Writing Help

Quick Advice on How to Write a Research Paper Using APA Style

Sticking to APA style standards when writing a paper is a necessary condition for any scientific study. These standards ensure proper formatting and structure in order to organize your work and make it easier to read. APA formatting standards include requirements such as numbering pages, setting double line spacing, using quotation, underling for different kinds of titles, leaving margins. The examples can be found in various articles, research works, reviews, etc.

Giving References to the Cited Sources
According to APA Formatting Standards

To distinguish your own thoughts from the ones your research is based upon, citing is needed. That prevents you from being accused as plagiarist. Follow the steps below to make sure your citations are formatted in a right way:

  • Put each source in the reference list in an alphabetical order. That makes a source easier to find especially when there is a need to cite more than one source.
  • Give a number of the page where the cited information is. It should be given after the author’s last name and year of publication. This will make a direct quote.
  • Use the most suitable manner when citing a source. Add some information about it, minding that there is a specific way to give an indirect quote.
  • Pay attention to how many authors have taken a part in writing the work you want to give a reference to. There are different requirements for referencing a work with more than one author.
  • Keep in mind that the first citation, subsequent citations, and parenthetical citations should be formatted differently.

Listing the References in APA Style

When the work is done, you should not forget about the reference list which contains the sources for your study. There are many kinds of sources but the most preferable ones, other than books and conference materials, are journal articles and online resources. For the work on the last part of your paper to take as little time as possible you can search for formatting examples yourself or you can take these steps:

  • Include all the references to your list while putting each one in alphabetical order.
  • Don’t put classical works and materials of your private correspondence on the list if not requested.
  • Do not forget about double spacing and the hanging indent while formatting.
  • Make sure that the names of all authors, publication date, the title of the source, and publication data are included.
  • Use the URL when there’s no digital object identifier (DOI) available to cite.

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