The Basics o

f APA
si s
nes g
R epo rt Formatting
Bu in
Writ
 General Format
Your essay should
4.
4. References
References
include four major
sections:
3.
3. Main
Main Body
Body

2.
2. Abstract
Abstract

1.
1. Title
Title page
page
 Formatting the Title Page
Header= the
Running
head* and
page number

Title of the paper

Your name and
your institution
(school)
*The running head
should not exceed
one line. If it does,
use a shortened
version of your title
as the header
 The Abstract
0 The second page of your paper
0 Summarizes your subject, research method, findings,
and conclusions
 In-Text Citations
0 Used to cite information that you have taken from
another source and used in your paper in the form of:
0 Direct Quotes
0 Paraphrasing
0 Summary
0 Whenever you use a source, provide in parenthesis:
0 the author’s name and the date of publication

0 for quotations and close paraphrases, provide the

author’s name, date of publication, and a page number
 In-text Citations:
Formatting Quotations

Caruth (1996) states that a traumatic response

Intext Citation 1
frequently entails a “delayed, uncontrolled
repetitive appearance of hallucinations and
other intrusive phenomena”.

Intext Citation 2
 In-text Citations:
Formatting a Summary or Paraphrase

Smith (2002) explained that sibutramine

Intext Citation 1
suppresses appetite by blocking the reuptake
if the neurotransmitters serotonin and
norepinephrine in the brain.

Sibutramine suppresses appetite by blocking

the reuptake of the neurotransmitters
Intext Citation 2 serotonin and norepinephrine in the brain
(Smith, 2002).
 In-text Citations:
A Work with Two Authors
According to feminist researchers Bergin
and Tate (1997), “It is no longer true to
claim that women's responses to the war
have been ignored”.

When citing a work with two authors, use

“and” in between authors’ name in the
signal phrase, but use“&” between their
names in parenthesis.

Some feminists researchers question that

“women's responses to the war have been
ignored” (Bergin & Tate, 1997).
 In-text Citations:
A Work with Five and More Authors

OR…
 In-text Citations:
Organization
0 When citing an organization, mention the
organization the first time when you cite the source in
the signal phrase or the parenthetical citation.
The data collected by the Food and Drug Administration
(2008) confirmed that…

0 If the organization has a well-known abbreviation,

include the abbreviation in parenthesis the first time
the source is cited and use only the abbreviation in
later citations.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (2008) confirmed
… FDA’s experts tested…
 References Page
Center the title
(References) at the Double-space
top of the page. Do reference
not bold it. entries

Flush left the first

line of the entry
and indent
subsequent lines

Order entries
alphabetically
by the author’s
surnames
 References:
Basics
0 Invert authors’ names
0 last name first followed by initials: Smith, J.Q.

0 Alphabetize reference list entries by the last name of

the first author of each work

0 Capitalize only the first letter of the first word of a

title and subtitle, the first word after a colon or a dash
in the title, and proper nouns:
Toward effective poster presentations: An annotated bibliography
 References:
Basic Format for Books

0 Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work:

Capital letter also for subtitle. Location: Publisher.

Ex.:

Calfee, R. C., & Valencia, R. R. (1991). APA Guide to Preparing

Manuscripts for Journal Publication. Washington, DC: American
Psychological Association.
 References:
Web Document, Web Page, or Report

0 List as much of the following information as possible

0 Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date of publication). Title of
document. Retrieved from http://Web address

Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M.,
Soderland, L., & Brizee, A. (2010, May 5). Webpage. Retrieved
from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
 Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the act of stealing someone else's work and
attempting to "pass it off" as your own. This can apply to anything,
from term papers to photographs to songs, even ideas!
 Types of Plagiarism:
Copying
The most well-known and, sadly,
the most common type of
plagiarism is the simplest:
copying. If you copy someone
else's work and put your name on
it, you have plagiarized.
 Copying: An Example
"Children are totally insensitive to their parents' shyness; it is the rare
child who labels a parent shy [...] This is understandable, since parents
are in positions of control and authority in their homes and may not
reveal their shy side to their children. Also, since shyness is viewed as
undesirable by many children, it may be threatening to think of parents
in these terms. At this young age, the parent is still idealized as all-
knowing and all-powerful - - not dumb, ugly, or weak."

Zimbardo, Philip G. (1977). Shyness: What it is, what to do about it.

