do you indent on a research paper

How and When to Use Indentation in Academic and Professional Writing

Writing an essay, research paper, and assignments involves coordinating many things simultaneously. You can only achieve good academic writing when you adhere to the correct formatting style of a paper. Often, indenting the paragraphs is an ingredient to paper formatting that most students either ignore or are unaware of. Apart from setting up the right 1-inch margins around the paper, setting the paper in double or single-spacing, having page numbers, and titling your work, you need to ensure that you indent it appropriately.

In academic writing, which is usually done on Microsoft Word, indentation means formatting the paragraphs so that the first sentence is slightly pushed forward, leaving a space between the margin and the first word. Indenting your paragraph helps in organization and distinguishing a paragraph from the next. You should always indent your topic sentences, conclusion paragraphs, and the first sentence of the introduction paragraph.

Should you indent every paragraph in your essay or research paper?

You should indent every paragraph when writing an essay, research paper, term paper, thesis, or dissertation. This applies to the APA, MLA, Chicago, and Harvard writing formats. Ensure that each of the first lines for every new paragraph you are writing is indented 0.5 inches from the left margin.

To indent in a word document, use the tab key or press the space bar five times. Using the tab key is far much accurate because it sets the cursor at the exact place where you need to type your first sentence in the paragraph.

When writing a long research paper or essay that needs an abstract, ensure that you indent the paragraphs of the paper but not the abstract. An abstract is never indented. Instead, when writing an abstract, left-align the entire paragraph so there is no indent. Again, this special formatting technique for the abstract helps to distinguish it from the rest of the paper.

Having answered the most pertinent question, let us have an overview of what this means for the formatting styles such as MLA, APA, Chicago, or Harvard formatting.

Related reading:

• How to write good paragraphs in an essay.

Main formatting Styles and Indentation

In high school, college, or university, essays and other academic assignments and homework are written following academic writing conventions. It is a requirement to stick to a specific formatting and citation style when writing a specific paper. The formatting styles depend on the subject.

For instance, most English papers are written in MLA, APA, Harvard, and Chicago. If you are a nursing student, you will write most papers in APA, ASA, Harvard, or AMA formatting style. Humanities such as religious studies, history, arts, and literature will use the Chicago style. Most social sciences, such as criminology, will use Harvard and APA formatting styles. The list is endless.

Whenever you doubt the style requirements, check out the style guides available online to proceed with writing when you are sure about what to include and what not to include.

MLA Formatting Requirements

When writing a paper in MLA format, you should indent each paragraph in the essay or research paper. Besides, you should also indent the block quotes 0.5 inches and not include quotation marks.

You can indent the paragraphs by pressing the tab key or setting the indentation from the word processor you are using.

The works cited page is left-aligned but set in a hanging indent of 0.5 inches. Everything in the paper is left-aligned and not justified.

APA Formatting Requirements

When writing an essay in APA format, ensure that you indent the lines of all the paragraphs in your essay or paper except for the abstract that is not indented.

You should indent the first lines of the introduction and conclusion paragraphs. Ensure that you press one-tab space in the next line where you are about to begin a new paragraph so that you make a 0.5” indentation.

You can set automatic indentation in a word document and ensure that there are no spaces between paragraphs and that the entire paragraph is left-aligned.

However, for your references in the list of references, ensure they are left-aligned and formatted with a hanging indent. The same applies when writing an annotated bibliography; the reference and the annotation should be in a hanging indent.

When writing a direct quotation, you should also indent it if you are lifting a block quote from a text. This applies if the quote is longer than three lines. Indent the entire quote0.5 inches from the margin and do not include the quotation marks.

Harvard Formatting Style - Indentation

When writing a paper that follows the Harvard Style guideline, ensure that you indent your essay as you type and not after the writing process. It might take a long time to write the paper, but you will complete it with the deserved organization that is easy to follow.

If you are writing a dissertation, thesis, scientific paper, or proposal in Harvard format, waiting until the end to indent the paragraphs will disturb your flow. You will also have a challenge distinguishing the paragraphs.

Note that indentation in Harvard formatting style follows the same conventions as that of APA, which we explained in the previous section. In Harvard formatting, indent all the paragraphs and block quotes but the reference list. Like APA, MLA, Chicago, and Oxford, the reference list has a hanging indent where the first line flashes to the left and the rest of the lines 0.5 inches to the right.

Chicago Formatting Style

In Chicago style formatting, you should double-space your text, including the notes and the bibliography sections. While doing so, ensure that the first line in each new paragraph in your essay or paper is indented. You can achieve this by hitting the tab key.

The footnotes or endnotes in Chicago formatting:

• The paper has a uniform 1-inch margin around the paper
• Use a hanging indent of 0.5 inches on the bibliography entry, and it should be single-spaced but double-space between entries
• Ensure that the block quotations are indented 0.5 inches and double-spaced
• Indent all the paragraphs in the body of the paper
• Indent all the footnotes and the endnotes 0.5 inches from the left margin. The notes are single-spaced
• The introduction and the conclusion must be indented 0.5 inches

Setting Indent in Microsoft Word

If you are using a Microsoft Word processor, select the paragraphs you want to indent , then on the home button, click on the dialog box launcher. Choose the right indent and set the line spacing, and click OK.

Related reading: the standard number of paragraphs in an essay .

Even though indentation is a critical formatting technique in academic writing, most people wonder when to do it. Luckily, we have demystified everything in this article, including how to do it in Microsoft Word.

When writing your next essay or research paper, ensure that you do it right. And as you proofread for errors and style, check if you have indented your paper correctly. Whether you are writing the paper in APA, Harvard, Chicago, or MLA, you are now aware of what to do with indentation.

Indenting your paragraphs in an essay helps break and determine the small paragraphs, and your readers can follow the paragraphs and connect the ideas in them. Now that you know how to indent ensure that you break paragraphs using indentation and write as you indent.

Gradecrest is a professional writing service that provides original model papers. We offer personalized services along with research materials for assistance purposes only. All the materials from our website should be used with proper references. See our Terms of Use Page for proper details.

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• Writing Tips

A Guide to Indenting Paragraphs

4-minute read

• 9th July 2022

Indentation refers to the gap between the left-hand margin and the beginning of text on the page or screen. Like font choice and line spacing , indentation might seem like a trivial formatting decision, but using indentation effectively makes your writing more professional-looking and easier to read.

In this guide, we’ll summarize the rules for indentation given by three of the most common style guides. Then we’ll explain the simplest way to apply paragraph indentation in Microsoft Word. First though, what are the different types of indentation?

Indentation Options

Microsoft Word offers three choices of indentation style:

●  Standard: Each line of text is indented by a specified amount. This type of indentation is useful for block quotes and other sections of text that you want to set apart.

●  First line: Indentation is applied to the first line of each paragraph. This provides a visual clue to readers that you’re shifting focus or introducing a new idea.

●  Hanging: An indent is applied to the second and subsequent lines of each paragraph. Hanging indentation is most often used in works cited lists and bibliographies, as it enables readers to easily scan the list of authors.

Indentation in APA Style

In APA , you should indent the first line of each paragraph by 0.5” (1.27 cm). This rule also applies to the abstract, except for the first line, which should be left aligned.

Standard indentation of 0.5” is applied to block quotations, and if the quote runs to more than one paragraph, you must indent the first line of the second and subsequent paragraphs by a further 0.5”.

The entries in an APA reference list should have a hanging indent of 0.5”.

