1. APA Style
APA Style establishes standards of written communication concerning:
the organization of content
writing style
citing references
and how to prepare a manuscript for publication in certain disciplines.
The resource I sent you, revised according to the 6th edition of the APA manual, offers examples for the general format of APA research papers, in-text citations, and the reference page.
For best information, consult the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th edition or

2. Title Page
The header consists of a shortened title (50 characters maximum) in all capital letters at the left margin and the page number at the right margin. On the title page only, the shortened title is preceded by the words “Running head” and a colon. Full title, writer’s name, and school is halfway down the page and centered. Author’s note lists information about the course and can provide contact information.

3. Abstract
On the first line, center the word “Abstract” (no bold, italics, or underlining). Beginning with the next line (no indent), write a concise summary of the key points of your paper ( words). Single paragraph double-spaced. Exercise example did not spell out the words Food and Drug Administration followed by abbreviation in parentheses (FDA).

4. Mechanics of Style Typeface Times New Roman 12-point font.
Double space between all text lines of paper, references, and figure captions. Single spacing is allowed in tables or figures.
Margins—1 in. at top, bottom, left, and right of every page. Use flush-left style—do not justify lines.
Indent first line of every paragraph. Use the tab key set at five to seven spaces, or ½ in.

5. Page 3 Indent first paragraph. 1980s—no apostrophe
Then (indicates time); than (indicates comparison—more, less, better, etc.)
Numbers—use numerals to express numbers 10 and above and words to express numbers below 10 (12 million, not twelve million).
Avoid gendered pronouns and use of “his or her,” “his/her”

6. Page 3 continued Body-mass index (BMI)
Beginning of paper sets up the organization of paper by posing four questions.
Final sentence states thesis of paper.

7. Page 4 Section heading is centered and bolded. Indent first paragraph
“tobacco use” (Carmona, 2004, p. 3). Note position of period.
“underlying psychopathology” (p. 592).
Think of the citation parentheses as being part of the sentence—that will help you remember to place closing punctuation after the parentheses.
Its is a possessive pronoun; it’s used only as contraction of “it is”
1990s—no apostrophe
(Yanovski & Yanovski, 2002, p. 592). Use an ampersand to link the names of authors in parentheses.

8. Page 4 continued
(Hoppin & Taveras, 2004, Weight-Loss Drugs section, para. 6).
When an electronic source lacks page numbers, you should try to include information that will help readers find the passage being cited. When the source has numbered paragraphs, use the abbreviation “para.” followed by the paragraph number.
If the document includes headings, provide the appropriate heading and specify the paragraph under that heading.

9. Page 5
Spell out entire words the first time an abbreviated source is cited, and put abbreviation in parentheses
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Citing source with 3-5 authors, list all authors the first time you cite the source.
(McDuffie, Calis, Uwaifo, Sebring, & Yanovski, 2002, p. 642). Then use first author’s name followed by et al. for subsequent citations (McDuffie et al., 2002).
Two authors—name both authors in the signal phrase or in the parentheses each time.
Six or more authors—use the first author’s name followed by et al. in the signal phrase and citation parentheses.

10. Page 5 continued
If authors’ names used in the signal phrase, you don’t include them in the citation parentheses:
. . . researchers Berkowitz, Wadden, Tershakovec, and Cronquist (2003) . . .
Direct quotes that are 40 words or longer—use free standing block of lines and omit quotation marks. Start quotation on a new line indented ½ in. from the left.

11. Page 5 continued
… food advertising for children as well as a reduction in physical education classes and after-school athletic programs, an increase in the availability of sodas and snacks in public schools, the growth in the number of fast-food outlets, and the increasing number of highly processed high-calorie and high-fat grocery products. (p. 1) Note that in this case, the parenthetical citation comes after the closing punctuation mark of the quote.

12. References Start on a new page.
The word References is centered, not bolded (not Reference List).
List is alphabetized by authors’ last names. All authors names are inverted—last name, initials.
Hanging indent--First line of an entry is at the left margin—subsequent lines are indented at ½ in.
Double space throughout.

13. Hoppin, A. G. , & Taveras, E. M. (2004, June 25)
Hoppin, A. G., & Taveras, E. M. (2004, June 25). Assessment and management of childhood and adolescent obesity. Clinical Update. Italicize journal title. Retrieved from McDuffie, J. R., Calis, K. A., Uwaifo, G. I., Sebring, N. G., & Yanovski, J. A. (2002). Three-month tolerability of orlistat in adolescents with obesity-related comorbid conditions. Article title not italicized. Obesity Research, 10, Journal title and volume number italicized.

14. References
Berkowitz, R. I., Wadden, T. A., Tershakovec, A. M., & Cronquist, J. L. Comma after last initial, ampersand before last author.(2003). Behavior therapy and sibutramine for the treatment of adolescent obesity. Journal of the American Medical Association, 289, italicize journal volume number, no pp. Carmona, R. H. (2004, March 2). The growing epidemic of childhood obesity. Capitalize only the first word in the title and first word after a colon. Testimony before the Subcommittee on Competition, Foreign Commerce, and Infrastructure of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Retrieved from

15. Crister, G. (2003). Fat land. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin
Crister, G. (2003). Fat land. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin. Use official U.S. Postal Services abbreviation for states. Duenwald, M. (2004, January 6). Slim pickings: Looking beyond ephedra. The New York Times, p. F1. Insert page number. Retrieved from Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. (2004, February). The role of media in childhood obesity. Italicize title. Retrieved from