Oops, I Did It Again!

by Timothy McAdoo

Page 67 of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.) notes that “writers often use redundant language in an effort to be emphatic.” Instead, the redundant wording can be distracting.

The Manual provides a few examples of commonly used redundancies: “were both alike,” “were exactly the same,” “absolutely essential,” and others.

On Twitter, the APA Style team has had fun coming up with additional examples. Can you think of more?  Post them in the comments below and/or on Twitter with a hashtag of #DoRD (for Department of Redundancy Department)!

Five Steps to a Great Title

by Chelsea Lee

 You’ve burned through the midnight oil. You’ve written the last word, double-, nay, triple-checked the reference list, and as the sun clambers over the windowsill you face the last remaining question: What to call this work of staggering genius? You are tempted to play the facetious card and call your paper “A Study of the Effects of Red Bull on a Person's Ability to Form Coherent Sentences,” but the long-term implications of such a title for your academic success give you pause. What else, then, shall suffice?

The title of your paper is incredibly important. A paper’s title not only sets readers’ expectations for what the paper will be about but may also determine whether it gets read at all—or with how much trepidation versus excitement it is greeted.

Below are five general principles that, if followed, will produce a great title: 

1. A great title summarizes the main idea of the paper. Your title should identify the key issues under investigation as well as how they relate to each other. The title “The Effects of Transformed Letters on Reading Speed” achieves this goal, whereas the title “Transformed Letters and Reading Speed” identifies the elements but misses the relationship.
2. A great title has a length of 12 words or fewer. If your attempts to create a summarizing title have produced a five-line manifesto, try to pare it down to the essentials. Keep in mind that 12 words is a guideline, not a hard ceiling.
3. A great title includes only words that contribute meaning. Phrases such as “A Study of,” “An Experimental Investigation of,” or “The Results of” are like empty calories (not unlike most of what’s in that Red Bull...). Make your title easier to digest by cutting the fat. “The Results of a Study of The Effects of Heavy Metal Music on Plant Growth” can slim down to “The Effects of Heavy Metal Music on Plant Growth” or even the jazzier “How Heavy Metal Music Stimulates Plant Growth.”
4. A great title gives away the ending. If your title is in the form of a yes–no question, try rephrasing it so that the question is answered or the answer at least alluded to. This primes the reader for deeper comprehension. If Philip K. Dick had written for an academic audience, you might be perusing Androids Dream of Electric Sheep: Empathy in Nonhuman Species before bed tonight. (Click the image of the book cover at the right to read about his actual book, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep.)
5. A great title says it with style. Academic writing must be precise, but it needn’t be fusty. Consider these titles of real published psychology articles: “The Unicorn, the Normal Curve, and Other Improbable Creatures” (Micceri, 1989, Psychological Bulletin) and “Pride, Prejudice, and Ambivalence: Toward a Unified Theory of Race and Ethnicity” (Markus, 2008, American Psychologist). These titles pique readers’ interest while also conveying essential information about the content of the article. 

Armed with these principles, you are now ready to give your next paper a great title. You can also read more about titles in the Publication Manual in section 2.01 (p. 23).

A Post About Nothing

by Timothy McAdoo

Today I want to zero in on a special topic. This is not just an empty set of words: Let’s de-cipher another APA Style point!

The zero before a decimal point is known as a leading zero. Have you noticed that sometimes this zero is used in decimal values and sometimes it is not?

APA Style has a very simple guideline for leading zeros:

• If a value has the potential to exceed 1.0, use the leading zero.
• If a value can never exceed 1.0, do not use the leading zero.

Thus, because most units of measure have the potential to exceed 1.0, the leading zero is frequently needed. A value over 1.0 does not need to actually appear in the text. Here are just a few examples:

…was 0.75 in. tall by 0.95 in. wide. Participants viewed, on average, less than 0.65 hr of the footage. …had means of 1.01, 2.21, and 0.95, respectively. …had 95% CIs [0.62, 1.12], [-2.44, 4.30], and [-3.19, -2.39], respectively.

There are some values that by definition can never exceed 1.0. The omission of the leading zero is a visual indicator of this restricted range. The most common cases are p values and correlations:

…was significant (p < .01). …was significant (p = .001). …was shown to be highly correlated (r = .71).

A consistent presentation of statistical values, both within a paper and across published articles, provides a visual symmetry that can help readers focus on content over form.

I hope this zippy post has helped nullify any confusion. If you’re still drawing a blank, you can also find this guideline and additional examples on page 113 of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.).

Formatting Statistics: Using Parentheses

by Timothy McAdoo

The Publication Manual (6th ed.) presents guidelines for formatting statistical and mathematical copy. As noted on page 116 of the Manual, these guidelines reflect "standards of content and form agreed on in the field" and are designed to enhance clear communication.