Indentation in MLA Style

The guidelines for MLA are very similar to those of APA with a slight difference in the formatting of block quotes. In MLA, the first line of the second and subsequent paragraphs of block quotes should be indented by only 0.25”. Moreover, if the beginning of the first paragraph of the block quote begins a paragraph in the source text, it too should be indented by 0.25”.

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Indentation in Associated Press Style

The Associated Press Stylebook says that you should not use indentation to indicate the start of a new paragraph. Instead, you should hit the Enter key twice at the end of a paragraph (like we do in our blog posts). Block quotes should have standard indentation of 0.5”.

How to Apply Indentation in MS Word

One quick way to indent text is to hit the Tab key when the cursor is at the beginning of a line. This will indent the line by 0.5”. Pressing Tab again will increase the indent by a further 0.5” and so on. However, if you want to apply a consistent indentation style throughout a section or an entire document, it’s more efficient to use the options in the Paragraph section of the Home tab.

To automatically apply indentation to the first line of every paragraph, select Paragraph Options on the Home tab, then choose First line from the list of special indentations. Finally, enter the size of indentation you require in centimeters (e.g., 1.27).

Hanging indentations work in much the same way. You simply choose Hanging instead of First line .

For block quotes, you can use the Increase Indent button, which appears on the Home and Layout tabs. Each time you press it, the indent increases by 0.5”. You can then reduce or remove the indent with the Decrease Indent button.

Alternatively, you could create a custom style for block quotes using the Styles feature. To do this, follow these steps:

• Select the relevant text and apply indentation either with the Increase Indent button or by entering the required size in Paragraph Options .
• With the text still selected, click on the Styles Pane and select New Style.
• A Create New Style from Formatting box should appear. Enter a name for your newly created style (e.g., Block quote ).

You will then be able to choose the same style and easily apply it to all of the block quotes in your document.

Flawless Formatting

We hope you now feel confident about when and how to apply indentation in your writing. When you upload a document to us for proofreading , you can add full formatting as an extra option. Or, if your writing has already been checked for errors, we offer a formatting-only service— contact us today for a quote.

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APA Style 7th Edition: Citing Your Sources

• Basics of APA Formatting
• In Text Quick View
• Block Quotes
• Books & eBooks
• Thesis/Dissertation
• Audiovisual
• Conference Presentations
• Social Media
• Legal References
• Reports and Gray Literature

Mechanics of Style

Standard formatting quick guide, abbreviations.

• Academic Integrity and Plagiarism
• Additional Resources
• Reference Page

Refer to Ch. 6 Mechanics of style in the APA Publication Manual 7th ed. regarding specific guidelines regarding the mechanics of style for writing.

• Use 1" margins for the entire document.
• Use a 1/2" indent for every paragraph and footnote.
• Indent set-off quotations 1/2" from the left margin.

Text Formatting

• Should be accessible to all users
• The same font should be used throughout paper
• San serif fonts preferred for online works (Recommend 11pt Calibri, 11-point Arial, or 10pt Lucida Sans Unicode)
• Serif fonts preferred for print works (Recommend 12pt Times New Roman or 11pt Georgia)
• Figure images- use a sans serif font with a type size between 8 and 14
• Computer code- use a monospace font (ex. 10pt Lucida Console or 10pt Courier New)
• Footnotes- default footnote settings of word-processing program acceptable
• Do not justify the text or use hyphenation.
• One space after a period

Page Header

• Doesn't have to be same as title, but limited to 50 characters and conveys the idea of the title
• If title is less than 50 characters, can be used as running head
• Avoid using abbreviations in the running head
• Appears flush left in all-capital letters
• Page number should be flush right.
• If title is longer than one line, separate the title and subtitle on double-spaced lines if desired
• Center the author's/authors' name directly under the title.
• Format the name omitting titles (Dr, Prof, etc.) and degrees: First name, middle initial, last name.
• Center the institutional affiliation directly under the author's/authors' name.
• Author's note (not applicable to student papers)
• Course number and name of course
• Instructor name
• Assignment due date
• Running head in page header, flush left (not applicable to student papers)
• Page number in page header, flush right

Introduction

• Begin introduction on a new page.
• Type the title in title case, bold, centered and positioned at the top of the first page of text
• Do not type the heading "Introduction," title will act as de facto Level 1 heading
• Use Level 2 heading for any subsections within introduction, Level 3 for subsections of Level 2, and so on
• Use Level 1 heading for next main section of paper

References (Reference Page)

• Starts on new page
• The word " References " should appear (without quotation marks) centered at the top of the page, bold
• Double-space all reference entries
• Use a hanging indent for reference- first line of each reference is flush with the left margin while subsequent lines are indented.
• Use footnotes to provide additional content or acknowledge copyright permission
• Content footnotes convey just one idea and only include simple, relevant or essential information
• Use a footnote to acknowledge the source of lengthy quotes, scale and test items, and figures or tables that have been reproduced or adapted
• Number all footnotes consecutively in the order they appear, use superscript Arabic numerals within the text
• For separate page- Label section "Footnotes" in bold, centered at the top of the page.  Write footnotes as double-spaced indented paragraphs which begin with superscript footnote number.
• Begin each appendix on a new page following references and footnotes (if applicable).
• If single appendix, label page "Appendix."
• If there is more than one appendix, label each with with a capital letter (ex. "Appendix A," "Appendix B" and so forth) in the order they're mentioned in the text
• If text appendix contains tables, figures, footnotes and/or display equations, give each one a number preceded by the letter of the appendix in which it appears (ex. Figure A2 for the second figure in Appendix A).
• If appendix "consists of only a table or figure, then the appendix label takes the place of the table or figure number and the appendix title takes the place of the table or figure title."

Adapted from American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed).  https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000

• APA Paper Format Find quick answers to basic APA formatting directly from APA Style
• Annotated Sample Student Paper

The correct form of abbreviation must be used in reference lists:

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• Next: Headings >>
• Last Updated: Nov 1, 2023 3:17 PM
• URL: https://libguides.usc.edu/APA7th

APA 7th ed. Style Guide

• Formatting Your Paper
• In-text Citations
• Textual Works
• Data Sets, Software, Tests
• Audiovisual Media
• Online Media

Formatting guidelines and sample papers are found in chapter 2 of the APA 7th edition Publication Manual

Sample papers.

You can find sample papers from Purdue OWL's website, APA 7th edition Publication Manual, or APA style website.

• APA Style Student Paper with Annotations in the Comments A Word Document featuring an APA 7th edition Style Student Paper that includes annotations as comments.
• APA Style Professional Paper with Annotations in Comments A Word Document featuring an APA 7th edition Style Professional Paper that includes annotations as comments.
• Purdue OWL Sample Papers

General Formatting Guidelines

Follow these guidelines throughout your paper:

• Double space text
• Header for student and professional papers includes the page number in the upper right hand corner
• Single space after ending punctuation
• Font size and style: Times New Roman 12 pt, Arial 11 pt, Calibri 11 pt, or Georgia 11 pt
• Use the same font type and size throughout the paper (exceptions for figure images, computer code, and footnotes - see 2.19 in APA Manual)
• Margins: 1 inch on all sides
• Left align paragraphs and leave ragged (uneven) margins on the right
• Indention: use 0.5 inch indention for the first line of every paragraph (use tab key for consistency)

Formatting Title Page

The 7th edition Publication Manual for APA introduced the student and professional papers. The major difference between these two types of papers is found on the title page. Please, see the guidelines below for formatting the title page of your document. Also note, follow your professors' guidelines for formatting the title page.

