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APA QUESTIONS
1) When should I use an abbreviation?
2) How do I introduce an abbreviation in the text?
3) How do I abbreviate group authors in in-text citations and reference list entries?
4) How do I present an abbreviation in conjunction with an in-text citation?
5) Can I use abbreviations in the title of a paper?
6) Can I use abbreviations in the running head?
7) Can I use abbreviations in the abstract?
8) Can I use abbreviations in headings?
9) Can I use abbreviations in tables and figures?
10) Do all abbreviations needs to be defined?
11) How do I use the words a and an before abbreviations?
12) Are abbreviations written with periods?
13) How do I make an abbreviation plural?

1. When should I use an abbreviation?

Use abbreviations sparingly and only when they will help readers understand your work.
Ask yourself these questions each time you consider using a particular abbreviation:
 Is the reader familiar with the abbreviation?
 Use an existing, accepted abbreviation if one exists, because familiarity helps
understanding. If a standard abbreviation does not exist, then you can create
your own.
 Will you use the abbreviation at least three times in the paper?
 Use an abbreviation at least three times in a paper if you are going to use it at all.
If you won’t use it three times, then spell out the term every time. The reader
might have a hard time remembering what the abbreviation means if you use it
infrequently.
 Would spelling out the term every time be overly repetitive and cumbersome?
 Use abbreviations to avoid cumbersome repetition and enhance understanding,
not just as a writing shortcut. For example, it is usually easier to read a two-word
phrase than it is to remember the meaning of a two-letter abbreviation. Longer
phrases make better candidates for abbreviation.

How many total abbreviations do you have in the paper?

There’s no hard line of how many abbreviations is too many, but writing is generally
easier to understand when most words are spelled out than when it is overflowing with
abbreviations. Only abbreviate when it helps the reader.
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2. How do I introduce an abbreviation in the text?

The first time you use an abbreviation in the text, present both the spelled-out version
and the short form. When the spelled-out version first appears in the narrative of the
sentence, put the abbreviation in parentheses after it:

Example:
We studied attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children.
When the spelled-out version first appears in parentheses, put the abbreviation in
brackets after it:

Example:
The diagnosis (i.e., attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder [ADHD]) was confirmed via
behavioral observation.
After you define an abbreviation (regardless of whether it is in parentheses), use only
the abbreviation. Do not alternate between spelling out the term and abbreviating it.

3. How do I abbreviate group authors in in-text citations and reference list

entries?
If your reference has a group author, the name of the group can sometimes be
abbreviated—for example, American Psychological Association can be abbreviated to
APA. You are not obligated to abbreviate the name of a group author, but you can if the
abbreviation would help avoid cumbersome repetition and will appear more than three
times in the paper.

As with other abbreviations, spell out the name of the group upon first mention in the
text and then provide the abbreviation.
If the name of the group first appears in the narrative, put the abbreviation, a comma,
and the year for the citation in parentheses after it.

Example:
The American Psychological Association (APA, 2011) suggested that parents talk to
their children about family finances in age-appropriate ways.
If the name of the group first appears in parentheses, put the abbreviation in brackets
after it, followed by a comma and the year for the citation.

Example:
Children should learn about family finances in age-appropriate ways (American
Psychological Association [APA], 2011).

In the reference list entry, do not include the abbreviation for the group author. Instead,
spell out the full name of the group.

Correct reference entry:

American Psychological Association. (2011). Dollars and sense: Talking to your children
about the economy. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/topics/learning/enhance-
memory.aspx
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Incorrect reference entry:

American Psychological Association (APA). (2011). Dollars and sense: Talking to your
children about the economy. Retrieved from
http://www.apa.org/topics/learning/enhance-memory.aspx

If you have several references by the same group author, you only need to abbreviate
the name once (see here for how to handle references with the same author and date).
Note that if two different groups would abbreviate to the same form (e.g., both the
American Psychological Association and the American Psychiatric Association
abbreviate to APA), you cannot use the abbreviation in your paper—instead you must
spell out the term every time to avoid ambiguity.

An exception to abbreviations in the reference list is when works have been published
using abbreviations as part of the author, title, or source. Retain these abbreviations
because the reader will need them to retrieve the source (you also do not need to define
them—just present them as-is). See more about this in our post on cite what you see.

