How to write an original APA Style Research Paper

Writing an original research paper isn’t too hard if you make sure your topic is unique and then you perform adequate research, using your own words to craft each sentence of your paper. APA style is one of the most popular styles used; it stands for American Psychological Association. This style is a widely accepted standard for writing and is used in many more professional fields than just psychology.

Required components of APA research papers

There are entire books written on the APA style. Don’t get overwhelmed though; you may not need all the information in one of these books to get your paper written. If you don’t want to have to read the book, the guidelines can be found online with a few simple searches. Here are some general guidelines of the APA writing style for research papers:

  • Paper should use 12 point font, have one-inch margins and be double spaced. It should be written in the past tense.
  • All tables and figures must appear on their own pages.
  • There should be an abstract and title page, both of which occupy their own page.
  • The title of the paper should appear at the top of the page, right before the introduction. The title is not to be bolded.
  • After the introductory paragraph, the body should include method, participants, materials, apparatus, procedure and results and discussion. These would be followed by the conclusion.
  • References must be used if applicable, and quotes within the research paper must be cited properly.

Tips for writing your original paper

  • Don’t bore your reader to death by starting your introduction with, Past research has indicated…blah blah blah.
  • Instead, you must capture your reader’s attention by using a thought-provoking sentence.
  • The last sentence in the introduction should include your hypothesis.
  • The method should be described sufficiently and succinctly enough so that someone else could follow it and be able to duplicate it exactly.
  • In the materials section be sure to list all of the important things used. Don’t bother with pencil, paper, etc. as those are assumed to be available to most people at any time.
  • The results should include any statistics and how the data was analyzed.
  • The interpretation of the findings should be formulated in words. The math and equations will be there to back it up, but never leave the math alone without descriptive sentences to explain it.

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