General Title Page Guidelines:

• Double space
• The title should summarize the main idea and be focused/succinct (avoid unnecessary words)
• Title written in title case (the first letter of each word is capitalized), bold, centered, and positioned in the upper half of the title page
• Use the author(s) first name, middle initial, and last name as the author's byline

Student Papers:

• title of the paper
• name of the author(s)
• author affiliation (department and institution name)
• course number and name 
• instructor name
• assignment due date (i.e. November 4, 2020)
• page number (in the header)

Professional Papers:

• author affiliation
• author note
• running head (abbreviated title) - Flush with left margin and written in all capital letters

Formatting Headings

Follow this format for headings (see 2.27 of the Publication Manual for additional details):

Level 1 headings are written in bold title case and aligned to the center. The text begins as a new paragraph.

Level 2 headings are written in bold title case and aligned flush to the left. The text begins as a new paragraph.

Level 3 headings are written in bold, italicized title case, and aligned flush to the left. The text begins as a new paragraph.

Level 4 headings are written in bold title case, indented from the left, and end with a period. The text begins after the period and continues like a regular paragraph.

Level 5 headings are written in bold, italicized title case, indented from the left, and end with a period. The text begins after the period and continues like a regular paragraph.

Formatting Reference List

The following are guidelines for formatting your reference list:

• Start on a new page after the last page of text
• Label the page Reference(s) with a capitalized R, written in bold and centered
• Double space all entries
• Use hanging indent for reference entries (first line of the reference is flush with left margin, subsequent lines are indented 0.5 inches)
• Order alphabetically (see chapter 9 section 44-49 for additional instructions on entry order)
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• Next: In-text Citations >>
• Last Updated: Mar 20, 2024 11:48 AM
• URL: https://guides.uu.edu/APA7

• Frohring Library
• Library Guides
• APA Style 7th edition
• APA Formatting
• Introduction
• Periodicals
• Conference Sessions and Presentations
• Dissertations and Theses
• Audiovisual Material
• Webpages and Websites
• In-Text Citations
• Citation Guide
• Business resources
• Library Instruction Feedback

General Guidelines

• Make 1 inch margins on the top, bottom, and sides.
• The first word in every paragraph should be indented one half inch.
• sans serif: 11-point Calibri or 11-point Arial
• serif: 12-point Times New Roman, 11-point Georgia
• Double space the entire research paper, including the title page.
• Left align the text.

APA Paper Components

Every paper should include at least four main sections:

Reference List

Student papers do not typically include a running head, an author note, or an abstract, unless specifically requested by the instructor.

A title page is always required in all APA formatted papers. Students should follow the student title page guidelines, unless their instructor requires them to use the professional version. 

The student title page should include:

• paper title;
• author(s) name(s);
• author affiliation (i.e. the department and the name of the university);
• course number and full name;
• instructor name;
• assignment due date;
• page number (start numbering the title page from 1).
• APA Blog - Title Page Setup
• Student Title Page Guide APA provides a student title page guide to assist students in creating their title pages.

If requested by the instructor, students may need to include an abstract, especially for capstone projects.

The abstract should be one paragraph of between 150 and 250 words. It is not indented. The section label "Abstract" is centered at the top of the page and it is in bold title case.

Text (Main Body)

The text of the paper should start on a new page after the title page (and abstract, if included). On the first page of the text, you should repeat the paper title in title case, bold, and centered.

Use double-spacing throughout the paper, left align the text and indent the first line of each paragraph by one tab key (usually set to 0.5 in.). 

Throughout the body, in-text citations are used and they include the author’s/authors’ name(s) and the publication year, followed by the page number of the text cited if applicable (see the In-Text Citations section).

Organizing a Paper with Headings

In order to effectively organized the ideas in your paper, you can use headings to separate each different section. APA recommends the use of a maximum of five possible headings. Not all papers must include headings.

• APA Blog - Headings

The Reference List appears on a new page after the end of the paper.

• Center and bold the title “References” (do not include quotation marks, underline, or italicize this title).
• Alphabetize and double-space all entries.
• Use a hanging indent for all entries (the first line of each reference is flush left and subsequent lines are indented by 0.5 in).
• Every article/source mentioned in the paper and used in your study should be referenced and have an entry.

Sample Paper

Sample paper and template.

This is a Word office version of a sample APA student paper, and it can also be used as a template for formatting your paper.

• APA 7 Student paper template
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• Next: Citation Guide >>
• Last Updated: Feb 7, 2024 11:30 AM
• URL: https://johncabot.libguides.com/APAstyle

• MJC Library & Learning Center
• Research Guides

Format Your Paper & Cite Your Sources

• APA Style, 7th Edition
• Citing Sources
• Avoid Plagiarism
• MLA Style (8th/9th ed.)

APA Tutorial

Formatting your paper, headings organize your paper (2.27), video tutorials, reference list format (9.43).

• Elements of a Reference

Reference Examples (Chapter 10)

Dois and urls (9.34-9.36), in-text citations.

• In-Text Citations Format
• In-Text Citations for Specific Source Types

NoodleTools

• Chicago Style
• Harvard Style
• Other Styles
• Annotated Bibliographies
• How to Create an Attribution

What is APA Style?

APA style was created by social and behavioral scientists to standardize scientific writing. APA style is most often used in:

• psychology,
• social sciences (sociology, business), and

If you're taking courses in any of these areas, be prepared to use APA style.

For in-depth guidance on using this citation style, refer to Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7th ed. We have several copies available at the MJC Library at the call number  BF 76.7 .P83 2020 .

APA Style, 7th ed.

In October 2019, the American Psychological Association made radical changes its style, especially with regard to the format and citation rules for students writing academic papers. Use this guide to learn how to format and cite your papers using APA Style, 7th edition.

You can start by viewing the  video tutorial .

For help on all aspects of formatting your paper in APA Style, see   The Essentials  page on the APA Style website.

• sans serif fonts such as 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, or 10-point Lucida Sans Unicode, or
• serif fonts such as 12-point Times New Roman, 11-point Georgia, or normal (10-point) Computer Modern (the default font for LaTeX)
• There are exceptions for the  title page ,  tables ,  figures ,  footnotes , and  displayed equations .
• Margins :  Use 1-in. margins on every side of the page.
• Align the text of an APA Style  paper to the left margin . Leave the right margin uneven, or “ragged.”
• Do not use full justification for student papers.
• Do not insert hyphens (manual breaks) in words at the end of line. However, it is acceptable if your word-processing program automatically inserts breaks in long hyperlinks (such as in a DOI or URL in a reference list entry).
• Indent the first line of each paragraph of text 0.5 in . from the left margin. Use the tab key or the automatic paragraph-formatting function of your word-processing program to achieve the indentation (the default setting is likely already 0.5 in.). Do not use the space bar to create indentation. 
• There are exceptions for the  title page ,  section labels ,  abstract ,  block quotations ,  headings ,  tables and figures ,  reference list , and  appendices .

Paper Elements

Student papers generally include, at a minimum: 

• Title Page (2.3)
• Text (2.11)
• References  (2.12)

Student papers may include additional elements such as tables and figures depending on the assignment. So, please check with your teacher!

Student papers generally  DO NOT  include the following unless your teacher specifically requests it:

• Running head
• Author note

For complete information on the  order of pages , see the APA Style website.

