APA Style & Citations for Dummies

Description

Write right in for scholarly success While world-renowned for the precision and clarity it lends to scholarly writing, keeping track of APA style's exacting standards can be demanding (at times even excruciating!) for initiates and seasoned writers alike. Created and governed by the American Psychological Association, it provides a universal style for formatting, citations, and footnotes in psychological research, behavioral and social science journals, and beyond. Getting up to speed is tough stuff, but once you've got it, your work will have that easy-to-follow scholarly authority that will get high marks from your professors and peers alike. Your friendly, frustration-free guide for this adventure in simplifying APA style is Joe Giampalmi, who has taught more than 100 APA-style composition courses to college students. He takes the pain of following APA style away by breaking it down to its essential elements and focusing on the important stuff students encounter most. You'll work through specific, real-life examples of using APA style for psychology, criminology, business, and nursing papers. In addition to demystifying the intricacies of formatting and citation, APA Style & Citations For Dummies has got you covered in all matters of grammar and punctuation--as well as guidance on how APA style can help you negotiate issues around the ethics of authorship and the importance of word choice in reducing bias. Develop conciseness and clarity Pay attention to flow, structure, and logic in your writing Know when, why, how, and what to cite Keep your writing ethically conscious and bias-free Writing in APA style is something that almost all students will need to do at some point: APA Style & Citations For Dummies is a must-have desk reference to know how to win the approval of your professors--and earn the marks you need for success! Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents Introduction About This Book Foolish Assumptions Icons Used in This Book Where to Go from Here Part 1 Conforming to Standards: APA and the Academic Environment Chapter 1 Capitalizing on Consistency: APA and the Academic Classroom Understanding APA and Academic Standards Standardizing how you handle topics Respecting the academic environment Comparing APA and MLA Identifying Your Role in Academic Process APA and high school classrooms APA and college courses APA and comp courses APA and content courses APA and online courses Confronting Cultural Differences — APA and Nonnative English Students Seeking a professor who supports language learning Understanding that English isn’t easy Making the transition seamlessly Chapter 2 Updating and Debugging: APA Seventh Edition Transitioning from the Sixth: APA for Today Focusing on the Title Page and Page Organization Running heads Period spacing Levels of headings Font options DOI and URL Formatting Paper length Bold section headings Writing improvement plan Page order Eyeing the Changes with Citations and References Addressing Bias-Free Writing Style and Updated Mechanics Approaching APA Updates: Mindset Student Publishing: Your Goal As a Serious Writer Chapter 3 Understanding Expectations: APA and Discourse Communities Understanding Academic Expectations in College Figuring out what you want to achieve in college Fulfilling your professors’ expectations: Your needs Examining APA Expectations Overcoming Adversity Identifying Discourse Communities You’ll Encounter in College College communities Course communities APA community Graduation community Chapter 4 Protecting Scholarship: Plagiarism Academic Integrity: Get Your Sheepskin Defining academic integrity Looking at the research Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty: You Know Better Cheating Self-plagiarism Patchwriting Conflicts of interest Unauthorized collaboration Falsification Plagiarism Avoiding Plagiarism: Your Responsibilities Manage your time wisely Advocate academic integrity Identify assignment limitations Detail your research Practice responsible citing Utilize APA feedback resources Steer clear of unreliable strategies Closing Cultural Gaps: APA Strategies for Nonnative English Students Grasping cultural differences in education Utilizing additional APA strategies for nonnative English students Part 2 Earning Applause: APA Writing for the Academic Audience Chapter 5 Writing for Success: APA Writing Style Focusing on the Why and How: Audience and Purpose Academic and assignment audience Purpose Zeroing In: Assignment Approach and Focus Approach Focus Smooth Sailing: Transitions and Flow Organizational flow Transition strategies Writing with Attitude: Tone Recalling Sandbox Lessons: Respectful Language Racial and ethnic references Age and disability references Gender and sexual orientation references Socioeconomic references Chapter 6 Creating a Foundation: The Principal Parts of Speech, Structure, and Usage Shining the Spotlight on the Stars of the Show: Action Verbs Using your voice Being in agreement Focusing on tense Avoiding Anonymity: Nouns Designating Replacements: Pronouns Staying in agreement Eyeing APA person preferences Using the singular “they” Building Basics: Structures Sentences and paragraphs Parallelism Reducing Confusion: Problem Pairs Problem pairs Problem pronouns Misplaced description Chapter 7 Navigating Pages: Conventions of Style Marking Cadence: Punctuation End punctuation and spacing Comma Semicolon and colon Dashes and slashes Quotation marks Parentheses, brackets, and ellipses Seeking Attention: Special Conventions Italics Abbreviations Numbers Perfecting Appearance: Spelling Spelling strategies Possessives Foreign forms Hyphenation Standing Tall: Capitalization Proper nouns Titles and headings Chapter 8 Covering All Bases: Three-Level Revising Revising: Why Rewriting Is So Important Seeking feedback when revising Rewriting in action: A real-life example Streamlining: Structural Organization Opening: Working title, first sentence, and introduction Middle Closing Paring: Paragraphs and Sentences Sentence starters Spoken-language wordiness Wordy phrases and clauses Whittling Words Unnecessary and overused words Verb and ly-adverb combinations Superfluous verb endings Chapter 9 Achieving Your Personal Best: Student Improvement Plan Understanding What Makes a College Reader Developing Lifetime Literacy Skills: Reading