At least that’s what I tell PhD candidates. Yes, I assure them, it’s slightly uncomfortable but if you want to use the American Psychological Association (APA)Style Guide, you have to spend a lot of time with the manual!
And just in case you’re just starting your academic writing and are not sure what a Style Guide is used for, it’s to ensure consistency in citations, reference lists, formatting and layout. So, if you want to know how long your dashes should be, a good Style Guide will help you with that.
I’ve never quite understood why a manual developed by the American Psychological Association has become the Go To style guide for academic writing in the social sciences, as well as a number of specific disciplines. But it’s so firmly established that I’m a big fan of APA. I think it’s the best.
Is it the easiest to use? Well Yes and No. First of all, everything is very clear in APA. If you have an unusual source, such as an ancient document, an anonymous poem, or a verbal comment from an expert that you want to cite, then APA can help. The problem with some of the other pseudo-style guides, such as Harvard, is that they give very few details.
But it takes time to master APA. I know because I’ve been working at it for years and I still have to look things up. To tell you the truth, when I was writing my own thesis, I had to use APA 4 and now we’re using APA 7. But, of course, I need to format with APA nearly every day, so I’m confident I understand it, and I’m happy to help coaching clients.
Last week I offered a free webinar on APA. If you would like a copy of my notes from that short session, just GET IN TOUCH and I’ll send it out to you.
Watch for other Style Guide discussions soon.