APA Style and Research Report Writing

151 Pages·2004·4.53 MB·English

by  Seyyed Mohammad Alavi

APA STYLE AND RESEARCH
REPORT WRITING
Mohammad Ali Salmani-Nodoushan, PhD
University of Zanjan, Iran
Seyyed Mohammad Alavi, PhD
University of Tehran, Iran

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APA Style and Research Report Writing
Authors: Mohammad Ali Salmani-Nodoushan, PhD
Seyyed Mohammad Alavi, PhD
Printed in Iran
Salmani-Nodoushan, Mohammad Ali ـ 1348 ،ﻲﻠﻋﺪﻤﺤﻣ ،ﻦﺷوﺪُﻧ ﻲﻧﺎﻤﻠﺳ
.(ﮓﻨﻴﺘﻳار تﺮﭙﻳر چﺮﺴﻳر ﺪﻧَا ﻞﻳﺎﺘﺳا يا ﻲﭘ يا)
APA Style and Research Report Writing / Mohammad Ali Salmani-Nodoushan,
Mohammad Alavi. ـ ناﺮﻬﺗ :هﺪﻜﻧﺎﺑز ،م 2004=1383
.رﻮﺼﻣ :.ص 151 ، viii
ISBN: 964 – 6117 – 53 – 8
.ﻲﺴﻴﻠﮕﻧا
.ﺎﭙﻴﻓ تﺎﻋﻼﻃا سﺎﺳا ﺮﺑ ﻲﺴﻳﻮﻧ ﺖﺳﺮﻬﻓ
Alavi, Mohammad. -1339 ،ﺪﻤﺤﻣ ،يﻮﻠﻋ .ﻒﻟا .ﻲﻫﺎﮕﺸﻧاد ﻲﺴﻳﻮﻧ شراﺰﮔ .2 .نﺎﻴﺑ و ﻲﻧﺎﻌﻣ -- ﻲﺴﻴﻠﮕﻧا نﺎﺑز .1
APA Style and Research Report Writing :ناﻮﻨﻋ .ب
808/042 PE 1408 / س 8 ﻒﻟا 2
1383
م 83 - 11248 ناﺮﻳا ﻲﻠﻣ ﻪﻧﺎﺨﺑﺎﺘﻛ
APA Style and Research Report Writing
يﻮﻠﻋ ﺪﻤﺤﻣ ﺪﻴﺳ ﺮﺘﻛد / ﻦﺷوﺪُﻧ ﻲﻧﺎﻤﻠﺳ ﻲﻠﻋﺪﻤﺤﻣ ﺮﺘﻛد :نﺎﻔﻟﺆﻣ
هﺪﻜﻧﺎﺑز تارﺎﺸﺘﻧا
ﺎﺒﻳد پﺎﭼ ،ﻪﺨﺴﻧ 3000 ژاﺮﻴﺗ ،1383 لوا پﺎﭼ
ﺮﻫ و ﻲﺳرﺎﻓ يﺎﻤﻨﻫار ،ﻪﻣﺎﻧ ﺦﺳﺎﭘ ﻪﻴﻬﺗ ،ﻦﺘﻣ ﻪﻤﺟﺮﺗ ،يرادﺮﺑ ﻪﺨﺴﻧ ﻪﻧﻮﮔﺮﻫ .ﺪﺷﺎﺑ ﻲﻣ ظﻮﻔﺤﻣ هﺪﻜﻧﺎﺑز تارﺎﺸﺘﻧا ياﺮﺑ قﻮﻘﺣ ﻪﻴﻠﻛ
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ISBN: 964 – 6117 – 53 – 8 964 ـ 6117 ـ 53 ـ 8 :ﻚﺑﺎﺷ
CONTENTS
PREFACE VII
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS VIII
SECTION ONE: APA STYLE
CHAPTER ONE: GENERAL PRESENTATION
1. Introduction 3
2. Paper size and quality 3
3. Page margins 6
4. Paragraph indentation 10
5. Line and paragraph spacing 15
6. Line alignment 19
7. Page header and numbering 22
8. Font type and size 26
CHAPTER TWO: TABLES AND FIGURES
1. Introduction 29
2. Tables 29
3. Figures 38
CHAPTER THREE: FOOTNOTES AND QUOTATIONS
1. Introduction 41
2. Footnotes and citations 41
3. Parenthetical citations 42
4. Quotations 45
III
CHAPTER FOUR: REFERENCES
1. Introduction 49
2. References 49
2.1. Books 50
2.2. Secondary sources 51
2.3. Journals and periodicals 52
2.4. Non-print media 53
2.5. Personal communication 53
2.6. Government documents 54
2.7. Electronic sources 54
2.8. Abstracts 56
2.9. Pamphlets and Brochures 56
2.10. Unpublished materials 57
3. Bibliographies 57
4. Annotated bibliographies 58
5. Final remarks 58
CHAPTER FIVE: APA INTRICACIES
1. Introduction 59
2. Headings 59
3. Abbreviations and punctuation 60
4. Punctuation spacing 61
5. Final remarks 62
SECTION TWO: LIBRARY RESEARCH
CHAPTER SIX: THE LIBRARY
1. Introduction 69
2. Library sources 69
2.1. Standard references 71
2.1.1. Encyclopedias 71
2.1.2. Dictionaries 71
2.1.3. Thesauri 72
2.1.4. Almanacs and yearbooks 72
2.1.5. Biography indexes and bibliographies 72
2.2. Books 73
2.3. Legal sources 74
IV
2.3.1. Law dictionaries 75
2.3.2. Codes 75
2.3.3. Administrative regulations 75
2.3.4. Court decisions 75
2.4. Periodicals and journals 76
2.5. Government documents 76
2.6. Pamphlets and directories 77
2.7. Unpublished materials 78
2.7.1. Masters' theses 78
2.7.2. Doctoral dissertations 78
2.7.3. Other unpublished sources 79
2.8. The Internet 79
3. Library search methods 80
3.1. Note keeping 80
3.2. Standard search methods 81
3.2.1. Determination of topics 81
3.2.2. Finding sources 81
3.3. Other search methods 82
3.3.1. Course work in other disciplines 82
3.3.2. Readers 83
3.3.3. The interdisciplinary team 83
3.3.4. Browsing 83
4. Importance of library research 83
4.1. Know the original source 84
4.2. Be more informed 84
4.3. Be critical 85
5. Final remarks 86
CHAPTER SEVEN: NOTE KEEPING
1. Introduction 89
2. Note keeping 89
2.1. Subject notes 90
2.2. Bibliographical notes 105
3. Plagiarism 111
3.1. Word-for-word plagiarizing 112
3.2. The patch job 112
3.3. The paraphrase 112
4. Final remarks 112
V
SECTION THREE: REPORTS AND THESES
CHAPTER EIGHT: THE RESEARCH REPORT
1. Introduction 115
2. Main sections of the report 116
2.1. The title page 116
2.2. Abstract 118
2.3. Introduction 121
2.4. Method 121
2.5. Results 124
2.6. Discussion 126
2.7. List of references 127
2.8. Appendix 130
3. Sections of a journal article 130
4. Final remarks 135
CHAPTER NINE: THE THESIS
1. Introduction 137
2. The proposal 137
3. Structure of a thesis/dissertation 140
4. Final remarks 149
REFERENCES 151