Number your pages consecutively starting with page 1. Each section begins on a new page. Put the pages in the following order:

• Page 1: Title page
• Page 2: Abstract (if your teacher requires an abstract)
• Page 3: Text 
• References begin on a new page after the last page of text
• Footnotes begin on a new page after the references (if your teacher requires footnotes)
• Tables begin each on a new page after the footnotes (if your teacher requires tables) 
• Figures begin on a new page after the tables (if your teacher requires figures)
• Appendices begin on a new page after the tables and/or figures (if your teacher requires appendices)

Sample Papers With Built-In Instructions

To see what your paper should look like, check out these sample papers with built-in instructions.

APA Style uses five (5) levels of headings to help you organize your paper and allow your audience to identify its key points easily. Levels of headings establish the hierarchy of your sections just like you did in your paper outline.

APA tells us to use "only the number of headings necessary to differentiate distinct section in your paper." Therefore, the number of heading levels you create depends on the length and complexity of your paper.

See the chart below for instructions on formatting your headings:

Use Word to Format Your Paper:

Use Google Docs to Format Your Paper:

Placement:  The reference list  appears at the end of the paper, on its own page(s). If your research paper ends on page 8, your References begin on page 9.

Heading:  Place the section label References  in bold at the top of the page, centered.

Arrangement:  Alphabetize entries by author's last name. If source has no named author, alphabetize by the title, ignoring A, An, or The. (9.44-9.48)

Spacing:  Like the rest of the APA paper, the reference list is double-spaced throughout. Be sure NOT to add extra spaces between citations.

Indentation:  To make citations easier to scan, add a  hanging indent  of 0.5 in. to any citation that runs more than one line. Use the paragraph-formatting function of your word processing program to create your hanging indent.  

See Sample References Page (from APA Sample Student Paper):

Elements of Reference List Entries: (Chapter 9)

References generally have four elements, each of which has a corresponding question for you to answer:

• Author:   Who is responsible for this work? (9.7-9.12)
• Date:   When was this work published? (9.13-9.17)
• Title:   What is this work called? (9.18-9.22)
• Source:   Where can I retrieve this work? (9.23-9.37)

By using these four elements and answering these four questions, you should be able to create a citation for any type of source.

For complete information on all of these elements, checkout the APA Style website.

This infographic shows the first page of a journal article. The locations of the reference elements are highlighted with different colors and callouts, and the same colors are used in the reference list entry to show how the entry corresponds to the source.

To create your references, you'll simple look for these elements in your source and put them together in your reference list entry.

American Psychological Association.  Example of where to find reference information for a journal article  [Infographic]. APA Style Center. https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/basic-principles

Below you'll find two printable handouts showing APA citation examples. The first is an abbreviated list created by MJC Librarians. The second, which is more comprehensive, is from the APA Style website. Feel free to print these for your convenience or use the links to reference examples below:

• APA Citation Examples Created by MJC Librarians for you.
• Common References Examples (APA Handout) Printable handout from the American Psychological Association.
• APA Style Quick Reference Guide See how to format three typical types of references.
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Edited Book Chapter
• Webpage on a Website

Classroom or Intranet Sources

• Classroom Course Pack Materials
• How to Cite ChatGPT
• Dictionary Entry
• Government Report
• Legal References (Laws & Cases)
• TED Talk References
• Religious Works
• Open Educational Resources (OER)
• Archival Documents and Collections

You can view the entire Reference Examples website below and view a helpful guide to finding useful APA style topics easily:

• APA Style: Reference Examples
• Navigating the not-so-hidden treasures of the APA Style website
• Missing Reference Information

Sometimes you won't be able to find all the elements required for your reference. In that case, see the  instructions in Table 9.1 of the APA style manual in section 9.4 or the APA Style website below:

• Direct Quotation of Material Without Page Numbers

The DOI or URL is the final component of a reference list entry. Because so much scholarship is available and/or retrieved online, most reference list entries end with either a DOI or a URL.

• A  DOI  is a unique alphanumeric string that identifies content and provides a persistent link to its location on the internet. DOIs can be found in database records and the reference lists of published works.
• A  URL  specifies the location of digital information on the internet and can be found in the address bar of your internet browser. URLs in references should link directly to the cited work when possible.

When to Include DOIs and URLs:

• Include a DOI for all works that have a DOI, regardless of whether you used the online version or the print version.
• If an online work has both a DOI and a URL, include only the DOI.
• For works without DOIs from websites (not including academic research databases), provide a URL in the reference (as long as the URL will work for readers).
• For works without DOIs from most academic research databases, do not include a URL or database information in the reference because these works are widely available. The reference should be the same as the reference for a print version of the work.
• For works from databases that publish original, proprietary material available only in that database (such as the UpToDate database) or for works of limited circulation in databases (such as monographs in the ERIC database), include the name of the database or archive and the URL of the work. If the URL requires a login or is session-specific (meaning it will not resolve for readers), provide the URL of the database or archive home page or login page instead of the URL for the work. (See APA Section 9.30 for more information). 
• If the URL is no longer working or no longer provides readers access to the content you intend to cite, try to find an archived version using the Internet Archive , then use the archived URL. If there is no archived URL, do not use that resource.

Format of DOIs and URLs:

Your DOI should look like this: 

https://doi.org/10.1037/a0040251

Follow these guidelines from the APA Style website.

APA Style uses the  author–date citation system , in which a brief in-text citation points your reader to the full reference list entry at the end of your paper. 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 method enables your reader to locate the corresponding entry in the alphabetical reference list at the end of your paper.

Each work you cite  must  appear in the reference list, and each work in the reference list must be cited in the text (or in a table, figure, footnote, or appendix) except for the following (See APA, 8.4):

• Personal communications (8.9)
• General mentions of entire websites, whole periodicals (8.22), and common software and apps (10.10) in the text do not require a citation or reference list entry.
• The source of an epigraph does not usually appear in the reference list (8.35)
• Quotations from your research participants do not need citations or reference list entries (8.36)
• References included in a statistical meta-analysis, which are marked with an asterisk in the reference list, may be cited in the text (or not) at the author’s discretion. This exception is relevant only to authors who are conducting a meta-analysis (9.52).

Formatting Your In-Text Citations

Parenthetical and Narrative Citations: ( See APA Section  8.11)

In APA style you use the author-date citation system for citing references within your paper. You incorporate these references using either a  parenthetical   or a  narrative  style.

Parenthetical Citations

• In parenthetical citations, the author name and publication date appear in parentheses, separated by a comma. (Jones, 2018)
• A parenthetical citation can appear within or at the end of a sentence.
• When the parenthetical citation is at the end of the sentence, put the period or other end punctuation after the closing parenthesis.
• If there is no author, use the first few words of the reference list entry, usually the "Title" of the source: ("Autism," 2008) See APA 8.14
• When quoting, always provide the author, year, and specific page citation or paragraph number for nonpaginated materials in the text (Santa Barbara, 2010, p. 243).  See APA 8.13
• For most citations, the parenthetical reference is placed BEFORE the punctuation: Magnesium can be effective in treating PMS (Haggerty, 2012).

Narrative Citations 

In narrative citations, the author name or title of your source appears within your text and the publication date appears in parentheses immediately after the author name. 

• Santa Barbara (2010) noted a decline in the approval of disciplinary spanking of 26 percentage points from 1968 to 1994.

In-Text Citation Checklist

• In-Text Citation Checklist Use this useful checklist from the American Psychological Association to ensure that you've created your in-text citations correctly.

In-Text Citations for Specific Types of Sources

Quotations from Research Participants

Personal Communications

Secondary Sources  

Use NoodleTools to Cite Your Sources  

NoodleTools can help you create your references and your in-text citations.

