In the class Family and Community, for the Tarleton State University we are ask to write a paper about APA, that is the format we will be writing our papers in for the rest of our student nursing careers as well as our professional careers. APA stand for American Psychological Association and is a style used cite sources within the social sciences. I will explain the general format of APA style, how to cite sources in text, how to compose a reference list, the stylistics of APA, and abbreviations of APA. (Angeli et al., 2010)
Some of the general guideline of an APA paper is the paper should be standard-sized printer paper which is 8.5”x 11” and all of the margins need to be set to 1 inch and double space. …show more content…
First person can be used when writing a paper, but it is best to avoid using “we” or “you” in an APA style paper. It is also encouraged to use an active voice rather than a passive voice so the reader knows the author is the subject performing the research. It is important to avoid using identifying language to prevent offending the readers. An APA paper is usually research based so it is often read by a diverse population of people so bias points of view, terms and identifiers are important things to avoid. An APA paper should not offend the readers race, ethnicity, sexuality or disabilities. Gender pronouns like “he” and “she” should be avoided as well to keep the reader focus on the point of the paper rather than the gender. Some ways to avoid gender pronouns are to rephrase or use “the” or “it”. It is best to avoid poetic wording in an APA paper, while some writing it can come of as clever or catchy, it can lead the reader away from the intended point of the paper which is the research. (Angeli et al., 2010)
When using abbreviations in an APA paper it is best to follow common trends. When using a term that is commonly abbreviated, first use the full term with the abbreviations after in parentheses, then when the term is used later the abbreviations will be enough. Standard measurements and states do not need to be written out all the way, and APA also allows common abbreviation that are in the dictionary to be used without being written out. Periods should not be used in abbreviations with all capital letters, but you should always use a period when abbreviating Latin or a reference. (Angeli et al.,