APA 7
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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Occasionally, you may need to keep details about a source confidential, particularly if you have been on placement or you work for the organisation. This may be because the source includes private health information, commercially sensitive information, or because it is not appropriate to name them in the specific context of your assignment.
The APA Manual does not provide guidance on doing this, as the principle is that all sources are fully referenced.
We have provided a way to do this below, but would recommend you talk to your lecturer if you are unsure about confidentiality in your assignment.
Sometimes, it may also be appropriate to add an anonymised extract of the document to an appendix, to provide context to the reader.
As well as the author, you may also need to anonymise some or all of the title. Put any information you have anonymised into square brackets, to make it clear that you have changed it from the original.
Reference
The title in this example included the name of the NHS Trust (e.g. University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire vaccination protocol). The name of the trust has been anonymised and put into square brackets, but the rest of the title has been retained.
NHS Trust. (2021). [NHS Trust] vaccination protocol. [Unpublished confidential document]. NHS England.
In this example, the whole title would have identified the company. Therefore an anonymised description of the document has been used, and the description has been put into square brackets
Company A. (2020). [Document detailing response to the COVID-19 pandemic]. [Unpublished confidential document].
The company name has been anonymised in this example, but the original title of the document does not identify the company in any way. The original title has therefore been included in full.
Placement Company. (2019). Annual strategy 2019-2020. [Unpublished confidential document].
In-text citation
The new protocol was found to improve patient outcomes (NHS Trust, 2021).
Company A (2020) experienced a loss in profits during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The strategy was changed in response to fluctuating market conditions (Placement Company, 2019).