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Basic advice on APA 7th ed.

If you need assistance with APA Style, please use the University Writing Center (UWC Virtual) if you are an undergraduate student. Graduate students can use the UWC for Graduate Students.

APA Reference List Examples - Journal Articles - 7th ed.

"Include a DOI for all works that have a DOI, regardless of whether you used the online version or the print version."

Online or print article with DOI (direct object identifier) (add URL with the doi.org prefix) -
Llyod, M. & MacDonald, M. (2011). Motor skills of toddlers with autism spectrum disorders. Autism, 17(2),133–146. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362361311402230

Online article with no DOI found in a library database (don't add any URL) --
Herrington, J. & Oliver, R. (1999). Using situated learning and multimedia to investigate higher-order thinking. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 8(4), 401-422. 

Online article with no DOI on the web (not in a library database) (add a URL when it works for readers) --
Shea, G. (2019, Spring). Relationships: The key to student success in afterschool programs. Afterschool Matters, 29.  https://www.niost.org/Afterschool-Matters-Spring-2019/relationships

Article in print form with no DOI --
Ensign, P. & Hebert, L. (2010). How reputation affects knowledge sharing among colleagues. MIT Sloan Management Review, 51(2), 79-81.

APA Author Format Tips (7th ed.)

Use last name and initials
Smith, A.
Kennedy, J. F.

Multiple authors (2-20) 
Smith, A., & Kennedy, J. F.  (1960).
Smith, A., Kennedy, J. F., & Doe, J. (1961).

Multiple authors (21+)
"When there are 21 or more authors include the first 19 authors' names, insert an ellipses (but no ampersand), and then add the final author's name" (APA Manual 7th ed. p. 286)

Organization as Author
American Management Association. (2009).

 No Author
"move the title of the work to the author position (followed by a period), before the date of publication" (APA Manual 7th ed. p. 289):
Brain research needs new ideas. (2011, July 18). Wall Street Journal, p. A12.

APA Works Cited Examples - Books, eBooks, Reports, etc. - 7th ed.

Book - print book or Library ebook without a DOI
Tough, P. (2012). How children succeed: Grit, curiosity, and the hidden power of character. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

eBook with a DOI
Williamson, R., & Blackburn, B. R. (2016) The principalship from a to z (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315707792

Newspaper Article (in a library database)
Young, J. R. (2012, September 3). With 'access codes,' textbook pricing gets more complicated than ever. The Chronicle of Higher Education

Newspaper Article (from the web)
Behrmann, S. (2019, October 24). Education Secretary Betsy DeVos held in civil contempt for violating judge's order on student loan collection. USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/education/2019/10/24/betsy-devos-contempt-violating-order-student-loans/4091621002/

A Dissertation found in ProQuest database
Sharp, M. A. (2002). An analysis of pupil-teacher ratio and class size: Differences that make a difference (Publication No. 3074013) [Doctoral dissertation, Eastern Michigan University]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global. 

A Dissertation found on the web (not in a database)
Tenjeras Clarke, D. (2007). Exploration into the Head Start fade phenomenon [Doctoral dissertation, Eastern Michigan University]. Digital Commons @ EMU. https://commons.emich.edu/theses/137/

Report by an organization or government agency, with authors listed on the report
Fung, A., Brown, C. & Tromble, K. (2022). Comprehensive approaches to student success: community of practice research and equity agenda. Institute for College Access & Success. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED617816

APA Style

These links offer advice for using APA Style and have enough information for most student papers.

Finding Pre-formatted Citations in Library Databases

You can save a lot of time using the Cite feature in library databases. Be careful, however, as these are often not perfect--so you may need to make some edits.

Advanced Tools for Grad Students & Faculty

Which style do I use?

Use the style that your professor specifies.

If your professor lets you choose the style and you are an Education student, you may want to choose APA Style, as you are likely to be asked to use APA again in Education classes.

University Writing Center

Shortcut!

When using ERIC or PsycINFO via ProQuest, look on the Abstract/Details page for "Cite  -- this can provide you with an APA citation.

Be careful, however, as these aren't always perfect. You may have to make corrections to the citation. Common corrections might include:

  • Fixing author names (first and last names sometimes get switched)
  • Fixing capitalization in the article title. Are proper nouns capitalized?
  • Masters theses might be misidentified as dissertations in citations
  • The DOI link might include EMU proxy info that you may need to remove.  Don't use this type of link when you are writing for an audience outside of EMU. Ask your instructor before using this type of link in your assignments.

What is a doi ?

DOI stands for Digital Object Identifier. DOIs are used to identify electronic articles and function much like the ISBNs that you are used to for textbooks.

Unlike a web address, the DOI for an article never changes. APA Style recommends that you include a DOI when available.

Where do I find a DOI?
The DOI is often printed on the first page of journal articles--sometimes at the top of the page and sometimes at the bottom. You will recognize it, because it usually is preceded by doi: and the number always starts with 10.

Some articles will not have a DOI, especially non-scholarly articles or older articles.

Template for an APA style paper