21.5: APA Documentation and Format
Disciplines in the social sciences—psychology, sociology, anthropology, political science, economics, social work, and often education—use the APA name-and-date system of documentation. APA style highlights authors and dates of publication because timeliness of published material is of primary importance in these disciplines. The following are general features of APA style:
- All material borrowed from sources is cited in the text of a paper by the author’s name, date of publication, and page numbers (if available).
- A list of references at the end of a paper provides full publication data for each source cited in the text of the paper.
The instruction in this section follows the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7th edition (2020). For more information on APA style, visit this site ( https://openstax.org/r/link ) . For examples of student papers in the textbook using APA documentation style, see Section 4 in Chapters 6, 8, and 15.
In-Text Citation Models (APA)
In-text citations feature author names, dates of publication, and page numbers, depending on what information is available. The Index located in H12 provides a listing of the models that are included below.
- One author
When you quote, paraphrase, or summarize a source, include the last name of the source’s author, if known, in a signal phrase or in parentheses at the end of your sentence. Give the publication date after the author’s name. Provide the page or pages on which the original material appeared preceded by p. or pp. See Spotlight on … Citation .
According to Thomas (1974), many bacteria become dangerous only if they manufacture exotoxins (p. 76).
Many bacteria become dangerous only if they manufacture exotoxins (Thomas, 1974, p. 76).
If you cite two or more works by the same author, published in the same year, use letters after the year to distinguish them: (Gallivan, 2019a, 2019b, 2019c).
- Two authors
Smith and Hawkins (1990) confirmed that bacteria producing exotoxins are harmful to humans (p. 17).
The study confirmed that bacteria producing exotoxins are harmful to humans (Smith & Hawkins, 1990, p. 17).
- Three or more authors
For works with more than two authors, give the last name of the first author followed by “et al.”:
The results indicate that alcohol use rose during the period of the study (Dominic et al., 2021, p. 16).
- Authors with the same last name
When authors of different sources have the same last name, include their initials:
Since the legalization of marijuana for recreational use, frequent use among adults has risen (J. T. Greene, 2019, p. 21; M. Greene, 2020, p. 30).
When authors of the same source have the same name, do not include their initials: (Kim & Kim, 2018, p. 47).
- Organization, government, corporation, or association as author
When citing a well-known organization, government agency, corporation, or association, introduce an abbreviation of the name in the first reference and use it in subsequent references:
On multiple occasions, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA, 2018) reported that formal efforts to reintegrate combat veterans into civilian life were beneficial.
- Unknown author
When the author of a work is unknown, use the work’s title in a signal phrase, or put the title in parentheses. Put quotation marks around article titles, and put book or journal titles in italics:
In a pointed editorial, The New York Times argued that college athletic departments should support public health by canceling sports seasons until athletes and the public were vaccinated (”Don’t Let the Games Begin,” 2020).
In its pointed editorial, “Don’t Let the Games Begin” (2020), The New York Times argued that college athletic departments should support public health by canceling sports seasons until athletes and the public were vaccinated.
- Two or more works in the same citation
When you cite more than one work in parentheses, put the works in the same order that they appear in your list of references, and use a semicolon between them:
Americans who resisted or ignored civil defense were later cast as heroic people who chose not to build fallout shelters or as marginalized people who could not afford them (Garrison, 2006; Mechling & Mechling, 1991).
- Work with no page numbers
If the work you are citing has no page numbers, help readers find the quotation by providing a heading, a section name, and/or a paragraph number (using the abbreviation para. or paras. ):
According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH, 2019), research on PTSD includes gene research and brain imaging technologies (Next Steps for PTSD Research section, para. 6).
For audio or visual works, give the time stamp of the beginning of the source: (Wong, 2020, 34:16).
- Source quoted in another source (indirect quotation)
When a quotation or any information in your source is originally from another source, try to track down the original source. If you cannot find the original, use the words “as cited in”:
The research collective, which has studied global health including access to food, sounded the alarm about a potential “worldwide food crisis” in the early 2000s (as cited in Sing, 2018, p. 32).
