APA Citation Guide

1. Using APA style to avoid plagiarism
• APA provides a standardized way to format your
paper
• APA provides a standardized and consistent
way to acknowledge (cite) your information
sources

2. To avoid plagiarizing…
You must acknowledge and identify your sources whenever
you use someone else’s ideas or material.
N.B. this includes whenever you state a “fact” which is not
general knowledge or when you use a statistic.
The Library’s Cite your sources guide can help

3. Citing using APA style is
a two step process:
• “In-text” citation in the body of your paper (when you
quote or paraphrase)
MATCHES
• a complete citation in the References list at the end of
your paper

4. An “in-text” citation in APA format looks
like this:
(Jones & Barker, 1996, p. 37)
Rule (Section 6.19):
• always give page numbers for quotations
• to cite a specific part of a source, indicate the
page, chapter, figure, etc.

5. The “matching” citation in the
References list looks like this:
Jones, K., & Barker, K. (1996). Human
movement explained. Oxford:
Butterworth-Heinemann.

6. Example using a direct quote:
“The exact design of a joint will vary with its primary function, so that
a joint that has the primary role of providing stability will be of a
different design to one whose primary function is mobility” (Jones &
Barker, 1996, p. 37).
Matching entry in the References list:
Jones, K., & Barker, K. (1996). Human movement explained.
Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.

7. Example for a paraphrase:
Some joints are responsible for providing stability and some for
mobility; design of the joints will vary according to purpose. (Jones &
Barker, 1996, p. 37)
Matching entry in the References list:
Jones, K., & Barker, K. (1996). Human movement explained.
Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Rule (Section 6.04):
“When paraphrasing…you are encouraged to provide a page or para.
number, esp. when it would help the reader locate the relevant
passage in a long…text.”

8. Paraphrasing tips
• use about the same number of words
• use your own words and “voice” to
express the information and ideas
• demonstrate that you understand the
concepts

9. Make it flow nicely…
Paraphrased or rephrased ideas often start with a lead-in
phrase.
For example:
• Marshall, Jones, and Morgan (2002) suggest that …
• A recent study (Marshall, Jones, & Morgan, 2002)
suggests that …

10. Do you see a pattern?
Gadalla, T. (2007). Cancer patients’ use of social work services
in Canada: Prevalence, profile, and predictors of use. Health
and Social Work, 32(3), 189-196. Retrieved from Academic
Search Premier database.
Heinon, T., & Spearman, L. (2006). Social work practice:
Problem solving and beyond. Toronto: Thomson & Nelson.
Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. (2007). Family violence
prevention program for First Nations. Retrieved from http://www.ainc-
inac.gc.ca/ps/fvp_e.html
Moffat, K. (2005). A poetics of social work. Toronto, ON:
University of Toronto Press.

11. Rules for formatting author information
• invert all authors’ names
• use surname and initial
• use an ampersand (&) before the last author
• if no author is listed, move the title to the author
position

12. Rules for formatting date information
• in parentheses, write the year the work was
published
• for magazines and newspapers, give the year
followed by the exact date (2001, September 11)
• write n.d. in parentheses if no date is given

13. Rules for formatting title information
• italicize book and journal (not article) titles
• capitalize just the first word, the first word in a
sub-title and proper nouns

14. Rules for citing electronic sources
• include as much electronic retrieval information
as needed for others to locate the sources you
cited
• no retrieval date is necessary for content that is
unlikely to be changed or updated, like a journal
article or content from a “stable” site
• when a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) is
available, include the DOI instead of the URL in
the reference

15. When a DOI is available…
Fong, T., Finlayson, M., & Peacock, N. (2006).
The social experience of aging with a chronic
illness: Perspectives of older adults with
multiple sclerosis. Disability & Rehabilitation,
28(11),695-705. doi: 10.1080/
09638280500277495

16. No DOI?
Rule: Give the url of the journal home page
Gaude, M., Feldman, D.E., & Rossignol, M. (2007).
The wait for total hip replacement in patients
with osteoarthritis. Canadian Journal of
Surgery, 50(2), 101-109. Retrieved from
http://www.cma.ca/
A more practical approach for Mohawk students may be:
Retrieved from Health Source: Nursing/Academic
Edition database.
(N.B. RefWorks uses database url)

17. E-book
• No publisher info is required
• If you can find a DOI, place it after the title
• If you can’t find a DOI, use “Retrieved from
+vendor url”
(e.g. Retrieved from www.statref.com)

18. How do I reference information
from a web site?
Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists.
(2003). CAOT position statement: Support
personnel in occupational therapy services.
Retrieved from
http://www.caot.ca/default.asp?pageid=161

19. References
Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists. (2003).
CAOT position statement: Support personnel in
occupational therapy services. Retrieved from
http://www.caot.ca/default.asp?pageid=161
Jones, K., & Barker, K. (1996). Human movement
explained. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Pierce, L.L., Finn, M.G., & Steiner, V. (2004). Families
dealing with stroke desire information about
self-care needs. Rehabilitation Nursing, 29(1),
14–17.