MASTERING THE ESSENTIALS OF APA STYLE

(7th Edition)

INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

1
 OUR MISSION AND VALUES

• OUR MISSION: To help students and faculty find their voice, strengthen their writing,
and make a positive difference in the community through their scholarship.

• OUR VALUES: Love, Integrity, Academic Excellence, Diversity and Inclusion, Progress
Over Perfection, Challenge and Support, Transformation, Self-Care, and Access

Twitter
twitter.com/heartfuleditor
Facebook
facebook.com/heartfuleditor
Community of Scholars
heartfuleditor.com/community-of-scholars
Email me!
sara@heartfuleditor.com

THE HEARTFUL EDITOR PHILOSOPHY

• Taking care of the “heart” facilitates writers’ ability to learn.

– Identity Development
– Socioeconomic and Cultural Backgrounds

– Academic Background and Training Prior to Degree Program

– Social Considerations (e.g., Family Commitments, Support Network)
– Physical and Mental Health / Emotional Well-Being
– Spiritual Growth and Sense of Purpose
– Current Financial Circumstances
– Career Development

2
 ACADEMIC WRITING CHALLENGES

• Academic Writing Process

– Topic, Question, Significance: So What?
– Diving in Without Adequate Preparation (e.g., Audience)
– Structuring the Literature Review / Making a Coherent Argument
– Closing the Circle—Conceptual Framework and Literature
– Shifting From Practitioner to Researcher
– Time Management and Accountability

– Perfectionism and Expectations

ACADEMIC WRITING CHALLENGES

• APA Style and the Mechanics of Writing

– Basic Grammatical Rules (e.g., Active vs. Passive Voice)
– Basic Errors in Punctuation (e.g., Commas, Colons/Semicolons)
– Paraphrasing, Quoting, and Citing Sources—Lack of Context, Improper Format
– Ineffective Introductions, Transitions, and Conclusions
– Poor Use of Organizing Elements (e.g., Headings)
– Not Learning APA Style :)

3
 WHY APA STYLE MATTERS

• Why do you think APA Style matters?

• Writing is one of the most powerful forms of communication we can use to make a
difference in people’s lives and effect positive change in our communities.
• APA Style helps writers deliver the message they want to convey—the “heart” of a
manuscript—without readers getting distracted by errors in grammar, punctuation,
citations, formatting, or how results are presented.

• We love APA because it helps readers focus on what matters most to you—your
message and the positive difference you want to make in the community!

PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

Sample Student Title Page

Graduate and Doctoral Student Training on the Publication Manual of the American

Psychological Association (7th Edition)

Title in title case, bold,
centered, and positioned in
upper half of title page.
Name of Student

Department of Academic Coaching and Editing, APA Style University

EDIT 333: Principles of Academic Coaching and Editing

Dr. Sara K. Henry

Month Day, 2020

4
 PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

GRADUATE AND DOCTORAL STUDENT TRAINING ON APA STYLE 1

Sample Professional Title Page

Graduate and Doctoral Student Training on the Publication Manual of the American

Psychological Association (7th Edition)

Title in title case, bold,
centered, and positioned in
1
Sara K. Henry and Dennis W. Skinner2 upper half of title page.

1
Department of Academic Coaching and Editing, APA Style University

2
Department of Writing Support for Students and Faculty, Mechanics of Style University

Author Note

Sara K. Henry https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000

Dennis W. Skinner https://orcid.org/0000-0000-0000-0000

Changes of Affiliation

Conflict of Interest to Disclose

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Sara K. Henry,

Department of Academic Coaching and Editing, APA Style University, sara@heartfuleditor.com

PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

• Papers should be written in a font that is accessible to all users.

– Serif fonts: 12-point Times New Roman, 11-point Georgia, or 10-point
Computer Modern.
– Sans serif fonts: 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, or 10-point Lucida Sans
Unicode
– Figures: Sans serif font with an 8- to 14-point type size

• The same font and font color should be used throughout the text
of a manuscript for consistency.

