Types of APA Papers

While an instructor can use APA style at their discretion, there are two common types of APA papers: the literature review and the research paper. This section will cover the basic aspects of each type, though formatting and requirements can change based on the professor’s guidelines. Even if an instructor’s guidelines do not correlate with APA guidelines, ask your instructor for clarification and follow their guidelines. 

Literature Review

A literature review is a summary of what different scholars have said about your chosen topic. This is the most common type of APA paper for students. An abstract is not always required for this type of paper, but can be included at the professor’s discretion. Additionally, length and amount of sources will vary by professor. A literature review includes five major sections: title page, introduction, review of literature, conclusion, and references page.

Research Paper

Research papers are a written record of experimental research that has been conducted. A research paper can include nine major sections: title page, abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion, references page, appendices (if necessary), and tables/figures (if necessary). For formatting guidelines on Appendices and Tables/Figures, click either link to the respective section of the guide.