The following definition of APA Style is provided by the American Psychological Association:
APA Style® originated in 1929, when a group of psychologists, anthropologists, and business managers convened and sought to establish a simple set of procedures, or style rules, that would codify the many components of scientific writing to increase the ease of reading comprehension.
As with other editorial styles, APA Style consists of rules or guidelines that a publisher observes to ensure clear and consistent presentation of written material. It concerns uniform use of such elements as
- selection of headings, tone, and length;
- punctuation and abbreviations;
- presentation of numbers and statistics;
- construction of tables and figures,
- citation of references; and
- many other elements that are a part of a manuscript.
APA Style rules and guidelines are found in the sixth edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.
Work Cited
"What is APA Style?." APA Style. American Psychological Association , 2014. Web. 5 Aug. 2014. <http://www.apastyle.org/learn/faqs/what-is-apa-style.aspx>.
