Introduction to APA (7th Ed.

Shilo Smith, Lindsay Curry, & Grace Renninger

St. Petersburg College
Caruth Health Education Center
Last Update December 2019
 APA Style, 7th Ed. Helps Students

“Cite the work of those individuals whose ideas, theories, or research have directly influenced your work” (American Psychological Association [APA], 2020, p. 253).
 Formatting Basics for APA, 7th Ed.
• Double spaced with one-inch margins.

• Permitted fonts: Times New Roman 12, Georgia 11,

Calibri 11, Arial 11, or Lucida Sans Unicode 10. Use
the same font throughout the entire paper.

• Each page is numbered in the top right corner of the

page header. Title page is number 1.

(APA, 2020, pp. 29–67)

 Formatting Student Papers
• Student papers DO NOT require a running head.

• Refer to the sample student paper on pages 61–

67 of the APA manual or view here:
https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guide
lines/paper-format/sample-papers
Student Paper Title Page
On the title page, the following items are centered, each on its own line: title
of paper, name, affiliation (St. Petersburg College), course, instructor, and due
date. The title of the paper is in bold, with an extra space before your name.
Student Paper Page 2
The first line of page 2 is the title of the paper, bold and
centered.
Student Paper Reference List
On the first line of the reference list, the word References is bold
and centered.
 In-Text Citations
• Use in-text citations throughout the body of your paper.

• In-text citations indicate you are paraphrasing or

directly quoting another author’s work.

• Depending on your writing style, use either a

parenthetical or narrative format.

• When using a direct quote, include the page number of

the quoted material.

(APA, 2020, pp. 261–263)

 In-Text Citations Include

• Author
• Publication Date
• Page Number (for quoted material)

(APA, 2020, pp. 261–263)

Parenthetical In-Text Citation Example

APA is fun (Jones, 2019).

 Narrative In-Text Citation
Examples

Jones (2019) said APA is fun.

In 2019, Jones said APA is fun.

Quoted Material In-Text Citation Example

A researcher once said, “APA is an amusing way to

document research” (Jones, 2019, p. 28).
 References

• References are listed on the reference list.

• These are detailed entries, arranged in alphabetical

order by lead author’s name.

• The reference list should include a reference entry for

each source cited in text.

• “Personal communications are not included in the

reference list”(APA, 2020, p. 260). Simply provide an
in-text citation for personal communications.
 Basic Reference Entry Includes
• Author
• Publication Date
• Title
• Source

Note: “Group authors may include government agencies, associations, nonprofit

organizations, businesses, hospitals, task forces, and study groups” (APA, 2020, p.
288).

(APA, 2020, p. 283)

 Formatting References Tips
• Determine what type of source you have and follow
the appropriate example to format the reference.

• The date format depends on the type of source.

• Use (n.d.) if no publication date is available (APA,

2020, p. 291).
 More Formatting References Tips
• Pay attention to subtle formatting requirements, such as
italics, capitalization, spacing, and punctuation.

• Be consistent with the format of URLs: “Links should

be live if the work is to be published or read online”
(APA, 2020, p. 299).

• Format each reference with a hanging indent—the first

line of a source stays left-justified and each line after is
indented (APA, 2020, p. 303).
Print Books and Ebooks
Without a DOI
Print Books and Ebooks
With a DOI
 Print Books and Ebooks
Chapter in an Edited Book
Journal Article
 Website
Group Author
 Website
Individual Author
Government Report
 References
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American

Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000

Smith, S., Curry, L., & Renninger, G. (2019). APA (7th ed.) basics guide.

https://spcollege.libguides.com/ld.php?content_id=51544689