AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION (APA) STYLE

ALICE T. VALERIO, Ph.D. DLSU-D

APA Style
rules or guidelines observed to ensure clear, consistent presentation of the printed word
concerns uniform use of punctuations and abbreviations, construction of tables, selection of headings and citation of references and other elements that are part of a manuscript.

Types of Manuscripts
Final manuscript produced by the author of a thesis, dissertation or student paper

Copy manuscript produced by the author of a journal article

General Instructions in Manuscript Preparation

1. Paper 8 X 11, heavy white bond paper 2. Typeface 12-pt Times New Roman 12-pt Courier New 12-pt Sans Serif 3. Spacing double space single space for table titles and headings, figure captions, references, footnotes, and long quotations. Triple- or quadruple-spacing after chapter titles, before major subheadings, before footnotes, and before and after tables in the text.

General Instructions in Manuscript Preparation

4. Margins 1 left margin, 1 top, bottom, and right margins 5. Pagination number all pages, except the artwork for figure and major chapters preliminary pages usually carry lowercase roman numerals Introduction (Chapter I) Arabic numerals page numbers continue throughout the appendix 6. Figures, Tables, and Footnotes short tables may appear on a page with some text long tables and each figure are placed on a separate page immediately after the page on which the table or figure is first mentioned

General Instructions in Manuscript Preparation

Figures and figure captions Figure number is italics; text of the caption is not italicized; capitalize only the first word and any proper nouns; figure captions are typed below; Minimum size 8 pt, maximum size 14 pt
Paragraphs and Indentations First line of every paragraph and the first line of every footnote Bibliography has a hanging indent format (first line is set flush left and the subsequent lines are indented)

General Instructions in Manuscript Preparation

7. Uppercase and Lowercase letters 8. Headings CENTERED UPPERCASE HEADING

Flush Left, Italicized, Uppercase and Lowercase Side Heading Indented, italicized, uppercase only the first word and proper noun, paragraph heading ending with a period.

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1)

Period
used in initials of names (R. T. Romero); abbreviation for United States when used as an adjective (U.S. Navy); latin abbreviations (a.m., cf., i.e., vs.), and reference abbreviations (Vol. 1, 3rd ed., p. 10) No periods for abbreviations of state names (NY, NH, NC), acronyms (APA, WB, IQ), and metric and nonmetric measurement abbreviations (cm, ft, hr, kg, min, ml) except in.

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2) Comma used between elements in a series of three or more items; before and and or Ex: Cavite, Laguna, or Batangas In a study conducted by Sandoval, Campos, and Reyes (2008) . . . to set off a nonessential or nonrestrictive clause, that is, if removed would leave the grammatical structure and meaning of the sentence intact. Ex. Viral marketing, adapted from the idea of how virus plague, is a simple, yet logical marketing strategy introduced by Rayport (1996).

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3) Semicolon to separate two independent clauses that are not joined by a conjunction Ex. Indonesia has higher competitive advantage in rice production; the Philippines has lower competitiveness level. to separate elements in a series that already contain commas Ex. The Philippine markets are Japan, US, and Canada; China markets are Philippines, US, and Thailand; while Japan markets are US and Germany.

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4) Colon

used between a grammatically complete introductory clause (one that could stand as a sentence) and a final phrase or clause that illustrates, extends, or amplifies the preceding thought.
Ex. There are two sources of pollution: the point source and nonpoint sources.

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Do not use comma
before an essential or restrictive clause , that is, a clause that limits or defines the material it modifies. Removal of such a clause from the sentence would alter the intended meaning.
Ex. The switch that stops the recording device also controls the light.

between the two parts of a compound predicate

Ex. The results contradicted Valerios findings and indicated that the effect was not significant.

to separate parts of a measurement

Ex. 5 years 2 months, 5 min 20 s

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If the clause following the colon is a complete sentence, it begins with a capital letter.
Ex. The result was worth noting: An increase in income is likely to increase the ability of households to acquire surplus funds. Do not use a colon after an introduction that is not a complete sentence. Ex. The formula is Y = a + bX

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5) Dash
to indicate only a sudden interruption in the continuity of a sentence. Ex.. There is only one major strategy to fight inflation decrease money supply.

6) em dash (two hyphens) to set off an element added to amplify from the main clause; no space before and after . Ex. Students--undergraduate and graduate- -are exempted.

