Writing a reference list for your psychology essay

On this page, you can...

  • find out what we mean by 'APA style' and why you need to include a reference list at all!

  • find out how to attribute references in the body of your essay

  • see a sample reference list, with notes on how to present different kinds of references

  • find out how to attribute references to electronic (web) sources and lecture notes

    So why do I need to write a reference list? (not a bibliography!)

    A bibliography is a generic list of sources you claim to have used to do your research. The information in your essay could (in principle) have come from any part of any of the sources in your list. A reference list is more specific: it tells the reader exactly where to find every study, theory and idea you've cited. In this sense, it's more useful than a bibliography because the reader can follow-up any interesting bits of information quickly and easily. That's why academics give reference lists at the end of their publications, and it's also why we want you to produce a reference list -- not a bibliography!

    A well presented, comprehensive list which covers every reference cited in your essay suggests to the reader that you've put a lot of effort into researching your work. In other words, it adds to the overall impression created by your essay; the better the impression, the higher your mark is likely to be!

    What is APA style and why should I care about it?

    APA style (also known as 'author-year' style) is the name given to a set of editorial guidelines laid down by the American Psychological Association. Why should you care about APA style? Well, this is the way articles have to be presented in many prestigious journals in the social and behavioural sciences, so as a psychologist we want you to learn about these guidelines. Psychology students are often asked to present their written work in APA style, so it's well worth getting to grips with these rules!

    Attributing references in your essay

    In the main body of your essay, you should tell me the names of the psychologists associated with each idea/theory/study you mention, and the date (year) when they published their work. For example, you might say something like:

    The human sentence processor has often been assumed to be a serial device (Frazier, 1989).
    or Frazier (1989) assumes that the human sentence processor is a serial device.

    If there are 3 or more authors, give a full reference the first time you mention them, like this:
    According to Gleitman, Fridlund, and Reisberg (1999), gentlemen prefer blondes.
    or Gentlemen prefer blondes (Gleitman, Fridlund, & Reisberg, 1999).

    Thereafter you can use et al., like this:
    Gleitman et al. (1999) also suggest that...

    Don't use numbers to identify references, or put references in footnotes. All of your references should actually appear in the text. So please don't do this:
    The human sentence processor has often been assumed to be a serial device1.
    or this: The human sentence processor has often been assumed to be a serial device (1).

    This is an appropriate convention in some situations, but not in your psychology coursework! Why? Well, making the reader look for a footnote or flip to the back of your essay every time they come across a reference distracts their attention from your argument, and ruins the flow of what they are reading.

    Sample reference list

    Here is an example reference list presented in APA style (these are just pretend references, borrowed from Sternberg, R. J. (1993). The psychologist's companion: A guide to scientific writing for students and researchers (3rd ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press).

    The notes beneath each reference highlight the important details for presenting the different kinds of source (books, pamphlets, journal articles etc.) that you might use in your own work. Note that you should list your references in alphabetical order, by (first) author's surname. As a rule of thumb, you should highlight (underline or italicize) the name of the volume you would physically take off the shelf. So, if you're referencing a book, highlight the book title; if you're referencing a journal article, highlight the name of the journal.

    ....................

    Balderdash, H. Q. (1969). Writing for meaning. Los Angeles: Perfection Press.
    Here's a basic example of how to reference a book. The author's surname goes first, followed by their initials and the date of publication. Italicize or underline the name of the book itself. Finally give the place of publication and the name of the publishing company. Note that you don't give page numbers here (even if you have quoted from the book in your essay).

    Crumpet, C. D., & Donut, D. C. (1975). Sugar tastes good and is good for you (Vol. 1). Honolulu: Sugar Promotion Press.
    Another example of how to reference a book. This one has two authors, and there is more than one volume of the publication.

    Finn, D., Jr. (1970). Breathing in fish. In G. Trout and H. Bass (Eds.), The physiology of fish. San Francisco: Fisherman's Press.
    A chapter from an edited book. Notice that the Editors' initials come before their surnames, and that you should highlight the name of the book rather than the name of the chapter.

    Firestone, N. Z. (1974). You can prevent pyromania. Journal of Exotic Ailments, 15, 63-68.
    Here's an example of a journal article. Here you should highlight the name and volume of the journal, not the name of the article. Include page numbers.

    Lemon, B. J. (1974). Vitamin C in your diet (2nd ed.). Miami: Citrus Press.
    Another book, this time a second edition.

    Lohne, E. Z., & Sharke, P. P. (in press). Should usury be a crime? To appear in Money Minder's Digest.
    An example of a journal article that hasn't yet been published. You probably won't need to reference anything like this in your essay, but just in case...

    Pompus, V. Q. (Ed.) (1970). Encyclopaedia of knowledge (16 vols.). San Francisco: Worldwide.
    An edited book with more than one volume.

    Referencing electronic documents

    The American Psychological Association (APA) publishes some guidelines on how to reference electronic sources, such as articles you find on the internet. See http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html for more details.

    Referencing lecture notes

    Often your lecturer will give you references/pointers to the studies and theories they discuss. But if your lecturer cites something and you can't find the original source to add to your reference list, you could say something like:

    Writing your first psychology essay can be a daunting experience (Dimwit, 1942, cited by Pickering, 2002).

    Similarly, if you want include a point made by your lecturer for which there is no other source, you could treat the lecturer as a 'pseudo-reference', like this:

    Writing your first psychology essay can be a daunting experience (Pickering, 2002).

    In your reference list, you would then need to add something like:
    Pickering, M. (2002). Psychology 1 lecture notes. Edinburgh, UK: University of Edinburgh.

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    Last updated 3rd December 2004