The American Psychological Association (APA) Style is the format used in Psychology and many other Social Sciences. This style covers both the structure of the paper and the proper format for citations. Generally, APA format includes a title page, abstract, body, subsections, tables, figures, and references. Parenthetical in-text citations of sources contain the author and the year as follows: (Smith, 2024). APA references should have a dedicated Reference Page at the end of your essay, using the same format of your essay, alphabetized, double spaces, with hanging indents. References generally follow this basic structure:

Author’s Last name, Author’s First and Middle initials, & Last names and initials of other authors, if any. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal italicized, Volume number italicized (Issue number), Page numbers. DOI.

Visit the OWL guide on APA style for more details, or the APA Essay Template for visual learning.

Citing Sources - an Introduction by GVSU University Libraries

How to Cite APA Style (7th Edition) by UW Whitewater

How to Write MLA Citations by McMaster University Libraries

Zotero

GVSU University Libraries recommends Zotero, a free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, annotate, cite, and share research.

• Add content from your web browser with a single click
• Store PDFs, images, audio and video files, and webpage snapshots
• Organize your resources in collections and subcollections
• Create accurate citations
• Access your work on multiple devices
• Share resources with individuals or groups

Visit their website to download Zotero for free, learn more, or get help.

Need to just create quick bibliographies? Try ZoteroBib, a a free service that helps you quickly create a bibliography in any citation style.

EndNote Basic

You can create a free EndNote Basic account using your GVSU email. EndNote Basic offers:

• Online Access
• Cite While You Write plugins
• Storage for 2Gb of files and 50,000 references
• Over 3,300 bibliographic styles

Visit the EndNote Basic website to create a free account or get help.

They also have video tutorials on using EndNote Basic.

Mendeley

Mendeley is a free reference manager and academic social network that can help you organize your research, collaborate with others online, and discover the latest research.

• Automatically generate bibliographies
• Collaborate easily with other researchers online
• Easily import papers from other research software
• Find relevant papers based on what you’re reading
• Access your papers from anywhere online

Visit Mendeley's website to create your free account or get support.

For further assistance, view the Getting Started Guide or check out the videos and tutorials at the Mendeley support center.