• NoodleTools Express No sign in required . When you need one or two quick citations in MLA, APA, or Chicago style, simply generate them in NoodleTools Express then copy and paste what you need into your document. Note: Citations are not saved and cannot be exported to a word processor using NoodleTools Express.
• NoodleTools (Login Full Database) This link opens in a new window Create and organize your research notes, share and collaborate on research projects, compose and error check citations, and complete your list of works cited in MLA, APA, or Chicago style using the full version of NoodleTools. You'll need to Create a Personal ID and password the first time you use NoodleTools.

See How to Use NoodleTools Express to Create a Citation in APA Format

Additional NoodleTools Help

• NoodleTools Help Desk Look up questions and answers on the NoodleTools Web site
• << Previous: MLA Style (8th/9th ed.)
• Next: Chicago Style >>
• Last Updated: Mar 20, 2024 11:36 AM
• URL: https://libguides.mjc.edu/citeyoursources

Except where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 and CC BY-NC 4.0 Licenses .

On an APA style paper, do I indent the first line of each paragraph?

Yes, indent the first line of every paragraph, except for the Abstract (see instructions below).

• Paragraphs are indented 0.5” or Tab key once.
• Check the  APA Help  guide  to see a Sample Paper.
• The only paragraph NOT  indented is the Abstract. 
• If the Instructor requires an Abstract, it should be left aligned, with no indent.

Thank you for using ASK US. Please contact us  for more questions.

• Last Updated Mar 02, 2020
• Views 264760
• Answered By Baker Librarians

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13.1 Formatting a Research Paper

Learning objectives.

• Identify the major components of a research paper written using American Psychological Association (APA) style.
• Apply general APA style and formatting conventions in a research paper.

In this chapter, you will learn how to use APA style , the documentation and formatting style followed by the American Psychological Association, as well as MLA style , from the Modern Language Association. There are a few major formatting styles used in academic texts, including AMA, Chicago, and Turabian:

• AMA (American Medical Association) for medicine, health, and biological sciences
• APA (American Psychological Association) for education, psychology, and the social sciences
• Chicago—a common style used in everyday publications like magazines, newspapers, and books
• MLA (Modern Language Association) for English, literature, arts, and humanities
• Turabian—another common style designed for its universal application across all subjects and disciplines

While all the formatting and citation styles have their own use and applications, in this chapter we focus our attention on the two styles you are most likely to use in your academic studies: APA and MLA.

If you find that the rules of proper source documentation are difficult to keep straight, you are not alone. Writing a good research paper is, in and of itself, a major intellectual challenge. Having to follow detailed citation and formatting guidelines as well may seem like just one more task to add to an already-too-long list of requirements.

Following these guidelines, however, serves several important purposes. First, it signals to your readers that your paper should be taken seriously as a student’s contribution to a given academic or professional field; it is the literary equivalent of wearing a tailored suit to a job interview. Second, it shows that you respect other people’s work enough to give them proper credit for it. Finally, it helps your reader find additional materials if he or she wishes to learn more about your topic.

Furthermore, producing a letter-perfect APA-style paper need not be burdensome. Yes, it requires careful attention to detail. However, you can simplify the process if you keep these broad guidelines in mind:

• Work ahead whenever you can. Chapter 11 “Writing from Research: What Will I Learn?” includes tips for keeping track of your sources early in the research process, which will save time later on.
• Get it right the first time. Apply APA guidelines as you write, so you will not have much to correct during the editing stage. Again, putting in a little extra time early on can save time later.
• Use the resources available to you. In addition to the guidelines provided in this chapter, you may wish to consult the APA website at http://www.apa.org or the Purdue University Online Writing lab at http://owl.english.purdue.edu , which regularly updates its online style guidelines.

General Formatting Guidelines

This chapter provides detailed guidelines for using the citation and formatting conventions developed by the American Psychological Association, or APA. Writers in disciplines as diverse as astrophysics, biology, psychology, and education follow APA style. The major components of a paper written in APA style are listed in the following box.

These are the major components of an APA-style paper:

Body, which includes the following:

• Headings and, if necessary, subheadings to organize the content
• In-text citations of research sources
• References page

All these components must be saved in one document, not as separate documents.

The title page of your paper includes the following information:

• Title of the paper
• Author’s name
• Name of the institution with which the author is affiliated
• Header at the top of the page with the paper title (in capital letters) and the page number (If the title is lengthy, you may use a shortened form of it in the header.)

List the first three elements in the order given in the previous list, centered about one third of the way down from the top of the page. Use the headers and footers tool of your word-processing program to add the header, with the title text at the left and the page number in the upper-right corner. Your title page should look like the following example.

The next page of your paper provides an abstract , or brief summary of your findings. An abstract does not need to be provided in every paper, but an abstract should be used in papers that include a hypothesis. A good abstract is concise—about one hundred fifty to two hundred fifty words—and is written in an objective, impersonal style. Your writing voice will not be as apparent here as in the body of your paper. When writing the abstract, take a just-the-facts approach, and summarize your research question and your findings in a few sentences.

In Chapter 12 “Writing a Research Paper” , you read a paper written by a student named Jorge, who researched the effectiveness of low-carbohydrate diets. Read Jorge’s abstract. Note how it sums up the major ideas in his paper without going into excessive detail.

Write an abstract summarizing your paper. Briefly introduce the topic, state your findings, and sum up what conclusions you can draw from your research. Use the word count feature of your word-processing program to make sure your abstract does not exceed one hundred fifty words.

Depending on your field of study, you may sometimes write research papers that present extensive primary research, such as your own experiment or survey. In your abstract, summarize your research question and your findings, and briefly indicate how your study relates to prior research in the field.

Margins, Pagination, and Headings

APA style requirements also address specific formatting concerns, such as margins, pagination, and heading styles, within the body of the paper. Review the following APA guidelines.

Use these general guidelines to format the paper:

• Set the top, bottom, and side margins of your paper at 1 inch.
• Use double-spaced text throughout your paper.
• Use a standard font, such as Times New Roman or Arial, in a legible size (10- to 12-point).
• Use continuous pagination throughout the paper, including the title page and the references section. Page numbers appear flush right within your header.
• Section headings and subsection headings within the body of your paper use different types of formatting depending on the level of information you are presenting. Additional details from Jorge’s paper are provided.

Begin formatting the final draft of your paper according to APA guidelines. You may work with an existing document or set up a new document if you choose. Include the following:

• Your title page
• The abstract you created in Note 13.8 “Exercise 1”
• Correct headers and page numbers for your title page and abstract

APA style uses section headings to organize information, making it easy for the reader to follow the writer’s train of thought and to know immediately what major topics are covered. Depending on the length and complexity of the paper, its major sections may also be divided into subsections, sub-subsections, and so on. These smaller sections, in turn, use different heading styles to indicate different levels of information. In essence, you are using headings to create a hierarchy of information.

The following heading styles used in APA formatting are listed in order of greatest to least importance:

• Section headings use centered, boldface type. Headings use title case, with important words in the heading capitalized.
• Subsection headings use left-aligned, boldface type. Headings use title case.
• The third level uses left-aligned, indented, boldface type. Headings use a capital letter only for the first word, and they end in a period.
• The fourth level follows the same style used for the previous level, but the headings are boldfaced and italicized.
• The fifth level follows the same style used for the previous level, but the headings are italicized and not boldfaced.

Visually, the hierarchy of information is organized as indicated in Table 13.1 “Section Headings” .