4. How do I present an abbreviation in conjunction with an in-text citation?

Sometimes an abbreviation is presented along with an in-text citation. For example, you
might cite a test or measure that has an abbreviation and then provide its citation (for a
common case, here is how to cite the DSM-5).

If the spelled-out version of the term appears in the narrative for the first time, put the
abbreviation and the author–date citation in parentheses after it, separated by a
semicolon. Do not use back-to-back parentheses.

Correct:
We assessed depression using the Beck Depression Inventory–II (BDI-II; Beck, Brown,
& Steer, 1996).

Incorrect:
We used the Beck Depression Inventory—II (BDI-II) (Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996).

If the spelled-out version of the term appears in parentheses for the first time, put the
abbreviation in brackets after it, followed by a semicolon and the author–date citation.

Example:
Our assessment of depression (as measured via scores on the Beck Depression
Inventory–II [BDI-II]; Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996) showed significant incidence of this
disorder in the population.

5. Can I use abbreviations in the title of a paper?

Avoid using abbreviations in the title of a paper. Writing out the full term in the title will
ensure potential readers know exactly what you mean, and if your article is formally
published, it will ensure it is accurately indexed.
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6. Can I use abbreviations in the running head?

There is no official guidance on whether to use abbreviations in the running head. We
recommend that you avoid them, unless the abbreviation is well-known and there is no
alternative running head that would be better. If you do use an abbreviation in a running
head, you can use it straightaway without definition. Instead, define the abbreviation the
first time you use it in the text.

7. Can I use abbreviations in the abstract?

In general, it is not necessary to use abbreviations in the abstract because the abstract
is so short. However, if the abbreviation would help the reader recognize a term or find
your article via search, then it is permissible to include an abbreviation in the abstract,
even if it is not used three times. When you use an abbreviation in both the abstract and
the text, define it in both places upon first use.

8. Can I use abbreviations in headings?

The Publication Manual does not offer official guidance on whether to use abbreviations
in headings. We recommend that you avoid them—for example, the reader may skim
the paper before reading it in full, and abbreviations in headings may be difficult to
understand out of context. So, if a term you intend to abbreviate appears in a heading
(e.g., the name of a test or measure), spell out the term in the heading and then when it
first appears in the text, spell it out again and define it there.

9. Can I use abbreviations in tables and figures?

Yes, you can use abbreviations in tables and figures. All abbreviations used in tables
and figures should be defined in the table note or figure caption, respectively, even
though the abbreviations will be also be defined in the text if they are used there. The
purpose of defining abbreviations in the table note or figure caption is that if other
authors reuse your graphical display in a future paper, the definitions of the terms will be
attached. Additionally, many readers will skim an article before reading it closely, and
defining abbreviations in tables and figures will allow the readers to understand the
abbreviations immediately.

10. Do all abbreviations needs to be defined?

Not all abbreviations need to be defined. Consult Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary to
determine what to do: If the abbreviation has the designation abbr. after it in the
dictionary, that means it needs to be defined; if it does not have this designation, the
abbreviation is considered a word on its own and can be used straight off the bat,
without definition. You also do not need to define abbreviations for units of
measurement (e.g., cm for centimeters, hr for hour).

Examples of abbreviations that are considered words: IQ, REM, HIV, AIDS, FAQ
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11. How do I use the words a and an before abbreviations?

Use the article that matches the way the abbreviation is pronounced--an before a vowel
sound and a before a consonant sound. Some abbreviations are pronounced as words
(e.g., RAM), and some abbreviations are pronounced letter-by-letter, which is also
called an initialism (e.g., HMO, IQ). If you are unsure of the pronunciation of an
abbreviation, look it up in the dictionary or ask a colleague. If an abbreviation has
multiple pronunciations, use the first one shown in the dictionary entry.
Examples: an FBI agent, a DSM-5 disorder, a U.S. citizen, an IQ score

12. Are abbreviations written with periods?

Generally, do not use periods in abbreviations. Some exceptions are that you should
use periods in the abbreviations for United States and United Kingdom when these
terms are used as adjectives (don’t abbreviate them if they are used as nouns). And if
you have created an identity-concealing label for a participant, use a period after
each letter.

Examples:
U.S. Census Bureau, U.K. population, participant R.E.C.

13. How do I make an abbreviation plural?

To make an abbreviation plural, add an –s (or –es, for abbreviations ending
in s already). Do not add an apostrophe. For more, see our dedicated post on plural
abbreviations and numbers.
Examples: IQs, RTs, CSes.