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APA Documentation Style

Definition Examples - More help


Advice provided in this document is
based on the Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association , 6th
edition (2010).

Are you already familiar with APA & just want quick
access to numerous examples? Go to Guides on
Centennial Libraries homepage and select APA
Style: http://library.centennialcollege.ca/

Paper copies of the APA manual are available at all


Centennial College Campus Libraries.
L. Dobson, Librarian , 2012 September
edobson@centennialcollege.ca

Table of contents

Why document?slides 3-9


Essay sample pages & citations in APA style...slides 10-19
Where to access help ..slides 20-33
RefWorks (program to store your references)..slide 34

APA rules & guidelines interpretation varies..slide 35

Supplement: Adapting APA for pamphlets, posters, etcslides 36-41

Your research paper normally includes


3 types of material

1.

Your ideas

2.

Your summaries of others ideas and facts

3.

Quotations from your sources


-- MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (2009)

Your use of others ideas and words

Researchers do not
claim the words and
ideas of another as
their own; they give
credit where credit is
due.
Source: APA Ethics Code Standard
8.11, Plagiarism. (2010). In Publication
Manual of the American Psychological
Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC:
APA, p.15).

So let us be loving,
hopeful and optimistic.
And well change the
world.
- Jack Layton (2011)

Why acknowledge your sources?


1.

You demonstrate that you have investigated authorities on your


topic. This lends credibility to your work and to you.

2.

You acknowledge your indebtedness to others. This shows that


you are not alone, you have support from others (who may
themselves be respected authorities, and possibly important &
influential in your field - thus lending strength to your words.

3.

You add weight to specific statements by citing authorities that


support you views. Documentation used appropriately increases
your ability to persuade.

4.

You enable your readers to pursue the topic further, &/or evaluate
your use of others work.
-- Canadian Writers Handbook (2005) and N. Nicholls (personal communication, Sept 2012)

When you dont acknowledge your sources

http://library.centennialcollege.ca/research/tips/avoidplagiarism

http://www.centennialcollege.ca/pdf/Academic%20Honesty%20-%20Policy.pdf

from: Centennial College Academic Honesty and Plagiarism Policy

When might you NOT have to cite?


(When in doubt, cite it.)
As a general rule, you should
cite all ideas, facts and
quotations from others that
you use in your work
unless the idea or fact is
commonly accepted

Examples of commonly
accepted facts and beliefs:
The Government of
Ontario provides social
services.

Many scholars and


members of the general
public are concerned
about global warming.

http://library.centennialcollege.ca/Default.aspx?DN=42f213de-f30d-4f08-970a-2ded147e03df

Sample title page in APA style (full page view)

10

http://library.centennialcollege.ca/Default.aspx?DN=42f213de-f30d-4f08-970a-2ded147e03df

Sample page 2 in APA style (full page view)

11

http://library.centennialcollege.ca/Default.aspx?DN=8d43d350-5bb4-4bb6-aa17-fe53bcc22d55

Sample References list (at the end of research paper) in APA style (full page view)

12

http://library.centennialcollege.ca/Default.aspx?DN=42f213de-f30d-4f08-970a-2ded147e03df

Basic title page & essay pages rules - APA style

13

http://library.centennialcollege.ca/Default.aspx?DN=42f213de-f30d-4f08-970a-2ded147e03df

Examples of in-text citations in APA style:


Author, year of publication, page numbers where the authors idea came from when
authors name is not mentioned in your text
Year and page numbers only when you have already mentioned the authors names
in your text

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[Word doc]

Examples of in-text citations in APA style:

Page number only as authors are mentioned in the text


Personal communication a special case
Author and page number author name needed as it is not mentioned in text

15

[Word doc]

Example of quotation fewer than 40 words


(See rule in the APA manual, p. 171)

Interpreting these results, Roberts suggested that the information gathered in this
study cannot predict an outcome with certainty (2003, p. 540), thus lending real
doubt regarding the future.

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[Word doc]

Example of quotation 40 or more words


(See rule in the APA manual, p. 171)

Others have contradicted this view:


Co-presence does not ensure intimate interaction among all group members.
Consider large scale social gatherings in which hundreds or thousands of

people gather in a location to perform a ritual or celebrate an event.


In these instance, participants are able to see the visible manifestation of the
group, the physical gathering, yet their ability to make direct, intimate

connections with those around them is limited by the sheer magnitude of the
assembly. (Purcell, 1997, pp. 111-112)

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APA Style

18

[Word doc]

Each reference you cite in-text must appear in the References list,
and each entry in the References list must be cited in-text. (APA, 2010,
p. 174)

References all entries are listed alphabetically by author at the


end of your paper. (If there is no author, use the title.)

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APA Style

20

HELP
Centennial Libraries offers a Guide on APA
style on its website.
http://library.centennialcollege.ca/
On Library homepage, go to Guides, and
click on the arrow to reveal a drop down
menu

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Select the APA Style

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APA Style Guide on Centennial Libraries website


http://library.centennialcollege.ca/Default.aspx?DN=8a2ae1fa-1900-4078-b96e-bec576a7c79f

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Database HELP
Most library databases provide APA
helpExample (an EBSCO
database):
Print, email, or save
(Email option here displayed)

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Example (an EBSCO database):


Cite

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Cite link in EBSCO databases leads you directly


to citation in APA style.
Warning:
You usually need to make some adjustments to the
help in databases:
For example, in the journal article citation below:
when you create your References, you will need to
adjust for double spacing, hanging indentation, &I
retrieval statement, and follow APA rules for
capitalization

Adjustment:

Maugeri, L. (2009). Squeezing more oil from the ground. Scientific


American, 301(4), 56-63. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier
database.

