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Citing Sources: APA 7 Style

A guide to citing sources designed and created by Clark Librarians

APA Handout - 7th Edition

Photo of page 1 of the APA Quick Guide

APA 7 Citation Resources

Tips

  • DOI (Digital Object Identifier): a unique number assigned to articles. Use it when citing if available. Example: 
    https://doi.org/10.1037/
    ppm0000185
  • For fonts, use one of the following: 12-point Times New Roman, 11-point Georgia, 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, or 10-point Lucida Sans Unicode.
  • Only one space after a period.
  • Make a correct template for papers with title page and reuse.
  • Use automatically generated citations from article databases, but don't trust them!  Correct as needed.

Handouts and Links

Steps for creating an APA 7 title page

Student title page element Format Example
Paper title Place the title three to four lines down from the top of the title page. Center it and type it in bold font. Capitalize major words of the title. Place the main title and any subtitle on separate double-spaced lines if desired. There is no maximum length for titles; however, keep titles focused and include key terms. Impact of Gender on the Evaluation of Humor in Romantic Relationship
Author names Place one double-spaced blank line between the paper title and the author names. Center author names on their own line. If there are two authors, use the word “and” between authors; if there are three or more authors, place a comma between author names and use the word “and” before the final author name. Cecily J. Sinclair and Adam Gonzaga
Author affiliation For a student paper, the affiliation is the institution where the student attends school. Include both the name of any department and the name of the college, university, or other institution, separated by a comma. Center the affiliation on the next double-spaced line after the author name(s). Department of Psychology, University of Georgia
Course number and name Provide the course number as shown on instructional materials, followed by a colon and the course name. Center the course number and name on the next double-spaced line after the author affiliation. PSY 201: Introduction to Psychology
Instructor name Provide the name of the instructor for the course using the format shown on instructional materials. Center the instructor name on the next double-spaced line after the course number and name. Dr. Rowan J. Estes
Assignment due date Provide the due date for the assignment. Center the due date on the next double-spaced line after the instructor name.  October 18, 2020
Page number Use the page number 1 on the title page. Use the automatic page-numbering function of your word processing program to insert page numbers in the top right corner of the page header. 1

Example Student Title Page:

screenshot of APA 7 title page

APA 7 DOI Guidelines

  • It is not necessary to include the words “Retrieved from” or “Accessed from” before a DOI or URL in the Reference List.
  • Although older works use previous DOI formats (e.g., “http:/dx.doi.org/” or “doi:” or “DOI:” before the DOI number), in your reference list, standardize DOIs into the current preferred format for all entries. For example, use https://doi.org/10.1037/a0040251 in your reference list even though that article, published in 2016, presented the number in an older format.

"For works without DOIs from most academic research databases, do not include a URL or database information...Provide the name [and URL] of the database or archive when it publishes original, proprietary works available only in that database or archive...."

Clark databases with proprietary works (provide name of database and URL for database home page):

Subjects: Citing, Tutorials, Writing

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