• APA recommends these fonts because they are legible and widely
available, and they include math symbols and Greek letters.

5
 PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

The organizing elements in APA serve as guideposts for us and for our readers so
they can follow the structure and organization of our manuscripts.

Level Format for Five Levels of Heading in APA Style

1 Centered, Bold, Title Case Heading

Text begins as a new paragraph.

2 Flush Left, Bold, Title Case Heading

Text begins as a new paragraph.

3 Flush Left, Bold Italic, Title Case Heading

Text begins as a new paragraph.

4 Indented, Bold, Title Case Heading, Ending With a Period. Text begins
on the same level and continues as a regular paragraph.

5 Indented, Bold Italic, Title Case Heading, Ending With a Period. Text
begins on the same level and continues as a regular paragraph.

NOTE: In title case, all verbs and pronouns, words with four letters or more,
including prepositions, and both parts of a hyphenated compound are capitalized.

PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

Title of Paper

Introductory Text (No Heading)

Heading Level 1

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

Heading Level 1

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

6
PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

Title of Paper

Introductory Text (No Heading)

Heading Level 1

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

Heading Level 1

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

Heading Level 1

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

Heading Level 3

Text starts here.

Heading Level 3

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

Heading Level 1

Text starts here.

7
PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

Heading Level 1

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

Heading Level 3

Text starts here.

Heading Level 4. Text starts here.

Heading Level 4. Text starts here.

Heading Level 3

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

Heading Level 1

Text starts here.

Heading Level 2

Text starts here.

Heading Level 3

Text starts here.

Heading Level 4. Text starts here.

Heading Level 5. Text starts here.

Heading Level 5. Text starts here.

Heading Level 4. Text starts here.

Heading Level 3

Text starts here.

8
 PAPER ELEMENTS AND FORMAT

• Paragraphs should be indented by ½” from the left-hand margin.

• Unless advised otherwise, margins should be set to 1” at the top,

bottom, left, and right, and text should be left justified.

• There should be no extra spaces between paragraphs, or between

headings and paragraphs, unless requested by your campus or
the publisher.

WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Effective Scholarly Writing

– Transitions
– Subordinate Conjunctions

– Anthropomorphism
– Verb Tenses
– Active and Passive Voice
– Subject/Verb Agreement
– Pronouns

9
 WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Transitional Words and Phrases

– To improve continuity and flow in our writing, transitional words and
phrases between sentences, paragraphs, and ideas ensures text is smooth
and clear rather than abrupt or disjointed. This helps us avoid choppiness.
– Time links (e.g., “then,” “next,” “after,” “while,” “since”)
– Cause-effect links (e.g., “therefore,” “consequently,” “as a result”)
– Addition links (e.g., “in addition,” “moreover,” “furthermore,” “similarly”)
– Contrast links (e.g., “but,” “conversely,” “nevertheless,” “however,”
”although”)

WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Subordinate Conjunctions
– Subordinate conjunctions (e.g., ”since,” “while,” “although,” ”because,”
“whereas”) introduce subordinate clauses. Selecting conjunctions with care
can help us write with precision. Some writers use “while” and “since” when
they do not refer strictly to time, which can create confusion.
– Use “although,” “despite,” “and,” or “but” instead of “while” when linking
events that are not occurring simultaneously.

– Use “because” in place of “since,” as “since” could mean either “from a time
in the past.”

10
 WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human characteristics to

nonhuman or inanimate entities.
– Authors should pair active verbs with human actors whenever possible.

– Per APA’s guidance in the 7th edition, “Many acceptable constructions in

widespread use do not constitute anthropomorphism because they do not
impede understanding or mislead readers.”
– These acceptable constructions include: “this section addresses,” “the
chapter focuses on,” ”the results suggest,” ”the data provide,” “the research
contributes to,” ”the study found,” and so on.
– APA provides the example “the theory addresses” (correct) vs. “the theory
concludes” (incorrect).

WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Verb Tenses in Academic Writing

– Literature review (or whenever discussing other researchers’ work) = past
or present perfect
– Method / description of procedure = future (research proposal) and then
past or present perfect
– Reporting of results = past
– Discussion of implications of results = present
– Presentation of conclusions, limitations, future directions, and so forth =
present

11
 WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Verb Tenses in Academic Writing

– The past tense is appropriate when expressing an action or a condition that
occurred at a specific, definite time in the past, such as when discussing
another researcher’s work:
• EXAMPLE: In a study on factors that support doctoral student writing,
Henry (2020) found . . .
– The present perfect tense is appropriate to express a past action or
condition that did not occur at a specific, definite time or to describe an
action beginning in the past and continuing to the present:

• EXAMPLE: Since then, many researchers have explored the differences

between . . .

WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Active and Passive Voice

– In active voice, the subject of a sentence is presented first, followed by the
verb and then the object of the verb.
• EXAMPLE: Students completed the questionnaires.
– In passive voice, the object of the verb is presented first, followed by the
verb and then the subject last.
• EXAMPLE: Questionnaires were completed by the students.
– Both active and passive voices are permitted in APA style, but many writers
overuse passive voice.
– Use active voice when it is important to know who performed the action.

12
 WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Subject and Verb Agreement

– A verb must agree in number with its subject, regardless of intervening
phrases such as “together with,” “including,” “plus,” and “as well as.”
• EXAMPLE: The percentage of correct responses, as well as the speed of
the responses, increases with practice.
– More on subject and verb agreement:
• Collective Nouns
• Use of “None”

• Compound Subjects Joined by “Or” or “Nor”

WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• First-Person vs. Third-Person Pronouns

– We should use first person (”I”) rather than third person when describing
work we did as part of our research and when expressing our own views.
– The pronoun “we” should not be used to refer to ourselves if we are single
authors without coauthors.
– We should not refer to ourselves and our coauthors in the third person as
”the authors” or “the researchers.” Use “we” instead.

– We should avoid using the editorial “we” to refer to people in general.

• EXAMPLE: We must implement change in nursing to . . .
– “We” is an appropriate referent if a specific subject has been established.
• EXAMPLE: As nurse practitioners, we must . . .

13
 WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Singular ”They”
– APA writes, “The use of the singular ’they’ is inclusive of all people, helps
writers avoid making assumptions about gender, and is part of APA Style.”

– Use the singular “they” to refer to those who use they as their pronoun or
to refer to someone whose gender is unknown or irrelevant to the context.

– Avoid “he” or “she” as generic third-person pronouns. Before we use these

pronouns, we should ensure they match the pronouns of the people we are
describing. If we do not know or are unsure, we should use “they” instead
or rewrite the sentence to avoid unintentional or harmful implications.

– Writing strategies include rephrasing, using plural nouns or plural

pronouns, replacing the pronoun with an article, or dropping the pronoun.

WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Pronouns for People vs. Nonhuman Subjects (Who vs. That)

– Relative pronouns introduce subordinate clauses linked to nouns. Use
“who” for human beings, and use “that” for nonhuman animals and for
inanimate objects.

• EXAMPLE: Students and faculty who attended the webinar . . .

• EXAMPLE: The webinar that provided an overview of APA style . . .

14
 WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• Pronouns in Restrictive vs. Nonrestrictive Clauses

– Relative pronouns (e.g., “who,” “whom,” “that,” “which”) introduce an
element that is subordinate to the main clause of the sentence.
Subordinate clauses are either restrictive or nonrestrictive.
– Restrictive clauses, or “that” clauses, are essential to the meaning of the
sentence.
• EXAMPLE: I presented a webinar on APA style that covers the essential
guidelines in the manual.
– Nonrestrictive clauses, or “which” clauses, add further information but are
not essential to its meaning.
• EXAMPLE: I presented a webinar on APA style to students and faculty,
which was one of the highlights of my professional career.

