Stag APA
APA Essentials - Seventh Edition
Overview
The purpose of citing and referencing in academic writing:
Citing ensures that you acknowledge the sources of your ideas and information.
When and how to properly cite your sources:
Knowledge of citation can prevent plagiarism and maintain academic integrity.
What kinds of information require citation:
Any time you reference another's ideas, data, or text.
How to integrate quotes and other information into your writing:
Use both direct quotes and paraphrased content effectively to bolster your arguments.
Basic APA citation guidelines:
Understanding structure and formats for citations and references.
Citing and Referencing
In-Text Citations:
Definition: Short parenthetical notes that indicate when an idea presented in your writing relies upon the work/thinking of another.
Example: Wang et al. (2018), in the article "miR miR on the Wall, Who's the Most Malignant Medulloblastoma miR of Them All?" contextualize literature on miRNA.
Notes: These citations should include author's name, year of publication, and specific pages when necessary.
References:
Definition: Detailed notes at the end of the paper that identify the authors, titles, publishers, and any other important information about the resources consulted.
Why Cite?
Avoid Plagiarism:
Acknowledging the original source of ideas prevents plagiarism.
Give Credit to Others:
Respect the intellectual property of other authors and researchers.
Validate Claims:
Citations lend credibility to your statements and reinforce your arguments.
Scholarly Credibility:
Citing sources enhances your authority and reliability as a scholar.
When to Cite?
Provide citations whenever an idea you present or statement you make is dependent on the work of others.
Direct Quotes
Definition: Using the exact words from a source.
Guidelines:
Require quotation marks if three or more significant words are used directly.
Must include author's name, publication date, and page number.
Preference:
In most cases, paraphrasing is preferred, especially in academic writing.
Ideal for lists of academic terms or definitions.
Paraphrasing
Definition: Framing ideas from the source in your own words.
Benefits:
Creates consistency when citing material written in a different tense or perspective.
What Gets Cited?
To Cite, or Not to Cite?
Guidelines for citing:
Uncommon knowledge, contested theories/facts, statistics, images/graphs/tables, other’s perspectives, specific words/phrases require citation.
If in doubt, cite anyway!
What Not to Cite:
Common knowledge, common opinions, proverbs, idioms, or expressions do not typically require citation.
How to Cite?
Types of Citations:
Narrative citations: Integrate author's names in the text.
Parenthetical citations: Offset author's names in parentheses.
Examples of Direct Quotes:
Narrative Citation: Grande (2019) suggests that “there are no tears left to cry” (p. 45).
Parenthetical Citation: Evidence suggests that “there are no tears left to cry” (Grande, 2019, p. 45).
Examples of Paraphrased Passages:
Narrative Citation: Holmes and Watson (2021) argue that deductive reasoning can help solve crimes.
Parenthetical Citation: Deductive reasoning can help solve crimes (Holmes & Watson, 2021).
Repetitive Citations
Definition: Citing the same source multiple times in a text.
Example of Repeated Citations:
Anecdotal evidence suggests a drug known as FCM caused arousal in humans (Lōc, 1989). Likewise, animal testing found that it elicited excitement in dogs (Lōc, 1989). Thus, it is recommended that this drug not be used (Lōc, 1989).
Where Does the Citation Go?
If commentary follows a citation within the same sentence, insert the citation where the source information ends and before the commentary begins.
Example: One researcher argues that you should not hate the player, but rather the game (Everdeen, 2019), which is practical advice.
Additional Rules
Two Authors: Always use both authors.
Three or More Authors: Use the lead author's surname followed by 'et al.'
Two Authors First Citation Example:
Wazowski and Sullivan (2021) argue that children are not poisonous to monsters.
Two Authors Subsequent Citation Example:
A child’s laugh can power an entire city for a week (Wazowski & Sullivan, 2021).
Three or More Authors Example:
According to Jisoo et al. (2021), some K-pop singers are pretty savage.
Note: Treat 'et al.' as a plural noun, e.g., Singh et al. (2021) argue…
Special Cases
Same Author, Same Year: Use lowercase ‘a’ and ‘b’ to differentiate work from the same author in the same year.
Example: Things will never be the same (Cabello, 2018b).
Indirect Sources: If citing a source that cites another work, use the format: According to Ernie (2020), a rubber ducky can make baths fun (as cited in Burt, 2021).
Multiple Sources: Alphabetize and separate with semicolons. Example: According to several, love hurts (Everly & Everly, 1960; Nazareth, 1975; Orbison, 1961).
References
Authors:
Single Author: 1. Author’s surname 2. Comma 3. Initials with period.
Example: Chou, J.J.
Two to Twenty Authors:
Format: 1. Introduce the first name 2. Comma 3. ‘&’ before the last name 4. Close with a period.
Example: West, K., Kardashian, K., & Jenner, K.
More than Twenty Authors:
Format: List the first nineteen names, then introduce an ellipsis ( … ) followed by the final name.
Example: Stark, T., Parker, P., … Surfer, S.
Preparing a Reference List
Considerations:
Source: Is it a book, a website, or a scholarly article?
Authorship: Who are the authors? Are there translators or editors involved?
Date: Specify year, month, day of publication.
Location: Identify the journal, book, publisher, or electronic location.
Example Reference Format:
Format: Author, Date, Title, Location.
Example: Gambino, C. (2018). This is America: We just want the money. The Journal of American Sociological and Political Studies, 8(8), 1-14.
Remember to include DOI links for journal articles.
Citations in Edited Books
Format for Chapters:
Author, Date, Title, In Editors (Eds.), Title of Book, Page Numbers, Publisher.
Example: Ariana, G. (2018). God is a woman: Why you shouldn’t call women ‘angel.’ In N. Minaj, J. Jessie, & B. Knowles (Eds.), Patriarchal Power Dynamics Challenging (pp. 1-33). Illuminate Press.