APA Quotation and Referencing Guidelines for M.A. Political Science Students:

In academic writing, proper citation is essential to uphold the principles of transparency, academic integrity, and intellectual honesty.
The American Psychological Association (APA) style is one of the most widely accepted systems for citation in the social sciences,
including Political Science—especially in departments that emphasize empirical and policy-oriented research.

APA citation follows an author-date system with in-text parenthetical references, supported by a full reference list at the end of the document.
Unlike footnote-based systems, APA does not use footnotes for citation purposes (except for limited content notes). Instead, sources are
referenced directly within the text.

1. In-text Citations

When quoting or paraphrasing, the author's surname and the year of publication must appear in parentheses:
- Direct quote: “Security is always political” (Booth, 2007, p. 33).
- Paraphrase: According to Booth (2007), security should be viewed as a deeply political process.

If the source has two authors: (Keohane & Nye, 2011)
If more than three: (Waltz et al., 2010)

2. Reference List Examples

At the end of your paper, a full reference list must include all cited sources in alphabetical order:

- Book: Booth, K. (2007). *Theory of world security*. Cambridge University Press.
- Edited Book Chapter: Foucault, M. (1991). Politics and the study of discourse. In G. Burchell, C. Gordon, & P. Miller (Eds.),
  *The Foucault effect: Studies in governmentality* (pp. 53–72). University of Chicago Press.
- Journal Article: Keohane, R. O., & Nye, J. S. (2011). Power and interdependence revisited. *International Organization, 41*(4), 725–753.

3. Why APA Matters

APA ensures consistency in how sources are cited, allowing readers to verify arguments, trace intellectual influences, and evaluate the quality of research.
Failure to properly cite sources—even unintentionally—can result in plagiarism, a serious breach of academic conduct.

Students are expected to follow APA rules precisely in all submitted work. Mastery of this system is not only essential for academic success
but also for developing professional scholarly habits.

For further explanation and additional examples, please refer to the official APA style guide at the following links:

https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/citations

http://www.yorku.ca/igreene/citgd.htm