APA referencing

Part 1: In text citationJenny Trevitt, Senior Librarian

What is a referencing style?

•Method to credit sources used in assignments•Many different referencing styles• One style is used in a written piece

Which referencing style?• American Psychological Association (APA) style.• Unless your unit guide specifies otherwise.• Style is detailed in the 6th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (American Psychological Association, 2009).

APA Style (6th edition)• Consists of two main parts:

1. In text citations2. The reference list

• Important to follow all rules carefully including format, spacing, date and abbreviations.

• Rules will vary according to format – book, article, report, paper, webpage, twitter post etc

When to cite• Cite when you refer to ideas, theories or research of an author• Ensure references cited have been read• Provide references for facts and figures• Provide a citation for direct quotations

In text citations in APA Style• Directs reader to full source details in the

reference list• Author-date system:• Author, without initials or suffixes• Year of publication

The study found that the student’s reading improved (Jones, 2014).Note: Punctuation mark after the in text citation.

Variations - in text citations 1

When the name of the author is included in the text, then only need year of publication:

Brookhart (2013) describes in her book how to……Note: There is a space between the author's name and date

Variations - in text citations 2

When citing a specific part of a source, for example, when quoting from a source

"The study demonstrated that the change in assessment...." (Fraser, 2012, p. 28).Note: lowercase "p" and space after "p."

Variations - in text citations 3• 2 authors - include both surnames and

use &(Ridden & Heldsinger, 2014)

• 3 to 5 authors - include all surnames when citing first time but only the first author surname, on any subsequent citing, followed by et al.1. First citing (Smith, Wylie, & James,

2012)2. Subsequent citing (Smith et al.,

2012)

Variations - in text citations 4

• 6 or more authors - only cite the surname of the first author and follow this surname by et al.(Washington et al., 2010)

Variations - in text citations 5

When citing two or more works within one parentheses:• List in alphabetical order of the surname .• Separate citations with a semicolon.

Both studies concluded… (George, 2009; Miller, 2013).

Variations - in text citations 6

• Many other variations• For full details see the chapter “

Citing References in Text” in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association(American Psychological Association, 2009, pp. 174-179).

What’s wrong with these?1. A similar result was found in a recent

study by Ann Hatter.(2011)2. In more recent studies (Jones 2013 &

Smith 2012) ….3. The author stated that “…..” (Walton,

2009, P.20)4. (Bucci et al, 2011)

Check your response1. A similar result was found in a recent

study by Ann Hatter. (2011).2. In more recent studies (Jones, 2013;

& Smith, 2012) ….3. The author stated that “…..” (Walton,

2009, Pp. 20).4. (Bucci et al., 2011). [if at end of

sentence]

Online helpSee the American Psychological Association website: • The Basics of APA Style - slides 13 to

25• In text citations • Punctuating the Reference List Entry• APA Style FAQs• The APA Style Blog

Further Help• American Psychological Association. (2009).

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author. Refer to chapters 6 & 7.

• American Psychological Association. (2010). Concise rules of APA style (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author. Refer to chapters 7 & 8.

Note: These books can be borrowed from the Library. Submit an online request and items will be express posted to students within Australia. Submit a Book Request. Full details are set under services on the Library’s Student Portal page. Students are responsible for any cost to return borrowed items.

Reference List

American Psychological Association. (2009).

Publication Manual of the American

Psychological Association (6th ed.).

Washington, DC: Author.