The most basic guidelines are that statistics should be italicized and shown in parentheses:

In Experiment 1, participants listening to The Smiths were no more likely to dance energetically than were those listening to The Cure (p = .24).

However, when a statistic includes its own parenthetical value (e.g., degrees of freedom that appear with t or F values), you’ll need to separate the statistics from the text with commas. Nested parentheses should be avoided in APA Style.

Consider the next two examples:

In Experiment 2, participants listening to Lady Gaga were more likely to “just dance” than were students listening to The Smiths, t(177) = 3.51, p < .001. In Experiment 3, participants’ biofeedback indicated a significant impact of listening to up-tempo La Roux melodies, F(1, 144), p < .001, and also a significant impact of listening to melancholy selections from The Decemberists, F(1, 144), p < .001.

Notice how the commas separate the string of statistics from the text, just as they would separate other types of independent clauses.

When you have multiple groups of statistics in a series, use semicolons to separate:

In Experiment 4, an impact was demonstrated for genre, R2 = .31, F(2, 13) = 3.13, p < .001; recording date, R2 = .11, F(2, 13) = 1.53, p < .001; and tempo, R2 = .17, F(2, 13) = 2.33, p < .001.

As a side note, notice that there should be no space between a statistic's symbol and its parenthetical information (in this case the degrees of freedom): that is, F(1, 144) not F (1, 144).

Of course, this just scratches the surface of the potential for reporting statistics. Pages 116–124 of the Manual provide much more detail. What questions do you have? Let us know in the comments.

“My Professor Says...”

by Jeff Hume-Pratuch  

Dear APA,

My professor says that you can only use a comma in APA Style if there is a rule for it in the book. I told her there are lots of places where you need commas that the book doesn't cover, like after introductory phrases (e.g., “For instance”). She agreed with me but said there was nothing she could do, it's an APA rule. Is this correct?

--Anguished in Austin

Dear Anguished,

Your professor is misinformed. The APA Publication Manual is not intended to be exhaustive in its coverage of grammar and style. Consequently, there are some things outside its purview. If it’s not in the manual, it’s not an APA rule.

Unfortunately, Anguished, we receive letters like yours every day.

“My professor told me my outline had to be in APA Style, but I can’t find any examples of outlines in the manual!”

“My professor said it was against APA Style to use the first person.”

“My professor told me to do a PowerPoint presentation in APA Style. I’ve read the whole book and I can’t find a format for slideshows.”

If your professor’s instructions and the manual seem out of joint, don’t panic! There are several things you can do to ameliorate the situation.

1. Ask your professor to clarify the assignment. Perhaps “do the PowerPoint in APA Style” really means “put the references in your slideshow in APA Style.” And sometimes “APA Style” is just shorthand for “use the author–date system for references, instead of footnotes.”

2. If the professor’s instructions seem to contradict APA Style, ask whether this is intentional. For example, APA Style does not include the use of an outline at the start of a paper, but your professor may have a valid reason for requiring one.

3. Ask the professor if there is a list of specific exceptions to APA Style. The Publication Manual (6th ed.) contains many useful tips for clear and concise writing, but it was written predominantly for scholars seeking publication rather than for students seeking term paper formats. Your department or institution may have its own set of style rules that supersede the Publication Manual in whole or part.

Most problems can be resolved with a modicum of good will on both sides. But if you find yourself really stumped on a point of APA Style, contact APA’s Style Experts (styleexpert@apastyle.org).

Hope this helps!

--Jeff

 

Secondary Sources (aka How to Cite a Source You Found in Another Source)

by Timothy McAdoo

You’ve probably heard that you should avoid secondary sources when possible. It’s true—if you find great information being quoted or paraphrased somewhere, it’s well worth your effort to track down the original source so you can read it for yourself and therefore cite it directly.

But why track down the original when you already have the quotes?

First, by reading the full text of the original source, you can verify that the context of the quote supports the point you want to make. You don’t want to be surprised by an informed reader who tells you that the original source actually contradicts your points—especially if that informed reader is your professor!  

Second, by finding and reading the original source, you will become better informed about your research topic. To a reader familiar with the research in your topic area, the citations in your paper are one indication of whether you have a firm understanding of the subject and of the relevant research. By contrast, if you’ve cited secondary sources for ideas or quotations that you could have obtained easily (or relatively so), you may give the impression that your research was hasty or superficial.

If your primary source is an archival document (e.g., a diary, limited-circulation brochure or pamphlet, unpublished manuscript), see Section 7.10 of the APA Publication Manual (6th ed.) for citation and reference guidelines and examples.  

So when are secondary sources appropriate?

It’s okay to cite a secondary source when you’ve exhausted the options for finding the original work.

For example, an out-of-print work may be impossible for you to find but could still be quoted in recent work by other authors. Or perhaps the paper you’re reading has cited a personal correspondence. You obviously can’t cite the original source directly in that case, so the secondary source is appropriate.

