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Basic Structure of an APA Style Paper

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Basic Structure of an APA Style Paper
Basic Structure of an APA Style Paper

Abstract
APA (American Psychological Association) Style writing is widely used across all fields of study and is regularly used to cite sources within the social sciences. This paper details the basic structure of an APA paper, provides resources and tips to assist authors during the writing process. As stated by the Publication Manual of the APA, an abstract is “a brief, comprehensive summary of the contents of the article; it allows readers to survey the contents of an article quickly and, like a title, it enables persons interested in the document to retrieve it from abstracting and indexing databases” (2010, p. 25). Applying and understanding the method of APA Style writing and its usage requirements and by referencing resources properly with in-text citations and reference entries, you will undoubtedly connect with your readers.

Basic Structure of an APA Style Paper
The American Psychological Association (APA) is commonly accepted as a standard for academic and professional writing. APA Style is intended to provide writers specific guidelines for the formatting of papers and offer detailed instructions for citing any work that directly impacted their writing. APA style is structured around three components: page formats, text rules, and documentation. Page formatting is made up of not only margins, indents, and spacing, but also the appearance of tables and figures, as well as how the paper is organized. There are various rules with APA writing. Some of these rules address how abbreviations are used, when to write numbers as words, and using of quotations appropriately. Grammar and punctuation are essentially conservative in APA style writing. When formatting an APA paper, the writer will use one inch margins on all sides of the paper. The text of the paper is double-spaced throughout and the paper will consist of a title page, abstract, body of the



References: American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M., Soderlund, L., & Brizee, A. (2010, May 5). General format. Retrieved from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/ Purdue OWL. (2009). Commas: Quick rules. Retrieved from Purdue University Online Writing Lab website: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/g_commaproof.html American Psychological Association Retrieved from http://www.apastyle.org/

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