LibGuides: Doctors Academy: Citing Sources

APA vs MLA

APA may be new to many of you, that is OK. Both MLA and APA allow you to give proper credit to the source of information you are citing. The format is different but when you cite stays the same. Paraphrasing, quoting and summarizing others ideas need to be cited no matter what format you use.

Some notable differences from APA style blog:

In text

MLA

One Author: (Adams 42)
Two Authors: (Lennon and McCartney 999)
Three or more authors: (Hexum, Martinez, and Sexton 123)

APA

One Author:(Adams, 1979) or (Adams, 1979, p. 42)
Two Authors: (Lennon & McCartney, 1968) or (Lennon & McCartney, 1968, p. 999)
Three or more authors: (Hexum et al. 1994) or (Hexum et al 1994, p. 123)

Reference List:

MLA Book

Gordin, Michael D. The Pseudoscience Wars: Immanuel Velikovsky and the Birth of the Modern Fringe. Chicago: U Chicago P, 2012. Print.

APA Book

Gordin, M. D. (2012). The pseudoscience wars: Immanuel Velikovsky and the birth of the modern fringe. University of Chicago Press.

MLA Article

Shafron, Gavin Ryan, and Mitchell P. Karno. “Heavy Metal Music and Emotional Dysphoria Among Listeners.” Psychology of Popular Media Culture 2.2(2013): 74-85. PsycNET. Web. 11 Feb. 2014.

APA Article

Shafron, G. R., & Karno, M. P. (2013). Heavy metal music and emotional dysphoria among listeners. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 2, 74–85. doi:10.1037/a0031722

APA 7th

APA (American Psychological Association) Style is most commonly used in the social and behavioral sciences.

APA General Format The guidelines for paper format apply to both student assignments and manuscripts being submitted for publication to a journal. If you are using APA Style to create another kind of work (e.g., a website, conference poster, or PowerPoint presentation), you may need to format your work differently in order to optimize its presentation, for example, by using different line spacing and font sizes. Follow the guidelines of your institution or publisher to adapt APA Style formatting guidelines as needed.
In-text Citations In scholarly writing, it is essential to acknowledge how others contributed to your work. By following the principles of proper citation, writers ensure that readers understand their contribution in the context of the existing literature—how they are building on, critically examining, or otherwise engaging the work that has come before.
Reference List Check each reference carefully against the original publication to ensure information is accurate and complete. Accurately prepared references help establish your credibility as a careful researcher and writer. Consistency in reference formatting allows readers to focus on the content of your reference list, discerning both the types of works you consulted and the important reference elements (who, when, what, and where) with ease. When you present each reference in a consistent fashion, readers do not need to spend time determining how you organized the information. And when searching the literature yourself, you also save time and effort when reading reference lists in the works of others that are written in APA Style.
Sample Paper This page contains several sample papers formatted in seventh edition APA Style.
DOI Lookup: Crossref Search "Metadata". Crossref makes research outputs easy to find, cite, link, assess, and reuse. We’re a not-for-profit membership organization that exists to make scholarly communications better.
Basics of APA Tutorial This tutorial is designed for writers new to APA Style. Learn the basics of seventh edition APA Style, including paper elements, format, and organization; academic writing style; grammar and usage; bias-free language; mechanics of style; tables and figures; in-text citations, paraphrasing, and quotations; and reference list format and order. The Basics of Seventh Edition APA Style tutorial will permanently stay on this site for free.

APA Style from Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL)