APA style and citations for dummies - Joe Giampalmi 2021

Closing remarks: formatting back matter
Preparing appetizers and desserts: front and back materials
Perfecting presentation: beginnings, endings, and other writings

What’s more important than a good first impression? A good last impression, especially when it’s the first evaluation criterion that determines your grade. The back sections of a research project, which are optional with many professors, provide the final touches to wrap up organization and presentation before submitting your research. It’s like a good ending to a good movie. What follows are your final options to strengthen your paper and your grade.

Wrapping up with appendixes

You may or may not have an appendix. And your professor may or may not require an appendix. Appendixes are an add-on — similar to the add-on attached to your small intestines — that provide an opportunity for supplemental content for your paper. Some professors require an appendix or two to enhance the academic experience of your research. APA recommends an appendix “only if it helps readers understand, [and] evaluate…the study or theoretical argument being made.”

Here are some topics for appendixes:

· Further development of a topic in your paper, such as a detailed description of suggested topics for further research

· An interview summary with a person related to the research topic

· A description of links for additional topic information

· A survey or questionnaire used in your research

When formatting appendixes, keep these guidelines in mind:

· At the top of a new page, the last page of your research project, center and bold “Appendix A …” followed by the appendix title. Use title case. Don’t italicize, underline, or use quotation marks.

· Write paragraphs in the same indented format as the body of the paper.

· For successive appendixes, label them Appendix B, C, and so forth.

· Double-space text and don’t exceed one page.

· Verify that wording in the appendix accurately duplicates wording in the table of contents.

Figure 13-6 shows an example of an appendix that most professors will accept. Use this style appendix for bulleted lists of similar items.

© John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

FIGURE 13-6: A sample appendix.

An appendix requires reference in the text. Similar to figures, appendixes don’t speak for themselves. Here’s a sample of language in the text that references an appendix:

Appendix A details pandemic remote-learning topics that need further study.

Figure 13-7 shows another style of appendix.

Ending with a glossary

Another optional back section of a research paper is a glossary, or list of terms used in the research project. A glossary of terms is common in research projects in the behavioral and social sciences, such as sociology, psychology, biology, economics, and political science.

Position the glossary on a new page following the appendix. Bold and center “Glossary” at the top of the page (see Figure 13-8).

© John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

FIGURE 13-7: Alternate style appendix.

© John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

FIGURE 13-8: A sample of glossary terms common to a research paper on the topic of art.

Including footnotes and endnotes

Footnotes and endnotes, also common to research in the behavioral and social sciences, offer a brief enhancement of information in the text of the report. You identify them with sequentially numbered superscripts.

APA allows three locations for footnotes:

· In a figure or table as an explanatory note

· At the bottom of the page they are used (similar to Chicago Manual of Style)

· On a separate page following References

When notes are located at the bottom of the text page, they are called footnotes. When notes are located on a separate page, they are called endnotes.

APA endorses two types of footnotes: content and copyright. I explain them here in greater detail.

Footnotes based on content

The primary uses of content footnotes (refer to Figure 13-9 for an example) are as follows:

· Brief development of a single idea that amplifies text

· Brief development of further reference on a topic

© John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

FIGURE 13-9: The correct way to format.

APA advises including footnotes only if “they strengthen the discussion.” Use footnotes and endnotes sparingly and without citation because the note itself is the citation. Notes are meant to clarify and not to formally document.

When content footnotes exceed two sentences, create an appendix.

As an alternative to footnotes, appendixes, and other supplemental materials, APA offers the option of providing online, downloadable files such as oversized figures, and audio and video files. APA explains that the purpose of these files is to “enrich readers’ experience and understanding of the content.” For example, a research project analyzing presidential inaugural speeches could provide links to recorded speeches.

Footnotes based on copyright

Copyright footnotes identify authorization to include in the text a 500-word or longer quotation or reference from another source.