Colons, Semicolons and Dashes in Real Life

Use punctuation marks sparingly. Writing that is filled with colons tends to look overly formal, too many semicolons comes off as pretentious, and an excess of dashes makes a story feel choppy. Try to vary the types of punctuation marks you use; it will make your writing clearer and more lively.

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7) Quotation Marks to introduce a word or phrase used as an ironic comment, as slang, or as an invented or coined expression (no quotation marks after the initial usage) Ex. The Philippines is the texting capital of the world. to enclose quotations in text Ex. Dizon (2008) found that Petron controls 35 percent of the domestic oil industry.

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to set off the title of an article or chapter in a periodical when it is mentioned in the text. Ex. Tans (2009) study on the Impact of the Exchange Rate on Export Volumes pointed out . . . . to reproduce material from a test item or verbatim instructions to participants. Ex. The performance was categorized as high, average, and low.

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Note: Use single quotation marks within double quotation marks to set off material that in the original source was enclosed in double quotation marks Ex.. Dizon (2003) stated, The ill-gotten wealth of Ex-President Marcos amounted to US$50 billion.

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8) Parenthesis
to set off reference citations and page number in text Ex. Reyes (2007) and Santos (2008) reported that. . . . (p. 245). to introduce an abbreviation, Ex. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to enclose statistical values, Ex. (p < .05) Do not use parenthesis to enclose material within other parenthesis Ex. (National Statistics Office [NSO], 2005)

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9) Slash to separate numerator from the denominator ( e.g. X/Y) to cite a republished work in text . Ex. Reyes (2000/2008) 10) Brackets used to enclose material inserted in a quotation by some person other than the original author.

Ex. Boserup (2007) stressed that mans influence on the quality of the environment depends on the damage he does [alteration in a cultural system] and the effort devoted to undoing that damage.

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11) Seriation
To show seriation within a paragraph or sentence use lowercase letters in parentheses.

Ex. The three principal thrusts are (a) institute a new program, (b) strengthen support services, and (c) increase saving rates. The three principal thrusts are (a) institute a new program; (b) strengthen support services; and (c) increase income, saving rates, and investment.

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To indicate seriation of separate paragraphs (e.g., itemized recommendations or procedures) number each paragraph with an Arabic numeral followed by a period. Ex. The following immediate recommendations are:
1. Launch a massive rural infrastructure programs in the poorest regions; and 2. Immediate land reform program in poorest areas.

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12) Quotations
Short quotations (fewer than 40 words) should be incorporated into the text and enclosed by double quotation marks. Ex. Cruz (2003) stated, The Philippine agriculture is characterized by a relative scarcity of land in relation to people (p. 300).

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Long quotations (40 or more words) no quotation marks to enclose block quotations Ex. Cruz (2009) found the following:

Many developing countries have depended on export promotion as a road to economic development for many reasons . . . (p.300).
13) Ellipsis points used to indicate omitted material Type three periods with a space before and after each period to indicate an omission within a sentence.

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Type four periods to indicate an omission between two sentences. 14) Spelling Merriam-Websters Collegiate Dictionary standard spelling reference for APA Ex. aging, canceled, appendix- appendixes, matrix-matrices 15) Hyphenation Compound words may take forms as (a) two separate words, (b) a hyphenated word, or (c) one unbroken, solid word. Ex. follow up, follow-up, followup

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Permanent compound compound words found in the dictionary (e.g. caregiver, lifestyle, high school, selfesteem, database) Do not hyphenate a compound including an adverb ending in ly (e.g. widely used, randomly assigned), environmentally sound a compound including a comparative or superlative adjective Ex. less informed, better written, higher order learning foreign phrases used as adjectives or adverbs Ex. a priori, ad hoc, fed ad lib but ad-lib feeding common fractions used as nouns Ex. one third of the participants

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Prefixes that do not require hyphens after, anti, bi, co, counter, equi, extra, infra, inter, intra, macro, mid, mini, multi, non, over, post, pre, pro, re, semi, socio, sub, un, under Prefixed words that require hyphens an abbreviation (e.g. pre-WW II), a number (e.g. post-2000), capitalized (e.g. pro-Arroyo) all self- compounds, whether adjectives or nouns Ex. self-liquidating accounts, the students are self-supporting

