APA format, also known as APA style, is a writing style and format for academic documents such as scholarly journal articles and books. It is commonly used for citing sources within the field of behavioral and social sciences, including sociology, education, nursing, and psychology, among others. The guidelines for APA format are described in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. It covers aspects of scholarly writing most pertinent to writing in various fields and provides a foundation for effective scholarly communication, helping writers present their ideas in a clear, precise, and inclusive manner

. The format includes guidelines for in-text citations, reference pages, and the general formatting of papers, such as the use of a specific font, page headers, and paper sections