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APA Format

General Formatting Rules:

1” margins.           

12 point Times Roman Font Style.

Double Space.

Left justification & no hyphenation.

Page Header & page number in upper right corner of all pages.

Page Header and Page Number

Page Header & page number in upper right corner of all pages.

Align using right justification.

Page header is first 2-3 words of title.

Capitalize first letter of each word in page header.

5 spaces between page header and page number.

Title Page: Running Head

The running head is an abbreviated title for a published article not exceeding 50 characters.

It is used to identify the article for readers.

The abbreviated title is typed in upper case letters.

Formatting for Title Page

The running head is typed flush left at the top of the page.

The title, author’s name & affiliation are all centered in the upper half of the page.

Title Page: Title

The title is used as a statement of the article content for information services such as Psych. Abstracts and PsychINFO database.

The title should summarize the main idea of the paper in 10-12 words & identify the variables or theoretical issues under investigation in the study.

Capitalize first letter of each word of title.

Title Page: Author’s Name

Include the author’s first name, middle initial(s), and last name to reduce likelihood of mistaken identity.

Omit all titles (e.g., Dr.) & degrees (e.g., Ph.D.).

Use the same format for all your papers.

The affiliation identifies the location where the author or authors conducted the investigation.

Writing Style

Biased language

Cultural sensitivity

Abstract

The abstract page begins on page 2.

The word ‘Abstract’ is centered on the first line.

The abstract is a blocked summary (left justification, no indent) of the paper.

The length should not exceed 120 words, but should be written so that the reader has a general idea regarding the purpose, participants, procedure, results & major findings.

Introduction

Begins on page 3.

The title is centered on the first line

Introduction

1^st paragraph should introduce the topic or question(s) that will be addressed.

The body consists of a semi-comprehensive literature review of the topic/research question.

Review research & theoretical interpretations of the topic/research question.

Introduction

The literature review should lead up to the rationale for the current study.

Briefly describe the research design & then state the hypotheses.

Do not discuss the findings or implications of the study in the introduction.

Methods

Describes in detail how the study was conducted. 

other investigators should be able to replicate the study.

Methods

The methods section consists of the following labeled sub-sections:

      participants

      apparatus and/or materials

      design and measures

      procedure

Methods

Participants:

Who (e.g., demographics), number

State if any were not included in the data analysis

Methods

Apparatus or Materials:

(e.g., stopwatches, computers, word lists, Skinner box).

Put copies of special stimuli used (e.g., word lists) in an appendix page.

Provide references for materials used from another researcher or publisher (personality tests).

Methods

Measures:

Operationally define the IVs & their levels & the DVs.

Describe measures used to obtain data such as questionnaires or scales. 

Also describe how variables were coded.

If scales or psychological tests were used, be sure to include the reliability and validity of the measures. 

Methods

Procedure:

You should specify the specific steps necessary for the execution of the study.

You need to tell the reader what you did & how you did it.

Summarize the instructions given to the subjects & how much time was allotted for each part of the experimental procedures.

Methods

Procedure:

Be sure to state that the subjects were provided with a consent form & were debriefed after the study was completed. 

Results

The results should summarize the collected data & your statistical treatment of them.

You should include tables & figures which summarize your data.

Be sure to refer the reader to all tables and figures.

DO NOT  discuss the findings & implications of your results here.

Discussion

You should start your discussion by restating your hypotheses & indicating whether they were supported by the data.

Discuss the theoretical implications of your results & how they compare to previous research discussed in the introduction.

Do theories need to be modified due to your findings?

Make suggestions for improvement of your study and future studies.

References: Journal Articles

Author(s):

List all authors, surname first followed by first and middle initial.

Use commas to separate authors, to separate surnames & initials, & use an ampersand (&) before the last author.

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References: Journal Articles

Publication Date:

Place year of publication in parentheses followed by a period.

If an article has been accepted for publication, but has not been published yet, type (in press).

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References: Journal Articles

Title of Article:

Capitalize only the first word of the title & of the subtitle, if any, & any proper nouns.

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References: Journal Articles

Publication Information:

Give the full periodic title, in uppercase & lowercase letters.

Give the volume number.  If each issue of a journal begins on page 1, give the issue number in parentheses immediately after the volume number.

Italicize the name of the journal and volume number.

References: Journal Articles

Publication Information:

Give inclusive page numbers.

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References: Journal Articles

Pagination by issue - Each issue starts with page #1.  You must include the issue number:

Applied Cognitive Psychology, 15(4), 3-22.

Continuous pagination - Each issue starts with the next page number. You do not include the issue number:

Applied Cognitive Psychology, 15, 3-22.

References: Books

Author(s):

List all authors, surname first followed by first & middle initial.

Use commas to separate authors, to separate surnames and initials, and use an ampersand (&) before the last author.

References: Books

Publication Date:

Place year of publication in parentheses followed by a period.

Cozby, P. C.  (2004).

References: Books

Title:

Capitalize only the first word of the title and of the subtitle, if any, and any proper nouns.

Italicize the title.

State the edition number.

Cozby, P. C.  (2004).  Methods in behavioral

research (8^th ed.).

References: Books

Publication Information:

Give the city and, if the city is not well known for publishing or could be confused with another location, the state or province where the publisher is located.  Use a colon after location.

Give the name of the publisher in as brief a form as is intelligible.

New York, NY:  McGraw Hill.

References: Books

Cozby, P. C.  (2004).  Methods in Behavioral

Research (8^th ed.).  New York, NY: McGraw

Hill.           

Format for the Reference Page

The reference page is a separate page in the text.

Type the word ‘References’ centered on the first line.

