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Child Development Research Guide

A guide to resources for research in child development.

APA Citation Style

Decorative image with APA Style Logo

Most disciplines in the College of Professional Studies use APA (American Psychological Association) Style. You can learn more about APA, and other commonly used citation styles from the Citing Your Sources research guide, created by Cal Poly Humboldt Librarians. 

Visit the APA Style website to learn from the source about how to use APA to format your entire paper, including your title page, headings, in-text (parenthetical) citations, list of references, and more. Some of the most helpful pages include: 

  • Sample papers - see how APA style is used in practice
  • Heading levels template - for student papers
  • Title Page setup - for student papers 
  • In-text citations (explore all the links on this page) - also know as "parenthetical' citations, this is when you cite your sources within the text of your writing so that it is clear where you are getting the information. APA Style uses the author–date citation system, in which a brief in-text citation directs readers to a full reference list entry. The in-text citation appears within the body of the paper and briefly identifies the cited work by its author and date of publication. This enables readers to locate the corresponding entry in the alphabetical reference list at the end of the paper. IMPORTANT: in-text citations are required for both direct quotations and when you paraphrase (put in your own words) what you've read. 
  • References list - basic principles of what to include in your reference list. Remember that every source on your reference list should map to the in-text citations used in the paper - and vice versa! You'll need to use hanging indents in your references list (see below for how to create hanging indents in Google Docs and Word). 

Questions? Feel free to contact the College of Professional Studies Librarian, Amanda Dinscore, at amd212@humboldt.edu if you have questions that aren't answered here. 

Hanging Indents

Click on the links below to learn how to format hanging indents in Google Docs and Microsoft Word. 

Google Docs Hanging Indents

Follow These Three Steps:

  1. Select all of your references
  2. Click on and drag the triangle to the 1/2 inch mark
  3. Click on and drag the rectangle back to the margin
Hanging Indent with Google Docs animation. Click the GIF for a larger version.
MS Word Hanging Indents

Follow These Two Steps:

  1. Select all of your references
  2. Click on and drag the triangle to the 1/2 inch mark
Hanging Indent with MS Word animation. Click the GIF for a larger version.

Online Citation Style SkillShops in Canvas

Writing With Sources Online SkillShop

Zotero

Decorative image with the Zotero logo.

 

 Visit the Zotero research guide to learn more. 

Zotero is a free, open source tool, known as a citation manager, that helps researchers keep track of sources and manage citations throughout the research process. It supports a wide range of materials and integrates smoothly with common academic workflows.

Advantages of using Zotero:

  • Easy collection of sources: Save articles, books, and webpages directly from your browser.

  • Consistent citation management: Generate citations and bibliographies in many standard academic styles, including APA and MLA. 

  • Organized storage: Create folders, tags, and notes to structure your research materials. Highlight and annotate attached PDFs. 

  • Searchable library: Quickly locate items or keywords across saved PDFs and metadata.

  • Shared libraries: Collaborate with classmates or research teams with group collections.

  • Syncing across devices: Access your library from multiple computers or the web.

  • Word processor compatibility: Insert and update citations within Word or Google Docs. 

A few considerations:

  • Zotero does require some time to learn its features and settings. You may only want to invest this time if you are doing research that requires managing lots of resources. 

  • Building and maintaining a well-organized library can take ongoing attention, especially with large projects.