Time for a Change:
Introducing 6th Edition of APA Style
Graceland UniversityThelma Sword, EdD., MSN, RN
Purpose of Presentation
• To introduce new edition of APA
• To clarify some of the basics of APA
• To try to eliminate some of the APA frustrations
HELP: APA Alien Found
Presentation Overview
• Introduction of major changes (5th edition versus 6th edition)
• Setting up the paper• Order of paper
Title page Abstract Body of paper References Appendix
• Text pagesHeadingsCitationsReferences
• Common Mistakes
Ah, Take a Deep Breath Here
• Just when we thought we understood APA
• New guidelines for electronic references
• Use of DOI numbers • New 2010 edition out
now• New and improved
headings• Other changes: see
What’s New & tutorial Web site
www.apastyle.org
5th Edition Versus 6th Edition
• 5th Edition– Frequently used headings
1, 3, and 4– No bolded font in headings– One space after
punctuation at end of sentence
– Header used– No bullets
• 6th Edition– Heading now in order 1-5;
Use 1, 2, and 3 most frequently
– Bolded font in headings– Two spaces after
punctuation at end of sentence
– Running head used on title page; but words Running head only appear on title page; header words appear on all pages
– May use bullets
More New Items 6th Edition
• Detailed guidelines about decreasing bias (APA 2010, pp. 70-77)
• Suggested use of personal pronoun instead of third person (APA, 2010, p. 69)
• Excellent sample papers (APA, 2010, pp. 41-59)• Excellent Reference Examples (APA, 2010, pp.
193+)• Keywords now added to end of Abstract (APA,
2010, p. 41)• In References, with multiple authors seven or
more, list first six then, …and list last author (APA, 2010, pp. 198-199)
Setting Up the Paper• Font (APA, 2010, p. 228)
– Courier or Times New Roman, 12 point
• Margins (APA, 2010, p. 229)– 1.0 inch all around- ragged right margin– Left margin can be l.5 inches if instructor
has requested the paper to be bound
• Double spaced (APA, 2010, p.229)– Everything is double-space – Including quotes and reference page
Title Page
• Page numbers start with title page– Use header/footer feature of Word at top right
margin (APA, 2010, p.230 )
• Running head (APA, 2010, p. 229 & corrected sample paper )
– Includes 2 or 3 words from title– Placed flush with left margin– Words Running head appear only on the title page– Header-words from running head are placed on
each page
Text Pages
• Title of paper is centered on first page of text (APA, 2010, p. 42; sample paper )
• All paragraphs are indented 5-7 spaces
• Everything is double spaced
• Must have at least two lines of a text at the bottom of the page or move heading to top of next page
HeadingsHeadings
• Levels of heading provide order to your Levels of heading provide order to your paperspapers– Much like an outline of your thoughts by Much like an outline of your thoughts by
topic areastopic areas– All topics of equal importance have the All topics of equal importance have the
same level of heading same level of heading (APA, 2010, pp. 62-63 )(APA, 2010, pp. 62-63 )
– Use at least two subsection headings Use at least two subsection headings within any given sectionwithin any given section
Heading Examples
• 1st Level:Centered, Boldface, Centered, Boldface,
Upper and Lowercase LettersUpper and Lowercase Letters
• 2nd Level: Flush Left, Boldface, Upper and LowercaseFlush Left, Boldface, Upper and LowercaseLettersLetters
• 3rd Level: Indented, boldface, lowercase Indented, boldface, lowercase
paragraph paragraph heading ending with period.heading ending with period.
More on Headings
• 4th Level:Indented, boldface, italicized, lowercase paragraph heading ending with a period.
• 5th Level: Indented, italicized, lowercase heading ending with a period.
Common Heading Use
• Most papers use only two or three levels– Two level papers
• Use first and second level of headings– Three level papers
• Use first, second, and third levels of headings (APA, 2010, pp. 62-63)
Regarding Quotes
• See Basic Citation Styles Table 6-1(APA, 2010, p. 177)
• Short quotes (APA, 2010, pp.170-171) with fewer than 40 words are incorporated into text and enclosed by quotation marks.
• Example: “Students have problems with APA format” (Sword, 2005, p. 276).
Quote at the End of the Sentence
• End quote with the punctuation outside the final parenthesis (APA, 2010, p. 171)
• Example:Sword (2005) found “student anxiety about APA format disappeared” (p. 276).
Block Quotes
• Block quote is quotation of 40 or more words
• Indent quote• Cite the quoted source after the final
punctuation mark, do not use quotation marks(APA, 2010, p. 171 )
Example on next slide:
As As Sword (2005) discussedAPA is much easier than one may think and students can learn it quickly when provided adequate introduction and practice using the format. Learning APA is a process and students need
encouragement to practice its use in all written work. This assists students in remembering formatting details. (p. 176)
Paraphrased Material – Not a Direct Quote
• Tell reader two items : author’s last name (or title of article if no author) and year of publication
• Example: There are many times when material is paraphrased (Sword, 2005).
Citing Multiple Authors
• With 2 authors: cite both names every time used in the text
• With 3, 4, or 5 authors: cite all authors first time used, then last name of first author and et al. thereafter
• With 6 authors or more: cite only last name of first author followed by et al. by et al. (APA, 2010, p. 175 )
Citations
• Page number (p.) versus paragraph number (para.) (APA, 2010, pp. 171-172)
• Use paragraph number when electronic document does not have page numbers listed.
• Example:• “Knowledge of APA improves the
scholarliness of student papers” (Sword, 2005, APA section, para. 4).
