When you write a research article, you may want to use the information gathered in a survey. By including a citation for the information, readers can independently verify your writing. In addition, you will also be protected from accusations of plagiarism. When using the American Psychological Association (APA) style of citation, the citation format will differ depending on whether you are using survey datasets that have been collected by others and have been published, or are referring to self-administered surveys.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Using Published Survey Data Sets
Step 1. Begin the bibliography or reference entry with the name of the author or publisher
Typically, APA reference entries begin with the author's last name, followed by his first initial (and middle initial if applicable). However, most survey data sets do not include author information. Instead, the institution conducting the survey may be considered the author. Place a period after the name.
- For example: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
- For English: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Step 2. Add the date of issue (in parentheses)
Usually, you can use the year the data set was published. More specific dates are not required to be added. However, if the month or year is included in the publication information of the dataset, place a comma after the year, then continue with the month and date. Do not shorten the name of the month. Place a period at the end of the date, outside the closing parenthesis.
- For example: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. (2019).
- For English: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. (2019).
Step 3. Include the title and source type
State the title of the data set in italics. Use a sentence-case format (capital letters as the first letter of the first word and only your own name). After that, use a plain font and type the phrase " Data set " or " Data set " in square brackets. Place the dot outside the closing bracket.
- For example: Hogwards School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. (2019). Muggle pop culture in the wizarding world [Data set].
- For English: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. (2019). Muggle popular culture in the wizarding world [Data set].
Step 4. State the name of the publisher or distributor if it is different from the author's name
If you specify the publisher's name as the author and no other publisher or distributor information is available, skip this element. However, if the issuing institution is different from the author, include the name of the publisher/distributor along with a description of the institution's role in parentheses (eg " Publisher " for publisher or " Distributor” for distributor). Place a period outside the closing brackets.
- For example: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. (2019). Muggle pop culture in the wizarding world [Data set]. Ministry of Magic [Distributor].
- For English: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. (2019). Muggle popular culture in the wizarding world [Data set]. Ministry of Magic [Distributor].
Step 5. Attach the URL for the online resource
Usually, you can access survey response data sets from the internet. Type in the phrase " Retrieved from ", followed by the full direct URL of the data set to end the reference list entry. Don't add a period to the end of the URL.
- For example: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. (2019). Muggle pop culture in the wizarding world [Data set]. Ministry of Magic [Distributor]. Retrieved from
- For English: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. (2019). Muggle popular culture in the wizarding world [Data set]. Ministry of Magic [Distributor]. Accessed from
Reference List Entry Format in APA Citation Style:
Author/Publisher. (Year). Data set title [Data set/Data set]. Publisher/Distributor. Retrieved from URL
Step 6. Use the name of the author or publisher and year of publication for in-text citations
In the main body of the article, in-text citations (bracketed citations) will direct the reader to the full entry of the appropriate source in the reference list. Include the name of the author or publisher and the year of publication at the end of the sentence, before the period.
- For example, you might write something like this: "Surveys indicate that most witches and wizards are unfamiliar with even the most ubiquitous Muggle pop culture references (Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, 2019)."
- For English: “The survey shows that most wizards are still unfamiliar with Muggle popular culture references, even the most famous ones (Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, 2019).”
- If you mention the name of the author or publisher in a sentence, place the year of publication in parentheses after the name. You don't need any other information for in-text citations. For example, you might write something like this: "According to a survey conducted by the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (2019), witches and wizards don't pay much attention to Muggle pop culture."
- For English: "Based on a survey conducted by the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (2019), wizards pay little attention to Muggle popular culture."
Method 2 of 2: Making References to Self-Conducted Surveys
Step 1. Describe your survey directly in writing
If you are conducting a survey related to a scientific article yourself, include information about the survey at the beginning of the article. Tell readers why you took the survey and what you hope to learn from the survey.
Carefully relate the survey to the topic of the article and explain the importance of the survey. For example, you might want to replicate a survey conducted in the 1980s with the same demographics to see if the results have changed (as well as the process of change)
Step 2. Include a brief description of the survey method
When describing the survey, explain the method and the number of people who participated. If relevant, you can also include information about the demographics of survey participants.
Asking questions also affects the response you get, so make sure you include that information. For example, participants may answer more honestly in anonymous online surveys than when speaking in person, especially if you ask relatively sensitive or personal questions
Step 3. Clearly indicate when you are referring to the data taken from the survey
The APA Citation Style does not require the use of in-text citations if you are referring to data taken from the survey itself. Instead, simply state in the text that the data mentioned is taken from the results of the survey you conducted.
- For example, you might write something like this: "I interviewed 50 Hogwarts students and none could name more than one current Muggle pop band."
- For English: "I/We interviewed 50 Hogwarts students and not a single student could name more than one popular Muggle band."
Tip:
Since your survey is not published anywhere and cannot be accessed independently by readers, you do not need to include your survey entries in the reference list at the end of the article.
Step 4. Include a copy of the survey questions as an attachment
Since your survey won't be published anywhere else, include a copy of the survey questions so readers can review the survey independently. Technically, readers can repeat your survey using the same questions (if they wish) and find out if the responses or answers differ.
Label the list of questions as “Appendix A” or “Appendix A”, then add them at the end of the article. If you have multiple attachments, label each one with a capital letter and alphabetically
Tip:
Step 5. Use in-text citations (brackets) to refer to in-text attachments
If you are mentioning a question or citing a response/answer dataset, use in-text citations at the end of the sentence to direct readers to the source of the information. Since you are adding a reference to a different section or segment of the article, and not a quote, use the word " See ", followed by the attachment label.
- For example, you might write something like this: “I found that while 72 of the Hogwarts students surveyed were able to correctly identify a song by The Beatles, none recognized a song by Lady Gaga (See Appendix B).”
- For English: “I/We found that although 72 Hogwarts students interviewed could recognize one Beatles song, no one recognized Lady Gaga's song (See Appendix B).”