- Entire work
When you cite an entire work, you do not need to give a page number. See Models 79 and 80. When you mention an entire website, link to the website directly or give the URL. You do not need to include the website in the references list:
The Department of Veterans Affairs maintains a website for PTSD, which contains resources and help for families and healthcare providers as well as veterans ( https://www.ptsd.va.gov/ ).
- Personal communication
Because personal communications such as emails, letters, personal interviews, and the like cannot be found by other researchers, cite them in the text only:
During our interview, Morales explained that she had quit her job to help her children with their schooling (personal communication, January 4, 2021).
APA References
Each source cited in the text of your paper refers readers to the list of references, a complete list of all the sources you quoted, paraphrased, or summarized. Every source cited in the text of your paper must be included in the references list, and every source in the references list must be cited in the text of your paper.
Format of the References List (APA)
After the last page of your paper, start a new page with the centered, boldfaced title References at the top. Create an entry for each source using the following guidelines and examples.
- Begin each entry at the left margin, and indent subsequent lines one-half inch. (In Microsoft Word, you can also highlight the entire page when you are finished and select “Hanging” from the Special options on the Indentation section of the Paragraph menu.)
- Alphabetize the entries according to authors’ last names. If two or more authors have the same last name, alphabetize by the initials of their first and middle names. Alphabetize sources with unknown authors by the first word of the title, excluding a , an , or the .
- Double-space the entire page.
Core Elements (APA)
Each entry in the list of references consists of core elements:
- Author. Who is responsible for the work?
- Date of publication. When was the work published?
- Title. What is the work called?
- Publication information. Where can the work be found so that others can consult it?
Sometimes core elements are unknown or missing. In such cases, the entry in the reference list entry must be adapted:
- No author? If the source has no known author, cite it by the title. See Models 90 and 98.
- No date of publication? If the source has no publication date, write n.d. instead of the publication date. See Model 110.
- No title? If the work has no title, put a brief description in square brackets.
- No publication information? If the source is a personal communication that only you have a record of, cite the source in your text, not in the references, because it cannot be retrieved by other readers. See “Personal communication” above.
A note on retrieval dates: APA recommends adding a retrieval date for sources that are not archived or are likely to change over time, such as a developing news story. If you add a retrieval date, place it at the end of the references entry in this format: “Retrieved April 4, 2020, from https://www.nytimes.com .” Ask your instructors if they require retrieval dates.
Authors (APA)
Give the author’s last name, comma, and first and middle initials if available. For works with more than one author, put a comma and an ampersand (&) before the final author’s name, even when there are two authors.
- One author
Milanovic, B. (2016). Global inequality: A new approach for the age of globalization . Harvard UP.
- Two authors
Kristoff, N. D., & WuDunn, S. (2009). Half the sky: Turning oppression into opportunity for women worldwide . Alfred A. Knopf.
- Three to twenty authors
Provide last names and initials for up to and including 20 authors.
Barlow, D. H., Durand, V. M., & Hofmann, S. G. (2017). Abnormal psychology: An integrative approach . Cengage Learning.
For more than 20 authors, include the first 19 authors’ names, insert an ellipsis, and then add the final author’s name.
- Work by an organization, a government, a corporation, or an association
Works published by organizations often have the same author and publisher, which is frequently the title of a website. When the author and publisher are not the same, give the author and the title of the website:
National Institute of Mental Health. (2020). Post-traumatic stress disorder . U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publ...sd/index.shtml .
When the author and the publisher or title of the website are the same, omit the latter:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, February 17). Variants of the virus. https://www.cdc.gov/ coronavirus/2019-ncov/variants/index.html.
- Unknown author
If no author is given, start with the title:
The most beautiful battalion in the army. (1968). Grunt magazine , 12-15.
- Two or more works by the same author
List two or more works by the same author (or the same author team listed in the same order) chronologically by year in the reference list, with the earliest first. Arrange works published in the same year alphabetically by title, placing lowercase letters after the publication dates:
Bandura, A. (1969). Principles of behavior modification . Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.
Bandura, A. (1977a). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review , 84, 191-215.
Bandura, A. (1977b). Social learning theory . Prentice Hall.