Table 13.1 Section Headings

A college research paper may not use all the heading levels shown in Table 13.1 “Section Headings” , but you are likely to encounter them in academic journal articles that use APA style. For a brief paper, you may find that level 1 headings suffice. Longer or more complex papers may need level 2 headings or other lower-level headings to organize information clearly. Use your outline to craft your major section headings and determine whether any subtopics are substantial enough to require additional levels of headings.

Working with the document you developed in Note 13.11 “Exercise 2” , begin setting up the heading structure of the final draft of your research paper according to APA guidelines. Include your title and at least two to three major section headings, and follow the formatting guidelines provided above. If your major sections should be broken into subsections, add those headings as well. Use your outline to help you.

Because Jorge used only level 1 headings, his Exercise 3 would look like the following:

Citation Guidelines

In-text citations.

Throughout the body of your paper, include a citation whenever you quote or paraphrase material from your research sources. As you learned in Chapter 11 “Writing from Research: What Will I Learn?” , the purpose of citations is twofold: to give credit to others for their ideas and to allow your reader to follow up and learn more about the topic if desired. Your in-text citations provide basic information about your source; each source you cite will have a longer entry in the references section that provides more detailed information.

In-text citations must provide the name of the author or authors and the year the source was published. (When a given source does not list an individual author, you may provide the source title or the name of the organization that published the material instead.) When directly quoting a source, it is also required that you include the page number where the quote appears in your citation.

This information may be included within the sentence or in a parenthetical reference at the end of the sentence, as in these examples.

Epstein (2010) points out that “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive” (p. 137).

Here, the writer names the source author when introducing the quote and provides the publication date in parentheses after the author’s name. The page number appears in parentheses after the closing quotation marks and before the period that ends the sentence.

Addiction researchers caution that “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive” (Epstein, 2010, p. 137).

Here, the writer provides a parenthetical citation at the end of the sentence that includes the author’s name, the year of publication, and the page number separated by commas. Again, the parenthetical citation is placed after the closing quotation marks and before the period at the end of the sentence.

As noted in the book Junk Food, Junk Science (Epstein, 2010, p. 137), “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive.”

Here, the writer chose to mention the source title in the sentence (an optional piece of information to include) and followed the title with a parenthetical citation. Note that the parenthetical citation is placed before the comma that signals the end of the introductory phrase.

David Epstein’s book Junk Food, Junk Science (2010) pointed out that “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive” (p. 137).

Another variation is to introduce the author and the source title in your sentence and include the publication date and page number in parentheses within the sentence or at the end of the sentence. As long as you have included the essential information, you can choose the option that works best for that particular sentence and source.

Citing a book with a single author is usually a straightforward task. Of course, your research may require that you cite many other types of sources, such as books or articles with more than one author or sources with no individual author listed. You may also need to cite sources available in both print and online and nonprint sources, such as websites and personal interviews. Chapter 13 “APA and MLA Documentation and Formatting” , Section 13.2 “Citing and Referencing Techniques” and Section 13.3 “Creating a References Section” provide extensive guidelines for citing a variety of source types.

Writing at Work

APA is just one of several different styles with its own guidelines for documentation, formatting, and language usage. Depending on your field of interest, you may be exposed to additional styles, such as the following:

• MLA style. Determined by the Modern Languages Association and used for papers in literature, languages, and other disciplines in the humanities.
• Chicago style. Outlined in the Chicago Manual of Style and sometimes used for papers in the humanities and the sciences; many professional organizations use this style for publications as well.
• Associated Press (AP) style. Used by professional journalists.

References List

The brief citations included in the body of your paper correspond to the more detailed citations provided at the end of the paper in the references section. In-text citations provide basic information—the author’s name, the publication date, and the page number if necessary—while the references section provides more extensive bibliographical information. Again, this information allows your reader to follow up on the sources you cited and do additional reading about the topic if desired.

The specific format of entries in the list of references varies slightly for different source types, but the entries generally include the following information:

• The name(s) of the author(s) or institution that wrote the source
• The year of publication and, where applicable, the exact date of publication
• The full title of the source
• For books, the city of publication
• For articles or essays, the name of the periodical or book in which the article or essay appears
• For magazine and journal articles, the volume number, issue number, and pages where the article appears
• For sources on the web, the URL where the source is located

The references page is double spaced and lists entries in alphabetical order by the author’s last name. If an entry continues for more than one line, the second line and each subsequent line are indented five spaces. Review the following example. ( Chapter 13 “APA and MLA Documentation and Formatting” , Section 13.3 “Creating a References Section” provides extensive guidelines for formatting reference entries for different types of sources.)

In APA style, book and article titles are formatted in sentence case, not title case. Sentence case means that only the first word is capitalized, along with any proper nouns.

AMA Writing Guide: AMA Style Formatting

• AMA Style Formatting
• In-text Citations
• Journal Articles
• Books and Ebooks
• WHO Reports
• Misc. Citations
• Structured Abstract- IMRAD
• Primary & Secondary Sources
• Literature Matrix

Writing Resources

• Writing Center Resources
• Jerry Falwell Library Resources

The Liberty University Writing Center is available to provide writing coaching to students. Residential students should contact the  On-Campus Writing Center  for assistance. Online students should contact the  Online Writing Center  for assistance. 

The Jerry Falwell Library has a physical and eBook edition of the AMA Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors .  The AMA Manual contains exhaustive guidance for students needing more detailed information about ethical and legal considerations, correct and preferred usage, abbreviations, nomenclature, units of measure, numbers and percentages, study design and statistics, and mathematical composition,

If you need assistance in developing your qualitative or quantitative methodology, the SAGE Research Methods database provides resources for researchers conducting research in the social sciences. 

General Rules

Liberty University Students will either write AMA 11 style papers using the Non-structured Abstract format, or using the Practicum Class or Other Papers Requiring Structured Abstract format. To assist you in formatting, Liberty University's Writing Center provides a template and a sample paper for each formatting style. 

Papers with Non-Structured Abstract 

• Sample AMA 11 paper 
• Template AMA 11 paper  

Papers Using Structured Abstract 

• Template AMA 11 paper 

Additionally, the Writing Center also has a sample AMA 11 style annotated bibliography .

Here are a few things to keep in mind as you format your paper : 

• Title Page : The title page should include the report's title, student's name, and student ID number, date, and word count. A sample title page is found on the Liberty University's Writing Center's sample papers . 
• Margins/Alignment : Your papers should use 1-inch margins on standard-sized paper (8.5' X 11'). Make sure that you use Align left (CTRL + L) throughout the paper, except for the title page.  
• Spacing : The AMA does not have a standard for line spacing. Double-spaced lines are recommended throughout the body of your work, excluding block quotations. Block quotations are single-spaced, left-justified, with the entire left margin indented 1/2 inch. 
• Indentation : The first sentence in each new paragraph in the body of the paper should be indented 1/2 inch. AMA style references are listed in numerical order and do not receive any indentation. 
• Fonts : The AMA does not have a standard font or font size. Liberty University recommends that you write your papers in 12-point Times New Roman font for the body, and for all elements other than the title of the paper and headings. 
• Headings : The AMA Manual outlines four different heading levels. The title of your report and Level 1 headings must be in bold Arial 14-point font. Level 2 headings are in bold Arial 12-point font. Level 3 headings are in bold Arial 12-point font and underlined. Level 4 headings are in bold Arial 12-point font and italicized. 
• Tables and Figures:  In AMA-style papers, tables and figures are included in the body of the report. Section 4.0 of the AMA Manual of Style outlines how to format tables, figures, and multimedia. Tables and figures are numbered consecutively: Figure 1, Figure 2, etc. 
• Formatting Your References : Section 3.0 of the AMA Manual of Style outlines how to cite sources in text and how to format the references list found at the end of the work. The AMA style uses an endnote citation system, with references being provided in order of first use. 
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• Next: In-text Citations >>
• Last Updated: Apr 3, 2024 9:18 AM
• URL: https://libguides.liberty.edu/ama

