The reference list is arranged in alphabetical order by the first item in the reference which is generally the author. The entire list is double spaced (even within citations), and each citation uses a hanging indent so that the first line is flush with the left margin and any subsequent lines are indented.
Note: In APA 7, references should list 20 authors maximum, as opposed to 7 authors maximum in the 6th edition. For articles with 21 authors or more, use an ellipsis to substitute from author number 19 to the last author on the publication.
A Digital Object Identifier (DOI) is a permanent address to an article or other electronic source that will continue to lead a reader to the source even if the source's web address has changed multiple times. For this reason, DOIs are the preferred retrieval information for APA sources whenever they are available.
Morey, C. C., Cong, Y., Zheng, Y., Price, M., & Morey, R. D. (2015). The color-sharing bonus: Roles of perceptual organization and attentive processes in visual working memory. Archives of Scientific Psychology, 3, 18–29. https://doi.org/10.1037/arc0000014
For works without DOIs, do NOT include a URL or database information in the reference.
Most articles wil include the DOI with the citation information. If you can't find it there, go to www.crossref.org. Click on Search Metadata, and enter the title of the your article into the search box. If your article has a DOI, it will appear on the results page. Watch the video tutorial below or view the print tutorial.
Not every article will have a DOI. Only those articles from scholarly journals published from about the mid-1990's on.
With more journal articles being published online, APA 7 has certain rules regarding how to reference articles without page numbers and articles published ahead of print. Read on to learn how to format these types of articles!
Journal articles can have article numbers or locators instead of page numbers. If this is the case, include the number prior to the DOI, as you would a page number. Prior to the article number or locator, add the word "Article."
Example
If an article has been published online ahead of the print version, you can use the year it was published online, and then add the phrase "Advance online publication" prior to the DOI. Note that advance online publications do not have volume, issue, or page numbers.
Example
Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the book: Subtitle of the book. Publisher Name. DOI or URL (if included)
*Note: APA 7 no longer requires a publisher location in a book reference.
In edited books, where different authors contribute the chapters, you need to cite each chapter separately on your reference list. These individual references allow you to acknowledge the people who actually contributed the content.
Author, A. A. (Year). Title of chapter: Subtitle of chapter. In A. A. Editor & B. B. Editor (Eds.), Title of book: Subtitle of book (# ed.,* pp. xxx-xxx). Publisher.
Haertl, K., & Christiansen, C. (2011). Coping skills. In C. Brown & V. C. Stoffel (Eds.), Occupational therapy in mental health: A vision for participation (pp. 313-329). F. A. Davis.
Note: If you are using an authored book, meaning the entire book is written by the same person or people, cite the entire book (see the example in the previous section).
*Include the edition number if there is more than one book edition available.
In the reference list, the entries are alphabetized by title to determine which is "a" and which is "b." The reference marked 2017a appears in the reference list before 2017b. The a and the b will also be in the reference list. For example,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2017a). Type 1 diabetes. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/type2.html
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2017b). Type 2 diabetes. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/type2.html
Creator, A. A. (Year created). Title of work [Medium]. Museum Name, Museum’s Location City, State, Country.
*Note: if an exact year is unknown, but an estimated date is provided, include it in square brackets, preceded by ca. (circa).
Examples
