What Is APA Style Writing and Who Should Use It?

APA writing style is the official style of the American Psychological Association (APA). It’s used for scholarly writing in scientific fields like psychology, nursing, engineering, education, and the social sciences. APA style is the standard for scientific journals (including medical journals), textbooks, and academic papers.

Style guides like the APA are used to create consistency in things like word choice, punctuation, and format. Other fields have their own style guides, like the Associated Press (AP) style guide for journalists and the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) that’s used almost everywhere else. Some businesses have their own brand style guide as well.

How and why was APA style developed?

In 1929, a group of psychologists, anthropologists, and business managers met to create a simple set of writing style guidelines that would make scientific writing easier to read and understand, including guidelines for word choices that don’t create scientific bias. They published their seven-page guidelines in Psychological Bulletin, describing them as a standard that could be referenced as needed.

Since then, the guidelines have grown as the needs of researchers, students, and educators have evolved. However, the original intentions haven’t changed.

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Why is APA style so important?

APA style writing creates a foundation for clear and effective scientific communication. By using APA style, researchers and students who write about psychology and other scientific disciplines are able to communicate their ideas, research, and findings in a consistent format. That helps readers know what to look for as they read scientific writing and quickly scan for important information and sources.

Since APA style is uniform and consistent, readers can focus on the ideas themselves without being distracted by the way those ideas are presented, like inconsistencies in punctuation and capitalization or the way citations and statistics are presented.

Having a consistent style also helps ideas flow logically, with a predictable, consistent format. It provides a consistent way to credit sources. It also creates standard, inclusive language to describe people in a way that preserves their dignity and reflects their worth.

APA style was created to be powerful and persuasive. It helps scientific writers present their ideas clearly and it helps readers understand the information more easily.

How can you learn APA style writing?

You can purchase the APA style guide (the official name is Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association) online in spiral-bound, paperback, hardcover, or e-book format. If you’re a student, check with your school or university to see whether they have the APA style guide available for students either free or at a discount. Make sure you’re using the latest edition, as the guidelines are revised periodically to reflect up-to-date guidelines on current topics. If you’re writing a research or term paper in APA format, use a free template that complies with current APA guidelines.

“If you’re writing a research or term paper in APA format, use a free template that complies with current APA guidelines.”

With scientific topics at the forefront of many current events and news stories, it’s important to understand key points from reputable sources so you have accurate information. APA style guidelines will help you read scientific information more quickly and understand it more thoroughly. Even if you’re not writing scientific articles or scholarly papers, it’s worth getting familiar with APA style guidelines.