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Nursing : APA Style Guides

This guide provides basic information on nursing resources

APA Style Guide - 7th Edition

For many of your style and citation questions, it's best to go straight to the source! Find a copy of the APA manual at the Help Desk.

Defining Plagiarism

What is plagiarism?

“To steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own : use (another's production) without crediting the source.”
plagiarism. (2010). In Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary.Retrieved August 10, 2010, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/plagiarism

When should you cite your sources?

  1. If you directly quote a source
  2. If you paraphrase ideas from another person's work
  3. If you summarize ideas from another person's work

Types of plagiarism

Blending

  • Mixing words or ideas from an unacknowledged source in with your own words or ideas.
  • Mixing together uncited words and ideas from several sources into a single work.
  • Mixing together properly cited uses of a source with uncited uses.

Direct Plagiarism

  • A phrase or passage that is copied word for word, but not quoted.

Paraphrasing

  • Rephrasing another person’s work and inserting into your own work without acknowledging the original source.

Insufficient Acknowledgement

  • Half crediting source; whereby you acknowledge the author’s work the first time, but continue to use the author’s words without giving additional attribution.

APA Online Guide

APA Citation Style is used when writing or citing works in the social sciences or business. The OWL website provides online guidance for the 7th and 6th editions.

In-Text Citations

APA Style uses what is called an author-date method of citation. The author's surname is inserted with the correct year of publication for the resource.

This citation is used to identify where an idea, thought, or concept originates as you write a research paper. It is placed at the end of a sentence, paragraph, or thought, depending on where your research appears.

Refer to the examples below to review the different ways you can create an in-text citation.

 

Material Type

In-Text Citation Example

Author's name in text

 Kessler (2003) found that among epidemiological samples...

Author's name as a reference

 The study also showed that there was a high rate of comorbidity with alcohol abuse or dependence and major depression (Kessler, 2003).

Two authors' names as a reference

 The effects of the study have been demonstrated in the trials (Abrams & Evans, 2007).

Works with no identified author

 Important data collected by the Dept. of Education in Victoria has prompted the creation of fact sheets that can be found online ("Fact Sheet Four," 2010).