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AKU IR, eCommons
eCommons@AKU is a digital archive offering access to the research, scholarly output and publications of the Aga Khan University. The objective is to preserve, promote and provide access to the University's research and publications under one umbrella, in full text wherever possible.
Off campus access to e-resources
Introduction
The new APA style 7th Edition was published in October 2019, ten years after the 6th Edition. The main changes include, making it easier to cite online sources and guidelines to help authors reduce bias.
The Aga Khan University Library has compiled a summary guide highlighting the key changes;
What is American Psychological Association (APA) style?
- APA style is a set of rules for how you credit sources by writing citations and references.
- The rules change depending on the type/format of a source (e.g. an article with two authors or a web page with no date).
What are citations and references?
Crediting sources is key to avoiding plagiarism. In APA style, there are two ways you must credit sources:
- In the text of the paper when a source is quoted, paraphrased, or summarized (in-text citations)
- In an alphabetical list at the end of the paper (references)
An in-text citation and reference provide information about a source such as author and publication year; like a street address, they help a reader locate the source in its original form.
General Guidelines for APA Style References & In-Text Citations
- References
- In-Text Citations
APA style requires you to list all the sources you've used on the last page of an assignment. These are called references. A reference typically has four parts that answers these four questions:
The information for each part will depend on the format (e.g. print book, ebook, website etc.) of the source. A period and a space are placed between each part of a reference.
In-text citations must be placed in your assignment every time you use a source. APA style uses the author-date method with brackets ( ) to include 3 parts in this order: (1) author(s); (2) publication year; and (3) page, paragraph number, or heading. APA in-text citation rules change depending on number/type of author(s), that is, work with one author, work with two authors, work with three to five authors, work with six or more authors, work with group, organization or corporate author, work with no author, secondary source (a source found inside a source, unpublished work) etc.
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APA 6th vs APA 7th
Key Changes between APA 6th and APA 7th
Paper Format
How to format the paper:
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APA 6th ed. |
APA 7th ed. |
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One standard type of paper |
Two types of papers: "Student Paper" and "Professional Paper" |
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Running head required |
Running head NOT required for STUDENT PAPERS. (Only for professionals.) |
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One font: Times New Roman |
Choices of font: Times New Roman / Georgia / Calibri / Arial |
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No specific instructions for Annotated Bibliography |
Annotated Bibliography formatting: The annotation should be in block indented at 0.5" |
In-text
How to write the essay:
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APA 6th ed. |
APA 7th ed. |
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Pronouns: use of he/she or his/her for singular and they/their for plural. Example: A person should enjoy his or her vacation.
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Pronouns: Singular pronoun "they/their" accepted. Example: A person should enjoy their vacation. |
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Punctuation: One or two spaces after a period.
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Punctuation: One space after a period. |
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In-text citations: Sources with 2 authors, cite both. Sources with 3 authors and more: Name up to six authors the first time and use "et al." in subsequent citations. Example (5 authors): First citation: (Stevens, Jones, Hall, Castro, & Brown, 2018) Subsequent citations: (Stevens et al., 2018)
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In text citations: Sources with 2 authors, cite both. Sources with 3 authors and more: Cite first author and use "et al." every time. Example (5 authors): All in-text citations: (Stevens et al., 2018) |
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Course Materials (provided by instructor in Canvas, for example) treated as personal communication.
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Course Materials (provided by instructor in Canvas, for example) can be cited in References and in-text.
Example: Smith, R. (2018). The circulatory system [PowerPoint slides]. Canvas @SCF. https://scf.instructure.com/ |
*Note: Remember to format the References page double-spaced and with hanging indentation.
