Structure of APA Referencing Explained (with Examples)
If you are looking for a guide on APA (American Psychological Association) style of referencing, you’ve come to the right place. Go through our introductory guide to the APA format here, and then continue reading this article on the structure of APA referencing.
There are various ways by which you can structure your reference list using APA format – depending on the nature of your source(s). Some of these variants are briefly explained below.
Instructions
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1
Books
- A book in general
Last name, First initial(s). (Date). Title of book. Place: Publisher.
Examples:
- Lawal, N. A. (2000). Laws of Mathematics. Damaturu: TeamBookToo House.
- Olawuyi, M. & Naseer, H. (2014). Journalistic Business Communication System. Dakar: SLU Press.
- Edited Book
Last name(s) of editor(s), First initial(s). (Ed. or Eds.). (Date). Title of book. Place: Publisher.
Examples:
- Jobe, S. (Ed.). (2012). Medicinal Plants and Flowers. Damaturu: TeamBookToo House.
- Olawuyi, M. & Naseer, H. (Eds.). (2014). Academic and Business Writings. Dakar: SLU Press.
- Edition Other than First
Last name, First initial(s). (Date). Title of book (number ed.). Place: Publisher.
Examples:
- Chomsky, N. (2002). Syntactic Structure (2nd ed.). Ibadan: MIT Press.
- Olawuyi, M. & Naseer, H. (2014). Journalistic Business Communication System (5th ed.). Dakar: SLU Press.
- Article or Chapter in an Edited Book
Last name, First initial(s). (Date). Title of article of chapter. In First initial(s) Last name (Ed.). Title of book (pp. pages). Place: Publisher.
Examples:
- Olawuyi, M. (2002). Syntactic Concepts: Grammaticality, Acceptability and Correctness. In N. Chomsky (Ed.) Linguistic Set-box (pp. 25-32). Washington, DC: MIT Press.
- Olawuyi, M. & Naseer, H. (2014). A Review of Students Performance in IGCSE ESL. In S. Jobe & M. A. Bode (Eds.). The Pedagogue (pp. 59-67). Dakar: SLU Press. -
2
Articles
- Article in a Journal Paginated by Volume
Last name, First initial(s). (Date). Title of article. Title of journal, volume, pages.
Example:
- Abubakar, A. (2003). Position of Women in Islam. Islamic Human Right Quaterly, 26, 423-486.
- Article in a Journal Paginated by Issue
Last name, First initial(s). (Date). Title of article. Title of journal, volume(issue), pages.
Example:
- Abdus-Salaam, A. (2013). English in the Next 100 Years. International Journal of EFL, 26(2), 23-34.
- Article from an Electronic Database
Last name, First initial(s). (Date). Title of article. Title of journal [or Magazine or Newspaper], Publication information. doi:number or Retrieved from URL
DOI Format example:
- Jobe, S. (2015) Psychology of Learning. Journal International of Teachers Education, 5, i-iii. doi:11.2222/j.1629-1221.2015.00012.x
URL Format example:
- Mafe, B. O. (2015) Psychology of Education. International Journal of Education, 15. Retrieved from http://jieflt.org.uk/
- Magazine Article
Last name, First initial(s). (Year, month and day [if any]). Title of article. Title of Magazine, volume(issue), pages.
Example:
- Abdus-Salaam, A. (2013, September 19). Problem of Mother Tongue Interference in English Learning by Second Language Speakers: A Case Study of Gambian International School Students. The Sophist, 26(2), 10-12.
- Newspaper Article
Last name, First initial(s). (Year, month and day [if any]). Title of article. Title of Newspaper, p. page(s).
Example:
- Abdus-Salaam, A. (2013, September 19). Problem of Mother Tongue Interference in English Learning by Second Language Speakers: A Case Study of Gambian International School Students. The Standard, p. 13. -
3
Online Sources
- Document
Last name, First initial(s). (Date). Title of document. Retrieved from URL.
Example:
- Olawuyi, M. (2010). Because I am Unique. Retrieved from http://versesofthejunglepoet.com/poetry/because_I_am_unique
- Entry in a Wiki
Title of entry. (Date of Posting). Retrieved date from URL.
Example:
- Modern Organic Chemistry. (2013, December 13). Retrieved April 27, 2014, from http://iou.org/wiki/chemistry_organic
-
4
Other Sources
- Conference Proceedings
Last name of editor(s), First initial(s). (Ed. or Eds.). (Date). Title of proceedings. Place: Publisher.
Example:
- Lawal, N. A. & Olawuyi, M. (Eds.). (2011). Proceedings of IATEFL Conference on Nature and Condition of English Language in the Modern World. Kent: IATEFL Headquarters -
5
Government Document
Agency. (Date). Title of document. Place: Publisher.
Example:
- National Environment Agency (2011). Climate Change in Kombo. Kanifing South: Gambia Printing Press -
6
Film or Video (Motion Picture)
Last name of director or producer, First initial(s). (Director or Producer). (Date). Title of DVD or Videocassette or Motion Picture. Country: Name of studio.
Example
- Olawuyi, M. (Director). (2010). Back to the Root. Gambia: Black Magic Films -
7
Television Programme
Last name of producer, First initial(s). (Producer). (Year, date aired). Title of programme [Television broadcast]. Place: Channel or network.
Example:
- Jobe, S. (Producer). (2013, March 14). Let’s Talk about Consultancy Business. Kanifing: GRTS
 style of referencing, you've come to the right place. Go through our introductory guide to the APA format here, and then continue reading this article on the structure of APA referencing.
There are various ways by which you can structure your reference list using APA format – depending on the nature of your source(s). Some of these variants are briefly explained below.Next%20stop%3A%20Pinterest "Pin It")