And of course there are those cases when an author takes a complex topic and puts it in layman’s terms. Citing this type of secondary source, where the extra level of analysis is much the point, may also be appropriate.

How is it done?

In your reference list, provide a reference for the source you read. This is known as the secondary source because it is one step removed from the original source of the idea or quotation. In your text, name the original work and provide the citation for the secondary source.

Let’s look at an example:

In his e-mails, Smith argued that asynchronous line dancing would be the next Internet meme (as cited in Jones, 2010).

Jones (2010) would be the reference you include in your reference list. Also, note that by mentioning the original format of the information (in this case a series of e-mail messages), you not only specify that this is a secondary source but also give the reader an indication of why that’s the case. Although it’s not a requirement, mentioning the original format answers this potential question for the reader so he or she can focus on the content!

Have any questions about citing secondary sources? Feel free to leave us comments. What kinds of secondary sources have you used?

It’s All Latin to Me: Latin Abbreviations in Scholarly Writing

by Chelsea Lee

The English language loves to appropriate words from other languages and claim them as its own. Some of these words and phrases have become so well used in scientific writing that you can employ them in your writing as abbreviations without any definitions or special attention (for instance, no need for italics). Yet readers new to scientific writing might find themselves scratching their heads and exclaiming, "It’s all Greek to me!" (Though the grammarian in me would point out that all the expressions below actually come from Latin, not Greek.)

The table below focuses on Latin abbreviations common to scholarly writing that may be used without definition in APA Style. Note that this list is not exhaustive. See also section 4.26 (p. 108) of the Publication Manual for more.

Abbreviation	Meaning	Example use	Notes for APA Style
Used inside of parentheses only
cf.	“compare” or “consult” (used to provide contrasting or opposing information)	Abbott (2010) found supportive results in her memory experiment, unlike those of previous work (cf. Zeller & Williams, 2007). She expands on the working memory literature (see also Evans & Potter, 2005).	Never put a comma after. Do not put a period between the c and the f. Use “cf.” to contrast; to compare like things, use “see” or “see also.”
e.g.,	“for example,” (abbreviation for exempli gratia)	Some studies (e.g., Jenkins & Morgan, 2010; Macmillan, 2009) have supported this conclusion. Others—for example, Chang (2004)—disagreed.	Always put a comma after.
etc.	“and so on” or “and so forth” (abbreviation for et cetera)	Students ranked their school subjects (chemistry, math, etc.) in order of preference, first, second, third, and so on, until they had ranked the entire list. A majority ranked science-related subjects (biology etc.) as their second favorite.	Put a comma before if used to end a list of at least two other items, as shown in the example.
i.e.,	“that is,” (abbreviation for id est; used to give specific clarification)	The experimenters manipulated the order of presentation (i.e., first, second, or third) of the three images as well their size, that is, whether they were small or large.	Always put a comma after.
viz.,	“namely,”	We first replicated our earlier study (viz., Black & Avery, 2008) and then extended it.	Always put a comma after.
vs.	“versus”	The 2 (low vs. high) × 2 (blue vs. green) analysis of variance revealed that the low versus high distinction was not significant.	Exception: With legal citations use v. instead (with italics; see also Appendix 7.1, section A7.03, Examples 1–8).
Used inside and outside of parentheses
et al.	“and others”	Thomas, Greengrass, and Hopkirk (2010) made several excellent points about goal-seeking behavior. Thomas et al. began with how goals are selected.	Must refer to at least two people because it is a plural phrase. See section 6.12 (p. 175) for more on how to use.
Never used in APA Style
ibid.	abbreviation for ibidem, used in citations to refer again to the last source previously referenced	———	Not used in APA Style; instead give each citation using author names as usual.

Note. All abbreviations in the first section should be used inside of parentheses only, that is, when you are making a parenthetical statement. Outside of parentheses, spell these expressions out using the definitions given in the Meaning column. The abbreviation “et al.” is used both inside and outside of parentheses. Directions on comma use always apply, whether you are abbreviating or not. Although the abbreviation “ibid.” is not used in APA Style, it is included here because it occurs in non-APA scholarly writing and readers may be otherwise unfamiliar with it. Unless otherwise noted, none of these abbreviations should be italicized.

You can download a PDF of the Latin abbreviations table here if you would like to use it as a handout for teaching or classroom purposes.

Feel free to share your contributions in the comments!

Feel Like a Number? Part 5. Sometimes Figures and Words Are Combined

By Anne Breitenbach

We come, at last, to the final post on when to use numerals and when to use words to express numbers. In some cases, you use both.
 
Rule 4.33 instructs one to use a combination of numerals and words to express back-to-back modifiers. The reason? Such a combination in many cases increases the clarity and readability of the construction.
 
