Key Takeaways
- APA format is the official style of the American Psychological Association used in psychology, education, and social sciences.
- Your paper should include a title page, abstract, main body, and reference list.
- In-text citations in APA format include the author’s name and the date of publication.
Are you writing a paper for a psychology class? If so, you will likely need to use APA format to organize your paper and list the sources you used.
APA format is quite different from some of the other typical academic writing styles and guidelines you may used in the past. And, while it may take some getting used to, learning how to write an APA paper is a useful skill for anyone, whether you are a psychology major or just taking some social science classes for fun.
What Is APA Format?
APA format is the official style of the American Psychological Association (APA) and is commonly used to cite sources in psychology, education, and the social sciences. APA style originated in a 1929 article published in Psychological Bulletin that laid out the basic guidelines for academic writing in this genre. These guidelines were eventually expanded into the APA Publication Manual.
Why is APA format so important in psychology and other social sciences? Because, by using APA style, researchers and students writing about psychology can communicate information about their ideas and experiments in a consistent format. Consistency ensures readers know what to look for as they read journal articles and other forms of psychological writing.
If you have never taken a psychology or social science class before, then you are probably accustomed to using a different style guide, such as MLA or Chicago style.
New college students are often surprised to find that, after spending years having another formatting style drilled into their heads, many university-level classes instead require APA style.
It can be a difficult transition, especially if you have to bounce back and forth between different styles for different classes. However, getting a solid grasp of the basics and bookmarking a few key resources can make this new format a bit easier.
How to Section Your Paper
In most cases, your paper should include four main sections: a title page, abstract, main section, and reference list.
Title Page
Your title page should contain your title, name, and school affiliation. The page should also display the course number and name, the instructor’s name, and the due date of your paper. The purpose of your title page is to let the reader know what your paper is about and who it was written by.
Abstract
An abstract is a brief summary of your paper that immediately follows your title page. According to APA format, your abstract should be about 100 to 200 words although this can vary depending upon the specific publication or instructor requirements.
Main Body
For an essay type paper, the main body of your paper will include the essay itself. If you are writing a lab report, then your main body will be broken down into further sections. The four main components of a lab report include the introduction, method, results, and discussion sections.
References
The reference section of your paper will include a list of all of the sources that you used in your paper. If you cited information anywhere in your paper, it needs to be properly referenced in this section.
One rule of thumb to remember is any source cited in your paper needs to be included in your reference section. And any source listed in your reference section must also be mentioned somewhere in your paper.
How to Handle In-Text Citations
As you are writing your paper, it is important to include citations in your text to identify where you found the information you are using. Such notations are called in-text citations. APA format dictates that in-text citations in APA format should include the author’s name followed by the date of publication.
For example, if you were to cite Sigmund Freud’s book The Interpretation of Dreams, you would use the following format: (Freud, 1900). The extended information on the source should then appear in your reference section.
Important Tips for Reference Pages
The exact format of each reference will vary depending on whether you are referencing an author or authors, a book or journal article, or an electronic source.
It pays to spend some time looking at the specific requirements for each type of reference before formatting your source list. Here are some useful tips for incorporating reference pages into your document.
- Start a new page for your references titled “References.”
- Center title text at the top of the page.
- Put references should be in alphabetical order.
- Align the first line of a reference flush with the left margin and indent each additional line beneath it (usually accomplished by using the TAB key).
- Double-spaced the text
- Use italics for titles of books, journals, magazines, and newspapers.
Any reference that appears in the text of your report or article must be cited on the reference page, and any item appearing on your reference page must be also included somewhere in the body of your text.
Helpful Resources
If you are struggling with APA format or are looking for a good way to collect and organize your references as you work on your research, consider using a free APA citation machine. These online tools can quickly generate an APA style for most sources but should be double-checked for accuracy.
Purchasing a copy of the official Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association is a great way to learn more about APA format and to have as a resource when writing in APA format. Looking at examples of APA format can also be very helpful.
While APA format may seem complex, it will become easier when you familiarize yourself with the rules and format.
It is also important to remember that, while the overall format may be similar for most papers, your instructor may have specific requirements. These can vary depending on whether you are writing an essay or a research paper. Your instructor may also require you to maintain and turn in an APA format bibliography.
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Psychological Association. About APA Style.
Nagda S. How to write a scientific abstract. J Indian Prosthodont Soc. 2013;13(3):382-383. doi:10.1007/s13191-013-0299-x
Masic I. The importance of proper citation of references in biomedical articles. Acta Inform Med. 2013;21(3):148-55. doi:10.5455/aim.2013.21.148-155
Additional Reading
American Psychological Association. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). Washington DC: The American Psychological Association; 2019.
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