Personal Communication
• Personal communications could include – E-mails, interviews, phone
conversations, etc. (APA, 2010, p. 179)
– Example of interview with nursing instructor• Citation would be(T. Sword, personal communication,
May 16, 2005)– Cited in text, not listed on reference
page
References: Crediting Sources
• Reference page follows text and references must be discussed in text (APA, 2010 p. 174)
• Double space and 1st line is flush left with remaining lines of reference indented 5 spaces (hanging indent)
• References are alphabetized (APA, 2010, p. 174 & p. 181 )
• Reference examples (APA, 2010, p. 193)
References
Singer, P., Martin, D., & Kelner, I. (1999). Quality of end-of-life care: Patient’s perspectives. Hospice & Palliative Care, 28(9), 163-168. doi: 10-prefix-suffixTchulman-Green, D., McCorkle, R., Johnson-
Hurzeler, R., & Bradley, E. (2005). Nurses’ communication of prognosis and
implications for hospice referral: A study of nurses caring for terminally ill hospitalized patients. American Journal of Critical Care, 14(1), 64-70. doi:10-XXXXXXX
Using an Appendix
• Type the word Appendix in upper and lower case with the identifying capital letters (A, B,) at the top of the page (APA, 2010, p. 39)
• Appendix contains detailed information that would be distracting to read in the text – For example: a list of nurse interview
questions– Appendix content must be discussed in text (see Appendix B)
Now About Crediting Sources
• Think of three categories for most articles/documents:– Documents likely to change– Documents in final copy with digital object
identifiers (DOI) listed– Documents in final copy without digital object
identifiers (DOI) listed
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
DOI is a unique alpha-numeric identifier assigned by a registration agency to identify content and provide a consistent link to content location on the Internet (APA, 2010, p. 188)
• DOI numbers start with a 10 and contain a DOI numbers start with a 10 and contain a prefix and a suffix separated by a slash.prefix and a suffix separated by a slash.
Finding the DOI
• Printed prominently on the first page of an article
• “May be hidden under a button labeled Article , Cross-referenced, PubMed or another full-text vendor name (APA, 2010, p. 189)
• Copy and paste DOI to end of your reference listing ensure accuracy (APA, 2010, p. 191)
Electronic Journal Article with DOI
Borman, W. C. (2003). Role of early supervisory experience in supervisor performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 78(1), 443-449. doi:10.1096/01.0000298309.98326.a7
Note: No retrieval statement or date are needed (APA, 2010, p. 191). Just use the DOI number as this information is not likely to change
Electronic Document with No DOI
• Sword, T., & Little, R. (2007). Faculty Sword, T., & Little, R. (2007). Faculty needs in online education. needs in online education. Nurse Nurse Educator, 23Educator, 23(3),(3), 39-43. Retrieved from http://www.nurseeducator/article/view.168
Note: Note: There is no DOI assigned so give There is no DOI assigned so give exact URL and no retrieval date is needed exact URL and no retrieval date is needed because this is the final version of the because this is the final version of the article.article.
Electronic Quotes: Change Likely• Documents retrieved from the Internet should
include author, document title or , Internet source, date of document, Retrieval statement, date retrieved, and (URL or uniform resource locator)-the Web address…when information being cited is likely to change (APA, 2010, p. 192).
• Electronic Example: Smith, I. (2004). How to write following
APA guidelines. Retrieved May 12, 2005, from www.apatoday.com/howtowrite.html
Uniform Resource Locator (URL))
• This is also called the Web site addresshttp://www.dhss.mo.gov/HomeCare/index.html• Http: is the protocol• www.dhss.mo.gov is the host name• HomeCare is the path to a document• Index.html is the file name of specific
document
Electronic Reference: Document on Web Site
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. (n.d.). Home care. Retrieved March 16, 2008, fromhttp://www.dhss.mo.gov/HomeCare/index.html
Electronic Reference: Book
• Sword, T. (2008). Sword, T. (2008). Nursing & quantum Nursing & quantum theory. theory. Retrieved from http:// Retrieved from http:// bantum.org/nursing/quantum0098bantum.org/nursing/quantum0098
• If DOI is assigned to the book, use the If DOI is assigned to the book, use the DOIDOI
(APA, 2010, pp. 202-203 )
Little More General APA Detail
• Use ampersand (&) to join multiple authors in the citation and the reference page
• Use and to join authors in the text• Avoid use of gender (he, she)• The introduction to your paper does not
have to be labeled introduction (APA, 2010, p. 63)
More Details
• Paragraphs should be 3-5 sentences minimum
• Write out acronyms and abbreviations first time used (exceptions, APA, 2010, p. 107)
• Use two spaces after punctuation at end of sentence
• Use one space after comma, colon, etc. in the sentence (APA 2010, pp. 87-88)
Bullets are Back!!
• Seration: lists in a series• Paragraphs in a series
– Use numbers • 1. Healthcare is…[paragraph continues]• 2. Costs…..[paragraph continues]
• Within a paragraph or sentence– Use letters– Choices include (a) higher costs, (b) less ….
• Or bulleted lists may be used within a sentence (APA 2010, pp. 63-64 )
Order of Pages/APA
• Title page with page numbers, running head, title, student name, and school name
• Abstract (if required by assignment grading criteria) is page two of paper
• Text pages(repeat title on first page of text)• Reference page/pages • Appendix on separate page after figures
and tables (APA, 2010, p. 230)
Common APA Mistakes
• Forgetting to– Double space EVERYTHING– Have ragged right margin– Cite quoted data (need author’s last
name, year of publication and p. or para. number)
– Place references flush left for first line and do not use author’s first name, only initials.
– Have references use hanging indent
Little Humor
Welcome to a new learning curve for all of us….hopefully we will not be looking like this poor fellow
References
American Psychological Association. (2010).
Publication manual of the American psychological association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.