WRITING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

• More on Writing Style and Grammar!

– Continuity and Flow
– Conciseness and Clarity
– Contractions and Colloquialisms
– Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers
– Wordiness and Redundancy

– Parallel Construction
– Tone and Mood

15
 BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• APA’s bias-free language guidelines encourage authors to write

about people with inclusivity and respect.
– The guidance on age, disability, gender, racial and ethnic identity, and
sexual orientation has been updated, and new guidance is offered on
socioeconomic status and intersectionality.
– APA (2020) writes, “APA is committed to both the advancement of science
and the fair treatment of individuals and groups. . . . Language changes
over time, and it is important to use the terms that individuals and/or
communities use to describe themselves, their experiences, and their
practices” (p. 131).

BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• Why should we use bias-free language?

– Our work should demonstrate respect for participants and readers alike.
When we are specific and precise in our writing, we contribute to the goal
of accurate and unbiased communication.
– Writers who use inclusive language allow readers to see themselves in the
work and ensure participants are discussed in ways that promote their own
agency and identity.

16
 BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• General Guidelines for Using Bias-Free Language

– We should use descriptors that are relevant to our research and writing.

– We should recognize participants’ intersectionality as appropriate.

– We should not overgeneralize in our writing or research.

– Labels change over time, and we should be mindful to avoid inappropriate

terms when referring to individuals or groups.

– We should always use good judgment, as these guidelines are not rigid.

– We should avoid the use of pejorative or stigmatizing terms, even if

participants use them to describe themselves.

– We should avoid terminology that is inflammatory or degrading.

BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• Bias-Free Language Guidelines for Age

– Provide age ranges, medians, or means rather than general terms such as
“older participants” or “youth.”

– Avoid terms that “other” people and would be dismissive of people’s agency,
such as “kids,” “the elderly,” or “the aged.”

– Only use generational descriptors (e.g., “baby boomers,” “millennials,” or

“Gen Z”) when appropriate within the context of the study topic and define
the terms accordingly.

17
 BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• Bias-Free Language Guidelines for Ability

– Decide whether to use identity-first language (e.g., autistic people) or people-
first language (e.g., people with autism) and consult with participants on the
language they prefer.
– Many subcultures exist within groups that have differing abilities. For
example, the Deaf community often refers to themselves as “Deaf” rather
than “people who are hearing impaired.”
– Only use terminology such as “clients” and “patients” within health care
settings. For example, a study on students with learning differences in schools
should call their participants “students.”

BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• Bias-Free Language Guidelines for Gender

– Avoid conflating terms related to sex and gender. Gender is a social construct
and describes attitudes and behaviors attributed to a person’s biological sex.
Sex is appropriate for discussing biological sex assignment at birth.
– Use explicit gender identities when referring to participants. If participants
identify as cisgender, transgender, or other gender identities, be specific
instead of allowing readers to make assumptions.
– When referring to those whose pronouns are unknown or whose gender
identity is not relevant to the study, use the singular “they.”
– Do not use authors’ first names or gendered pronouns to avoid reader bias.
– Use gender inclusive language like “first-year student” instead of “freshmen.”

18
 BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• Bias-Free Language Guidelines for Racial and Ethnic Identity

– Race is socially constructed and refers to physical traits and differences
among groups of people. Ethnicity refers to shared cultural traits, including
language, customs, beliefs, traditions, and ancestry.
– Be specific when writing about racial and ethnic groups. Terminology changes
over time, and people may have preferred terms to describe their identity.
– Use racial and ethnic descriptors as capitalized proper nouns and not
hyphenated (e.g., African American, Native American, Indigenous).
– Use ”Black” and “White” instead of “black” and “white,” but do not use colors
to refer to other human groups.
– Terms such as “multiracial,” “biracial,” and “multiethnic” should be lowercase.

BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• Bias-Free Language Guidelines for Racial and Ethnic Identity

– Both “Black” and “African American” are appropriate terms to describe people
of African descent; however, “African American” should not be used as an
umbrella term for all people of African ancestry.
– “Asian” and “Asian American” should not be used as synonyms. “Asian
American” may be used to describe someone of Asian descent from the
United States.
– Avoid the term “Caucasian” to describe people of European origin. This term
has historical ties to White supremacy. Instead, use terms such as “White,”
“European American,” “European Australian,” and so on.
– Be specific about regional and national origin.

19
 BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• Bias-Free Language Guidelines for Sexual Orientation

– It is important to use the terms gender identity and sexual orientation
appropriately. Writers should not use the term “sexual preference,” because
sexual orientation is not a choice.
– People may identify as lesbian, gay, heterosexual, straight, asexual, bisexual,
queer, polysexual, and/or pansexual. Writers should confirm with their
participants on how they identify and not assume.
– Some terms used to describe sexual orientation are pejorative and writers
should not use them. ”Homo” or “homosexual” are not appropriate.

BIAS-FREE LANGUAGE GUIDELINES

• Bias-Free Language Guidelines for Socioeconomic Status

– Socioeconomic status extends beyond income to also include educational
attainment, career prestige, and subjective biases that come with class and
social status.
– When reporting on socioeconomic status, we should be as descriptive as
possible to give readers a better understanding of our participants and
provide context to offer a more thorough understanding of participants’ lives.
– Define the terminology participants use, such as ”middle-income,” “first-
generation college student,” or “first-generation American.”

20
 MECHANICS OF STYLE

• The mechanics of style refer to guidelines for clear, consistent

communication and presentation of written works.
– Spacing After Punctuation Marks

– Periods, Commas, and Semicolons

– Dashes and Quotation Marks
– Hyphenation and Capitalization

– Numbers

MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Spacing After Punctuation Marks

– Insert one space after periods or other punctuation marks at the end of a
sentence; commas, colons, and semicolons; periods that separate parts of
a reference list entry; and periods following initials in names.
– This shift has occurred due to advances in technology and word processing
systems, and two spaces is now considered a formatting error.

21
 MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Periods
– Use a period or periods to end a complete sentence, with initials in names
(e.g., S. K. Henry), and in the abbreviations for United States and United
Kingdom when they are used as an adjective (U.S. health care system).
– Use periods in reference abbreviations (Vol. 1, 2nd ed., p. 6, paras. 11–12).
– Do not use periods in abbreviations of state, province, or territory names
(e.g., Washington, DC).

– Do not use periods in capital letter abbreviations (e.g., APA).

– Do not use periods in abbreviations for academic degrees (e.g., BA, DBA,
EdD, LCSW, MA, MD, MSW, RN, PhD, PsyD).
– Do not use periods after URLs or DOIs in the reference list.

MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Commas
– Use a comma between elements in a series of three or more items,
including before the conjunction that precedes the final item—the serial or
Oxford comma (e.g., the cat, the dog, and the mouse).
– Use a comma after an introductory phrase at the beginning of a sentence,
to set off a nonessential or nonrestrictive clause (the “which” clause), and
to separate two independent clauses joined by a conjunction.

– Use a comma to set off the year in exact dates in the text or in a retrieval
date, to set off the year in parenthetical citations (e.g., Henry, 2021), and
to separate groups of three digits in most numbers of 1,000 or more.

22
 MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Semicolons
– Use a semicolon to separate two independent clauses not joined by a
conjunction or that are joined by a conjunctive adverb (e.g., however,
therefore, nevertheless).
– Use a semicolon to separate items in a list that already contain commas
(e.g., I presented on the mechanics of style; bias-free language related to
age, gender, and socioeconomic status; and citations and references).
– Use a semicolon to separate multiple parenthetical citations (e.g., Henry,
2020; Skinner, 2021).
– Use a semicolon to separate different types of information in the same set of
parentheses to avoid back-to-back parentheses (e.g., n = 33; Henry, 2021).

MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Dashes
– There are two kinds of dashes in APA style that differ from hyphens—the em
dash (long dash) and the en dash (midsized dash).
– An em dash—the long dash like this—should be used to set off an element
added to amplify or digress from the main clause.
– An en dash is longer and thinner than a hyphen but shorter than an em
dash. Use an en dash between words of equal weight in a compound
adjective (first–generation) and to indicate a numerical range (pp. 2–10).
– There should not be a space before or after the en or em dash.

23
 MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Quotation Marks
– Place commas and periods inside quotation marks, unless the quotation
marks are followed by parenthetical material, and place other punctuation
marks (e.g., colons, semicolons, and ellipses) outside quotation marks.
– Use double quotation marks to refer to a letter, word, phrase, or sentence as
a linguistic example or as itself (e.g., the singular “they”).
– Use double quotation marks to reproduce material from a test item or
verbatim instructions to participants.
– Use double quotation marks to introduce a word or phrase used as an ironic
comment, as slang, or as an invented or coined expression. Do not use
double quotation marks for subsequent occurrences of the term.

MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Hyphenation
– Compound words—words composed of two or more words—take many
forms: (a) two separate words (health care system), (b) one hyphenated
word (decision-making skills), and (c) one solid word (likeminded).
– If the compound appears after the noun it modifies, do not use a hyphen.
• EXAMPLE: decision-making skills vs. skills such as decision making
– Compound words that contain an –ly word are not hyphenated.
• EXAMPLE: highly qualified candidate
– Compound words that contain a comparative adjective are not hyphenated.
• EXAMPLE: better prepared student
– There are 36 prefixes that do not take hyphens (p. 164), including “anti,”
“bi,” “co,” “mid,” “non,” “re,” “post,” ”socio,” and others.

24
 MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Capitalization
– Capitalize the first word in a complete sentence and the first word after a
colon if what follows the colon is a complete sentence.
– Capitalize proper nouns, proper adjectives and names of specific university
departments, academic institutions, and academic courses.
– Do capitalize a job title or position when the title precedes a name. Do not
capitalize a job title or position when the title follows the name or refers to a
position in general.
• EXAMPLE: Founder and Executive Director Sara Kathleen Henry
presented the webinar on the transition to APA (7th Edition).
• EXAMPLE: Sara Kathleen Henry served as the founder and executive
director of Heartful Editor.

MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Capitalization
– Capitalize trade and brand names, but do not include copyright or trademark
symbols when the trade or brand name is used in an academic paper.
– Do not capitalize diseases or disorders; therapies or treatments; and
theories, concepts, hypotheses, principles, models, and statistical
procedures. Do capitalize personal names within any of the above (e.g.,
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Alzheimer’s disease).
– Do not capitalize names that begin with a lowercase letter (e.g., van Henry),
proper nouns that begin with a lowercase letter (e.g., iPad, eBay), or
lowercase statistical terms (e.g., t test).

25
 MECHANICS OF STYLE

• Numbers Expressed in Numerals

– Numbers 10 and above throughout the paper (cardinal and ordinal);
– Numbers that immediately precede a unit of measurement;

– Numbers that represent statistical or mathematical functions (multiplied by

5, 3 times as many), fractional or decimal quantities, percentages (5%),
ratios (16:1), and percentiles and quartiles;
– Numbers that represent time (5 days), dates (October 2, 1980), times
(10:00 a.m.), ages (3 years old or 3-year-olds), scores and points on a scale
(scored 4 on a 7-point scale), exact sums of money ($5), and numerals as
numerals (the number 5); and
– Numbers that denote a specific place in a numbered series and parts of
books and tables (e.g., Phase 1, Chapter 2).

MECHANICS OF STYLE

• More on the Mechanics of Style!

