The running head is an important part of any research paper or article written in APA style. It provides a shortened title for your work and allows readers and researchers to quickly identify your paper in references and citations. This article covers the key elements of the running head in APA style including formatting requirements, how it differs for manuscript submissions versus published papers, and sample running head text from an APA research paper.
Formatting the Running Head in APA Style
The running head appears in the header of every page. It is centered and written in uppercase letters. On the title page, the running head should be labeled “RUNNING HEAD:”.
For example:
RUNNING HEAD: EFFECTS OF SLEEP DEPRIVATION ON MEMORY
On subsequent pages, the running head is simply the shortened title in all caps without the “RUNNING HEAD:” label.
EFFECTS OF SLEEP DEPRIVATION ON MEMORY
The running head should be no more than 50 characters including spaces. This provides a concise and abbreviated version of the full title to help identify the paper. Titles that are longer than 50 characters will need to be shortened for the running head.
For published papers, the running head will only appear on the title page and be omitted from subsequent pages. Manuscript submissions to journals should include the running head on every page for review purposes.
Differences Between Manuscripts and Published Papers
When submitting your paper as a manuscript for publication review, the running head should appear on each page. Once published, the running head will only be present on the title page. Published papers have page numbers instead of running heads on subsequent pages to aid readers.
Manuscripts submitted for publication may be reviewed by multiple people throughout the process. Having the running head on each page clearly identifies the manuscript and ensures continuity for reviewers considering sections of the paper separately. Once published, readers are less concerned with identifying individual manuscripts and page numbers suffice.
Sample Running Head from an APA Research Paper
Here is a sample running head from the title page of a fictional APA-style research paper on the effects of sleep deprivation:
RUNNING HEAD: EFFECTS OF SLEEP ON MEMORY AND COGNITION
To examine the impacts of sleep loss, researchers had participants complete memory and problem-solving tasks under conditions of normal sleep and total sleep deprivation. Participants were undergraduate psychology students from a large state university. All volunteers provided informed consent in accordance with the university’s Institutional Review Board procedures.
This shows a running head that effectively shortens the full paper title (“The Effects of Total Sleep Deprivation on Memory and Higher-Order Cognitive Processes”) to 50 characters including spaces as required. For the subsequent interior pages of this manuscript, the running head would appear in all caps without the “RUNNING HEAD:” label as:
EFFECTS OF SLEEP ON MEMORY AND COGNITION
Best Practices for Formatting the Running Head
When writing a research paper or report in APA style, careful attention should be paid to properly formatting the running head on each page:
Center it at the top of the page within the page header.
Include “RUNNING HEAD:” on the title page only, omit it on subsequent pages.
Write in all uppercase letters for consistency.
Limit it to no more than 50 characters including spaces to keep it concise.
Shorten the full title if needed to fit within the length requirement.
Ensure continuity between the running head and actual paper content.
Check journal instructions, as requirements may differ for professional publications.
Following these guidelines when setting up the running head will ensure your manuscript is formatted correctly according to APA style standards. This facilitates review and comprehension for those reading or citing sections of your published work.
The running head is an important identifying component of any paper formatted in APA style. Whether submitting a manuscript for publication review or writing a research report, taking care with the running head formatting helps promote consistency, readability and ease of reference for your work. Understanding how to write an effective yet succinct running head is an essential APA style element for any student or professional to master.