Double space all entries and use a hanging indent format, meaning that the first line of each reference is set flush left and subsequent lines are indented.

Reference Page

Order of references:

Arrange references in alphabetical order by the surname of the first author, using the following rules:

Alphabetize letter by letter:

(e.g.,

Reference Page

If an author has several citations, arrange by the following rules:

a)   One author entries by the same author are arranged by year of  publication, the earliest first.

Cozby, P. C. (

Cozby, P. C. (

Reference Page

b)   One author entries precede multiple-author entries beginning with the same surname.

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Reference Page

c)   References with the same first author and different second or third authors are arranged alphabetically by the surname of the second author or, if the second author is the same, the surname of the third author, and so on.

Griffin, J. G., & Brown, B. H.  (1995)                      

Griffin, J. G., Chaffin, C. C., & Holt, B  (2002)

Holt, B., Chaffin, C. C., & Brown, B. H.  (2000)

Holt, B., Chaffin, C. C., & Griffin, J. G.  (2000)

Reference Page

d)   References with the same authors in the same order are arranged by  year of publication, the earliest first.

McGuire, S. M., & Clifford, J. M.  (

McGuire, S. M., & Clifford, J. M.  (

Reference Page

e)   References by the same author (or by the same two or more authors in the same order) with the same publication date are arranged alphabetically by the title (excluding A or The) that follows the date.

Reference Page

f)    Works by different authors with the same surname are arranged  alphabetically by the first initial.

Clifford, H. M.  (2003).

Clifford, J. M.  (2004). 

Citing Sources in the Text

Single Author:

When the author’s name is part of the narrative:

Clifford (2004) found that ……..

In 2004, Clifford found that …….

Citing Sources in the Text

Single Author:

When the author’s name is NOT part of the narrative:

In one study (Clifford, 2004) it was found that ……..

It was found that ………. for the original event (Clifford, 2004).

Citing Sources in the Text

Two Authors:

When the authors’ names are part of the narrative:

McGuire and Clifford (2002) found that ……..

Citing Sources in the Text

Two Authors:

When the authors names are NOT part of the narrative:

Children were more likely to explore when they were with the child confederate compared to the adult confederate (McGuire & Clifford, 2002).

Citing Sources in the Text

Three to Five Authors:

All author’s are cited the first time the reference occurs.

Chaffin, Brown, and Griffin (1994) found that …..

but……..

Citing Sources in the Text

Three to Five Authors:

Only the first authors is cited in subsequent citations.

Chaffin et al. (1994) found that …..

In one study, (Chaffin et al., 1994) found that …..

Citing Sources in the Text

Six or More Authors:

Use the abbreviation et al. after the first author’s last name in every citation.

Citing Sources in the Text

Secondary Sources:

To cite work discussed in a secondary source, give the secondary source in the list of references and cite in the text as follows:

Loftus and Zanni (cited in Loftus, 1979) found that the word of a question affected recall.

APA Format for Tables

General Format:

Each table or figure must be labeled with an Arabic number.

APA Format for Tables

How to draw a table:

Place each table on its own separate page.

2. Type an informative title atop the table and underline it.

Write the title on a separate line.  Each word in the title is capitalized and the entire title is underlined.  The title does not end with a period.

APA Format for Tables

How to draw a table:

4.   Be sure to name each IV as well as each level of a particular IV. 

5. It is conventional to report both means and standard deviations.

6.   If you report anything in parentheses, be sure to include a footnote that tells the reader what these numbers represent.

APA Format for Tables

Table 1

Mean Number of Words Recalled as a Function of Category Type

APA Format for Figures

How to draw a figure:

Each figure is drawn on its own separate page.

The title for the figure goes on a separate page (figure caption page).

Figure 1 is underlined and the title begins on the same line and ends with a period.

Only the first letter of the title is capitalized, except for proper nouns.

APA Format for Figures

How to draw a figure:

5.   The figure caption should name the DV and mention all relevant IV’s.

Label the ordinate (x axis) with the name of the DV.

a)     Type the label so that it extends vertically from the bottom of the figure  towards the top of the page.

APA Format for Figures

How to draw a figure:

Label the abscissa (y axis) with the name of the IV (e.g., the subject's gender).

Label each level of the IV across the abscissa.

9. Fill in values for each level of the IV. 

a)   Remember to draw a bar graph if the IV is qualitative, and a line graph if the IV is                  quantitative.

APA Format for Figures

No 3d graphs allowed

No color graphs allowed

Must label all axes and conditions.

APA Format for Figures

Figure 1.  Mean proportion of words recalled as a function of category type.

APA Format for Tables

How to refer to tables and figures in the text.

1.   Refer and introduce to the reader each table or figure in the text.

(e.g., “Figure 1 shows the mean BDI scores as a function of the type of therapy received.”)

APA Format for Tables

How to refer to tables and figures in the text.

2.   Tell the reader what to look for and where to find it.

(e.g., “It can be seen in the third column of Table 1 that cognitive therapy reduced BDI scores.")

(e.g., “Figure 1 illustrates the dramatic decline in BDI scores between the two therapy conditions.")

Order of Manuscript Pages

Title page (separate page, numbered page 1).

Abstract (separate page, numbered page 2).

Text (separate page, numbered page 3).

References (start on a separate page).

Appendixes (start each on a separate page)

Author Note (start on a separate page).

Footnotes (list together, starting on a separate page)

Tables (start each on a separate page).

Figure captions (list together, starting on a separate page).

Figures (place each on a separate page).

Order of Manuscript Pages

Writing Style information can be found on pages 31-76 in the APA manual.

Spacing & Punctuation information can be found on page 290 of the APA manual.

Quotation information can be found on pages 292-293 in the APA manual.