VI
PREFACE
APA Style and Research Report Writing is designed to foster in
undergraduate students the skills they need for success in their research
courses. The book consists of three distinct sections: APA style, Library
Research, and Reports and Theses.
Section one presents the basic concepts of APA style in five chapters:
general presentation, tables and figures, footnotes and quotations,
references, and APA intricacies. Since the Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association published by the American
Psychological Association (5th ed.). is a large and very detailed book,
many undergraduate students find it a bit intimidating to use. Therefore,
the five chapters of this section have been prepared in such a way as to
make the task of complying with APA style easier for undergraduate
students. A step-by-step, user-friendly, and interactive guide to the major
aspects of Microsoft Word XP that students need to know is also
incorporated to this section so that they can use the software for typing
their final research report.
Section two is composed of two chapters: The Library, and Note
Keeping. Chapter six discusses the rudiments and the basic concepts of
library research. It covers such topics as the sources available in the
library, different library search methods, the importance of library
research, and a few important hints for the library researchers. The focus
of chapter seven is on the most popular library search method, note
keeping. Two types of notes are discussed: bibliographical notes, and
subject notes. Examples of each type are provided. In addition, the
intricacies of note taking for each type are elaborated on. Plagiarism is
discussed as the major pitfall in library research. Finally, a few hints are
provided for the library research worker as to how they should approach
the task of paraphrasing.
VII
Section three, too, is composed of two chapters: The Research Report,
and The Thesis. Chapter eight focuses on the detailed format that a
modest research report should have. The different sections of the
research report are discussed, along with visual illustrations to foster in
undergraduate students the skills they need for writing their research
reports. The final few pages of the chapter elaborate on the differences
between student research reports and journal papers. Chapter nine is
most useful for graduate students. A brief synopsis of the differences
that exist between short research reports and masters' theses or PhD
dissertations is presented. The discussions of the chapter are enriched
with visual illustrations that are helpful to the graduate student in the
process of writing his thesis or dissertation.
AUTHORS' NOTE
Dr Mohammad Ali Salmani-Nodoushan (born in 1969/1348) is an
assistant professor of TEFL at the University of Zanjan, Iran.
Richard W. Sorfleet (born in 1951/1329) is a member of the professional
teachers' association in Ontario, Canada (Ontario College of Teachers).
The Ontario College of Teachers is the professional organization to
which registered teachers in Ontario must belong—a sort of professional
"guild" or association.
Correspondence concerning this book should be addressed to the authors
through the following e.mail addresses:
Mohammad Ali Salmani-Nodoushan Seyyed Mohammad Alavi
[email protected] [email protected]
November, 2004

