For anyone who is getting used to writing in APA style, it can be tougher than you first assume to get your head around paraphrasing and quotation in APA format. The format can be confusing until you get used to its quirks and specific nature. If you wish to get the most out of APA formatting, though, one thing you need to learn about is quotation and paraphrasing. This is something that you will need to use quite a lot when using APA formatting, so it pays to get good at how to use this essential function in your writing. (Hire an English Editing Service to perfect your writing!)
Quotation in APA Format
Quotations are a hard thing to get right but they are something you do need to get used to using. Since many times you will need to repeat what someone else has said word-for-word, you need to get used to putting that in a way that is easy for people to understand. To do this, you need to provide quotation marks before and after the exact statement that is being made by the person.
Just as a guidance, try and avoid making any more than 10% of your article/paper quotations. Direct quotes, though, must always include the following:
The name of the author (the surname).
The page number the quote can be found on.
You should always look to introduce the author clearly before you start quoting. For APA writing, it’s not a good idea to just drop a quote in there. instead, you need to introduce it something like this:
Having seen the results, NAME (DATE) suggested…..”QUOTE GOES HERE”
Once you get used to doing this, it will ensure that you can get a simpler easier experience. However, it’s also important to note that if you already brought this person up in a previous citation then you simply need to include the name, date of publication, and page number at the end. So, instead of the above it would be more like this:
“QUOTE GOES HERE” (NAME, DATE, PAGE NUMBER).
Should you find you are going to exceed 40 words in your writing, though, you should probably look to include it at the start. So, it would be more like this:
NAME (DATE) made the following point:
“QUOTE GOES HERE”
That tends to work better as it allows the reader to know exactly what they are dealing with in the below section.
Paraphrasing in APA Format
Paraphrasing is commonly used in APA writing especially and can be very useful for you to use. However, the main thing when writing any kind of paraphrasing is making sure that you put it in your own words whilst still attributing the idea to the person. Paraphrasing should not include your personal views – it should be making the exact same point as before, just in a different way.
With regards to referencing a paraphrased section, you don’t need to include a page number. You just need to include the name and the date that it was published. So, you could say something along the lines of: “NAME’s (DATE) study found that this was a useful treatment to help overcome anxiety.”
The original author may have phrased it differently, but this allows you to make the point without any of the usual stress that you might have when writing in this form. This allows you to make the same point and to lean on the authority of another person without having to directly quote them all the time.
This is very useful for making sure you can make your point without making up the entire piece based on the writings of others.