for Success Reading to learn Improving your reading plan Writing As a Skill for Lifetime Success Developing Lifetime Literacy Skills: Writing for Success Writing to learn Putting together your writing improvement plan Studying in Small Groups: Literacy and Socializing Part 3 Practicing Safe Cites: Writing and Citing Sources Chapter 10 Gaining Insight: To Cite or Not to Cite Crediting Sources: General Guidelines Full and partial quotations Block quotations Summarizing and paraphrasing Statistical data within the context of research Terms specific to a field Tables, Internet images, and clip art Facts and figures that aren’t common knowledge Controversial information that contradicts generally accepted truths No citations required Coordinating Citations: Common Elements Citing author-date format Citing repeated narratives Sections of a source Citing an unknown author Citing numerous authors Citing same author, same date Citing authors with the same surname Citing organization authors Addressing Special Approaches: Personal, Authoritative, and Legal Personal communication Academic authorities Legal reference Citing Electronic Sources: Websites, Periodicals, Software, and Visuals Evaluating Sources Determining what makes a reliable source Assessing the quality of the sources cited Chapter 11 Preparing for Conflict: Source Engagement Pre-Gaming: Gathering Sources Rehearsing: Preparing Sources Using signal phrases Summarizing and citing correctly Paraphrasing and citing correctly Quoting and citing correctly Synthesizing: Engaging with Sources Author and source Source and source Source, source, and author Source, source, and source Primary sources as engagement Post-Gaming: Verifying Information Chapter 12 Formatting Last Impressions: Reference List Playing by the Rules: General Guidelines Coordinating Reference Elements: Author, Date, Title, and Source Author Date Title Source Clarifying Elements: Reference Conventions and Abbreviations Punctuating your references Capitalizing references Playing by the Rules: Specifics for Formatting Periodicals Seeing Is Believing: Real-Life Reference Items Books and reference works Edited book chapters and works in reference books Periodical and journal articles Reports Audiovisual media and works Online media Conferences and presentations Webpages and websites Legal reference Extending References: Annotated Bibliography Part 4 Perfecting Presentation: Beginnings, Endings, and Other Writings Chapter 13 Preparing Appetizers and Desserts: Front and Back Materials Opening Impressions: Formatting Front Matter Previewing your paper: Table of contents Listing figures and tables Focusing on abstracts Including an executive summary Closing Remarks: Formatting Back Matter Wrapping up with appendixes Ending with a glossary Including footnotes and endnotes Chapter 14 Acing a First Impression: Formatting Title Page and Page Layout Naming Writes: Title Page and Titles Recognizing title page elements Strategizing for writing titles Packaging Appearance: Formatting and Organization Page formatting: Consistency is key Page organization: Sequence is essential Chapter 15 Understanding First Year Writing: APA Essays and Reaction Papers Conquering College Comp: Essay Basics Differentiating essays from research writing Identifying the fundamentals of writing an essay Focusing on Essay Structure and Formatting Writing a memorable essay title Starting your essay with a bang Giving the body what it needs: Figurative language Avoiding crash endings Formatting your essay Formatting your essay citations Implementing Essay Variations: Common College Essays Narrative Cause and effect Comparison and contrast Expository Persuasive Descriptive Reading and Responding: Reaction Paper Basics Writing a successful reaction paper Organizing a reaction paper Formatting a reaction paper Chapter 16 Mastering Advanced Writing: APA Review of Literature Reviewing Literature: Searches and Steps Starting the search Focusing on the topic Sequencing the process in four steps Studying Samples: Introduction, Body, and Conclusion Starting with the thesis: The introduction Developing the thesis: The body Ending with significant findings: The conclusion Determining other major sections Laying Out Pages and the Title Page of the APA Literature Review Chapter 17 Perfecting Specialized Writings: APA Reports APA Report Writing: Creating and Organizing Eyeing the purpose and benefits of reports Examining report characteristics Writing Reports in Six Easy-to-Follow Steps Step 1: Plan and focus Step 2: Search for information Step 3: Analyze the information Step 4: Organize major and optional sections Step 5: Write the report Step 6: Revise Adapting APA Formatting to Reports Studying Report Samples: Introduction, Body, and Conclusion Introduction Body Conclusion Organizing Your Report: Other Essential Sections Acknowledgments Glossary Executive summary Transmittal memo Table of contents Methodology Recommendations Appendixes Discussion APA Report Writing: Specializing and Personalizing Business reports Education reports Science reports Periodic reports Sales and marketing reports Proposal reports Feasibility studies Recommendation reports Technical reports Academic reports Project progress reports Field reports Research reports Part 5 The Parts of Ten Chapter 18 Ten Priorities for Proficient Academic Writing Analyze Assignments Focus on Audience and Purpose Begin Assignments with Background Reading Plan Projects Focus on Specific Nouns and Action Verbs Reference Sources Beyond Professors’ Expectations Write Tight and Revise Read and Read Some More Write, Write, and Write Develop a Writer’s Work Ethic Chapter 19 Ten Strategies for Creative Source Engagement Look for Power Language within Sources Think Critically to Analyze Sources Utilize Professors as a Source Extend Conversations Master a Variety of Signal Phrases Use Source Engagement with Every Applicable College Paper Engage Exclusively with Classic Sources Engage with Anecdotes Learn from Sources Turn to Primary Sources Chapter 20 Ten Tips for High-Scoring Research Papers Form a Study Group Peer Up Include a Few Optional Parts Schedule Reviews with Your Writing Center Perfect Your Reference List Select a Local Topic with a Global Application Contact an Expert for an Interview Create Checklists Attend to Details Utilize the Professor’s Office Hours Index EULA