APA 7th Edition is the most commonly used referencing style here at the University of Portsmouth. Below you will find general guidance on how to reference and cite using APA 7th Edition, as well as examples for the specific sources you are likely to use in your assignments. 

Your department or lecturer may prefer you to reference sources differently from the guidance given here. Always follow the requirements of your department or lecturer. 

External visitors are welcome to use this guide, but note that your institution's requirements may differ from those suggested here.

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If, after looking at this guidance, you are still stuck, then we can help. If you have a quick question then chat to us online, and if you need more help then you can Book an online APA 7 referencing appointment.

 

Common software and programming languages mentioned in the text of your work but not paraphrased or quoted do not need references or citations.

"Common" will be relative to your area of study. Examples of software which doesn't require referencing include Microsoft Office, survey software (e.g. Survey Monkey), Adobe products and statistical programs such as SPSS. For these you simply give the name of the software within your text. 

For video games follow this guidance

Reference

Author, Initials. or Group. (Year of release). Name of software (Version number) [Computer software]. Publisher. URL.

TechSmith Corporation. (2017). Camtasia Studio (Version 3) [Computer software]. http://www.techsmith.com/download.html

In-text Citation

If you refer to the name of software you have referenced and cited in your text, this should be in italics.

Camtasia Studio (TechSmith, 2017) can be used to record tutorials...

This software was created by TechSmith (2017)...