APA Style Citations and Bibliography Format

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APA Style Citations and Bibliography Format

When writing an academic paper with APA style citations and bibliography format, the instructor will likely require that the student cite references and write a bibliography showing the sources that were used to conduct the research.  The purpose of citing this information is partially to add clout to the report while also providing the reader with information that he or she may pursue in order to learn more about the subject.

When following the APA style of citation, there are several rules to which the student must strictly adhere.  If the written work is a copy manuscript, for example, it is necessary to double space all of the lines when utilizing APA style.  If the writer is using the style in order to create a final manuscript, on the other hand, single space is the required format.  In this case, however, it is necessary to skip a line between each of the listed references.  If writing a paper for a course, it is important to ask the instructor which of these formats is necessary.

When writing the reference list, all of the items that are listed must be placed in alphabetical order according to the author's name.  When listing the author's name, the author's first and middle names should be listed by initial only, while the author's last name should be written fully.  If the name of the author is not known, the reference should be listed with its title first with the date following this information.

When writing the title of an article or a book, the writer should capitalize only the first word of the title and the first word of the subtitle.  When writing the title of a periodical, on the other hand, the writer should capitalize all of the significant words found within the title.

When using magazine articles as references, the writer must include the month and day on which the magazine was published.  In addition, when utilizing websites, the writer must show the date on which the particular webpage was created.  If this information is not available, the writer should use "n.d."  in place of a date.

Since the rules used when writing in APA style are quite strict, it is essential for the writer to gain a more solid understanding of how to properly write an essay with this style.  In many cases, the instructor will provide the students with a handout that shows the basics of writing an essay with this style.  Nonetheless, it is crucial for the student to acquire more information on this type of formatting before finalizing the document.  The library at the school the student attends will typically be able to provide the student with more information regarding APA style and bibliography format.

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