The Ultimate Guide to APA 7th Edition Citations
The 7th Edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) is the gold standard for academic writing in psychology, education, and the social sciences. Whether you are a university student submitting your first research paper or a seasoned academic preparing a manuscript for publication, mastering APA citations is non-negotiable.
Updating to APA 7 in 2019 brought several significant changes, including how to format DOIs, how to cite online sources, and the addition of up to 20 authors in reference lists. In this comprehensive guide, we will break down exactly how to format your in-text citations and reference list entries according to the latest standards.
Key Changes in APA 7
If you were previously using APA 6, here are the most important updates you need to know before writing your next paper:
| Rule | APA 6 (Old Rule) | APA 7 (New Rule) |
|---|---|---|
| Book Citations | Required publisher location (e.g., New York, NY) | Publisher location is no longer required. |
| Website Citations | Required "Retrieved from" date for most pages. | Only include retrieval date if the content is likely to change (e.g., wikis). |
| DOI Format | Retrieved from https://doi.org/... | Format as a URL: https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx (no "DOI:" prefix ). |
| Multiple Authors | List up to 7 authors in reference list. | List up to 20 authors. If more than 20, list first 19 + ellipsis + last author. |
| Et al. Usage | Used for 6+ authors in-text. | Used for 3+ authors in-text (even on first citation). |
How to Write In-Text Citations APA 7 citation style)
In-text citations tell your reader immediately when you are using someone else's ideas. APA 7 uses the Author-Date system. There are two ways to format these:
1. Parenthetical Citation: The author's last name and the year of publication appear in parentheses at the end of the sentence.
Example: Social media usage among teenagers has increased significantly over the last decade (Smith, 2022).
2. Narrative Citation: The author's name is incorporated into the sentence, followed by the year in parentheses.
Example: Smith (2022) reported a significant increase in teenage social media usage over the last decade.
Rules for In-Text Citations
| Number of Authors | Parenthetical Format | Narrative Format |
|---|---|---|
| One Author | (Smith, 2022) | Smith (2022) |
| Two Authors | (Smith & Jones, 2022) | Smith and Jones (2022) |
| Three or More Authors | (Smith et al., 2022) | Smith et al. (2022) |
| Direct Quote (with page) | (Smith, 2022, p. 15) | Smith (2022) noted "text" (p. 15). |
How to Format the Reference List (APA 7)
The reference list appears on a new page at the end of your document. The title "References" should be centered at the top. All entries must be double-spaced with a hanging indent (the first line is flush left, and subsequent lines are indented 0.5 inches).
1. Citing a Book
Format: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of book. Publisher.
Example:
APA (2020). Pocket guide to the publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). American Psychological Association.
2. Citing a Journal Article (with DOI)
Format: Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Volume(Issue), page range. https://doi.org/xxxxx
Example:
Grady, J. S., Her, M., Moreno, G., & Perez, C. (2019 ). Emotions in storybooks: A comparison of storybooks that represent ethnic and racial groups in the United States. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 8(3), 207–217. https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000185
3. Citing a Website
Format: Author, A. A. (Year, Month Date ). Title of page. Site Name. URL
Example:
Duckworth, A. (2022, July 15). Grit: The power of passion and perseverance. TED. https://www.ted.com/talks/angela_lee_duckworth_grit_the_power_of_passion_and_perseverance
The Easiest Way to Generate Citations
Memorizing all the punctuation rules, italics, and capitalization guidelines for APA 7 can be exhausting. Even professional researchers rely on tools to ensure their reference lists are flawless.
If you are struggling with citations, we highly recommend using a dedicated generator. The Jollondon AI Academic Citation Generator is completely free and requires no sign-up. Simply paste the DOI or URL of your source, select "APA 7" from the dropdown menu, and the tool will instantly format the reference perfectly. It even exports to BibTeX and RIS for easy importing into Mendeley or Zotero.
You can try the tool here: Free AI Citation Generator.
Common APA 7 citation style Mistakes to Avoid
As you finalize your paper, watch out for these common formatting errors:
- Forgetting the DOI: If a journal article has a DOI, you must include it in the reference list. Format it as a URL (e.g., https://doi.org/10.1000/xyz ).
- Alphabetizing Incorrectly: Your reference list must be strictly alphabetical by the first author's last name. If there is no author, alphabetize by the title (ignoring "A," "An," or "The").
- Inconsistent Capitalization: For journal articles, use "sentence case" for the article title (capitalize only the first word, proper nouns, and the first word after a colon). However, use "Title Case" for the name of the journal.
- Mismatched In-Text Citations: Every source cited in the text must appear in the reference list, and every source in the reference list must be cited in the text.
Conclusion
Mastering APA 7 citation style is a critical skill for academic success. By paying close attention to the nuances of the 7th edition—such as the removal of publisher locations and the updated DOI format—you can ensure your paper meets the highest scholarly standards.
And remember, you don't have to do it manually. Leverage free tools like the Jollondon AI Citation Generator to save time and eliminate formatting errors, allowing you to focus on what matters most: your research and your writing.