Reference List
How to cite sources in Reference list:
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APA 6th ed. |
APA 7th ed. |
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Books: Include Place of Publication and Publisher's name. Example: Westover, T. (2018). Educated: A memoir. New York: Random House. |
Books: No place of publication. Example: Westover, T. (2018). Educated: A memoir. Random House. |
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Articles with doi (digital object identifier) use "doi:" Example: James-Kangal, N., & Whitton, S. W. (2019). Conflict management in emerging adults' “nonrelationships.” Couple and Family Psychology: Research and Practice, 8(2), 63–76. doi: 10.1037/cfp0000118
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Articles with doi (digital object identifier) use URL format: Example: James-Kangal, N., & Whitton, S. W. (2019). Conflict management in emerging adults' “nonrelationships.” Couple and Family Psychology: Research and Practice, 8(2), 63–76. https://doi.org/10.1037/cfp0000118 |
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Articles without doi: link to journal's website needed. Example: Millea, M., Wills, R., Elder, A., & Molina, D. (2018). What Matters in College Student Success? Education, 138(4),309–322. Retrieved from: http://www.projectinnovation.com/education.html
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Articles without doi: NO link to journal's website needed. Treat as if print. Example: Millea, M., Wills, R., Elder, A., & Molina, D. (2018). What matters in college student success? Education, 138(4), 309–322. |
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Web pages: Title of web page non-italics, name of website in italics. Example: O'Connor, A. (2016, Jul. 19). How the government supports your junk food habits. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/07/19/
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Web pages: Title of web page in italics, name of website non-italics. Example: O'Connor, A. (2016, Jul. 19). How the government supports your junk food habits. The New York Times. http://www.well.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/07/19/ |
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Multiple authors: Materials with 3 to 7 authors: List all. Example (6 authors): Kernis, M. H., Cornell, D. P., Sun, C. R., Berry, A., Harlow, T., & Bach, J. S. (1993). There's more to self-esteem than whether it is high or low: The importance of stability of self-esteem. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65, 1190-1204. Materials with more than seven authors: List first six authors, ellipsis, and last one. Example (10 authors): Miller, F. H., Choi, M. J., Angeli, L. L., Harland, A. A., Stamos, J. A., Thomas, S. T., . . . Rubin, L. H. (2009). Web site usability for the blind and low-vision user. Technical Communication, 57, 323-335.
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Multiple authors: Materials with 3 to 20 authors: List all. Example (10 authors): Miller, F. H., Choi, M. J., Angeli, L. L., Harland, A. A., Stamos, J. A., Thomas, S. T., James, K., Smith, J., Robertson, M. & Rubin, L. H. (2009). Web site usability for the blind and low-vision user. Technical Communication, 57, 323-335.
Materials with 21 or more authors: List 19 authors, ellipsis and last one. Example (21 authors): Alvarez, A. A., Brown, C. H., Charles, C., Diaz, D. M., Eastman, P. E., Frederick, L., Guateng, L. V., Henri, J. M., Irigoyen, A. I., Jones, J. L., Kafka, K. M., Lugones, L., Marinelli, M. M., Nguyen, T. B., O'Connor, M. O., Perez, A. P., Quispe, J. B., Rowland, R. J., San Martin, J. S., . . . Zapata, E. (2020). Effects of reading comprehension programs involving diverse literature in test scores. Journal of Innovative Education, 1(2): 35-48. |
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Web pages and web sites: Include "Retrieved from:" and the URL. Avramova, N. (2019, January 3). The secret to a long, happy, healthy life? Think Age-positive. CNN. Retrieved from: https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/03/health/respect-toward-elderly-leads-to-long-life/index.html
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Web pages and web sites: Don't include "Retrieved from:" unless date of retrieval is needed. Avramova, N. (2019, January 3). The secret to a long, happy, healthy life? Think Age-positive. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/03/health/respect-toward-elderly-leads-to-long-life/index.html
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*Note: Remember to format the References page double-spaced and with hanging indentation.
Quick Reference
Quick Reference
You can Download this Quick Reference Guide from the American Psychological Association's website.
Available at: https://apastyle.apa.org/instructional-aids/reference-guide.pdf
Source: American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000