Format APA Report

Create an APA 7th edition formatted report using Quarto (apaquarto) or R Markdown (papaja).

When to Use

• Writing an academic paper in APA format
• Creating a psychology or social science research report
• Generating reproducible manuscripts with embedded analysis
• Preparing a thesis or dissertation chapter

Inputs

• Required: Analysis code and results
• Required: Bibliography file (.bib)
• Optional: Co-authors and affiliations
• Optional: Manuscript type (journal article, student paper)

Procedure

Step 1: Choose Framework

Option A: apaquarto (Quarto, recommended)

install.packages("remotes")
remotes::install_github("wjschne/apaquarto")

Option B: papaja (R Markdown)

remotes::install_github("crsh/papaja")

Expected: The chosen framework package installs successfully and is loadable with

library(apaquarto)

or

library(papaja)

.

On failure: If installation fails due to missing system dependencies (e.g., LaTeX for PDF output), install TinyTeX first with

quarto install tinytex

. For GitHub installation failures, check that the

remotes

package is installed and that GitHub is accessible.

Step 2: Create Document (apaquarto)

Create

manuscript.qmd

:

---
title: "Effects of Variable X on Outcome Y"
shorttitle: "Effects of X on Y"
author:
  - name: First Author
    corresponding: true
    orcid: 0000-0000-0000-0000
    email: author@university.edu
    affiliations:
      - name: University Name
        department: Department of Psychology
  - name: Second Author
    affiliations:
      - name: Other University
abstract: |
  This study examined the relationship between X and Y.
  Using a sample of N = 200 participants, we found...
  Results are discussed in terms of theoretical implications.
keywords: [keyword1, keyword2, keyword3]
bibliography: references.bib
format:
  apaquarto-docx: default
  apaquarto-pdf:
    documentmode: man
---

Expected: File

manuscript.qmd

exists with valid YAML frontmatter containing title, shorttitle, author affiliations, abstract, keywords, bibliography reference, and APA-specific format options.

On failure: Verify YAML indentation is consistent (2 spaces) and that

author:

entries use the list format with

name:

,

affiliations:

, and

corresponding:

fields. Check that

bibliography:

points to an existing

.bib

file.

Step 3: Write APA Content

# Introduction

Previous research has established that... [@smith2023; @jones2022].
@smith2023 found significant effects of X on Y.

# Method

## Participants

We recruited `r nrow(data)` participants (*M*~age~ = `r mean(data$age)`,
*SD* = `r sd(data$age)`).

## Materials

The study used the Measurement Scale [@author2020].

## Procedure

Participants completed... (see @fig-design for the study design).

# Results

```{r}
#| label: fig-results
#| fig-cap: "Mean scores by condition with 95% confidence intervals."
#| fig-width: 6
#| fig-height: 4

ggplot(summary_data, aes(x = condition, y = mean, fill = condition)) +
  geom_col() +
  geom_errorbar(aes(ymin = ci_lower, ymax = ci_upper), width = 0.2) +
  theme_apa()
```

A two-way ANOVA revealed a significant main effect of condition,
*F*(`r anova_result$df1`, `r anova_result$df2`) = `r anova_result$F`,
*p* `r format_pvalue(anova_result$p)`, $\eta^2_p$ = `r anova_result$eta`.

# Discussion

The findings support the hypothesis that...

# References

Expected: Content follows APA section structure (Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion, References) with inline R code for statistics and proper cross-references using

@fig-

and

@tbl-

prefixes.

On failure: If inline R code does not render, verify backtick-r syntax is correct (

`r expression`

). If cross-references show as literal text, check that the referenced chunk labels use the correct prefix and that the chunk has a corresponding caption option.

Step 4: Format Tables in APA Style

#| label: tbl-descriptives
#| tbl-cap: "Descriptive Statistics by Condition"

library(gt)

descriptive_table <- data |>
  group_by(condition) |>
  summarise(
    M = mean(score),
    SD = sd(score),
    n = n()
  )

gt(descriptive_table) |>
  fmt_number(columns = c(M, SD), decimals = 2) |>
  cols_label(
    condition = "Condition",
    M = "*M*",
    SD = "*SD*",
    n = "*n*"
  )

Expected: Tables render with APA formatting: italicized column headers for statistical symbols, proper decimal alignment, and a descriptive caption above the table.

On failure: If

gt

table does not render in APA style, ensure

gt

package is installed and that

cols_label()

uses markdown-style italics (

*M*

,

*SD*

). For papaja users, use

apa_table()

instead of

gt()

.

Step 5: Manage Citations

Create

references.bib

:

@article{smith2023,
  author = {Smith, John A. and Jones, Mary B.},
  title = {Effects of intervention on outcomes},
  journal = {Journal of Psychology},
  year = {2023},
  volume = {45},
  pages = {123--145},
  doi = {10.1000/example}
}

APA citation styles:

• Parenthetical:

  [@smith2023]

  -> (Smith & Jones, 2023)
• Narrative:

  @smith2023

  -> Smith and Jones (2023)
• Multiple:

  [@smith2023; @jones2022]

  -> (Jones, 2022; Smith & Jones, 2023)

Expected:

references.bib

contains valid BibTeX entries with all required fields (author, title, year, journal) and citation keys match those used in the manuscript text.

On failure: Validate BibTeX syntax with an online validator or

bibtool -d references.bib

. Ensure citation keys in the text exactly match

.bib

keys (case-sensitive).

Step 6: Render

# Word document (common for journal submission)
quarto render manuscript.qmd --to apaquarto-docx

# PDF (for preprint or review)
quarto render manuscript.qmd --to apaquarto-pdf

Expected: Properly formatted APA document with title page, running head, and correctly formatted references section.

On failure: For PDF rendering failures, verify TinyTeX is installed (

quarto install tinytex

). For DOCX output issues, check that apaquarto's Word template is accessible. If references do not appear, ensure the

# References

heading is present at the end of the document.

Validation

• Title page formatted correctly (title, authors, affiliations, author note)
• Abstract present with keywords
• In-text citations match reference list
• Tables and figures numbered correctly
• Statistics formatted per APA (italicized, proper symbols)
• References in APA 7th edition format
• Page numbers and running head present (PDF)

Common Pitfalls

• Inline R code formatting: Use backtick-r syntax for inline statistics, not hardcoded values
• Citation key mismatches: Ensure .bib keys match exactly in the text
• Figure placement: APA manuscripts typically place figures at the end; set

  documentmode: man

• Missing CSL file: apaquarto includes the APA CSL; papaja users may need to specify

  csl: apa.csl

• Special characters in abstracts: Avoid markdown formatting in the YAML abstract block

Related Skills

• create-quarto-report

  - general Quarto document creation

• generate-statistical-tables

  - publication-ready tables

• build-parameterized-report

  - batch report generation