– Italics
– Abbreviations

– Statistical and Mathematical Copy

– Presentation of Equations
– Lists

26
 TABLES AND FIGURES

• Placement of Tables and Figures

– Tables and figures may be embedded in the text after a full paragraph and
after the table or figure is first called out (e.g., see Table 1) or
– Tables and figures may be placed on separate pages after the reference list,
with each table on a separate page and then each figure on a separate page.
– Do not use the words “above” or ”below” to refer to the location of a table or
figure within the text—or to the location of content in general.

TABLES AND FIGURES

• Table and Figure Components

– The formatting of tables and figures is now parallel.
– The label and number (e.g., Table 1, Figure 1) are positioned above the table
or figure in bolded text, and the table or figure title is one double space
below in nonbolded, title case, italicized text.
– Notes appear below the table or figure in the same format.
– Let’s look at examples of a table and a figure!

27
SAMPLE TABLE

Table 1

Sociodemographic Characteristics of Participants at Baseline

Guided self- Unguided self- Wait-list Full

Baseline
help help control sample
characteristic
n % n % n % n %

Gender
Female 25 50 20 40 23 46 68 45.3
Male 25 50 30 60 27 54 82 54.7
Marital status

Single 13 26 11 22 17 34 41 27.3
Married/partnered 35 70 38 76 28 56 101 67.3
Divorced/widowed 1 2 1 2 4 8 6 4.0

Other 1 1 0 0 1 2 2 1.3
Children a 26 52 26 52 22 44 74 49.3

Cohabitating 37 74 36 72 26 52 99 66.0

Note. N = 150 (n = 50 for each condition). Participants were on average 39.5 years old
(SD = 10.1), and participant age did not differ by condition.

a Reflects the number and percentage of participants answering “yes” to this question.

SAMPLE FIGURE

Figure 1

Framing Scores for Different Reward Sizes

Note. Framing scores of adolescents and young adults are shown for low and high risks and

for small, medium, and large rewards (error bars show standard errors).

28
 WORKS CREDITED IN THE TEXT

Author Type Parenthetical Citation Narrative Citation

Source with one author (Henry, 2021) Henry (2021)

Source with two authors (Henry & Skinner, 2021) Henry and Skinner (2021)
Source with three or more authors (Henry et al., 2021) Henry et al. (2021)

First citation for group author with

(American Psychological American Psychological
abbreviation
Association [APA], 2021) Association (APA, 2021)
Second citation for group author with (APA, 2021) APA (2021)
abbreviation

Group author without abbreviation (Wilkes University, 2021) Wilkes University (2021)

WORKS CREDITED IN THE TEXT

• Appropriate Levels of Citation

– Both paraphrases and direct quotations require citations.
– Undercitation can lead to plagiarism and/or self-plagiarism, and overcitation
can be distracting and is often unnecessary.
– It is considered “overcitation” to repeat the same citation in every sentence
when the source and topic have not changed. When paraphrasing a key
point in more than one sentence in a paragraph, cite the source in the first
sentence and do not repeat the citation as long as the source remains clear.
– All sentences with a direct quote should include the author, year, and a page
or paragraph number for the location of the quote within the source.
– Let’s look at some examples!

29
 WORKS CREDITED IN THE TEXT

• Quoting and Paraphrasing

– Use double quotation marks to set off a direct word-for-word quote taken from
an author or from a previously published work:

• EXAMPLE: In their recent article, Henry (2021) stated, “Presenting the

webinar on APA to students and faculty was one of the highlights of my
career as an academic coach and editor” (p. 33).
• EXAMPLE: The author stated, “Presenting the webinar on APA to students
and faculty was one of the highlights of my career as an academic coach
and editor” (Henry, 2021, p. 33).
• EXAMPLE: Students and faculty who participated in Henry’s (2021) study
on academic writing demonstrated “increased confidence in applying APA
style to academic manuscripts” (p. 33).

WORKS CREDITED IN THE TEXT

• Quoting and Paraphrasing

– If a direct quote is included midsentence, parenthetical material should follow
directly after the quote rather than at the end of the sentence.

