how to write a apa paper
If you are taking a psychology class, you might very likely be asked by your instructor to write an APA paper at some point. What exactly is an APA paper? This is simply a written paper that follows APA format, the official writing format of the American Psychological Association.
If you’ve never written an APA paper before, the formatting rules and guidelines can seem daunting and difficult at first. You might be used to writing papers in another format such as MLA or Chicago style, so it might take some time to get the hang of writing in APA format.
The most important APA format guidelines in the 6th edition are:
APA running head: title page
Use en dashes (short dash) in compound adjectives. Do not place a space before or after the dash. Here are a few examples:
- The author’s contact information.
- A statement to the editor that the paper is original.
- If a similar paper exists elsewhere, notify the editor in the cover letter.
Specifically, we address the following topics:
Why do we use APA style?
Use double-spacing throughout the entire paper.To add double-spacing in Microsoft Word, highlight all the text you want double-spaced, then click on Page Layout. Next to the word Paragraph click on the arrow. Under Spacing, Line Spacing, select Double and then click OK.
Leave 1 in. margins from top to bottom and side to side. Microsoft Word usually is set to 1 in. margins. You can check this by clicking on Page Layout, then click on Margins. The margin you are using is highlighted, select Normal if it is not already selected.