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words that could be misunderstood Ex. re-pair (pair again), re-form (form again), un-ionized words in which the prefix ends and the base word begins with the same vowel. Ex. co-occur, pre-existing, meta-analysis, antiintellectual when two or more compound modifiers have a common base, this base is sometimes omitted in all except the last modifier, but the hyphens are retained. Ex. long- and short-term periods, 1-, 2-, and 3-hr examination

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Other cases: . student-centered approach , but The approach was student centered. t-test results but results from t tests

16) Capitalization In titles and headings, capitalize: major words within the body of the paper (excluding conjunctions, articles and short prepositions); however, capitalize all words of four letters or more. Ex. In her study, Hedonic Price Indexes With Unobserved Product Characteristics and Application to Personal Computers . . .

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Do not capitalize
names of laws, theories, models, or hypotheses
Ex. law of supply and demand, Maslows hierarchy of needs, life cycle hypothesis nouns that precede a variable (e.g. item y, experiment b)

17) Italicizing Words

Use italics for titles of books, periodicals, and microfilm publications Ex. In the book , Introduction to Research Methods genera, species, and varieties introduction of a new, technical, or key term or label (do not italicize for the next usage) Ex. A stock of natural resource in situ is an asset to its owner.

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words that could be misread (e.g. the small and big groups designations not group size) letters used as statistical symbols or algebraic variables ( F, t, Z, R2, r) periodical volume numbers in reference lists (e.g. 15, 56-67) anchors of a scale Ex. Self-reliance ratings ranged from 1 (low) to 3 (high)

Do not use italics for

foreign phrases and abbreviations common in English (main entries in Websters Collegiate Dictionary) Ex. a priori, et al., ad lib, vis-a-vis, per se chemical terms (e.g. Hg, W, Pb, Be, Cd, NaCl) trigonometric terms (e.g. sin, tan, cos)

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18) Abbreviations
A term to be abbreviated, on its first appearance, must be spelled out and followed immediately by its abbreviation in parentheses. APA permits the use of the following abbreviations that do not need explanation in text (e.g. IQ, AIDS, HIV) Latin Abbreviations used only in parenthetical material; otherwise, use the English translation cf. compare i.e., - that is e.g., - for example viz., - namely etc. -, and so forth vs. versus, against

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Scientific Abbreviations
Use abbreviations and symbols for metric and nonmetric units of measurement that are accompanied by numeric values (e.g., 5 in., 3 cm, 12 min, 20 hr, 5 lb) but not for the units of time (e.g., month, year, day, week)

Plurals of Abbreviations
add s alone, but not italicized, without an apostrophe (e.g., IQs, Eds, vols, but pp.)

19) Statistical and Mathematical Copy

Ex., F(2,_10)_=_8.32,_ p_<_.01; 2(4,_n=100)_=_12.60,_p_<_.05

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20) Numbers Expressed in Figures Use figures to express all numbers 10 and above (e.g., 10 members, 12 years old) all numbers below 10 that are grouped for comparison with numbers 10 and above (e.g., 3 out of 10, of 10 groups, the 5th group, 6 of the 20 respondents) numbers that immediately precede a unit of measurement (e.g., 5-ft wood, 3-mg dose)

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numbers that represent time; dates; ages; sample, subsample, or population size; scores and points on a scale; exact sums of money Ex: 2 hr 30 min Php2 each 3 weeks ago 2:30 a.m. 5 rats October 6, 1955 scored 3 on a 5-point scale numbers that denote a specific place in a numbered series, parts of books and tables, and each number in a list of four or more numbers. Ex: Grade 5 (but fifth grade);Table 2; page 25; chapter 4; row 2; 3, 4, 6, and 10 students, respectively)

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21) Numbers Expressed in Words numbers below 10 that do not represent precise measurements and that are grouped for comparison with numbers below 10 (e.g. nine experiments, five trials, three-way table, zero-based budgeting, one-line statement) any number that begins a sentence (e.g. Forty-five percent of the respondents . . ., Ten patients improved, and 5 patients did not improve.) common fractions (e.g., one fifth of the class, two-thirds majority, increased by three fourths)

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22) Combining Figures and Words to Express Numbers rounded large numbers (starting with millions) Ex: almost 5 million Filipinos A budget of PhP5.2 billion back to back modifiers Ex. first 5 items, ten 5-year-olds, 2 two-way tables eleven 7-year-old students, first 10 items (but first two items)