Articles in Journals, Magazines, and Newspapers (APA)
- Basic format for an article in an academic journal
Author’s Last Name, Initials. (Date of Publication). Title of article. Title of Journal , Volume (number), Pages. DOI or URL.
- Author. Give the last name, a comma, and the initials of the first name and middle name (if available). Do not list an author’s professional title, such as Dr. or PhD. End with a period.
- Date of Publication. In parentheses, give the year of publication, a comma, and the month or season of publication. End with a period outside the closing parentheses.
- Title of the article. Give the full title and any subtitle, separating them with a colon. For articles and book chapters, do not use quotation marks or italicize the title. Capitalize only the first word of the title and the first word of a subtitle and any proper nouns.
- Title of the journal. Put the journal title in italics. Capitalize all significant words in the title. End the title with a comma.
- Volume and issue numbers. Italicize the volume number, and follow it with the issue number in parentheses (not italicized). End with a comma.
- Page numbers. Give inclusive page numbers without p. or pp. End with a period.
- DOI or URL. Provide a DOI (if available) or a URL. Include “http://,” and do not add a period at the end. The preferred format for a DOI is “ https://doi.org/ ” followed by the number. You may encounter older formats for DOI; if so, change them to this format. If the article is online and does not have a DOI, give the URL instead.
- Article in an academic journal
-
With DOI
Gawande, A. A. (2017, April). It’s time to adopt electronic prescriptions for opioids. Annals of Surgery , 265 (4), 693-94. https://doi.org/10.1097/SLA.0000000000002133 -
With URL
Squires, S. (2019). Do generations differ when it comes to green values and products? Electronic Green Journal , 42 . http://escholarship.org/uc/item/6f91213q The online journal in the example numbers issues only, so no volume number or page numbers are given. -
Without DOI or URL
Lowther, M. A. (1977, Winter). Career change in mid-life: Its impact on education. Innovator , 8 (7), 9-11.
- Article in a magazine
For a magazine article you read on a database or online, give the DOI if the article has one; otherwise give the URL. For a magazine article you consulted in print, end the entry after the page number unless a DOI is provided.
-
Database
Sneed, A. (2017, September 19). Giant shape-shifters. Scientific American , 317 (4), 20. https://doi.org/ 10.1038/scientificamerican1017-20 -
Print
Sneed, A. (2017, September 19). Giant shape-shifters. Scientific American , 317 (4), 20. -
Online
Myszkowski, S. (2018, October 10). On the trail of missing American Indian women. The Atlantic . https://www.theatlantic.com/health/a...-women/571657/
- Article in a newspaper
For a newspaper article that you read on a database or in print, end the entry after the page numbers. For a newspaper article that you read online, give the URL instead of page numbers.
-
Database or print
Krueger, A. (2019, November 27). When mom knows best, on Instagram. The New York Times , B1-B4. -
Online
Healy, J. (2021, January 12). Tribal elders are dying from the pandemic, causing a cultural crisis for American Indians. The New York Times . https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/12/u...ronavirus.html
- Blog post
Blazich, F. A. (2021, February 5). The cold morning of the day after. Smithsonian Voices . https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs...ing-day-after/
- Published interview
Beard, A. (2013, May). Life’s work: An interview with Maya Angelou. Harvard Business Review . https://hbr.org/ 2013/05/maya-angelou
- Editorial or letter to the editor
An editorial may or may not have an author’s name attached to it. If it does, give the author’s name first. If it does not, start with the title. In both situations, add Editorial or Letter to the Editor in square brackets after the title.
For better elections, copy the neighbors [Editorial]. (2021, February 16). The Wall Street Journal . https://www.wsj.com/articles/for-bet...rs-11613518448
- Review
To cite a review of a book, film, television show, or other work, begin with the reviewer’s last name, followed by the first and middle (if any) initials. In parentheses, add the year, followed by the title, month, and day of the review. Then in square brackets, add Review of the and the type of work being reviewed, followed by the title and the name of the author, director, or creator and their role. Then give the publication in which the review appeared, ending with a period, and the URL:
Girish, D. (2021, February 18). Refocusing the lens on race and gender [Review of the film Test Pattern , by S. M. Ford, Dir.]. The New York Times . https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/18/m...rn-review.html
Books and Parts of Books (APA)
- Basic entry for a book
Author’s Last Name, Initials. (Year of Publication). Title of book . Publisher.
