An Easyguide to APA Style

Written by experienced psychology instructors who are respected members of the APA’s Teaching of Psychology division, this guide provides an easy alternative for anyone struggling with APA style. Written in a clear, conversational, and sometimes humorous style, this book presents easy-to understand explanations of how to write research papers, cite research, and do any work requiring APA format. The authors demystify the process with easy-to-follow advice, tips, and visual representations of how to use APA style.

Beth M. Schwartz is the William E. and Catherine Ehrman Thoresen ’23 Professor of Psychology and Assistant Dean of the College at Randolph College, in Lynch­burg, Virginia. She received a BA at Colby College (Maine) and a PhD in cognitive psychology at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Her scholarship focuses on two areas of interest: (a) children’s memory development and how this applies to children’s eyewitness reports and (b) the scholarship of teaching and learn­ing/pedagogical research. In addition to numerous professional presentations at conferences, she has published many book chapters and articles in a variety of scholarly journals, including the Journal of Higher Education, Law and Human Behavior, and Applied Developmental Science. She has also edited and coauthored books, including Child Abuse: A Global View (Schwartz, McCauley, & Epstein, 2001), Optimizing Teaching and Learning (Gurung & Schwartz, 2009), and Evidence-Based Teaching for Higher Education (Schwartz & Gurung, 2012). She is a member of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the American Psy­chological Society and is a Fellow of Division 2 of APA (Society for the Teaching of Psychology). She is an award-winning teacher at Randolph College, where she teaches Introduction to Psychology, Research Methods, Cognitive Psychology, and the capstone course. She received the Award for Outstanding Teaching and Mentoring from the American Psych-Law Society, the Gillie A. Larew Award for Distinguished Teaching at Randolph College, and the Distinguished Faculty Achievement Certificate from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.

R. Eric Landrum is a professor of psychology at Boise State University, receiving his PhD in cognitive psychology from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale. His research interests center on the educational conditions that best facilitate student success as well as the use of SoTL strategies to advance the efforts of scientist-educators. He has over 300 professional presentations at conferences and published over 20 books/book chapters, and has published over 70 professional articles in scholarly, peer-reviewed journals. He has worked with over 275 undergraduate research assistants and taught over 12,500 students in 21 years at Boise State. During Summer 2008, he led an American Psychological Association working group at the National Conference for Undergraduate Education in Psychology studying the desired results of an undergraduate psychology education.

Eric is the lead author of The Psychology Major: Career Options and Strategies for Success (5th ed., 2013) and has authored Undergraduate Writing in Psychology: Learning to Tell the Scientific Story (2nd ed., 2012) and Finding A Job With a Psychology Bachelor’s Degree: Expert Advice for Launching Your Career (2009). He co-authored The EasyGuide to APA Style (2nd ed., 2013), You’ve Received Your Doctorate in Psychology—Now What? (2012) and is the lead editor for Teaching Ethically—Challenges and Opportunities (2012) and co-editor of Assessing Teaching and Learning in Psychology: Current and Future Perspectives (2013). He served as Vice President for the Rocky Mountain region of Psi Chi (2009–2011). He is a member of the American Psychological Association, a fellow in APA’s Division Two (Society for the Teaching of Psychology or STP), served as STP secretary (2009–2011), and will serve as the 2014 STP President.

Regan A. R. Gurung is the Ben J. and Joyce Rosenberg Professor of Human Development and Psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay (UWGB). He received a BA at Carleton College (Minnesota) and a PhD at the University of Washington. He then spent 3 years at the University of California, Los Angeles. He has published articles in a variety of scholarly journals, including Psychological Review and Teaching of Psychology. He has a textbook, Health Psychology: A Cultural Approach (now in its third edition), and has coauthored/edited eight other books, including Exploring Signature Pedagogies: Approaches to Teaching Disciplinary Habits of Mind (Gurung, Chick, & Haynie, 2009); Getting Culture (Gurung & Prieto, 2009); and Optimizing Teaching and Learning (Gurung & Schwartz, 2009). He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the American Psychological Society, and the Midwestern Psychological Association, and a winner of the Founder’s Award for Excellence in Teaching as well as of the Founder’s Award for Scholarship at UWGB. He was also the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching’s Wisconsin Professor of the Year (2009) and the UW System Regents’ Teaching Excellence Award Winner. He is past president of the Society for the Teaching of Psychology.