apa guidelines

American Psychological Association Writing Guidelines

The following information has been selected from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.).

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). (2009). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. ISBN-10: 14338-0561-8 (pbk)

Document Format

margins set at 1 inch (top, bottom, left and right)

text should be left justified

all font size should be 12 points

indent all paragraphs 5 spaces

lines should be double spaced

all charts and graphs should be titled and shown on one page.

the title page should have title, author, class number and name, and date.

pages should be numbered consecutively (top right hand corner) except the first page (title page) of the document.

references should follow the APA style (some example are listed below)

In Body of Text

APA uses author-date method of citation; the last name of the author and the year of publication are inserted in the body of the text at the appropriate point.

example: Smith (1993) described the recreation program as well developed.

example: In a recent study on aging skiers, Smith (1993) organized participant needs.

References

Journal

Author last name, first initial, second initial. (year of publication). Title of article. Title of journal, volume number, issue number (in parentheses) , page numbers. the digital object identifier (doi), if one is assigned. The second/third lines are indented five spaces.

example: Becker, L. A. ( 1993). The Complex and Dynamic Nature of Leisure Experience. Journal of Leisure Research, 26 (3), 1-7. doi: 10.1037/0278-6133.24.2.225

example: Winston, D. E. & Post, I. R. (1994). Leisure Events Planning. Leisure Today, 12(4), 44-57. doi: 12.1038/2278-8933.90.5.945

Online without a doi

example: Author, first initial, (date). Title of article. Name of periodical, volume number, issue number (in parentheses) , page numbers, Retrieved from Specify web path (URL)

Smith, R. R. (1988). Recreation and Tourism Trends. Leisure Sciences. Retrieved from http://www.worldtour/recreation.html

Note: use n.d. if no date is available.

Note: If no author is identified, begin the reference with the title of the document. Example:

Recreation and Tourism Trends. (2002). Recreation and Tourism Trends. Retrieved from http://www.worldtour/recreation.html

Magazine

example: Gardner, H. (1981, December) . Risk Management and Liability. Parks and Recreation, 32 (3), 70-76.

online example: Gardner, H. (1981, December) . Risk Management and Liability. Parks and Recreation, 32 (3), Retrieved from http://www.parksandrecreation.htm

Book

example: Author, A.A. (year of publication). Title of book. Location. Publisher.

example: Ree, I. J. (1994). Recreation Cost and Benefits. New York: McMillan Co.

Quotations

Double quotations marks are used for all material quoted directly from a source.

example: Smith's (1993) article stated, "Recreation professionals must have outstanding communication skills" (p.34).

example: She stated, "Writing skills are essential to good communication" (Jones, 1992, p. 22), but she did not describe how to acquire these skills.

Note: All direct quotes over 40 words must be in an indented paragraph and cited as a direct quote.

Example:

In order to gather data, the authors searched databases, journals, and review articles published between 1980 and February 2008. The articles being searched had these characteristics, “

Findings specific to an after-school intervention in the school setting; subjects aged 18 years; an intervention component designed to promote physical activity; outcome measures of physical activity, related constructs, and/or physical fitness. Study outcomes were distilled into six domains: physical activity, physical fitness, body composition, blood lipids, psychosocial constructs, and sedentary activities. Effect sizes were calculated within and across studies for each domain, separately (Ross & Williams, 2010, ¶ 5)

[chh1]All direct quotes over 40 words must be in an indented paragraph and cited as a direct quote. See APA Guidelines.

On-line Sources

Many electronic sources do not provide page numbers (unless they are PDF reproductions of printed material). If paragraph numbers are visible, use them in place of page numbers. Use the ¶ symbol or the abbreviation para.

As Myers (2000, ¶ 5) aptly phrased it, "positive emotions are both an end-better to live fulfilled, with."

If there are headings in the document and neither paragraph nor page numbers are visible, cite the heading and the number of the ¶ following it to direct the reader to the location of the quoted material.

"The current system of managed care and the current approach to defining empirically supported treatments are shortsighted" (Beutler, 2000, Conclusion section, ¶ 1)

Personal Communication

These may be letters, e-mail, or telephone conversations. These forms of communication are not included in the reference list. Cite personal communications in the body of the text only. Give the Initials and Surname and an exact date of the communication.

example: J. O. Smith (personal communication, Oct. 1, 1995)

example: (J. O. Smith, personal communication, Oct. 1, 1995)