UTT LIBRARIES APA STYLE FORMATTING. A Brief Guide

Transcription

1 UTT LIBRARIES APA STYLE FORMATTING A Brief Guide Revised October 2010

2 UTT LIBRARIES 2 BRIEF GUIDE TO FORMATTING A RESEARCH PAPER USING THE APA STYLE As part of the course requirements at tertiary level, students must submit essays or research papers using a citation and formatting style which has been selected by the institution to which they are affiliated. Once a particular style has been selected, it must be carefully followed as it provides specific guidelines for the layout of the paper and the formatting of the references. This document provides a brief outline of the APA style which is one of the recommended styles of the University of Trinidad and Tobago. GENERAL GUIDELINES Paper: Font: Line spacing: Margins: Page Numbers: Paragraphs: Standard size 8½ x 11 inches 12 point Times New Roman Double spaced 2.54 cm on all sides Number all pages consecutively beginning with the title page Indent the first line of every paragraph except the abstract. Do not justify the document. MAJOR PAPER SECTIONS The research paper should include the following sections where applicable: Title page Table of Contents List of Tables and Figures Abstract Main Body References Appendices

3 3 TITLE PAGE The phrase Running head is inserted only on the title page. It must always be positioned flush left. The actual running head must be capitalized and should not exceed 50 characters including spacing and punctuation. Running head: SAMPLE PAPER IN APA 1 The title should be placed in the centre of the upper half of the page. Do not bold, italicize or underline. Sample Paper using the American Psychological Association (APA) Referencing Style Pages must be numbered consecutively beginning with the title page. The page number must always be placed on the top right hand side of the page Author s name John Smith The University of Trinidad and Tobago Institutional Affiliation

4 4 ABSTRACT Running Head to be included on each page Consecutive Page Number The word Abstract is typed in the centre of the upper part of the page. Do not bold, italicize Do not indent the first line of the abstract SAMPLE PAPER IN APA 2 Abstract The abstract is a summary of the paper between 150 an 250 words, no more than one paragraph in length. It should be accurate, concise and specific thereby allowing readers to quickly and precisely understand the purpose of the paper. Do not justify right margin or hyphenate words at the ends of the line.

5 5 THE MAIN BODY GENERAL STRUCTURE The following sequence is followed when putting together the main body of the research paper. The sections which will be included in your paper will depend on the nature of the research being done. Introduction This section is not labeled as its location at the start of the paper is self explanatory. The title of the research paper is placed at the top centre of the page before the opening paragraph. The introduction sets out what the paper is about, the approaches taken and how the subject matter is treated. It includes the hypothesis or thesis statement. Literature review The literature review examines research which has already been done on the topic. The purpose is to demonstrate an awareness of your subject area, as well as show how your research may contribute to this body of knowledge. Methodology This will vary according to the type of research. Issues treated in this section would include the approaches used to collect the information for the research and the design of the data collection instrument best suited for these. Results This involves a presentation of the results of the data collected. If the research undertaken was not extensive then it is generally considered more useful to combine the Results section with the Discussion section. Discussion The findings of your research are analyzed in relation to the issues highlighted in the introduction. Indicate whether your results support or disprove your hypothesis and what factors may have affected your results.

6 6 THE MAIN BODY first page example Running Head Consecutive Page Number SAMPLE PAPER IN APA 3 Sample Paper using the American Psychological Association (APA) Referencing Style The introductory paragraph presents the main The main body of the research paper begins with the title which should be centred at the top of the page. It should not be underlined, italicized or put in bold idea, hypothesis or thesis statement of your research paper. Unlike the abstract, it starts with an indentation. Sections of text are placed directly after each other without a break; do not start a new page when using a new heading.

7 7 THE MAIN BODY FORMATTING ELEMENTS Short quotations of less than 40 words. Quotations Include in double quotations marks as part of the sentence. E.g. Individuals need to make themselves more marketable by engaging in continuous professional development as it is now quite usual for employers to ask candidates at job interviews about the steps they have taken to identify and address their own development needs. (Cottrell, 2003, p.3) Long quotations of 40 words or more. Include as a block while still maintaining the double spacing. Indent 5-7 spaces from the left margin in keeping with previous paragraphs. Do not enclose in quotation marks. E.g. In discussing the potential impact of tertiary education on students, Cottrell (2003) has pointed out that University life and study can be very challenging to our way of seeing the world. Many would argue that it should be and that a university education should stretch students and make them re-evaluate their core beliefs and ways of thinking. The challenge can be difficult to manage at first.(p.81)

8 8 THE MAIN BODY FORMATTING ELEMENTS Headings APA has identified five levels of heading which can be used to organize the layout of the research paper. These headings which must be used in sequence are : APA Headings LEVEL FORMAT Centered Boldface, Uppercase and Lowercase Heading Left- aligned, Boldface, Uppercase and Lowercase Heading Indented, boldface, lowercase paragraph heading ending with a period. Indented, bold, italicised, lowercase paragraph heading ending with a period. Indented, italicized, lowercase paragraph heading ending with a period The number of headings used will depend on the complexity of your paper. An example of a layout to be used in a research paper will be as follows : Engineering in the Twentieth Century (Level 1) The Impact of Engineering on Society (Level 2) Urbanization. (Level 3) Town and country planning. (Level 4) City Layout. (Level 5) Voice and Tone Use the third person point of view rather than the first The study showed that Not I found out that Use the active voice rather than the passive voice: The participants responded Not The responses provided by the participants...

9 9 References Always start the list of references on a new page Running Head Consecutive Page Number Type the first line in an entry flush left. Indent 5 spaces if entry continues into another line Use double line spacing List all entries in alphabetical order ignoring a, an, the if they are the first words in the citation. SAMPLE PAPER IN APA 4 References American Psychological Association. (2010) Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.) Washington DC: Author. Curtin University Library. (2009) APA referencing. Retrieved from referencing/apa.pdf Kirszner, L. G., & Mandell, S. R. (2005). The Wadsworth handbook (5th ed.). Australia: Thomson. The Owl at Purdue. (2010). APA formatting and style guide. Retrieved from owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/ resource/560/01/ Type the word References in the top centre of the page. Do not capitalize, underline or italicize. Further information can be obtained from UTT Libraries webpage

10 10 APPENDIX These are generally used for supplementary material not included in the body of the research paper for example a copy of a questionnaire or a blueprint. Each appendix must begin on a separate page. Running Head Consecutive Page Number The word Appendix is inserted at the top centre of the page If there is more than one, a capital letter is used to distinguish them The body of the text must begin flush left. SAMPLE PAPER IN APA 5 Appendix A Survey pertaining to the proper use of information 1. Do you generally list your sources at the end of your research paper? Yes No 2. Are you familiar with referencing styles? Yes No If yes please indicate which one. MLA APA Chicago Harvard Each appendix must have a title which must be placed in the top centre using upper and lower case.