POLS 1101: American Government

The American Psychological Association has an official blog that covers tips, updates, and resources for the style manual. For example, when AI generated writing tools like ChatGPT became widespread in 2022, the APA blog created a citation style guide so researchers could properly cite AI sources. Below are some helpful resources from the blog:

The APA Style Blog has also created a series of handy infographic PDFs that break down common questions and processes for easier reading. Check out the links below for some of our favorite handouts!

• Set margins to 1 inch on all sides.
• Font should be 12 pt. and double-spaced.
  • Acceptable font styles include Times New Roman and Courier.
• Create a title page with your paper title, name, and institution, centered and in that order.
  • Student papers should also include the course number and name, instructor's name, and assignment due date.
• Create a running header with page numbers. This should be aligned to the right.
• On the second page, you should include your abstract, if required by your instructor.
• On the third page, begin the main body of your paper.
• The final page should be your Reference page.
  • References on this page should be double-spaced and listed alphabetically by author's last name. Use hanging indentation.

Cite your sources in the text of your paper. Citations in the text include the author(s) last name and publication year.

With author in sentence
According to Brooks (2014), students continued to push for changes at Savannah State in the early 1970s.

Without author in sentence
Students continued to push for changes at Savannah State in the early 1970s (Brooks, 2014).

Include page numbers when quoting directly from a work or referring to a specific passage. Pagination includes the author, year of publication, and the page number for the reference (preceded by "p." for a single page, or "pp." for multiple pages).

With author in sentence, using direct quote
Brooks (2014) found that "students used grassroots organizing to initiate changes they wanted implemented" (p. 214). 

Without author in sentence, using direct quote
"Students used grassroots organizing to initiate changes they wanted implemented" (Brooks, 2014, p.124), which included creating a list of demands.

Additional examples:

The reference list follows the main body of the paper on a separate page titled References. Use double-spacing and hanging indentation (not shown here). Below are some examples of common sources:

Book or e-Book

Format: Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of book in sentence case: Capital letter also for subtitle. Publisher Name.

Example: Brooks, F. E. (1991). Tigers in the tempest: Savannah State University and the struggle for civil rights. Mercer University Press.

*** Note on e-Book URLs: A URL is not required if an e-Book's content is the same as its physical counterpart.

Edited Book, No Author

Format: Editor, A. A. (Ed.). (Year of publication). Title of book in sentence case: Capital letter also for subtitle. Publisher Name.

Example: Sutter, P. S. & , Pressly, P. M. (Eds.). (2018). Coastal nature, coastal culture: Environmental histories of the Georgia coast. University of Georgia Press.

Edited Book with an Author

Format: Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of book in sentence case: Capital letter also for subtitle (A. Editor, Ed.). Publisher Name.

Example: Prince. (2019). The beautiful ones (D. Piepenbring, Ed.). Spiegel & Grau.

Article or Chapter in an Edited Book

Format: Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In E. E. Editor, & F. F. Editor (Eds.), Title of book in sentence case: Capital letter also for subtitle (pp. pages of chapter). Publisher.

Example: Carrillo, R. (2018). How the U.S. government could end the student debt crisis today. In P. Johansen (Ed.), Student loans and the cost of college (pp. 64 - 70). Greenhaven Publishing.

Journal Article (Electronic)

Format: Author, A.A., Author, B.B., & Author, C.C. (Year). Title of article in sentence case without italics: Capital letter also for subtitle. Title of Journal, volume number(issue number if available), pages. https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy

Example: Ouariachi, T., Olvera-Lobo, M.D., Gutiérrez-Pérez, J., & Maibach, E. (2019). A framework for climate change engagement through video games. Environmental Education Research, 25(5), 701-716. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2018.1545156

*** Note on DOIs in articles: DOI stands for Digital Object Identifier and serves as a link for the article. If no DOI is provided, use a stable URL - look for the permalink button in library databases. URLs copied from the browser bar are not always stable.

Webpage or Piece of Online Content

Format: Lastname, F.M. (Year, Month Day or use n.d. if no date is given). Title of page. Site name. URL

Example: Cooke, R. (2020, February 17). Wikipedia is the last best place on the internet. Wired. https://www.wired.com/story/wikipedia-online-encyclopedia-best-place-internet/

*** Note: It's not necessary to include a accessed/retrieval date, unless the page is likely to change over time.

Webpage Where the Author is a Group, Organization or Government Agency

Example: National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Division of Viral Diseases. (2020, March 4). How COVID-19 spreads. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved April 10, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/transmission.html

***Note: If the author and website's name are the same, omit the website's name:
             Example: Savannah State University. (n.d.) History of SSU. https://www.savannahstate.edu/about-ssu/history.shtml

Youtube or Streaming Video

Format: Last Name, F. M. [Username]. (Year, Month Date). Title of video [Video]. Name of Streaming Service. URL

Example: Vice. (2020, February 4). Pittsburgh artist uses art to bring political transformation in America [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eg-ZTFAfeg

*** Note about authors: The author is the person or group who uploaded the video. If the author and username are the same, omit username.

Additional Examples

For legislation, enacted and not enacted, resolutions, committee reports, etc. see APA style manual and check styles for government information.