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Formatting Research Papersformat

Research papers written in APA style should follow the formatting rules specified in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.  Most research papers that are written for psychology courses at UCSD, including the B.S. Degree Research Paper and the Honors Thesis, have to follow APA format.  Here we discuss the formatting of research papers according to APA style.

How to Format a Research Paper in APA Style

For the most accurate and comprehensive information on formatting papers in APA style, we recommend referring directly to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. Reputable online sources (e.g., the official APA Style website and the Purdue University Online Writing Lab’s guide to APA style) are also recommended. 

According to the Publication Manual, the major sections and components of APA style research papers should adhere to the following guidelines.  Note that how closely these guidelines are followed may vary depending on the course and instructor. 

General Formatting Rules

  • Papers should have at least 1-in. margins on all sides.1
  • All text should be double spaced.1
  • Times New Roman, 12 point font is preferred.1
  • All lines of text should be flush-left and should not be justified, except where noted in the Manual.1
  • The first line of every paragraph should be indented. Exceptions to the indenting rule are the Abstract, quotations, titles and headings, as well as Tables and Figures.1
  • Pages should be numbered at the top right, with the title page numbered page 1, the Abstract numbered page 2, and the text starting on page 3.1
  • An abbreviated title called the Running Head should be placed at the top of each page, flush-left in uppercase letters.1
  • Two spaces should be used after punctuation marks at the end of each sentence (in other words, there should be two spaces after the period that ends each sentence).2

 

Formatting the Title Page

  • The title should be typed in the upper half of the title page, centered, and with the first letters of all but minor words capitalized.3
  • The name(s) of the author(s) should be typed below the title and followed with the institutional affiliation(s) of the author(s).3
  • An Author Note should appear below the aforementioned items. The Author Note can have up to four paragraphs.  These respectively describe the author(s)’ departmental and institutional affiliation, any changes in affiliation, acknowledgments, and contact information.3

 

Formatting the Abstract

  • The Abstract typically should not exceed 250 words.4
  • The Abstract should be placed on a separate page, with the label Abstract appearing at the top center of that page and followed by the text of the Abstract.4
  • The Abstract should not be indented.4

 

Formatting the Main Body of Text

  • The main body of text should begin on a separate page after the Abstract.5
  • It should begin with the Introduction section.5
  • The Introduction section should be titled with the title of the research paper and not the word “Introduction.” The title should appear at the top of the page, centered, and should not be bolded.5
  • The remainder of the text should be flush-left, with each new paragraph indented except where noted above (see General Formatting Rules).5
  • Each of the subsequent sections of the paper should be prefaced with a heading. APA guidelines specify different heading formats (for more information on Levels of Headings, see below).5

 

Formatting References

  • The references section should begin on a separate page after the main body of text.6
  • It should begin with the word “References” placed at the top of the page and centered.6
  • All references should be listed in alphabetical order by the last name of the first author of each reference.6
  • All references should be double-spaced and should use a hanging indent format wherein the first line of each reference is flush-left and all subsequent lines of that reference are indented (with that pattern repeating for each reference).6
  • All references should use the appropriate APA reference format (for more information, please see the Citing References section of this website).6

 

Levels of Headings in APA Style

As of the sixth edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (released in 2010), the five possible levels of heading in APA-formatted manuscripts are:7

  • Level 1: centered, bold, on a separate line, and the first letters of all but minor words capitalized.
  • Level 2: flush-left, bold, on a separate line, and the first letters of all but minor words capitalized.
  • Level 3: indented, bold, as a paragraph heading (the first part of a paragraph; regular text follows on the same line), and in lowercase letters ending with a period.
  • Level 4: indented, bold, italicized, as a paragraph heading (the first part of a paragraph; regular text follows on the same line), and in lowercase letters ending with a period.
  • Level 5: indented, not bold, italicized, as a paragraph heading (the first part of a paragraph; regular text follows on the same line), and in lowercase letters ending with a period.

Depending on the structure of your research paper, some or all of the five levels of headings may be used.  The headings have a “hierarchical nested structure” where Level 1 is the highest and Level 5 is the lowest.  For example, you may have a research paper which uses all five levels of heading as follows:

 Title of Research Paper (Level 1)
            Method (Level 2)
                        Participants. (Level 3)
                        First grade students. (Level 4)
                        Second grade students. (Level 4)
                        Materials. (Level 3)
                        Design and Procedure. (Level 3)
            Results (Level 2)
                        First grade student results. (Level 3)
                        Math test results. (Level 4)
                        Addition questions. (Level 5)
                        Subtraction questions. (Level 5)
                        Vocabulary test results. (Level 4)
                        Second grade student results. (Level 3)
                        Math test results. (Level 4)
                        Addition questions. (Level 5)
                        Subtraction questions. (Level 5)
                        Vocabulary test results. (Level 4)
            Discussion (Level 2) 

Downloadable Resources

  • How to Write APA Style Research Papers (a comprehensive guide) [PDF]
  • Tips for Writing APA Style Research Papers (a brief summary) [PDF]
  • Example APA Style Research Paper (for B.S. Degree – empirical research) [PDF]
  • Example APA Style Research Paper (for B.S. Degree – literature review) [PDF]

Further Resources

How-To Videos     

External Resources

References

1VandenBos, G. R. (Ed). (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.) (pp. 228-229).  Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
2VandenBos, G. R. (Ed). (2010). (pp. 87-88). 
3VandenBos, G. R. (Ed). (2010). (pp. 23-25). 
4VandenBos, G. R. (Ed). (2010). (pp. 25-27).
5VandenBos, G. R. (Ed). (2010). (pp. 41-49). 
6VandenBos, G. R. (Ed). (2010). (pp. 37-38, 49-51). 
7VandenBos, G. R. (Ed). (2010). (p. 62). 
 

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