Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
by
The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association is the style manual of choice for writers, editors, students, and educators in the social and behavioural sciences. It provides invaluable guidance on all aspects of the writing process, from the ethics of authorship to the word choice that best reduces bias in language. Well-known for its authoritative and easy-to-use reference and citation system, the Publication Manual also offers guidance on choosing the headings, tables, figures and tone that will result in strong, simple, and elegant scientific communication. The Sixth Edition offers new and expanded instruction on publication ethics, statistics, journal article reporting standards, electronic reference formats, and the construction of tables and figures. The Sixth Edition has been revised and updated to include new ethics guidance on such topics as determining authorship and terms of collaboration, duplicate publication, plagiarism and self-plagiarism, disguising of participants, validity of instrumentation, and making data available to others for verification; new journal article reporting standards to help readers report empirical research with clarity and precision; simplified APA heading style to make it more conducive to electronic publication; updated guidelines for reducing bias in language to reflect current practices and preferences, including a new section on presenting historical language that is inappropriate by present standards; new guidelines for reporting inferential statistics and a significantly revised table of statistical abbreviations new instruction on using supplemental files containing lengthy data sets and other media; significantly expanded content on the electronic presentation of data to help readers understand the purpose of each kind of display and choose the best match for communicating the results of the investigation, with new examples for a variety of data displays, including electrophysiological and biological data; consolidated information on all aspects of reference citations, with an expanded discussion of electronic sources emphasising the role of the digital object identifier (DOI) as a reliable way to locate information; and expanded discussion of the publication process, including the function and process of peer review; a discussion of ethical, legal, and policy requirements in publication; and guidelines on working with the publisher while the article is in press. Key to this edition of the Publication Manual is an updated and expanded Web presence. Visit the APA Style web site to Look up additional supplemental material keyed to the book Test your knowledge of APA Style with a free tutorial on style basics Learn about the changes in the sixth edition with a free tutorial reviewing key revisions Sign up for an on-line course to enrich and enhance your understanding of APA Style Read the APA Style blog and share your comments on writing and referencing Consult frequently asked questions to sharpen your understanding of APA Style Examine additional resources on such topics as ethics, statistics, and writing Familiarise yourself with submission standards for APA books and journals What''s New in the Sixth Edition? Book has been updated to acknowledge and incorporate advances in computer technology. New discussions of the creation, submission, and storage of supplemental data. New guidelines for referencing electronic sources. New and expanded reference examples for a variety of on-line sources. Redesigned APA Style website, expanded to provide tutorials, on-line courses, and other resources for learning APA style. Book has been reorganised and streamlined for ease of use Organised to describe the writing process from idea to publication, it begins with background information on ethical issues in publishing, then moves on to manuscript structure and content, then writing style and rules, then graphics and references, then guidance on working with the publisher. Sample paper section has been moved up and featured to better exemplify manuscript structure and content Like discussions have been moved to one place in the book, with discussions of function followed by instruction on form. Focus has been broadened to include readers in the behavioural and social sciences. Information specific to APA has been moved to the web, where it is more broadly accessible and can be updated frequently. New examples throughout the book have been drawn from publications in education, business, and nursing as well as psychology.
Most databases allow you to create a personal account providing you with an area where you can save your searches, and sort and export your search results. If you alter your original search, you can save the new search and track the changes.
The help section within a database provides advice on how to create an account (please note you will only need to create one account for each platform i.e. Ovid or EBSCO). You should use your university email to register.
It is recommended that you conduct your searches in individual databases. A good search is likely to find some of the same relevant results in all your searches. Therefore, you will need to de-duplicate your results (don't forget to record your results total before de-duplication).
You can do this process in referencing software (remember to back up your library first) or using Microsoft Excel or other spreadsheet software by collating all your results, filtering and looking for the duplicates. You will need to record the number of references removed and the total remaining after de-duplication.
De-duplication in Endnote
EndNote will search the currently selected references for duplicates. To search the whole EndNote Library, click on the All References folder.
One of the most commonly used reporting tools is PRISMA. The PRISMA flow diagram charts the flow of information through the different phases of your systematic search. It maps out the number of records identified, included and excluded, and the reasons for exclusions.
You will need to document your searches in sufficient detail to allow others to be able to reproduce and assess the thoroughness of the search. You will need to keep track of:
These details will help you complete your PRISMA diagrams.
There are various software packages that you can use to help compile and manage your references into your own personal database or library. They allow you to import your references directly into your own database from many online sources such as bibliographic databases, electronic journals and library catalogues. They also allow you to work in conjunction with a word processing package to insert in-text citations, your footnotes and bibliography into a document and then automatically format to your preferred style.
Endnote, Endnote Web, Mendeley and Zotero are popular options. Some packages are free, some you need to pay for. Endnote is available via the university for personal devices. It is worth spending some time to decide which one best meets your needs.
Microsoft Word also offers a basic referencing function: if you decide to use this, you will need to check that the references it produces match the formats required by the University of Exeter styles described in this guide.
To find out more, check out the Reference Management Software guide.
The university does not have an institutional subscription to any specialist systematic review tools such as Rayyan or Covidence.
University of Exeter LibGuide is licensed under CC BY 4.0
