Author: Arantxa Vizcaíno-Verdú – Translation: Erika-Lucia Gonzalez-Carrion
The American Psychological Association made available to the public this October the 7th Edition of the APA Style Manual, an international reference copy translated into 13 languages. Indeed, we talk about the favorite manual of researchers, editors, writers, professors and students of social and natural sciences, nursing, engineering and other fields. A guide that seeks the excellence of scientific writing in the development of academic-professional activities, and that compiles fundamental guidelines for the writing and publication of scientific reports in a clear, concise and structured way.
The APA Manual’s team of experts has answered after a decade, to the more than 30,000 queries and proposals of readers of the sixth edition, which required an adequate update to current academic standards, as well as a simplification of the contents. So on this occasion, we are given a completely renewed guide for academic writing, which includes from purely ethical aspects to the correct presentation of reports and the citation of authors (table of contents).
Newness in the seventh edition
The novelties of the new edition feature full-color copies in multiple formats (soft cover, hard cover, in spiral, eBook), with a distribution of content accessible to novice authors: from the improvement of additional sections, to resources for students, simplified references (more than 100 examples covering periodical publications, books, audiovisual media, web pages, social media and legal resources) and exemplified tables and figures (more than 40 samples).
Likewise, essential chapters for academic publication have been included and expanded: 1) guidelines for the presentation of articles in scientific journals, with updates on qualitative, quantitative and mixed formats; 2) language guidelines that address respect and inclusion in areas of study that cover age, disability, gender, participation, race and ethnicity, sexual orientation, economic status and intersectionality; 3) and ethical guidelines and good practices to ensure an adequate level of citation and avoidance of plagiarism / self-plagiarism.
In sum, we are faced with an official source of publications that updates, facilitates and adapts to the scientific-academic requirements, with a recognized writing, publication and citation system that, shortly, will be widely disseminated by the different publishers and magazines of all the world.
Check the latest updates in the official online spaces:
APA Style 7th Edition
Official website of APA Manual with complementary contents (references and additional formats): https://apastyle.apa.org/
JARS Repository
Repository with information about guidelines of presentation of articles in journals, which presents a wide range of free designs: https://apastyle.apa.org/jars
APA Style Blog
Online space periodically updated that gives answer to questions asked by users and that presents new aspects related to the Manual: https://apastyle.apa.org/blog
Academic Writer
Tool developed by APA Manual creators, which has as objective to teach to write in an efficient way. A basic mean for both students and professionals, which helps to make excellent academic reports and to domain APA Style 7th Edition: https://digitallearning.apa.org/academic-writer
