QUOTES APA 6 th Edition Trae Stewart, Ph.D., Associate Professor & EDCL Program Coordinator Zane Wubbena, M.A., Ph.D. Student – School Improvement (Updated July 2014)

 APA 6 th Edition  Quotes –Direct Quotes –Omitting Words and Sentences –Block Quotes  [Bracket Rules]  Signal Phrases  Caution on Quotes  Helpful Resources Overview

Quotes (Direct)  Rule: Start quote with signal phrase including author's last name and year of publication in parentheses; page number (preceded by p. and one space) in parentheses followed by end punctuation  Rule: When author's name is not in signal phrase, place author's name, publication year, and page number in parentheses at end of quote with commas between items in parentheses It was pointed out that, "If the existence of a signing ape was unsettling for linguists, it was also startling news for animal behaviorists" (Davis, 1978, p. 26). As Davis (1978) reported, "If the existence of a signing ape was unsettling for linguists, it was also startling news for animal behaviorists" (p. 26). p. and page # in parentheses followed by end punctuation (p. #). Signal phrase with author and publication date Signal phrase, no author mentioned (Author, publication year, p. #).

Quotes (Omitting Words & Sentences)  Omitting Words: Use an ellipsis (…) to replace omitted words in quotes except at the beginning or end of quote  Omitting Sentences: If a sentence is omitted between two others, keep the first sentence’s end punctuation followed by an ellipsis “One application of the term organic memory … refers to retentions in the nervous system” (Judd, 1907, p. 236). As Simonsen (2012) observes, “The principle of human primacy has been criticised as being vague and ill-founded or redundant in bioethical literature.... But, despite occasional criticism, the principle is obviously fundamental” (p. 53). … represents omitted words end punctuation followed by … represents omitted sentence(s)

Quotes (Block Quotes)  Rule: Quote must be 40 or more words,  No quotation marks—indent entire quote.05”  Parenthetical citation goes at end of block quote, outside of end punctuation Students having a hard time finding databases is not a new phenomenon. At the University of Washington, they have problems, too. With the addition of so many new databases to the campus online system, many students were having difficulty locating the database they needed. At the same time, the role of Session Manager had evolved. The increased importance of the Session Manager as a selection tool made it a part of the navigation process itself. (Eliasen, 1997, p. 510) Indent the entire block quote.05” The citation is outside of the end punctuation of the quote

[Bracket Rules] (Editing Quotes)

Signal Phrases (In-Text)  Signal phrases make the distinction between writer and source clear for the reader.  Signal phrases use APA citation along with a past tense verb: As Smith (2004) noted, … Jones (2001) concluded… According to Stevens (2002), … McHugh (2003) contrasted this idea… Moreover, Smith (2004) added… Elliot and Pruett (2008) argued… Past tense verb APA narrative citation

Signal Phrases (Past Tense Verbs)

Caution on Quotes  Excessive quotations make it appear that you have not developed your own understanding and interpretation of the material  Direct quotes should only be used when the statement is technical, particularly expressive, or exemplary  Avoid too many long, block quotations. –Try to connect the author’s words to your own ideas and thoughts by re-interpreting the author’s work

Helpful Resources  Purdue OWL Purdue OWL  APA 6 th edition Manual APA 6 th edition Manual Visit Other APA Style (6 th ed.) Modules In This Series