In some cases this is easy to see, as the numbers are actually confusing at a glance if they are not clearly distinguished. For example, “There are 12 10 a.m. New York Megabusses” can very easily lead to a bus missed by 2 hr. “There are twelve 10 a.m. busses” is the better construction, and you are happily on your way to whatever future awaits in the City That Never Sleeps.
 
In case you are wondering, there is no specific rule that stipulates which number in the construction should be a numeral and which a word. The following, for example, are all fine:
 

• 2 two-way interactions
• ten 7-point scales
• twenty 6-year-olds

 There is, however, some logic to it. When you have back-to-back numerical modifiers, start with the "base" (6-year-olds, 7-point scales, two-way interactions), with the number in the usual format (notice none of the examples give 20 six-year-olds or 10 seven-point scales).
 
There is a caveat to the general rule to combine numerals and words for these constructions that states that in some situations, readability may suffer if numerals and words are combined: “first two items” is preferable to “1st two items” and “first 2 items.”
 
At first blush, this can be a tough rule, as it is to a certain degree contingent on a subjective aesthetic interpretation of readability. That being said, trust your judgment. Look at the construction to see whether it is clear and readable as is or could be confusing. The great majority of cases will profit from changing to a combination of words and numerals. The relatively few cases in which the change isn’t warranted are likely to involve ordinal and low numbers. In the rare instance in which you are genuinely unsure of whether the construction should be changed, it’s probably fine either way.
 

Feel Like a Number? Part 4. Numbers Expressed in Words

by Anne Breitenbach

Rule 4.32 says to use words to express any number that begins a sentence, title, or text heading. Why? It follows the convention that though numerals are generally easier to read, words are typically used in more formal writing. Consider, for example, the difference between “Four score and seven years ago” and “87 years ago.” True, sometimes the rule results in an odd-looking sentence (“Two thousand eighty-seven bonobos  . . .”). Under those circumstances, the best solution is to reword the sentence to avoid the problem.

 In contrast to the general rule that numerals are used to express mathematical functions, words are also used to express common fractions. That convention is followed across many styles (e.g., The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th ed.). Again, the genesis of the rule lies in large part in appearance. Fractions are problematic to typeset, and they look odd on the printed page.
 
The third cited situation in which numbers are expressed as words is for instances of “universally accepted usage.” The Publication Manual gives two examples, the Twelve Apostles and the Five Pillars of Islam. This seems the only rule of the three that presents any real challenge, as “universal acceptance” is more easily promised than delivered. Take as an example our own confidently offered Twelve Apostles. Though indisputably, the great preponderance of scholarly references do refer to the Twelve Apostles rather than the 12 Apostles, a Google Scholar search restricted to humanities sources still turns up nearly 1,000 instances of the latter format. And the apostate results on even the first page contain reputable sources (e.g., Biblical Theology Bulletin, The Harvard Theological Review) that would make a literalist question the universality of the usage. Alas, there is no Concordance for life or for accepted phrases; so once again, you are left to rely on what appears to be accepted  on the basis of the totality of the evidence at your disposal and your own reasoned judgment.
 
We’ll continue our look at when to use words and when to use figures for numbers in our next post.

Feel Like a Number? Part 3. The Earth Day Edition

by Anne Breitenbach

Our Earth Day post continues our look at exceptions to the basic rule, outlined in 4.31, that numbers below 10 are set as words rather than numerals. We’ve looked at Parts a–c previously. Let’s continue with Parts d–e. These are clear enough that it’s hard to find much of a toehold for ambiguity.

Before looking at the rules, though, there's one change from earlier editions of the Publication Manual that we should note. The rule that specific numbers of subjects or participants in an experiment are set as figures has been dropped.  Thus,

The four participants each planted one tree for every year he or she had been alive.

 It is appropriate to set as figures

d. numbers that represent statistical or mathematical functions, fractional or decimal quantities, percentages, ratios, and percentiles and quartiles.

So examples (from http://www.planetpals.com/fastfacts.html) include the following:

It takes 9 times more energy to make new cans than to use recycled cans.

Only 6% of household waste can’t be recycled.

About .33 of all water use is for flushing toilets.

NB: There is one exception that is relevant to the percentage portion of the rule. Rule 4.32 b states that one should use words to express common fractions; thus,

Earth is two-thirds water, but all the fresh water streams represent 100th of 1%.

e. numbers that represent time, dates, ages, scores and points on a scale, exact sums of money, and numerals as numerals

Examples (from http://www.earthday.org/) include the following:

Join the climate rally at 11:00 a.m. on the National Mall.

The official observation will last for 8 hr.

  . . . 6- and 7-year-olds from San Antonio, TX will have a trash-free day.

NB: Use words for approximations of numbers of days, months, and years. So if the time range isn’t precise, the example would be

The official observation will last for about eight hours.

Our series on numbers continues next week.