Skip to content
 
View print version
1. 2.

APA (American Psychological Association) 7th is an author-date referencing style where you have an in-text citation and a related entry in a reference list at the end of your document.

APA 7th - book

Include edition details for a numbered edition e.g., 2nd ed. Place the edition details after the book title, but not in italics. Use Rev. ed. for revised editions.

For electronic books include the DOI number (Digital Object Identifier) if available. The format for a doi is:  https://doi.org/10.1080/1057356030207  

If there is no DOI use the web address. 

For the date of publication use the copyright date. If there is no copyright date use the abbreviation (n.d.) for no date.

If there is more than one publisher include them all separated by a semicolon. For example: Random House; John Wiley & Sons.


Reference list

Add a reference list entitled References at the end of your essay, citing all sources used in the body of your writing, except for personal communications.

The reference list should be in alphabetical order by the first author's surname (last name).

The first line of each reference should be aligned with the left margin. Second and subsequent lines should be indented seven spaces (1.27cm).

One author

Two to twenty authors

Twenty-one or more authors

Group as author

Unknown author

Chapter/section in an edited book

Chapter/section in an unedited book

Entry in a dictionary/encyclopaedia/wikipedia

Edited book

Audio book

In-text citation

When you use another person’s ideas or words in your text include the author’s name and publication date in brackets (Parenthetical Citation).

If you use the author’s name as part of a sentence, include the date of publication in brackets (Narrative Citation).

If there is no year of publication use the abbreviation (n.d.) for no date.

One author

Two authors

Three or more authors

Group as author

Unknown author (book, edited book)

Unknown author (book chapter, entry in a dictionary/encyclopaedia

Quoting

Direct quotes of less than 40 words require quotation marks and the page number/s.

  • Research suggests that "avoidance is essentially a static approach to conflict" (Northouse, 2015, p. 246).
  • Northouse (2015) stated that "personality traits such as intelligence, confidence, charisma, determination, sociability and integrity are essential to being an effective leader" (pp. 137-138).
  • ... the term "Vein" (2002) is defined as "narrow tubes that carry used blood from all parts of your body back to the heart" (p. 350).
  • It is noted that the "resistance to pyrethroids seems to be the most widespread" (World Health Organization, 2012, p. 13).
  • The World Health Organization (2012) states that "insecticide resistance is widespread: it is now reported in nearly two thirds of countries with ongoing malaria transmission" (p. 13).

 

For direct quotations, where page numbers are not available, use a paragraph number, or if a large document use a section heading followed by the paragraph number.

Paragraph numbers

Note: If there are no paragraph numbers, count the paragraphs. Use para. in front of the number

  • ... “I had to learn that, because of the crash, both life and limb would never be the same” (Morrow, 2017, para. 3).

  • Maltin (2015) reported that young viewers thought “that the men who made it must have been stoned” (para. 2). 

Section headings

Note: Add the word section after the heading. If it is a long heading shorten it and put quotation marks around the heading

  • … “product and services exports are a valuable addition to New Zealand's food and fibre exports” (New Zealand Trade & Enterprise, n.d., Agribusiness section, para. 2).

  • How to obtain additional support for yourself or the person you’re “looking after would help you to juggle work and care” (Carers UK, n.d., “Getting support for you" section, para. 1). 

 See also: more on quoting, including long quotes ...


See also: more on quoting, including long quotes ...  Multiple works by the same author, Similar information from multiple works, One source quoted in another


This material is based on the Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (2020). For further information, please consult the manual directly.

Edit page