Writing research paper is not just merely a compilation of related literature that could support the argument you are trying to raise, the findings you are trying to get, or the question you are trying to answer. There is a format for everyone to follow for the ease of understanding.
Perhaps, formatting a research paper might seem a hassle for the first few times because you’ll be actively checking your paper if there are rules you missed, but as time passes, you’ll get used to the formats and you will not be so conscious anymore. Reading journal articles could help.
What Is the APA Style Format?
APA stands for American Psychological Association. APA style is a popularly used research paper format and writing style agreed upon by anthropologist, psychologist, and business managers who conduct research and write research papers. It is composed of guidelines and rules. This format is usually required for writing A+ research paper, was created and constructed formally to make it easier for professionals from different fields, scholars, or ordinary readers who are looking for references understand the main point of the paper, how the data were gathered, how the researcher came up with the results and conclusion.
4 Ways to Write an APA Style Paper
- Read and familiarize the general guidelines. The APA style format guidelines is popular and can be easily found in the research paper samples, through the internet, or you could buy the APA’s Publication Manual.
- Proceed to the title page. This page should be separate from other pages and should contain a running head.
- Construct the body and the abstract. Abstract is usually written after the research was done. This should contain 150–200 words only. The body is the main content of your paper.
- Organize the references and check your tables. Follow the APA guideline for specific format.
Guide to Writing a Research Paper
Use the following as a guide to writing a research paper.
General Guidelines
- Use the 8 1/2” paper
- Indent the first word in every paragraph
- Double space everything in the paper
For Title Page
- Title of the paper. This should be placed at the center with no more than 12 words long.
- Running head. Write in all capitals.
- Institutional affiliation. This contains information where the researcher conducted the research.
- Author’s name. Put only the name of the author without any title like Ms. or Mr.
For Abstract
- Label the paper Abstract.
- The first part should contain a summary of the paper, like what issue is addressed, what questions need to be answered, the research question, and the findings.
- This should not exceed to 250 words.
- Maintain the double space but no indention is needed.
- Add keywords below the whole 250-word paragraph.
For Body
- Start with Introduction. This contains the problem and the review of related literature.
- Proceed to Method. The title Methods of this subsection should be formatted to bold and aligned center.
- Other sections should be Results and Discussion.
For References
- Alphabetize this section.
- Follow a more thorough guideline for this depending on what reference you have, like from a book, another research journals, or online articles.
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