• EXAMPLE: Students who participated in Henry’s (2021) study on academic

writing demonstrated “increased confidence in applying APA style to
academic manuscripts” (p. 33), and students’ grades also increased.
– Page or paragraph numbers are not required when we paraphrase another
author’s work.
• EXAMPLE: Henry (2021) suggested students and faculty can improve their
confidence as academic writers by attending a seminar on APA style.

30
 WORKS CREDITED IN THE TEXT

• Works Requiring Special Approaches to Citation

– Personal interviews should be cited as personal communication. Personal
communications are not included in the reference list.
– Research participant interviews do not require a citation because we do not
cite our own work in the paper in which it is first being reported.
– Sources related to the methodology that could compromise confidentiality
and/or anonymity of a school or organization (e.g., analysis of campus
documents) should not be cited or included in the reference list.

REFERENCE EXAMPLES

• Standard reference entries for academic journal articles with direct

object identifiers (DOIs):
Henry, S. K. (2021). Academic coaching and editing for graduate and
doctoral students. Journal of Academic Coaching and Editing, 10(2),
8–9. https://doi.org/10.xxxxx
Henry, S. K., & Skinner, D. W. (2021). Academic coaching and editing
for graduate and doctoral students. Journal of Academic Coaching
and Editing, 10(2), e7773. https://doi.org/10.xxxxx
Henry, S. K., Skinner, D. W., & Crandall, B. (2021). Academic coaching and
editing for graduate and doctoral students. Journal of Academic
Coaching and Editing, 10(2), Article 33. https://doi.org/10.xxxxx

31
 REFERENCE EXAMPLES

• Standard reference entries for academic journal articles with stable

or permanent retrieval URLs:
Henry, S. K. (2021). Academic coaching and editing for graduate and
doctoral students. Journal of Academic Coaching and Editing, 10(2),
8–9. https://www.jstor.org/stable/xxxxx
Henry, S. K., & Skinner, D. W. (2021). Academic coaching and editing
for graduate and doctoral students. Journal of Academic Coaching
and Editing, 10(2), e7773. https://www.jstor.org/stable/xxxxx
Henry, S. K., Skinner, D. W., & Kessler, M. J. (2021). Academic coaching
and editing for graduate and doctoral students. Journal of Academic
Coaching and Editing, 10(2), Article 33.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/xxxxx

REFERENCE EXAMPLES

• Standard reference entries for books or chapters in an edited book with

publisher name:
Henry, S. K. (2021). Academic coaching and editing for graduate and
doctoral students. SAGE Publications.
Skinner, D. W. (2021). Editing theses and dissertations. In S. K. Henry
(Ed.), Academic coaching and editing for graduate and doctoral
students (pp. 8–9). SAGE Publications.
Kessler, M. J. (2021). Editing theses and dissertations. In S. K. Henry & D.
W. Skinner (Eds.), Academic coaching and editing for graduate and
doctoral students (pp. 8–9). Jossey-Bass Publishers.

32
 REFERENCE LIST

• Reference entries include four elements: author, date, year, and

retrieval information.

• Format of the Author Element

– Provide surnames and initials for up to and including 20 authors. When there
are 2 to 20 authors, use an ampersand before the final author’s name:
Author, X. X., Author, X. X., & Author, X. X. (Year).

– When there are 21 or more authors, include the first 19 authors’ names,
insert an ellipsis (but no ampersand), and then add the final author’s name:

Author 18, X. X., Author 19, X. X., . . . Final Author, X. X. (Year).

FINAL THOUGHTS

• Writing and editing are very long and iterative processes!

• Focus on progress, not perfection—work on finding your voice and
strengthening your writing so you can make a difference in your community!
• Offer heartful feedback that nurtures and empowers!

• Be open to growing and learning, and welcome feedback as a gift. This is a

lifelong journey!
• Focus on the heart of your work—your “why”—and keep your purpose at the
center of your writing practice.
• Remember that APA Style is intended to help your work shine!

33
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

34