An EasyGuide to APA Style (EasyGuide Series)

This clear and concise book is designed to demystify the process of writing in APA style and format.

With precise examples (both writing examples and Microsoft Word screenshots), An EasyGuide to APA Style 2e points out common APA style and formatting mistakes and how to avoid them. The book also provides an overview of the style and formatting changes for the 6th edition of the APA Publication Manual, providing detailed examples and complete sample student papers written to conform to APA format. The authors illustrate not only how to write using APA style, but also what writing in APA style really looks like when your paper is complete. Written in a conversational and clear style, this guide will help anyone find their way through the maze of rules in the APA Publication Manual and become proficient in learning the fine points of APA style.

The second edition of the EasyGuide contains additional writing tips and expanded discussions in each chapter. In particular, chapter 5 on plagiarism has been expanded to include more detail on topics like when and how to paraphrase appropriately and when to quote directly from a source. Also, the new edition provides examples from the latest version of Microsoft Word, Word 2010.

Beth M. Schwartz is the Provost and Professor of Psychology at Endicott College. Previously she served as Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost and Professor of Psychology at Heidelberg University, in Tiffin, Ohio. Dr. Schwartz started her career on the faculty at Randolph College (founded as Randolph-Macon Woman′s College) in Lynchburg, VA, where she served for 24 years. At Randolph she was the William E. and Catherine Ehrman Thoresen ‘23 Professor of Psychology and Assistant Dean of the College. She received a BA at Colby College (Maine) and a PhD in cognitive psychology at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Her scholarship focuses on the scholarship of teaching and learning/pedagogical research, in particular the issues surrounding academic integrity and honor systems. In addition to numerous professional presentations at conferences, she has published many book chapters and articles in a variety of scholarly journals, including the Journal of Higher Education, Ethics and Behavior, Law and Human Behavior, and Applied Developmental Science. She has also edited and coauthored books, including Child Abuse: A Global View(Schwartz, McCauley, & Epstein, 2001), Optimizing Teaching and Learning (Gurung & Schwartz, 2012), and Evidence-Based Teaching for Higher Education (Schwartz & Gurung, 2012). She is a member of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the American Psychological Society and is a Fellow of Division 2 of APA (Society for the Teaching of Psychology). She was an award-winning teacher at Randolph College, where she taught Introduction to Psychology, Research Methods, Cognitive Psychology, and the capstone course. She received the Award for Outstanding Teaching and Mentoring from the American Psych-Law Society, the Gillie A. Larew Award for Distinguished Teaching at Randolph College, the Katherine Graves Davidson Excellence in Scholarship Award from Randolph College, and the Distinguished Faculty Achievement Certificate from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.

 

 

R. Eric Landrum is a professor and chair in the Department of Psychological Science at Boise State University. He received his PhD in cognitive psychology from Southern Illinois University–Carbondale. He is a research generalist, broadly addressing the improvement of teaching and learning, including the long-term retention of introductory psychology content, skills assessment, improvement of help-seeking behavior, innovations in advising, understanding of student career paths, the psychology workforce, successful graduate school applications, and more. Eric has made more than 425 presentations, written 23 books, and published 85 peer-reviewed journal articles. He has collaborated with more than 300 research assistants and taught more than 18,000 students in 28 years at Boise State. During summer 2008, he led an American Psychological Association (APA) working group at the National Conference for Undergraduate Education in Psychology studying the desired results of an undergraduate psychology education. At the 2014 APA Educational Leadership Conference, Eric was presented with a presidential citation for outstanding contributions to the teaching of psychology. With the 2015 launch of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology journal, he served as inaugural coeditor. He is a member of APA, a fellow of Division 2 (Society for the Teaching of Psychology), and a fellow of Division 1 (General Psychology), and he served as STP president (2014). He served as the 2015–2016 president of the Rocky Mountain Psychological Association. He is a charter member of the Association for Psychological Science (named fellow in 2018). During 2016–2017, Eric was president of the Rocky Mountain Psychological Association, and he was president of Psi Chi, the international honor society in psychology, in 2017–2018. In August 2019, he received the American Psychological Foundation’s Charles L. Brewer Distinguished Teaching of Psychology Award, the highest award given to teachers of psychology in America. In April 2024, Eric was named a Distinguished Professor at Boise State, the highest award for tenured faculty at the university. In January 2025, he was named a Psi Chi Distinguished Member, the highest honor bestowed by the international honor society in psychology. 

Regan A. R. Gurung is professor of psychological sciences at Oregon State University. He was on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay (UWGB) for 20 years, where he was the Ben J. and Joyce Rosenberg Professor of Human Development and Psychology. He received a BA at Carleton College (Minnesota) and a PhD at the University of Washington. He then spent three years at the University of California, Los Angeles. He has published articles in a variety of scholarly journals, including Psychological Review and Teaching of Psychology. His textbook, Health ­Psychology: A Cultural Approach (SAGE, 2023) is in its fifth edition, and he has coauthored/edited 15 other books, including Study Like a Champ (APA, 2023) and Transforming Introductory Psychology (APA, 2023). He is a fellow of the American Psychological Association, the American Psychological Society, and the Midwestern Psychological Association. He has won the Founder’s Award for Excellence in Teaching as well as of the Founder’s Award for Scholarship at UWGB, and he was also the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching’s Wisconsin Professor of the Year (2009) and the UW System Regents’ Teaching Excellence Award winner. In August 2017, he received the American Psychological Foundation’s Charles L. Brewer Distinguished Teaching of Psychology Award, the highest award given to teachers of psychology in America, and he is the 2024 Oregon State University Margaret and Thomas Meehan Honors College Eminent Mentor. He is past president of the Society for the Teaching of Psychology and past president of Psi Chi, the international honor society in psychology. He is founding coeditor of the APA journal, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology. In January 2025, he was named a Psi Chi Distinguished Member, the highest honor bestowed by the international honor society in psychology.