VIII
SECTION ONE
APA STYLE
This section presents the basic concepts of APA style in
five chapters: General Presentation, Tables and
Figures, Footnotes and Quotations, References, and
APA Intricacies. Notice that the information presented in
this section is only an updated synopsis for the
information presented in the Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association published by the
American Psychological Association (5th ed.). That
source is a large and very detailed book which many
undergraduate students find a bit intimidating to use.
Therefore, the five chapters of this section have been
prepared in such a way as to make the task of
complying with APA style easier for undergraduate
students. A user-friendly and interactive guide to the
major aspects of Microsoft Word XP that students need
to know is also incorporated to this section so that they
can use the software for typing their final research
report.
APA STYLE 1
CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL PRESENTATION
1. INTRODUCTION
General presentation refers to the overall appearance or look of your
research report, thesis, or dissertation. The term "format" is sometimes
used to signify the same point. On the whole, format includes the
following considerations:
paper size and quality line alignment
page margins page numbering
paragraph indentation page ordering
line and paragraph spacing
APA style requires that you stick to a fixed format. This format should
not change when you submit a paper to a journal for publication.
However, when you wish to submit your PhD dissertation or masters'
thesis to the university, you should go by the guidelines that your
university or supervisor sets. Iranian universities usually require that you
go by APA style although there may be some modifications.
2. PAPER SIZE AND QUALITY
APA style recommends that you type the manuscript of your research
report on only one side of standard-sized heavy white bond paper, (A4-
size, 20-pound bond). Some universities and supervisors may tell you
that computer paper ("tractor-fed") is also acceptable. APA style does
not recommend this. If your supervisor accepts computer paper, be sure
that the pin hole borders must be removed. (Razor-edge is preferable.)
Erasable bond and onion skin are not acceptable. If you must prepare
your paper on erasable bond, prepare a good copy of your paper on a
copying machine and submit the copy instead of the original.
GENERAL PRESENTATION 3