information in the references section and are designed to be minimally disruptive to the flow of the paper. That is why in-text citations typically include only the last name(s) of the author(s) and the year. In-text citations are used when paraphrasing, summarizing, or otherwise putting information found during research into your own words. The first two in-text citations in this paper are examples of how to utilize intext citations when paraphrasing or summarizing. The first citation appears at the end of the next sentence. To create a citation of this type, place last name(s) of the author(s), a comma, and the year of publication at the end of the sentence (Amato, 2009). Notice the comma and space after the author s last name and notice that the period for the sentence is after the final Example of a heading. Notice that it is both centered and boldface. Subheadings, if present, are formatted the same way except they are left aligned. Note: If you use subheadings, you must have at least two. parenthesis. The second citation in this paper includes the author s name as part of the sentence, which helps to vary writing style. Notice that when this happens, only the year of publication is placed in parentheses. According to Robins (2009), once a citation like this is included, This is an example of an in-text citation at the end of a sentence. Notice that the end-of-sentence punctuation follows the citation. Check the references section of this paper to see the matching Amato reference. All in-text citations must match the first word or words (generally authors last names) and year of their corresponding reference listing.
CITING SOURCES 3 subsequent citations may use just the author without the date when the author is part of the sentence. Robins notes to be sure the reader will not be confused with another author cited elsewhere in the paper. Remember, if the author s name is in parentheses, it must always include the date. Types of In-Text Citations for Direct Quotes A second situation when an in-text citation is needed is when the exact words of a source, known as a direct quote, are used. Direct quotes need to be enclosed in quotation marks. The next sentence contains a direct quote. APA requires a quote to be in quotation marks to indicate that it is indeed a quote, rather than a paraphrase (Amato, 2009, p. 60). Notice that this type of citation is different than the in-text citations for paraphrases and summaries. It includes the page number where the quotation can be located. A quotation from a web page should include the paragraph number if there are no page numbers. APA uses the abbreviation p. for page and para. for paragraph, and there is a space between the p. or para. and the actual page number. In-text citation for a quote includes quotation marks and the page number. In-Text Citations With Multiple Authors The first time an in-text citation is created for a resource with two to five authors, all author names are included within the in-text citation. The authors last names are separated with the ampersand sign (&), not the word and. Here is an example of how an end-of-sentence citation will look for a paraphrase from a source with three authors: (Roen, Glau & Maid, 2009). It is important to remember that when authors are cited as part of a sentence, rather than in In-text citation for three authors. parentheses, they should be connected with the word and, not &. This type of in-text citation will look like the following: Roen, Glau, and Maid (2009) note that proper documentation of appropriate sources lends... credibility to you as a writer and enhances your argument (p. 532).
CITING SOURCES 4 After information from a multi-author source is cited in the text the first time, the in-text citations may be able to be shortened. When sources have one to two authors, all the authors names are listed every time. If there are three to five authors, the first time they are cited the citation will contain all of the authors. Each subsequent citation will be shortened to contain only the first author s name followed by et al. If there are six or more authors, every in-text citation will include only the first author and et al. An example follows: (Angeli et al., 2011). Creating in-text citations for sources with many authors can be confusing. Table 1 will help you correctly do in-text citations with multiple authors. Table 1 Sources with three to five authors follow this example after they have been cited once using all authors. In-text citations for six or more authors always use this method. In-Text Citation of Various Numbers of Authors Italicize the title of the table, the word Note, and the title of the source if it was also, in italics in the references section. Note. Taken from Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6 th ed., p. 177), 2010, Washington D.C.: American Psychological Association. Copyright 2010 by the American Psychological Association. Reprinted within APA s allowable use guidelines. In-Text Citations for Online Sources Researching information for a paper may involve the use of the Internet. Information can come from a web page or it can come from an online source such as a subscription database.
CITING SOURCES 5 The in-text citation for a web page will include the author and the date of publication. If there is no author, carefully check the quality of the information to ensure it is good enough to use in an academic paper. If the information will be used, its in-text citation will begin with the title (the For more information, please see the library s handout on DOIs. If level two subheadings are used, there must be at least two. They must also be leftaligned and bold. information that comes first in the reference when there is no author) and will end with the date of publication (use n.d. if there is not a date of publication). Websites with no authors and long titles should be cited with the first few words of their title ( APA In-Text Citation Guidelines, 2011). Finally, note that the URL is not used as part of the in-text citation. If a direct quote from a web page is used, identify the paragraph number where the quote can be found. Here is an example of this type of in-text citation from a web page: because online materials can potentially change URLs, APA recommends providing a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), when it is available, as opposed to the URL (Angeli et al., 2011, para. 3). Special Situations and Exceptions to the Rules Indirect Quotes When quoting a quote that someone else used, known as an indirect quote, the in-text citation should refer to the source actually in hand. Do not do an in-text citation for the item that the source used. In addition, be sure to acknowledge that the source quoted someone else. For example, imagine having an article written by Klein. In the article, Klein quoted from another source; say, The Chicago Manual of Style (CMS). It is fine to use the quote from The CMS without having The CMS in hand. Just quote Klein and The CMS in the following way: According to Klein (2011), APA s Publication Manual does not cover all issues. Specifically, APA s Publication Manual does not cover the spacing between single and double quotation marks. In cases such as these, Klein says to follow The Chicago Manual of Style, which states no space need be added between the two except as a typographical nicety (Klein, 2011, p. 1). In-text citation for a web page with no author. In-text citation for a quote from a website with many authors. Citation includes paragraph number because it is a direct quote.
