To cite sources in APA format, follow these key guidelines:
In-Text Citation
- Use the author-date method: include the author's last name and year of publication in parentheses, e.g., (Smith, 2020)
- For direct quotes, add the page number: (Smith, 2020, p. 15).
- If there are no page numbers (e.g., websites or e-books), use paragraph numbers: (Smith, 2020, para. 4)
- Two authors: (Smith & Jones, 2020); three or more authors: (Smith et al., 2020)
- For narrative citations, integrate the author name into the sentence: Smith (2020) states that...
Reference List Entry
- Begin on a new page titled "References," centered and bolded.
- List entries alphabetically by the author's last name.
- Use a hanging indent of 0.5 inch.
- Basic format: Author's Last name, First initial. (Year). Title of work. Source (e.g., publisher or URL)
- For books: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of book. Publisher.
- For journal articles: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal , volume(issue), pages. DOI or URL if available.
- For websites: Author or Organization. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site name. URL
Examples
In-text citation:
- Parenthetical: (Jones, 1998)
- Narrative: Jones (1998) explains...
Reference list entry for a book: Jones, A. B. (1998). Understanding psychology. Academic Press. Reference list entry for a website: American Psychological Association. (2020, March 15). APA style basics. APA Style. https://apastyle.apa.org These guidelines follow the APA 7th edition style, which is the most current version
