Writing a research paper in APA style requires adherence to strict guidelines for citations, formatting styles and in-text references. This style guide is widely used for papers in social sciences and aims to establish continuity and credibility. Here are the key aspects of APA style that you need to know to write a high-quality research paper in this format:
Formatting the Paper
Use white 8 1⁄2 x 11” paper. Write on only one side and leave 1-inch margins on all four sides. The font should be 12 points and black, with a clean serif typeface like Times New Roman or Calibri. Number all pages in the top right corner, starting with the title page.
Title Page
The title page contains a running head, the title of the paper, author’s name and the institutional affiliation, which is usually the university, college or high school.
The title should be concise but informative. Center it at the top of the page without any bolding, underlining or italicizing. No more than 12 words should be in the title. Leave one double-spaced blank line after the title.
Next, type “by” and a double space followed by your name. One double space down, type your school’s name. Center all text on the title page. The page number for the title page is the first in the document but it should not appear.
Abstract and Body
The next page will be the abstract page. Center the word “Abstract” as the title. Do not bold, underline or italicize it. The abstract should be a single paragraph of 150-250 words summarizing the purpose, scope, conclusions and methodology of the paper.
Begin the body on the page following the abstract. Place the running head and page number at the top right of each page. The body includes the introduction section, body paragraphs and conclusion section. The body paragraphs may need subheadings to better organize content. Discuss results of studies, include citations after paraphrased or direct quotes and explain the significance of your work.
Citations and Reference Page
In-text citations are integrated smoothly within sentences and paragraphs in APA style. After any paraphrased ideas or direct quotes, provide the author’s last name, publication year and optionally the page number in parentheses (Doe, 2020). If there are multiple authors, list the last names separated by commas. For example:
(Smith et al., 2018) or (Jones, 2020, p. 29)
Group citations together if they cover the same idea; order chronologically or alphabetically (Doe, 2018; Smith et al., 2020).
The reference list provides full publication details of every in-text citation. Begin the reference list on a new page following the conclusion section. Title this page “References” centered without formatting and alphabetize entries by author’s last name. Double space the whole reference list.
For each reference, use a hanging indent to list author’s last name, author’s initials (or first name if no initials exist), publication year, title of work, publisher details and DOIs if available. Book chapters and journal articles require italics for titles whereas website titles are in regular font. Websites require retrieval dates.
Careful construction of in-text citations and the reference list demonstrates credibility to readers and allows them to easily check cited sources. Consistent adherence to APA style guidelines for formatting, headings, citations and the reference list is important for creating a coherent and professional research paper. Taking the time to master APA style will result in clearly communicated ideas and findings.