{"id":339249,"date":"2022-01-03T12:31:40","date_gmt":"2022-01-03T11:31:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scribbr.nl\/?p=339249"},"modified":"2023-10-03T10:04:37","modified_gmt":"2023-10-03T08:04:37","slug":"apa-language-guidelines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scribbr.com\/apa-style\/apa-language-guidelines\/","title":{"rendered":"Writing in APA Style: Language guidelines"},"content":{"rendered":"
The American Psychological Association (APA) published the 7th edition<\/a> of its style manual in 2019. As well as rules for citation and paper formatting, the manual provides various language guidelines<\/strong> to help you present your ideas in a clear, concise, and inclusive manner.<\/p>\n Key issues include active vs. passive voice, use of pronouns, anthropomorphism, inclusive language, punctuation, abbreviations and acronyms, and numbers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The passive voice<\/a>, which places the focus on the object of an action rather than on who or what is carrying it out (the agent<\/strong>), is often overused in academic writing. It can be long-winded, and it sometimes obscures your meaning if you don\u2019t specify the agent.<\/p>\n APA therefore recommends using the active voice by default. However, that doesn\u2019t mean you can never use the passive voice. When it\u2019s unimportant who carried out a particular action, the passive voice is a better choice.<\/p>\n Appropriate use of personal pronouns<\/a> is key to maintaining an academic tone in your writing.<\/p>\n First-person pronouns (I, we) <\/strong>should be used when referring to your own actions and thoughts. Don\u2019t refer to yourself in the third person.<\/p>\n However, avoid the editorial \u201cwe,\u201d <\/strong>which involves using \u201cwe\u201d to make a generalization<\/a> about the world or about a group of people.<\/p>\n Second-person pronouns (you)<\/strong> should be avoided entirely unless you\u2019re quoting someone else. If you need to make a generalization, use the impersonal pronoun \u201cone\u201d instead, or (usually the better option) rephrase.<\/p>\n Use the third-person pronoun \u201cthey\u201d<\/strong> to refer to an individual who uses \u201cthey\u201d as their chosen pronoun. Also use \u201cthey,\u201d not \u201che or she,\u201d to refer to a generic individual whose gender is unknown or irrelevant in the context.<\/p>\n Anthropomorphism<\/strong><\/a> means attributing actions to objects that cannot literally take those actions. Avoid doing this where it confuses your meaning, but feel free to do so when your point remains clear.<\/p>\n APA also provides guidance on ensuring your language is inclusive and respectful. Some key points are summarized below.<\/p>\n Besides<\/a> following general punctuation rules<\/a>, pay attention to these points when writing in APA Style.<\/p>\n Proper use of abbreviations and acronyms<\/a> is important, since they help keep your writing concise but can be confusing if used inconsistently or without proper explanation.<\/p>\n As a general rule, spell out numbers for zero through nine and use numerals for 10 and above<\/a>. However, note the following exceptions.<\/p>\n Always use numerals:<\/p>\n Always use words:<\/p>\n Use a combination of numerals and words to express back-to-back modifiers (e.g. \u201c2 two-way interactions\u201d or \u201cten 7-point scales\u201d). In such situations, a combination of numerals and words increases the clarity and readability of the phrase.<\/p>\n Note that when referring to a numbered element of your text, you should use a numeral and capitalize the word preceding it (e.g., \u201cChapter 2,\u201d \u201cTable 4\u201d).<\/p>\n Prefixes and suffixes are added to words to alter their meaning\u2014prefixes to the start of the word, suffixes to the end. For example, by adding the prefix “post-” to the adjective “natal,” you get another adjective, “postnatal.”<\/p>\n It’s often not clear whether such terms should be hyphenated<\/a> or written as one solid word. APA helpfully provides a list of prefixes and suffixes that don’t require hyphenation according to their guidelines.<\/p>\nActive vs. passive voice<\/h2>\n
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Personal pronouns<\/h2>\n
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Anthropomorphism<\/h2>\n
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Inclusive language<\/h2>\n
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Punctuation<\/h2>\n
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Abbreviations and acronyms<\/h2>\n
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Numbers: Words vs. numerals<\/h2>\n
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Hyphenation of prefixes and suffixes<\/h2>\n