TAFT COLLEGE

MLA Style Guide, 9th Edition: Formatting Your MLA Paper

• Works Cited entries: What to Include
• Title of source
• Title of container
• Other contributors
• Publication date
• Optional Elements
• Book with Personal Author(s)
• Book with Editor(s)
• Book with Organization as Author
• Parts of Books
• Government Publication
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Multivolume Works
• Newspaper Article
• Other Formats
• Websites, Social Media, and Email
• Works Cited Practice
• About In-text Citations
• In-text Examples
• How to Paraphrase and Quote
• Formatting Your MLA Paper
• Formatting Your Works Cited List
• MLA Annotated Bibliography

MLA recommends using 12-point Times New Roman font or another readable typeface (e.g. serif ).

Use double-spacing throughout the entire paper.

Leave 1 inch margins on the top, bottom, and each side.

Indent the first line of each paragraph half an inch from the left margin.

Quotes longer than 4 lines should be written as a block of text a half an inch from the left margin.

Heading and Title

An MLA research paper does not need a title page, but your instructor may require one. If no instructions are given, follow the MLA guidelines below:

Type the following one inch from the top of the first page, flush with the left margin (double spacing throughout).

Your Instructor's Name

Course Number or Name

Center the title on the next line. Follow the rules for capitalization. Do not italicize, underline, or bold the title. An exception is when your title includes a title.  Example:  The Attitude toward Violence in A Clockwork Orange

Indent the next line and begin typing your text.

Include your last name and page numbers in the upper right-hand corner of every page. The page numbers will be one-half inch from the top and flush with the right margin. If your instructor prefers no page number on the first page, begin numbering from 2 on the second page.

Formatting first page MLA MS Word using a MAC

Formatting first page mla goggle.dox, formatting first page mla ms word using pc, mla format setup in word 2013.

The links below provide step by step instructions on setting up your paper using MLA Style guidelines.

• Formatting Your Paper using MS Word - PC
• Formatting Your Paper using MS Word - MAC

Sample MLA Paper

• MLA Research Paper Template Properly formatted MLA Style research paper. Download and save to your computer so that you will always have the correct format for writing.

There are three sample papers available in the MLA Style Center. Check them out to see the correct formatting.

• << Previous: How to Paraphrase and Quote
• Next: Formatting Your Works Cited List >>
• Last Updated: Mar 24, 2022 5:10 PM
• URL: https://lib.taftcollege.edu/c.php?g=628017

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• Knowledge Base
• Working with sources

How to Block Quote | Length, Format and Examples

Published on April 25, 2018 by Courtney Gahan . Revised on May 31, 2023.

A block quote is a long quotation, set on a new line and indented to create a separate block of text. No quotation marks are used. You have to use a block quote when quoting more than around 40 words from a source.

In APA and MLA styles, you indent block quotes 0.5 inches from the left, and add an  in-text citation  after the period. Some other citation styles have additional rules.

Catherine Earnshaw, may you not rest as long as I am living; you said I killed you – haunt me, then! The murdered DO haunt their murderers, I believe. I know that ghosts HAVE wandered on earth. Be with me always – take any form – drive me mad! only DO not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you! Oh, God! it is unutterable! I CANNOT live without my life! I CANNOT live without my soul! (Brontë, 1847, 268)

Table of contents

How long is a block quote, step 1: introduce the quote, step 2: format and cite the quote, step 3: comment on the quote, when to use block quotes, other interesting articles.

The minimum length of a block quote varies between citation styles . Some styles require block quote formatting based on the number of words, while others require it based on the number of lines.

Scribbr Citation Checker New

The AI-powered Citation Checker helps you avoid common mistakes such as:

• Missing commas and periods
• Incorrect usage of “et al.”
• Ampersands (&) in narrative citations
• Missing reference entries

Every time you quote a source , it’s essential to show the reader exactly what purpose the quote serves. A block quote must be introduced in your own words to show how it fits into your argument or analysis.

If the text preceding the block quote is a complete sentence, use a colon to introduce the quote . If the quote is a continuation of the sentence that precedes it, you don’t need to add any extra punctuation .

lawmakers and regulators need to stop pharmaceutical companies from marketing drugs like OxyContin and establish stronger guidelines about how and when doctors can prescribe them. These drugs are often the last resort for people with cancer and other terminal conditions who experience excruciating pain. But they pose a great risk when used to treat the kinds of pain for which there are numerous non-addictive therapies available. (The Editorial Board, 2018)

Block quotes are not enclosed in quotation marks . Instead, they must be formatted to stand out from the rest of the text, signalling to the reader that the words are taken directly from a source. Each citation style has specific formatting rules.

APA and MLA format both require an indent of 0.5 inches on the left side. Block quotes are double spaced, the same as the rest of the document. Some other citation styles also require indentation on the right side, different spacing, or a smaller font.

To format a block quote in Microsoft Word, follow these steps:

• Hit Enter at the beginning and end of the quote.
• Highlight the quote and select the Layout menu.
• On the Indent tab, change the left indent to 0.5″.

Block quotes of more than one paragraph

If you quote more than one paragraph, indent the first line of the new paragraph as you would in the main text.

Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you’d expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn’t hold with such nonsense.

Mr. Dursley was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills. He was a big, beefy man with hardly any neck, although he did have a very large mustache. Mrs. Dursley was thin and blonde and had nearly twice the usual amount of neck, which came in very useful as she spent so much of her time craning over garden fences, spying on the neighbors. The Dursleys had a small son called Dudley and in their opinion there was no finer boy anywhere. (Rowling 1)

Citing block quotes

All block quotes must end with a citation that directs the reader to the correct source. How the citation looks depends on the citation style. In most styles, including APA and MLA , the parenthetical citation comes after the period at the end of a block quote.

A paragraph should never end with a block quote. Directly after the quote, you need to comment on it in your own words. Depending on the purpose of the block quote, your comment might involve:

• Analyzing the language of the quoted text
• Explaining how the quote relates to your argument
• Giving further context
• Summarizing the overall point you want to make

Block quotes should be used when the specific wording or style of the quoted text is essential to your point. How often you use them depends partly on your field of study.

• In the arts and humanities, block quotes are frequently used to conduct in-depth textual analysis .
• In social science research involving interviews or focus groups , block quotes are often necessary when analyzing participants’ responses.
• In scientific writing, block quotes are very rarely used.

Avoid relying on block quotes from academic sources to explain ideas or make your points for you. In general, quotes should be used as sparingly as possible, as your own voice should be dominant. When you use another author’s ideas or refer to previous research, it’s often better to integrate the source by paraphrasing .

