FACULTY HANDBOOK
EXHIBIT G: APA GUIDELINES

These guidelines based on the 5th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2001) provide an overview of the APA style formatting required by the University.  For more detailed information, please refer to the Publication Manual.

Title Page:

  • A page header consists of the first two or three words of your title.  These words and the page number appear in the upper right-hand corner of every page.  Most word processing programs will allow you to set-up a deader that will automatically appear at the top of each page.  For class assignments the header should include your name, course code, assignment number and date in the upper left-hand corner of each page.
  • The title summarizes the topic of your paper.  By simply stating the main idea, the title should fully explain your paper's purpose to the reader.  Typed in upper and lower case letters, the title appears centered on the page and double-spaced if more than one line long.
  • The author's name (your name) appears typed in upper and lower case letters, centered, and double-spaced one line below the title.  Northcentral University appears below your name.

Abstract:

  • The page header appears.  If set-up in your work-processing program, the header will appear automatically.
  • The Abstract informs the reader that a summary of your paper appears next.
    The word "Abstract" appears centered exactly one double-spaced line about the abstract's body.  The letter A should be capitalized, while the rest of the word should follows in lower case.  It should not be bold, enlarged in font size, underlined, or enclosed in quotation marks.
  • The body summarizes the content of your paper.  Typed as a single paragraph, not exceeding 120 words, the body should be in block format without indentation.
  • The abstract helps the reader understand the fundamental nature of your paper.
  • By working from an outline of your paper, your can change your headings and subheadings into general ideas expressed in sentence format to form your abstract.
  • An abstract provides a non-evaluative summary.  Do not add information or draw conclusions as these belong in the body of the paper.

Text:

  • The page header identifies this as the third page of your paper.  If set-up in your word-processing program, the header will appear automatically.
  • The full title appears just as it appears on the title page.  Center and double-space, the title should appear in upper and lower case letter.  Do not enclose in quotation marks.
  • The body includes an introduction, background, and discussion of your topic.  The discussion area may include your evaluation and/or interpretation of your research.  Double-spaced in paragraph form with indentations, the body may be subdivided into different sections.
  • The headings and subheadings help organize your paper for easy reading.  Check the APA manual for information of the various levels of headings and the correct formatting of each level.  (Publication Manual of the APA, 113-116).
  • The in-text citations that appear throughout the body identify and give credit to the original author of any direct quotes or paraphrasing of material from your references.  Citations within the body of your paper appear in parentheses following the quotation or paraphrased material.  The in-text citation consists of the author's last name, followed by a comma and the year of publication.  When material is directly quoted, the page(s) number is also included.  When an author's name is not available, the title of the work is used.  The punctuation at the end of the sentence FOLLOWS the last parentheses.

Examples:

 Direct quote  (Monroe, 2002, p. 345).
 Paraphrasing an author  (Monroe, 2002).
 Paraphrasing with two authors  (Monroe & Martin, 2002).
 Paraphrasing 3-5 authors, 1st time  (Monroe, Martin, & Murphy, 2002).
 Paraphrasing 3-5 authors subsequently  (Monroe et al., 2002).
 6 or more authors  (Monroe et al, 2002).
 No author, using title  ("The Services," 2002).

For additional examples, please refer to the APA style manual (Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 2001).

References:

  • The page header appears at the top right hand corner of the page and should appear automatically if set-up in your word-processing program.
  • The word References appears centered at the top of the page, typed in the same size font you've been using.  Do not bold, underline, or place the word in quotation marks.  The reference list appears on a separate page following the body of your paper.  Alphabetize the references by author (or title if no author is given).  Se alphabetizing rules on pages 219-222 in the APA Manual.
  • The sources that you used within the body of your paper appear in the references.  Include all the information needed by the reader to follow-up your references.  References cited in the body of your paper must appear in the reference list.  Each entry in the reference list must be cited in-text.  Be certain all referenced material appears in both places.
  • The reference list is double-spaced using hanging indentation (each reference appears flush left with subsequent lines indented).
  • Electronic resources must include a current, working Internet link.  For information on formatting electronic resources see the APA Manual or American Psychological Association.  (2001, August 1).  APA style for electronic resources available from http://www.apastyle.org.

An example reference listing appears on the next page.  The information between brackets at the end of each reference identifies the type of reference and does not appear in a submitted research paper.  It is for your information only.  Additional examples may be found in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. (2001).

References

Academic writing: Annotated bibliography (2002).Retrieved

July 19, 2004, from Writer's Handbook: 

http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/AnnotatedBibliography.html

Connick, G. P. (Ed.). (1999). The distance learner's guide. Upper

 Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Davis, P. M. (2002). The effect of the web on undergraduate

citation behavior: A 2000 update. College & Research

Libraries, 63 (1), 53-60.

Hammon, D. L., & Albiston, S. K. (1998). Completing

graduate school long distance. Thousand Oaks, CA: 

Sage Publications.

Mann, T. (1998). The Oxford guide to library research. New

York: Oxford University Press.

Reference list. In Publication manual of the American

Psychological Association (pp. 215-281). Washington, 

DC: American Psychological Association.

FOR ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES CONSULT THE Publication Manual of the APA. (2001).