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Citation Style: APA: Basic Rules

A LibGuide for the APA Citation Style

Reference Lists: Basic Rules (From OWL Writing Lab)

  • Begin your Works Cited page on a separate page at the end of your research paper. It should have the same one-inch margins and last name, page number header as the rest of your paper.
  • Label the page Works Cited (do not italicize the words Works Cited or put them in quotation marks) and center the words Works Cited at the top of the page.
  • Double space all citations, but do not skip spaces between entries.
  • Indent the second and subsequent lines of citations by 0.5 inches to create a hanging indent.
  • List page numbers of sources efficiently, when needed. If you refer to a journal article that appeared on pages 225 through 250, list the page numbers on your Works Cited page as 225-50. Note that MLA style uses a hyphen in a span of pages.

Source: OWL/Contributors: Tony Russell, Allen Brizee, Elizabeth Angeli, Russell Keck, Joshua M. Paiz, Michelle Campbell, Rodrigo Rodríguez-Fuentes, Daniel P. Kenzie, Purdue OWL Staff.

Highlights

  • Margins: 1 inch
  • Double-spaced
  • References
  • ½ inch or Tab (5-7 spaces)
  • Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th Edition