How to: Document a Speech in APA Format

The American Psychological Association developed APA formatting for research in order to establish consistency in format among written projects and allow writers a way to indicate the credibility of their sources. Instructors often require APA style in social sciences courses such as history, psychology and sociology. Speeches sometimes create difficulty for students when trying to cite them since they are by definition oral communication and so may not appear in written form. However, APA does outline how to include speeches properly following APA format.

Instructions

    • 1

      Start the entry on the references page with the speaker's last name followed by a comma and then the first name, very much like you would for the author of an article or book: Smith, Sam.

    • 2

      Write the title of the presentation inside quotation marks, placing a period at the end of the title inside the quotation marks: "For Whom the Tell's Bold."

    • 3

      List the name of the conference or class, or the sponsoring organization if the speech had no name, followed by a period: Living Poetry Lecture Series.

    • 4

      Put the city and state where the speech was given next, again followed by a period: Denver, Colorado.

    • 5

      Include the date of the presentation at the end, giving the date, abbreviation for the month and four-digit year with no punctuation between and ending with a period: 22 Oct. 2010.

    • 6

      Cite within the text using a signal phrase with the author's last name with the year of publication in parentheses just as you would for other sources: According to Smith (2010), . . .

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