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23) Decimal Fractions Use a zero before the decimal point when numbers are less than 1. (e.g., 0.56 cm, 0.23 in., 0,56 s, 0.9 ft) Do not use zero before a decimal fraction when the number cannot be greater than 1. (e.g., p < .05, r = -.65) 24) Commas in Numbers - Use commas between groups of three digits in most figures of 1,000 or more (except serial numbers, degrees of temperature, page numbers) 25) Plurals of Numbers - Add s or es alone to form the plurals of numbers whether expressed as figures or as words (e.g. Threes and sixes, 1990s, 2000s, 10s and 20s)

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26)Style for Metric Units

- Use the metric symbol to express a metric unit when it appears with a numeric value (e.g 2 m), otherwise, spell out the unit in text (e.g. measured in meters)
- use the metric symbol in column and sub headings of tables - use lowercase letters when writing out full names of units, unless used at the beginning of the sentence (e.g. meters, kilograms, giga, mega, deci)

Editing Style -Tables

Table 1

Volume and Value of Philippine Gold Exports, 1980-2009 _______________________________________________________________ Year Volume Growth rate Value Growth rate (MT) (%) (US $) (%) _______________________________________________________________ 1980
1981 1982

1,140,352
1,138,628 1,060,405 (0.15) (6.87)

544,974,421
429,376,458 312,447,026 (21.21) (27.23)

________________________________________________________________ Average 266,322 (11.79) 90,261,726 (8.24) _________________________________________________________________ Note. From Title of Article, by Author and Author, 2004, Title of Journal, 50,p. 30 Copyright 2005 by the Name of copyright Holder. Reprinted with permission.

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28) Reference List References cited in text must appear in the reference list; each entry in the reference list must be cited in text

The text citation and reference list entry are identical in spelling and year
Entry contains the following: author, year of publication, title, volume numbers (if journals or periodicals), page numbers and publishing data

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Acceptable Abbreviations
chap. ed. Rev. ed. 2nd ed. Ed. (Eds.) Trans.
n. d.

Chapter p. (pp.) Edition Vol. revised edition vols. second edition No. Editor (Editors) Pt. Translators Tech. Rep.
no date Suppl.

page (pages) Volume (Vol. 3) Volumes 4 vols.) Number Part Technical Report Supplement

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29) Reference Citation in Text
One Work by One Author author-date method of citation (do not include Jr.) Ex. a) As Tan (2009) pointed out . . . . b) Both tenants and landless workers in nonrice and corn lands number about . . . (Ledesma, 2008). c) In 2008, Ledesma found that . . . . d) In a study on . . ., Ledesma (2008) emphasized that . . . Ledesma also found . . . . One Work by Multiple Authors

Two Authors always cite both names every time the reference occurs in text

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Three, four or five authors cite all authors the first time the reference occurs; in subsequent citations, include only the surname of the first author followed by et al. and the year if it is the first citation of the reference within a paragraph

Ex.

Sy, Tan, Co, and Dy (2008) found that . . . . [Use as first citation in text] Sy et al. (2008) found. . . . [Use as subsequent first citation per paragraph thereafter]. Sy et al. (Omit year from subsequent citations after first citation within a paragraph)

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If two references with the same year shorten to the same form (e.g. Sy, Tan, and Co, 2008, and Sy, Co, Tan, and Dy, 2006, shorten to Sy et al., 2007) cite the surnames of the first authors to distinguish the two references as: Sy, Tan, and Co (2008) and Sy, Co et al. (2003) Six or more authors cite only the surname of the first author followed by et al. and the year for the first and subsequent citations. In the reference list, provide the initials and surnames of the first six authors, and shorten any remaining authors to et al.