- Author. Give the last name, a comma, and the initials of the first name and middle name (if available). Do not list an author’s professional title, such as Dr. or PhD. End with a period.
- Year of publication. In parentheses, give the year of publication, ending with a period outside the closing parentheses.
- Title of the book. Put the book’s title in italics. Give the full title and any subtitle, separating them with a colon. Capitalize only the first word of the title and the first word of a subtitle and any proper nouns.
- Publisher. Give the publisher’s name as shown on the work, omitting words such as Inc. or Company.
- Print book or e-book
Aronson, L. (2019). Elderhood: Redefining aging, transforming medicine, reimagining life . Bloomsbury Publishing.
Use the same format for an e-book when the content is the same. If you consult a book that has a DOI, provide it after the publisher, using the format “ https://doi.org/ ” followed by the number. (If you encounter older formats for DOI, change them to this format.) If you read a book online, give the URL.
- Book, anthology, or collection with an editor
Schaefer, C. E., & Reid, S. E. (Eds.). (2001). Game play: Therapeutic use of childhood games (2nd ed.). Wiley.
- Article or chapter in an edited book, an anthology, or a collection
Burks, H. F. (2001). Using the imagine game as a projective technique. In C. E. Schaefer & S. E. Reid (Eds.), Game play: Therapeutic use of childhood games (2nd ed., pp. 39-66). Wiley.
- Translated or reprinted book
Freud, S. (1950). The interpretation of dreams (A. A. Brill, Trans.). Modern Library. (Original work published 1900)
- Revised edition
Strunk, W., Jr., & White, E. B. (2019). The elements of style (4th ed.). Pearson.
- One volume of a multivolume work
Waldrep, T. (Ed.). (1988). Writers on writing (Vol. 2). Random House.
- Report or publication by a government agency or other organization
National Institute of Mental Health. (2020). Post-traumatic stress disorder . U.S. Department of Health and Human Service, National Institutes of Health.
If you consulted the publication online, include the URL after the publisher. See Model 89.
- Conference paper
Killi, S., & Morrison, A. (2021). Could the food market pull 3D printing appetites further? In J.D. da Silva Bartolo, F. M. da Silva, S. Jaradat, & H. Bartolo (Eds.), Industry 4.0—shaping the future of the digital world: Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Sustainable & Smart Manufacturing (pp. 197-203). CRC Press.
Web Sources (APA)
Use the following guidelines for works published only online that do not have an overarching publication, such as a journal, newspaper, or magazine.
- Basic format for a page o r work on a website
Author’s Last Name, Initials. (Publication Date). Title of work. Title of website . URL.
- Author. Give the last name, a comma, and the initials of the first name and middle name (if available). Do not list an author’s professional title, such as Dr. or PhD. End with a period.
- Date of publication. In parentheses, give the year of publication and a comma, followed by the month and the day. End with a period outside the closing parentheses.
- Title of the work. Put the title of the work in italics. Give the full title and any subtitle, separating them with a colon. Capitalize only the first word of the title and the first word of a subtitle and any proper nouns.
- Title of the website. Give the title of the website and end with a period. If the author and the website title are the same, you can omit the title of the site.
- URL. Copy and paste the URL from your browser window.
- Page or work on a website
Shetterly, M. L. (2020, February 24). Katherine Johnson biography . NASA. https://www.nasa.gov/content/ katherine-johnson-biography
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (n.d.). What is PTSD? National Center for PTSD. https://www.ptsd.va.gov/ understand/what/index.asp
If the source you are citing has no author listed, start with the title. See Model 90.
- Wiki
Coronavirus. (2021, February 22). In Wikipedia . https://en.Wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronavirus
Social Media (APA)
When you cite a social media post as a source, use labels in square brackets to indicate the type of post and whether images were attached to it.
- Social media post
Holler, J. [@holleratcha]. (2020, November 2). Everyone get out and vote tomorrow! [Tweet]. Twitter. http://twitter.com/holleratcha/statu...32672544784384
Death Valley National Park. (2021, February 23). What does it mean to protect something you love? [Images attached] [Status update]. Facebook. www.facebook.com/DeathValleyNPS/posts/4108808255810092.
