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UCQ

APA Referencing

Citing sources in APA format

Reporting Verb Tense

The rules of subject/verb agreement apply to reporting verbs.

Simple present
Vereau (1994) warns against . . .*

don't forget to add an "s" or "es" to the verb when the subject is 2nd person singular (he, she, it).

Present perfect 

Banks-Wallace (1998) has identified . . .*

The helper verb "have" must agree with the subject, so 2nd person singular (he, she, it) uses "has" while "I" and plural subjects use "have."

When referring to other sources in scholarly writing, writers should maintain consistency in verb form as follows:

Literature review

Simple past (e.g., "They described") 
Present prefect (e.g., "They have identified")

Describing results 

Simple past (e.g., "Anxiety decreased")

Discussing implications of results and reporting conclusions 

Simple present (e.g., "Communication skills are")

Source for example sentences

* Restrepo, E., & Davis, L. (2003). Storytelling: Both art and therapeutic practice. International Journal for Human Caring, 7(1), 43-48. https://doi.org/10.20467/1091-5710.7.1.43

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