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If two references with six or more authors shorten to the same form, Ex. Sy, Tan, Co, Dy, Lee, and Ong (2005) Sy, Tan, Lim, Ong, Chan, and Cruz (2005)

In text, cite them, respectively as: Sy, Tan, Co, et al. (2005) and Sy, Tan, Lim, et al. (2005)
In parenthetical material, tables and captions, and reference list, join the names by an ampersand (&) Ex. Cruz and Chavez (2002) pointed that . . . . . . . as has been shown (Cruz & Chavez, 2002)

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Groups as Authors
The names of groups (e.g., corporations, associations, study groups, etc.) are spelled out each time they appear in a text citation; the names of some group authors are spelled out in the first citation and abbreviated thereafter especially if the name is long and familiar or readily understandable. Ex. (Bureau of Forest Development [BFD], BFD), PAGASA, NEDA, WB, UP, DLSU, IRRI, US, University of Peru, Central Bank

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Works with No Author or Anonymous Author
No author cite in text the first few words of the reference list entry (usually the title) and the year; use around the title of an article or chapter, and italicize the title of a periodical, book, brochure, or report Ex. . . . as stressed in the Agribusiness Bulletin (2007) . . . profitable for private traders (The Effect of, 2009)

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Legal materials - cite materials such as court cases and legislation by the first few words of the reference and the year. For cases: Name v. Name, Volume Source Page (Court Date) Onuh v. Usigan, 234 F. Supp. 345 (March 16, 2006) Anonymous - e.g., (Anonymous, 2007) Authors With the Same Surname include the first authors initials in all text citations, even if the year of publication differs. Ex. A. T. Valerio (2004) and T. A. Valerio (2005) also found. . . A. C. Cruz and Ilagan (2005) and C. A. Cruz and Sy (2008)

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Two or More Works Within the Same Parentheses arrange two or more works by the same authors (in the same order) by year of publication.; give the authors surnames once; for each subsequent work, give only the date. Ex. (Cruz & Santos, 2005, 2007) Several studies (Smith, 2000, 2005, 2008; Lim, 2001, 2005) Specific Parts of a Source indicate the page, chapter, figure, or table at the appropriate point in text. Ex. (Boserup & Kim, 2000, p.205); (Nakamura, 2005, chap. 2) (Kim, 2001, Conclusion section, para. 2)

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Personal Communications may be letters, memos, e-mail, personal interviews,, and the like; cited in text only and not included in the reference list Ex. T. J. Santos (personal communication, April 3, 2010) ( F. C. Sevilla, personal communication, June 2, 2010) Citations in Parenthetical Material (see Table 10 of Sy, Tan, & Co, 2004, for complete data)

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30) Order of References in the Reference List Alphabetize names One-author entries are arranged by year of publication Ex. Valerio, A. T. (2006) Valerio, A. T. (2009) One-author entries precede multiple-author entries beginning with the same surname Ex. Valerio, A. T. (2006) Valerio, A. T., & Sevilla, F. C. (2008)

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31) General Forms (Reference Style) Book Marcos, F. E., & Arroyo, G. M., (2000) Family

mediation: Facts, myths, and future prospects (3rd ed.). Washington DC: John Wiley and Sons.

Group author (government agency) as publisher National Statistics Office. (2009). Census of population and housing, Sta. Mesa, Manila Daily newspaper Samson, L. A. (2009, April 20). How to fight obesity. Philippine Daily Inquirer, p. C20.

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Journal article, more than six authors Chong, S. F., Sy, A. C., Lim, J. G., Tan, L. C., See, K. N., Dy, J. L., et al., (2000). Population pressure, migration and markets: Implications for upland development. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 55 (3), 10401049. Magazine article Falcon, W. P. & Castro, A. G. (2010, June 10). Scenarios for the year 2005. Science, 290 (4), 12-16. Periodical published annually Romero, G. M. (2006). Social cognition and social perception. Annual Review of Psychology, 44 (1) 155-195.

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Edited book
Gonzales, L. A. & Alviar N. A. (Eds.). (2009), Natural resource economics: Issues, analysis, and policy. New York: John Wiley and Sons.

Encyclopedia or dictionary
Santos, D. R. (Eds.). (2007). The new science encyclopedia (Vols. 1-20), London:Macmillan.

Proceedings of symposia
Minguez , G. R. (2006). The expanded corn program in the Philippines. In A. F. Salgado (Ed.), Asian Regional Maize Workshop (pp. 120-130), University of Bandung Press. Indonesia.

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Unpublished doctoral dissertation
Cruz, D. D. (2002). Technical

and institutional change in renewable resource development (with application for traditional fisheries).
Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Madison University of Wisconsin.

Article in an internet
Environmental sustainability index. (n.d). Retrieved August 24, 2010, from http://www.cc.gatech.environ/fcu/.
Newton, R. T. (2007, July 7). Ten top corporations in the world. In Business world. Retrieved October 10, 2004, from http://www.corp.net.