APA Guidelines Summary

Papers that do not meet APA requirements will not be accepted for grading and will be returned to the student.

What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism is using someone else’s words or ideas and representing them as your own without giving due credit to your source of information. This includes copying word-for-word from a book, magazine, newspaper, website, or any other source without giving credit to that source.

If you incorporate into your paper the writings of other author, you must put this text in quotation marks, if directly quoted, and cite your source(s). Provide citations when using the ideas of other authors, even if those ideas are paraphrased or summarized in your own words.

Intentional plagiarism is deliberate cheating and includes, but is not limited to the below:

Downloading a free research paper

Buying a paper from a commercial paper mill

Faking a citation.

Submitting a paper written by someone else.

Copying an entire article or a paper from any source.

Unintentional plagiarism can occur when a writer commits the following acts:

Cutting and pasting to create a paper from several sources (“assembly-kit” papers) without citing them;

Coping or paraphrasing sentences or paragraphs from sources without using proper in text citation.

Remember, whether intentional or unintentional, plagiarism remains a very serious academic offense.

Helpful APA Websites

A Sample Paper and Guidelines: http://valencia.cc.fl.us/lrcwest/apapaper.html

Comprehensive Writing Site by Purdue University: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_apa.html#other

How document and site sources (including online sources): http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/online/cite6.html

In-Text Citations (Parenthetical Citations): http://www.ccc.commnet.edu/apa/parenthetical.htm

Paper Format

Margins: All margins should be set to 1 inch
Font: 12pt, Normal
Line Spacing: Double Spaced
Paragraphs: First line of each new paragraph should be indented .5 inches on left.
Document Type: Papers must be uploaded through the Student Access site unless there are instructions within the course to upload in Blackboard
Header & Numbering: The paper header includes the first two or three words of the title followed by five spaces, and then the page number. The header is placed flush right, a half-inch from the top, flush right. (See example header in this document.) Begin page numbers on the title page, which is page 1.

Headings

Most papers will only require two or three levels of headings. The following format should be used. Headings should be 12pt font, normal. Headings should not be bold.

Sample heading structure:

Centered Uppercase and Lowercase Heading

Flush Left, Italicized Uppercase and Lowercase Side Heading

Indented, italicized, lowercase paragraph heading ending with a period

Paper Organization

At a minimum, papers should include the following sections:

Title Page
Body – Introduction
Body – Main text
Body – Conclusion
Reference List

In Text Citations (Parenthetical Citations)

In text citations are used to give credit to sources used within the body of the paper. Students are to cite an author in the text when paraphrasing a source and when quoting a source directly.

Example: Quoting a source

Other researchers and authors have defined image as, “a personally believed-in mental picture that is descriptive, evaluative, and predisposing in relation to some object” (Crable & Vibbert, 1986, p. 58).

Example: Paraphrasing a Source

In a Business and Economic Review article, the author notes that successful companies know that past competitive advantage is no longer enough. To remain competitive companies must make better use of people (McNamara, 1999).

Fulton (2003) wrote that business managers who are leaders will on average see more productivity from their employees than managers who are not leaders.

Please refer to this website for additional examples of proper in text citations.
http://www.lib.unc.edu/instruct/citations/apa/in_text.html

The Reference List

The reference list provides readers the basic information to access the sources you used to write your paper. Examples of common reference types are given below. To view additional reference guidelines and a sample reference list, visit http://www.library.cornell.edu/newhelp/res_strategy/citing/apa.html#list.

The reference list begins with the title “Reference” centered at the top of the page. Sources are listed alphabetically by the author’s surname. The reference list also uses hanging indents: the first line of each reference has no indentation, and subsequent lines are indented a half-inch. This style is displayed below.

Note: An actual reference list would be double spaced.

Examples of Referencing Internet Sources

Bachmann, J. (2002). Competitive strategy: its O.K. to be different. Academy of Management Executive, 16 (2), 61-65. Retrieved March 21, 2003, from WilsonSelect Database.

Imperato, G. (1996). Gene Pool, Talent Pool: Hiring is all in the family. Fast Company. Retrieved March 21,2003, from http://pf.fastcompany.com/online/04/hiring4.html.

Labich, K. (1994). Is herb Kelleher America’s Best CEO? Fortune Magazine. Retrieved March 15, 2003, fromhttp://www.fortune.com/fortune/information/permissions/pdf/herb_kelleher.pdf

McCathy, M. (2001). Southwest ads’ quick return works. USA Today. Retrieved March 8, 2003, from http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/adtrack/2001-11-26-ad-track-southwest.htm.

Example Journal article

Murzynski, J., & Degelman, D. (1996). Body language of women and judgments of vulnerability to sexual assault. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 26, 1617-1626.

Example Book

Paloutzian, R. F. (1996). Invitation to the psychology of religion (2nd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Submitting the Paper

If the course requires a paper proposal or outline, you must submit this to your professor for approval prior to starting the paper.
The paper/project will need to be in MS Word or Rich Text File (RTF) format. Submit your paper by uploading it at the Student Access Site. Do not e-mail your paper directly to your professor. By using the Student Access Site, your university record will automatically be updated to indicate you have submitted your paper and the paper will be provided to your professor for grading.

Finding Sources for your Paper

One of the first places a student should begin searching for articles to be used as sources is a Research Database. Research Database requires a subscription services to be used. All CSU degree program students have access to such a database via the CSU Online Library. This database allows you to search through thousands of magazines, journals, and trade publications. The majority of the articles found in the database are not available freely on the web.

To access the database, login to the online library, select “Articles” and then “Comprehensive Research Database.” Before submitting your search criteria, be sure to check the box titled “Full Text” so that only complete articles will be presented on your results page.