- Online forum post
National Aeronautics and Space Administration [NASA]. (2020, November 14). We’re engineers, astronaut trainers, and other specialists working to launch humans on commercial spacecraft from U.S. soil! Ask us anything about the NASA SpaceX Crew-1 mission! [Online forum post]. Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/ space/comments/jsx91g/were_engineers_astronaut_trainers_and_other/
Video, Audio, and Other Media Sources (APA)
When you cite nonprint sources, such as visual and multimedia sources, use labels in square brackets to indicate the type of source, such as a film, a TV episode, a song, a painting, a photograph, and so on.
- Film
When you cite a film that you saw in a theater or streamed, you do not need to specify how you watched it.
Jenkins, B. (Director). (2016). Moonlight [Film]. A24.
- Online video
For an online video, give the name of the person or organization that uploaded it as the author:
TED. (2017, February 27). Sue Klebold: My son was a Columbine shooter. This is my story [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXlnrFpCu0c
- Television program
-
TV series
Schur, M., Miner, D., Sackett, M., & Goddard, D. (Executive Producers). (2016-20). The good place [TV series]. Fremulon; 3 Arts Entertainment; Universal Television; NBC. -
TV episode
Mande, J. (Writer), & Benz, P. (Director). (2016, September 29). Jason Mendoza (Season 1, Episode 4) [TV series episode]. In M Schur, D. Miner, M. Sackett, & D. Goddard (Executive Producers), The good place . Fremulon; 3 Arts Entertainment; Universal Television; NBC.
- Music recording
For an artist whose music is available only through a website, include the URL. If the artist’s music is available on multiple platforms, you do not need to specify how you accessed it.
-
Album
Prince. (1984). Purple rain [Album]. Warner Brothers. -
Song
The Supremes. (1964). Baby love [Song]. On Where did our love go . Motown.
- Radio
Overby, J. (Host). (2021, January 9). The road to higher ground: World music with African roots and more . WPR.
- Podcast
McEvers, K. (Host). (2019, November 7). This is not a joke (Season 9, Episode 9) [Audio podcast episode]. In Embedded . NPR.
- Painting or other visual artwork
For a work of visual art, give the location of the museum or gallery. If you saw the work online, add the URL after the location:
Rivera, D. (1932-33). Detroit industry murals [Painting]. Detroit Institute of Art, Detroit, MI, United States.
Basquiat, J-M. (1983). Untitled [Painting]. Museum of Modern Art , New York, NY, United States. https://www.moma.org/collection/work...eferrer=artist
- Map, photograph, infographic, or other visual
If the work you consulted names an author, start with the author. If there is no author, start with the title and a description of the work in square brackets, such as [Map], [Photograph], [Infographic], [Diagram], or another appropriate descriptor:
Expedition of Lewis and Clark [Map]. (2018). National Park Service . http://nps.gov/subjects/ travellewisandclark/map.htm
- Video game, software, or app
Benzies, L., & Sarwar, I. (2017). Grand theft auto V [Video game]. Rockstar Games. https://www.rockstargames.com/games/V
APA Paper Format
Follow your instructor’s formatting guidelines or those indicated here. For sample papers showing APA paper format, see this site ( https://openstax.org/r/this-site2 ) .
- Title page. Give the title of the paper in bold, centered. Then, on separate lines and not boldfaced, give your name, academic department, name of your college or university, course number and name, instructor’s name, and the due date, all centered. Repeat only the title on the first page of the text of your paper.
- Margins. Use one-inch margins on all sides.
- Spacing. Double-space throughout the paper, including the references page.
- Paragraph format. Indent paragraphs one-half inch.
- Headings. Give headings for the major sections of your paper, such as Method , Results or Findings , and Discussion . Put the headings in bold and center them on the page. Put the next level of headings in bold and place them flush left.
- Page numbers. Start numbering on the title page of your paper and continue to the end of the references page. Place page numbers in the upper-right corner.
- Long quotations. See Quotations for how to cite long quotations.