If you want to know more about ChatGPT, AI tools , citation , and plagiarism , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• ChatGPT vs human editor
• ChatGPT citations
• Is ChatGPT trustworthy?
• Using ChatGPT for your studies
• What is ChatGPT?
• Chicago style
• Paraphrasing

 Plagiarism

• Types of plagiarism
• Self-plagiarism
• Avoiding plagiarism
• Academic integrity
• Consequences of plagiarism
• Common knowledge

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Gahan, C. (2023, May 31). How to Block Quote | Length, Format and Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/working-with-sources/block-quote/

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CMP-125 (Kranzler, Spring 2024)

• Assignment: Paper 5
• How to: Annotated Bibliography in RefWorks
• Assignment: Paper 3
• Search Tips
• Identify Types of Publications
• Evaluate Internet Resources
• Search for Reliable Articles
• Avoid Plagiarism
• Citing Sources
• Create a Hanging Indent
• **More Citation Help This link opens in a new window
• **Get Research Help This link opens in a new window

Create a hanging indent

• What is a hanging indent?
• Microsoft Word
• Google Docs

When you create a citation for your research paper, you will need to make sure that it is formatted correctly! When listing your citations in your References/Works Cited/Bibliography, you will need to make sure that you use something called a hanging indent . While a regular indent is used at the start of your paragraph, a hanging indent has the first line flush to the left, then all lines following will be tabbed over. Here are examples of these two types of indentation:

In the next two tabs, I will include instructions on how to get your citations to look like the bottom example in Microsoft Word and in Google Docs!

1. In order to create a hanging indent, you will need to select the citation (or citations) that need to be formatted. Highlight the citation(s) and right-click. This should bring up the following list. Select the "Paragraph" option.

2. From here, a box that looks like this should pop up. Go to the area that is titled "Indention", then "Special". Select "Hanging" from the drop-down menu, then click OK. 

3. This should format your citation to have a hanging indent!

1. In order to create a hanging indent, you will need to select the citation (or citations) that need to be formatted. Highlight the citation(s) that you need to be formatted. From there, go to the top and select "Format", then hover over to "Align & indent". This should bring up another menu. Select "Indentation options" from the list . 

2. From here, you should get a box that pops up that looks like the image below. Click on the drop-down menu under "Special" and select "Hanging".

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• Last Updated: Apr 5, 2024 1:05 PM
• URL: https://guides.rider.edu/kranzler-cmp-125

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

MLA Works Cited Page: Basic Format

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MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities. This resource, updated to reflect the MLA Handbook (9 th  ed.), offers examples for the general format of MLA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the Works Cited page.

According to MLA style, you must have a Works Cited page at the end of your research paper. All entries in the Works Cited page must correspond to the works cited in your main text.

Basic rules

• Begin your Works Cited page on a separate page at the end of your research paper. It should have the same one-inch margins and last name, page number header as the rest of your paper.
• Only the title should be centered. The citation entries themselves should be aligned with the left margin.
• Double space all citations, but do not skip spaces between entries.
• Indent the second and subsequent lines of citations by 0.5 inches to create a hanging indent.
• List page numbers of sources efficiently, when needed. If you refer to a journal article that appeared on pages 225 through 250, list the page numbers on your Works Cited page as pp. 225-50 (Note: MLA style dictates that you should omit the first sets of repeated digits. In our example, the digit in the hundreds place is repeated between 2 25 and 2 50, so you omit the 2 from 250 in the citation: pp. 225-50). If the excerpt spans multiple pages, use “pp.”   Note that MLA style uses a hyphen in a span of pages.
• If only one page of a print source is used, mark it with the abbreviation “p.” before the page number (e.g., p. 157). If a span of pages is used, mark it with the abbreviation “pp.” before the page number (e.g., pp. 157-68).
• If you're citing an article or a publication that was originally issued in print form but that you retrieved from an online database, you should type the online database name in italics. You do not need to provide subscription information in addition to the database name.
• For online sources, you should include a location to show readers where you found the source. Many scholarly databases use a DOI (digital object identifier). Use a DOI in your citation if you can; otherwise use a URL. Delete “http://” from URLs. The DOI or URL is usually the last element in a citation and should be followed by a period.
• All works cited entries end with a period.

Additional basic rules new to MLA 2021

New to MLA 2021:

• Apps and databases should be cited only when they are containers of the particular works you are citing, such as when they are the platforms of publication of the works in their entirety, and not an intermediary that redirects your access to a source published somewhere else, such as another platform. For example, the Philosophy Books app should be cited as a container when you use one of its many works, since the app contains them in their entirety. However, a PDF article saved to the Dropbox app is published somewhere else, and so the app should not be cited as a container.
• If it is important that your readers know an author’s/person’s pseudonym, stage-name, or various other names,  then you should generally cite the better-known form of author’s/person’s name. For example, since the author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is better-known by his pseudonym, cite Lewis Carroll opposed to Charles Dodgson (real name).
• For annotated bibliographies , annotations should be appended at the end of a source/entry with one-inch indentations from where the entry begins. Annotations may be written as concise phrases or complete sentences, generally not exceeding one paragraph in length.

Capitalization and punctuation

• Capitalize each word in the titles of articles, books, etc, but do not capitalize articles (the, an), prepositions, or conjunctions unless one is the first word of the title or subtitle: Gone with the Wind, The Art of War, There Is Nothing Left to Lose .
• Use italics (instead of underlining) for titles of larger works (books, magazines) and quotation marks for titles of shorter works (poems, articles)

Listing author names

Entries are listed alphabetically by the author's last name (or, for entire edited collections, editor names). Author names are written with the last name first, then the first name, and then the middle name or middle initial when needed:

Do not  list titles (Dr., Sir, Saint, etc.) or degrees (PhD, MA, DDS, etc.) with names. A book listing an author named "John Bigbrain, PhD" appears simply as "Bigbrain, John." Do, however, include suffixes like "Jr." or "II." Putting it all together, a work by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would be cited as "King, Martin Luther, Jr." Here the suffix following the first or middle name and a comma.

More than one work by an author

If you have cited more than one work by a particular author, order the entries alphabetically by title, and use three hyphens in place of the author's name for every entry after the first:

Burke, Kenneth. A Grammar of Motives . [...]

---. A Rhetoric of Motives . [...]

When an author or collection editor appears both as the sole author of a text and as the first author of a group, list solo-author entries first:

Heller, Steven, ed. The Education of an E-Designer .

Heller, Steven, and Karen Pomeroy. Design Literacy: Understanding Graphic Design.

Work with no known author

Alphabetize works with no known author by their title; use a shortened version of the title in the parenthetical citations in your paper. In this case, Boring Postcards USA has no known author:

Baudrillard, Jean. Simulacra and Simulations.  [...]

Boring Postcards USA  [...]

Burke, Kenneth. A Rhetoric of Motives . [...] 

Work by an author using a pseudonym or stage-name

New to MLA 9th edition, there are now steps to take for citing works by an author or authors using a pseudonym, stage-name, or different name. 

If the person you wish to cite is well-known, cite the better-known form of the name of the author. For example, since Lewis Carroll is  not only a pseudonym of Charles Dodgson , but also the better-known form of the author’s name, cite the former name opposed to the latter. 

If the real name of the author is less well-known than their pseudonym, cite the author’s pseudonym in square brackets following the citation of their real name: “Christie, Agatha [Mary Westmacott].”

Authors who published various works under many names may be cited under a single form of the author’s name. When the form of the name you wish to cite differs from that which appears on the author’s work, include the latter in square brackets following an italicized published as : “Irving, Washington [ published as Knickerbocker, Diedrich].”.

Another acceptable option, in cases where there are only two forms of the author’s name, is to cite both forms of the author’s names as separate entries along with cross-references in square brackets: “Eliot, George [ see also Evans, Mary Anne].”.