An EasyGuide to APA Style. Regan A. R. Gurung
proper use.
Example: We asked participants to answer the open-ended survey question, “What is your preferred time of day to study?”
It’s—Its
The apostrophe plus “s” (‘s) is a typical indicator of a contraction, and as with “you’re” above, contractions are not used in formal APA Style. When you use “it’s,” you mean “it is”; “its” is a possessive pronoun. Notice there is no apostrophe in the word “its,” used properly in the following example.
Example: After the rat traversed the open-field exploration box, the experimenter returned the rat to its cage for 24-hour rest.
There—Their—They’re
First, you should recognize the pattern by now; you will not be using “they’re” in APA-Style writing, because it is a contraction meaning “they are.” Use “there” as a reference to a place. (“Put it over there.”) “Their” is a plural possessive pronoun, so it needs to refer to more than one object or person and indicate possession.
Example 1: After the debriefing was complete, we told participants they are to remain seated until further directed.
Example 1: In the driving simulator, I instructed participants to put their belongings someplace that would not cause any distractions during the driving tasks.
To—Too—Two
Although the difference between “to” and “two” is clear, given the first is a preposition and the second is a number, quick typing can often make “to” a “too.” “To” can be used as a verb in its infinite form—”I want to run around the stadium”—or as a preposition—“I handed the report to Provost Schwartz.” “Too” is used to represent excess or “as well.”
Example 1: I asked two students to serve as confederates in my study.
Example 2: Although most people procrastinate, some people go too far.
Loose—Lose
“Lose” is a verb meaning to misplace something, whereas “loose” can be an adjective, adverb, or verb depending on usage.
Example 1: If participants did not arrive to the experiment on time, they would lose the opportunity to participate.
Example 2: In the two-string problem, the knot was too loose to allow any other solution.
Example 3: The teachers let the children loose from the classroom for recess.
Affect—Effect
This distinction is a bit tricky, because psychology adds a different twist to the meanings of “affect” and “effect.” Typically, “affect” is used as a verb, such as to act on something; “effect” is used as a noun, such as the bystander effect. But in psychology, “affect” can also be used as a noun to describe an observable feeling or emotion. Although less common, “effect” can be used as a verb to mean accomplishing something or bringing about a result. So all the following are appropriate uses of the words “affect” and “effect.”
Example 1: Prior research affected our approach to forming our hypotheses. (“affect” as verb)
Example 2: The newly admitted patient to the hospital ward showed signs of blunt affect. (“affect” as noun)
Example 3: The effect of the new intervention was moderated by other intervening variables. (“effect” as noun)
Example 4: The researcher was interested in evaluating how each type of study strategy would effect a change in student performance. (“effect” as verb)
i.e.—e.g.
These are two Latin abbreviations that should be used only in a parenthetical phrase (in parentheses) in APA format and should always be followed by a comma. The Latin abbreviation “i.e.” stands for “id est,” meaning “that is.” The Latin abbreviation “e.g.” stands for “exempli gratia,” meaning “for example” or “such as.”
Example 1: The appropriate analyses were completed post hoc (i.e., after the fact).
Example 2: Survey responses to the career-path question were coded based on eventual outcome (e.g., bachelor’s degree leading to a good job, bachelor’s degree leading to a graduate school application).
Lay—Lie
Mentioned already in Chapter 3, “lay” is a verb that means “to place” or “put down,” as in placing an object on the table. “Lie” can be used as a verb, as in ”taking a horizontal position” or lying down, or “lie” can be used as a noun, as in “I told a lie.”
Example 1: After the students recorded their reaction times, we asked students to lay the stopwatches on their desks.
Example 2: The key to lowering one’s heart rate is to recline and lie still while practicing the indicated breathing exercises.
Then—Than
“Then” can be used as an adverb, adjective, or noun, which often applies to a description of time. “Than” can be used as a conjunction or preposition. Typically, “than” is used as part of a comparison.
Example 1: After the experiment was completed, participants then were allowed to ask questions during the debriefing.
Example 2: It took longer to complete Study 1 than to complete Study 2.
That—Which
Although the rules are actually more complicated than the summary provided here, typically, “that” is used to begin a restrictive clause; a restrictive clause introduces essential information. Also, in the typical sentence form, the word “that” is not preceded by a comma. “Which” is typically used to begin a nonrestrictive clause; a nonrestrictive clause introduces extra information. A comma precedes “which” in this instance. Be careful to avoid using “that” as a filler word; ask yourself—will the sentence still make sense if the word “that” is removed?
Example 1: A well-written literature review is one that summarizes and organizes the diverse research on a topic of interest.
Example 2: Some students struggle with knowing what level of detail to write about in the Introduction section, which is to say that not all students struggle with this task.
Could of, Would of—Could have, Would have
According to Blue (2000), there is no such phrase as “could of” in English. The same is true for “would of.” What happens is that when we are speaking, many times we do not articulate well; so when we say “could have,” it actually sounds like “could of.” In fact, if you were to use the contraction form, “could’ve,” it sounds very similar to “could of.” However, the proper phrases are “could have,” “would have,” “must have,” and so on; our writing should reflect the proper usage.
Example 1: I could have used a between-groups or within-groups design.
Example