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Database HELP
Magazine article example of APA help in a ProQuest database.
Warning:
You usually need to make some adjustments to the citation formats given in databases. For example, this citation
needs to be adjusted so that it has hanging indentation. Also, Centennial College Libraries interpretation of APA rules
recommends using the name of the database in the retrieval statement (rather than the url). (See APA manual, p. 198 &
p.192 for further discussion)
APA

In order to be able to make these adjustments when you are creating your research report, learn the basic APA Rules
for specific document types, go to Centennial Libraries APA Style Guide
http://library.centennialcollege.ca/Default.aspx?DN=8a2ae1fa-1900-4078-b96e-bec576a7c79f

What
you
get
Your adjustment:

Serwer, A. (2005, Jan 24). Toyota rolls out a new economy-class drug

What
you
do

plan. Fortune, 151, 47. Retrieved from Reference Library database.

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[Microsoft Word 2010 doc]


WORD 2010 HELP
References tab provides help with APA style for
both your works cited and in-text citations.
Note: When creating a source in Word 2010, it
helps to be familiar with the basic APA rules so
that your inputting is close to the desired end
result.

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[Microsoft Word 2010 doc]


Example of an in-text citation generated with the help of Microsoft
Word 2010.
Note: the APA manual says: To cite a specific part of a source,
indicate the page, chapter, figure, table, or equation at the
appropriate point in text. Always give page numbers for
quotations (APA , 2010, p. 179).
You will thus want to adjust this in-text citation generated by
Microsoft Word to include the exact page reference where you
found the authors idea.

Your adjustment:
(Anderson, 2005, p. 179) is correct,
as it includes the page reference.

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[Microsoft Word 2010 doc]

Example of a References list made with the help of Microsoft Word 2010.
Warning: you will need to adjust these references too; e.g. to include doi number (if
provided), or retrieval statement (if no doi and item is found in a library database or
website. (Also a small detail - the issue number should not be in italics for
academic journal articles.) See next slide for the adjusted version.

Centennial Libraries APA Style Guide gives detailed examples


http://library.centennialcollege.ca/Default.aspx?DN=8a2ae1fa-1900-4078-b96ebec576a7c79f

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[Microsoft Word 2010 doc]

Adjustments (highlighted) to a References list made with the help of Microsoft Word 2010.
Retrieval statements (database, doi, or website) have been added to all four electronic works here listed
Issue numbers have been changed to regular font (i.e. not italicized)
These adjustments reflect Centennial Librarys interpretation of the APA rules. More examples are found in its APA Guide
http://library.centennialcollege.ca/Default.aspx?DN=8a2ae1fa-1900-4078-b96e-bec576a7c79f

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Remember that your work is submitted to


your professor under your name

Make sure you know the APA


rules sufficiently to recognize
when to adjust the citation
help you get if needed.

32

http://www.centennialcollege.ca/AcademicEnglish/Workshops/Antiplagiarism

Centennial College Centre for Academic English offers training in APA Style
through its Anti-Plagiarism workshop.

33

If you have a lot of documents to keep track of, or need to


use RefWorks to format your references & in-text citations,
set up a RefWorks account (accessed through the menu
on the APA Style Guide described above , or by using this
link:
http://library.centennialcollege.ca/research/refworks
Use the RefWorks tutorials or ask the library staff for help if
needed.

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A final note about using APA help

The APA manual provides


principles, rules &
guidelines for
documenting sources.

Institutions & individuals


sometimes vary as to
interpretation.

This variation accounts


for differing help & advice
you may find.

Whatever interpretation
you choose, be
consistent.
35

SUPPLEMENT
On adapting APA principles, rules and
guidelines when you are creating
pamphlets, posters, letters to
government officials , & other less
conventional publication types
36

APA documentation style


APA provides
principles, rules &
guidelines with
primary focus on advice
to writers of research
reports & essays

Do the same APA principles apply when writing pamphlets,


posters, letters to government officials and other less
conventional publications?
O Yes, the same principles

apply. You want to provide


clear documentation for a
variety of reasons (listed
above)
O However, you can

adapt the

form of your documentation,


using your own judgment and
interpretation.
38

Sample letter with APA


adapted documentation

Using footnotes to
document two sources
with full Referencestype detail at the
bottom of the page
(Note: the personal
communication citation
here follows the normal
APA rulealthough you
have the freedom to
choose what form you
think best.)

Footnotes

39

Sample pamphlet with APA


adapted documentation
Footnote documenting a
source with full
References-type detail.

Footnote for
quotation from
Statistics
Canada
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Sample pamphlet with APA adapted documentation


Endnotes used to document a source with full References type
detail.

Two
Endnotes

Sample pamphlet with APA


adapted documentation
Full References-type
documentation
embedded in the text.

Quotation from
Statistics Canada
with full
documentation
embedded in the
text

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Jfjfjfjfjfjjfjfjfjfj
fjfjjfjfjfjfjjfjfjfj
fjkkfjfjfjfjfjjffj
fjfjjfjfjfjfjkfjfjf
jfj

Sample poster with APA


adapted documentation
Footnote to identify,
document, and provide
copyright permission for
using photograph

Footnote

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