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Educational Leadership & Policy Studies (ELPS)

APA Style Guides 7th Edition

APA stands for American Psychological Association and is the citation style most commonly used in social and behavioral sciences, inclduing fields like psychology, education, sociology, and business.

Basic APA Formatting Guidelines 

  • Reference list entries are alphabetized by author’s last name or equivalent.
  • Reference lists are doubled spaced with a hanging 1/2 inch indent after the first line of each entry
  • References (in bold) should appear at the top center of the page.
  • When referring to books, chapters, articles, or webpage titles, capitalize only the first letter of the first word of a title and subtitle, the first word after a colon or a dash in the title, and proper nouns
  • Cite up to the first 20 authors. Separate the authors name with a comma, and place the & symbol prior to the last name. 
    • Example: Last, F. M., Last, F. M., & Last, F. M.
  • In-text citations are placed directly after the quote or paraphrase. Information needed: (Author's Last Name, Year, page number). 
    • Parenthetical citation: “Direct quote” (Furlong, 2015, p.25).
    • Narrative citation, if the author is mentioned in the sentence, place the year after the last name and the page number after the quote. Example: Furlong (2015) found that “direct quote” (p. 25)

View the APA Style website for additional style and grammar guidelines.

Citation Managers: What are They and Why Use Them?

Citation Managers are bibliographic management programs that will help you keep track of articles and books as you find them, organize your references and create bibliographies in 100s of citation styles (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago, Turabian, etc.)

They will also allow you to:

  • Import citations as you research from databases and catalogs
  • Save and organize citations
  • Attach PDFs of articles, when available
  • Embed citations (footnotes or in-text) into your word processing documents
  • Collaborate with others online
  • Discover the latest research

Below are some popular citation managers and their differences. Remember to always check with your professor if you are not sure.

Criteria Zotero Mendeley EndNote and EndNote Web
Website

http://www.zotero.org/

There is also Zoterobib, which allows you to create an instant bibliography from your browser on any devices.

 https://www.mendeley.com/

http://endnote.com/

FREE EndNote Web: https://www.myendnoteweb.com/
Web based? Yes, works with Firefox browser and can sync with online account; connectors for Chrome and Safari available Yes EndNote is a standalone app but it can transfer library to EndNote Web.
Operating System Windows, Mac, Linux Windows, Mac Windows or MAC
Cost Free for basic account and the standalone app. Some cost for more online storage space Free for basic account, with paid options for additional storage and features Free for EndNote Web but $$ for the standalone app.
Important citation styles available/not available Available: MLA, APA, Chicago, ACS, AMA, IEEE, and thousands more via CSL editor
Not Available: No major styles missing		 Available: APA, IEEE, Chicago
Not Available: MLA, ACS (ACS may require premium features)		 Available: APA, MLA, Chicago, IEEE
Not Available: ACS (requires full EndNote)
Import from databases Yes Yes Direct export from specific databases
Import citation info from web pages Yes, also archives the page and you can add annotations Yes, via a web importer tool
only with EndNote Web bookmarklet
Attach associated files (PDFs, etc.) Yes, with option to attach automatically Yes, and can highlight and annotate PDFs Yes, and can highlight and annotate PDFs

adapted from American University Library, Penn State University Libraries, and official websites of these tools

Why Should I Cite

Why We Cite infographic - text alternative below

[Why We Cite]

Do you think the only reason your professor asks you to cite your work is because they suspect you of plagiarism? Wrong! Here are four reasons why you should cite!

  1. Broaden Your Horizons

    1. Your professors ask you to use a variety of sources because they know that your own thinking and ideas will be enhanced when you consult the ideas of previous writers on a topic. When you do this in your assignment, the reader will get the sense that you’re joining the conversation, that you respect other thinkers, and that you’re adding something new to the conversation.

  2. Demonstrate a Sense of Debate  

    1. Don’t only uses sources that support your argument. Sometimes the most effective sources that don’t agree with your point of view. Introducing concepts from sources that show a varying points of view, puts your ideas in a more interesting and contested light. By doing this you show that there is something worth debating or analyzing further.

  3. Give Credit

    1. Just like you would want credit for your own work, writing or ideas, other writers deserve credit for their own work. Recognition is usually the only reward for scholarship. More importantly, giving credit allows your reader to recognize your contribution and ideas.

  4. Further Research on a Topic

    1. Your work on a topic helps further research on that subject. You do this by building and extending on the work of the writers you cite in your assignment. One person’s sources can therefore be an invaluable contribution to another’s research.

 

Structuring Your Paper: Advice and Examples

Writing an Education Research Paper (Boston College) (Brief discussion of typical parts of paper on education topics specifically.)

Center for Innovation in Research and Teaching: Components of a Research Paper (Online tutorial in which the key components of a quality research paper are identified and discussed with videos and examples.)

 

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