Cambridge, Mass.: Perseus Books.
 Copying: An Example
This one is pretty straightforward. If a writer copies, word for
word, the text from Dr. Zimbardo's book and does not
acknowledge in any way that it was Dr. Zimbardo's work, the
writer has committed plagiarism.
 Types: Patchwork
Plagiarism
The second kind of plagiarism is similar to
copying and is perhaps the second most
common type of plagiarism: patchwork
plagiarism. This occurs when the
plagiarizer borrows the "phrases and clauses
from the original source and weaves them
into his own writing" (
McConnell Library, Radford University)
without putting the phrases in quotation
marks or citing the author.
 Patchwork: An Example
With regard to children, they are totally insensitive to their parents'
shyness. Rare is the child who labels a parent shy. It is easy to understand
this, since the parents are in positions of control and authority in their
own homes and may not necessarily show their shy side to their children.
Moreover, since shyness is viewed as unfavorable by most children, it
may be threatening for them to think of their parents in that light. During
the formative years, the parent is idealized as all-knowing and all-
powerful -- not dumb, ugly, or weak.
 Patchwork: An Example
Now, had the "author" of this passage put the colored phrases in
quotation marks and added a citation after the quotation, like
(Zimbardo 62), the "author" would have been safe. Without the
quotation marks and the proper citation, the "author" has committed
plagiarism.
 Types: Paraphrasing Plagiarism

The third type of plagiarism is called paraphrasing plagiarism. This

occurs when the plagiarizer paraphrases or summarizes another's work
without citing the source. Even changing the words a little or using
synonyms but retaining the author's essential thoughts, sentence structure,
and/or style without citing the source is still considered plagiarism.
 Paraphrasing: An Example
Children are completely insensitive to their parents' shyness
and rarely label their parents as shy. Because the parents are
the authority and controlling figures in the home, they may
not feel shy and therefore not show their shy side. Moreover,
during the formative years, parents are seen as omnipotent
and omniscient and not stupid, unattractive, or pathetic; it
may be frightening for children to view their parents in terms
of shyness.
 Paraphrasing: An Example
Now, had the "author" of this paragraph used footnotes or
parenthetical citations to acknowledge Dr. Zimbardo's work, he
or she would have been in the clear. However, since the "author"
acts like these ideas are his or her own, and does not
acknowledge Dr. Zimbardo, it's plagiarism.
 Types: Unintentional

The fourth type of plagiarism is

called unintentional plagiarism --
it occurs when the writer incorrectly
quotes and/or incorrectly cites a
source they are using.  How is this
plagiarism, if the author didn't mean
to do it?
 Types: Unintentional
If a writer has incorrectly quoted or incorrectly cited a source, it
could be misconstrued as dishonesty on the writer's part. The
Also: WE DON’T READ MINDS.
dishonest usage of another's work is most often considered
plagiarism. Therefore, the incorrect usage of another's work, whether
We don’t know what you *MEANT* to do!
it's intentional or not, could be taken for "real" plagiarism.
 Avoiding Plagiarism
Avoiding plagiarism is quite simple. The best method for avoiding it
is to simply be honest; when you've used a source in your paper,
give credit where it's due. Acknowledge the author of the original
work you've used.
 Avoiding Plagiarism
0 Another way to avoid plagiarism is to use your own
work as often as possible. Quoting and citing sources is
usually required and inevitable when doing research --
that's how you "back up" your own work. But using
someone else's work excessively can be construed as
plagiarism.

0 Another way to it is to quote and/or cite your sources

properly.
Use these three strategies,

0 Quoting
0 Paraphrasing
0 Summarizing

To blend source materials in with your own,

making sure your own voice is heard.
 Quoting
Quotations are the exact words of an author, copied
directly from a source, word for word. Quotations
must be cited!
 Paraphrasing
Paraphrasing means putting someone else’s words or ideas
into your own words.

Although you are using your own words, the ideas are taken
from someone else and must be cited on your Works-Cited
page.
 Paraphrasing
0 Paraphrasing is not simply rearranging or rewording
an original passage.
0 You have to understand what the author is saying and
write the ideas entirely in your own words.
 Paraphrasing
0 Give the author credit when you quote or paraphrase.

0 According to Carty (2000), “the CATS are ranked

fourth in backcourts this year with Rondo, Sparks,
Crawford, Bradley, and Moss.”
 APA Quotations
0 Indirect: Some researchers note that "children are totally
insensitive to their parents' shyness" (Zimbardo, 1977).

0 Direct: Zimbardo (1977) notes that “Children are totally

insensitive to their parents’ shyness”.

0 Paraphrasing: Some researchers have observed that children

seem oblivious to their parents’ bashfulness (Zimbardo, 1977).
 WHICH OF THE
FOLLOWING FIVE CASES
IS/ARE PLAGIARISM?
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