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FCS 681: Research Methods

Review and critique of published research, examination of research methodology, and selection and utilization of research tools and techniques.

APA Style Guides, 7th edition

This guide is a quick introduction to the American Psychological Association (APA) 7th Edition Style for citations, basic format, and sample annotated bibliography. Please be sure to consult the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association 7th edition and/or the APA Style website for additional details.

There are print copies available for library use only in the Learning Commons and at the Reference Desk on the main floor, and in Special Collections & Archives on the second floor. There is one copy available for checkout on the third floor (BF76.7 .P83 2020).

Most Notable changes from APA 6th edition to 7th edition

  1. Publisher location is NOT included for book citations.

  2. In-text citations from works with three or more authors is shortened from the first time mentioned to (Hernandez et al., 2020)

  3. Include up to 20 authors in the reference.

  4. DOIs need to be formatted as clickable URLs such as https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.1400256   

  5. Don’t include “Retrieved from” in front of a URL unless a retrieval date is needed.

  6. For website citation include the website name, unless it is the same as the author.

  7. Clear guidelines for citing media contributors that are not authors or editors.

Media type

     Include as author

 Film 

 Director 

TV series

Executive Producers

 Podcast 

Host or Executive Producer

Webinar 

Instructor 

Online Streaming Video

Person/Group who uploaded the video

  1. Citation examples are provided for different types of online sources including: podcasts, youtube videos, and social media posts.  

  2. Use the singular “they” as a gender neutral pronoun instead of he or she.

  3. Clear format guidelines are provided for student and professional research papers.

  4. More flexibility in font choices/size and include:

    1. Calibri 11

    2. Arial 11

    3. Lucida Sans Unicode 10

    4. Times New Roman 12

    5. Georgia 11

  5. The running head on the title page no longer includes the words Running head. It now only includes the title of the paper and the page number.

  6. Student papers do not need to include a running head. (Unless specified from your instructor)

  7. At the end of a sentence, use one space instead of two.

How to Avoid Plagiarism

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How to Avoid Plagiarism

[Give yourself enough time

Many students plagiarize because they are stressed out or completing an assignment at the last minute. Research can be time-consuming. Start early!

Get familiar with the idea of paraphrasing, summarizing, & quoting

Check out this guide

Avoid temptation

If you think you might accidentally plagiarize, don't share papers or read your friends' paper.

Talk to a librarian or your professor

Research and writing can be a very messy process and librarians and your professor understand your struggle. If you are not sure, ask and you will not get in trouble!

Ask for clarification on your assignment

If you don’t understand any language in the assignment, it's your responsibility to ask your professor or go to the IESC.

Seek out resources on campus

CSUN offers a variety of sources on academic integrity, research, and writing. Check with the IESC, the library, and LRC.

Learn to cope with parental and peer pressure

Plagiarism can be a result of social pressure. Seek out help on campus. Check out this webpage.]

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