CITING SOURCES 6 Notice that Klein s words are in double quotation marks and the words from CMS are in single quotation marks. Only Klein is in the references list at the end of the paper. The Chicago Manual of Style is not. Block Quotes Block quotes are used for any direct quotes that are 40 words or more. If such a long quotation is being used, introduce it and block indent the whole quotation. Block quotations do not have quotation marks surrounding them because the block indent tells the reader it is a quotation. An example of a block quote follows: Place direct quotations [40 words or] longer... in a free-standing block of typewritten lines, and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, indented 1/2 inch from the left margin; i.e., in the same place you would begin a new paragraph. Type the entire quotation on the new margin, and indent the first line of any subsequent paragraph within the quotation 1/2 inch from the new margin. Maintain double-spacing throughout. The parenthetical [in-text] citation should come after the closing punctuation mark. (Angeli et al., 2010, para. 13) Block quotes should be used sparingly. Do not use them as space fillers! Personal Communications Personal communications include information that is not retrievable, such as phone conversations, interviews, email, memos, and personal letters. Personal communications do not have a corresponding entry in the references section. An example of a personal communication in-text citation might look like this: According to L. Harrington (personal communication, March 13, 2013), interviews included in papers need to be relevant.
CITING SOURCES 7 Finally, the paper will normally end with a references section. The references section starts after the conclusion but on its own page. In it, provide complete information about each item that was cited in-text so readers can find it for their own use. Have at least one in-text citation in the paper for each item in the references section. If there is not a matching in-text citation, make sure to include a matching citation or remove the reference completely. Finally, each in-text citation must have a matching reference listing, except for personal communications that are referred to only within the text of the paper. References Section Tips: Note these features of the references section: The references section always begins on its own page at the end of the paper. The references section begins with the word References, which is centered at the top of the page. All sources are listed alphabetically by the first word in the reference entry (usually the author s last name). Hanging indents should be used so that the second line of the reference (if present) is indented. DOIs for journal articles should be used if they exist. You might find DOIs for articles listed in the database you found them in, on the articles themselves, or via the use of http://www.crossref.org. For more information, please see the library s handout on DOIs. All APA references are put together in the same way with the same information and in the same order: Who did it (author, artist, director, organization, etc.) o Note: Sometimes there is no author; in this case, the title goes in the author s place When they did it (publication or creation date) What they did (title) How to get it (varies based on type of source): o Place of publication and name of publishing company for books o Periodical title, volume, issue, and page numbers for journals o Periodical title, volume, issue, page numbers, and DOI or journal URL for online journals o Periodical title, date, and page numbers for newspapers and magazines o Periodical title, date, page numbers, and DOI or magazine/newspaper URL for online newspapers and magazines o URL or web address for web pages After having a basic understanding of how reference items are put together, use the Rasmussen College Library s subscription to NoodleTools NoodleBib software to prepare, format, export, and/or print the references section Note: Microsoft Word 2010 reference formatting feature does NOT create correct APA 6 th edition references. For more information, see: http://guides.rasmussen.edu/apa http://rasmussen.libanswers.com/browse.php?tid=10800
Header Tip: Note that the references section includes a title and page number in the header, just like all the other pages in the paper. CITING SOURCES 8 References Amato, C. J. (2009). The world s easiest guide to using the APA (4th ed.). Corona, CA: Stargazer. American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington D.C.: Author. Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M., Soderland, L.,... Keck, R. (2010, Dec. 12). In-text citations: The basics. Retrieved from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/02/ Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M., Soderland, L.,... Keck, R. (2011, Feb. 3). Reference list: Electronic sources. Retrieved from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/10/ APA in-text citation guidelines. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.ggu.edu/university_library/ research_assistance/research_assistance_citing_sources/apa_in_text_citation_guidelines Klein, S. (2011, March 11). Single quotes within double quotes [Blog post]. Retrieved from: http://blog.apastyle.org/ Robins, J. (2009). The first word: A letter from the publications editor. Journal of Advanced Academics, 21(1), 5-7. Retrieved from http://www.jaa.uconn.edu/ Roen, D., Glau, G. R., & Maid, B. M. (2009). Writing for college, writing for life. Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.