How to create an abstract APA: guidelines, recommendations, and tips

In addition to providing the audience with a brief overview of key points discussed in the article, the APA abstract can also aid in an efficient literature search, offering a glimpse into the paper’s findings and objectives. What is an APA abstract? Does an APA paper need an abstract? What are the indispensable elements to include? Apart from highlighting the most vital points of the research, the importance of an abstract lies in the following factors:

• Overview convenience. It is always concise, meaning that readers will not have to skim over the entire length of the text to understand the point. 

• Paper relevance. The purpose of an APA abstract page is to convince readers that the paper holds relevance in terms of its academic contribution. The audience that is just getting acquainted with key concepts of your abstract should understand its value and its most pressing challenges and objectives. 

• Efficiency evaluation. Critics can assess the paper by taking a look at its brief deconstruction and thus decide whether it is worth studying further. Researchers should not make the mistake of believing that their work is outstanding by default, immediately setting them apart from other academic professionals. 

• First impression. The abstract in APA allows the audience to analyze the paper’s content and judge its applicability and relevance at first glance. 

The definition of abstract in APA

What is an abstract of an APA paper? An abstract written in APA style can be defined as a brief summary of the main points of the research paper. The abstract in APA is written according to the guidelines of the APA format and should always include key research questions, problems, methods, solutions, and findings. There are a few reasons the APA abstract is held in such high regard and considered an important part of the research process:

• It provides a concise explanation of the research.
• It outlines the key findings and problems of the research.
• It allows readers to get an idea of what the paper is going to be about.
• The purpose of the APA paper with abstract lies in providing a comprehensive summation of the paper’s central points. 

An abstract in APA format also initiates the contact between the reader and the researcher, impacting the reader’s decision to give their full attention to the text. An abstract should also have the following characteristics to be considered complete:

• Briefness. Ideally, an abstract should never be more than 150-250 words to relay a brief and succinct summary of the words without overwhelming the reader with terms and definitions.

• Structure. General guidelines suggest that the abstract should be written in a single block paragraph without indentation, which matches the APA guidelines.

• Components. The abstract should contain separate segments that inform readers about the research problems, methods, results, and conclusion.

• Perspective. A perfect abstract in APA will be written in the third person. Researchers need to avoid using the first person when describing their findings.

• Tone. A strictly formal tone should be maintained throughout the paper. Researchers have to make sure that the tone matches the theme of the scholarly work. 

• Keywords. More often than not, the relevant keywords will be listed at the end of the abstract to improve searchability and make it easier for the audience to find the information they need.

Writing an APA abstract: instructions

What does it take to come up with the abstract that will make a good first impression on the audience and encourage them to give your research paper a look? Where does the abstract go in APA? What are the recommendations to follow to come up with an influential passage?

There is a specific structure you need to follow to make your abstract sound believable and authentic. Make sure you are aware of what to put in an abstract APA and what elements to avoid. You should also remember the purpose of your research and the scope of your study. By clearly stating your objectives at the beginning of the research process, you highlight the significant results of your study and how they contribute to your research field. It is also recommended to avoid the excessive use of jargon and colloquialisms while articulating your points in this abstract type to ensure the audience gets a clear, coherent picture of what the paper explores. 

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Preparing the Abstract

• Understand the purpose. You should always keep in mind that a decent abstract is only a preview of what the paper is going to be about. Understanding its purpose will help you choose the key elements of your research to present to readers.

• Review guidelines. Do you know how to write an APA abstract? Reviewing guidelines is another part of the research process that will help you succeed with the abstract that matches the requirements. Here, you will have to search for the basic rules of complying with the APA format, including word count and content structure. 

• Determine the key aspects. Your abstract should always contain the research problem, methods, results, and conclusions, which are the primary aspects of scientific research that indicate you have conducted substantial preliminary work prior to writing an abstract.

• Read the paper. The researcher’s first obligation when writing an abstract APA is to reread the entire research paper to ensure they know the purpose of abstract writing and can fully disclose the information to readers.

Writing the abstract

• Start with the problem. Use brief terms to provide an outline of your problem, allowing the audience to resonate with the main issue of the research.

• Provide the methods. Highlight the design of your research, listing the number of participants and the procedures you are going to carry out in the process.

• Introduce the results. Your audience will be waiting for the outcome of your research, so don’t hesitate to provide them with the findings and conclusions you have reached during your academic examination.

• Present the implications. Presenting the implications is the process of emphasizing the significance of your research through general conclusions and assumptions drawn from the research process.

• Keep it brief. The main rule of writing an abstract is keeping it brief and adhering to the main rules of word count stated in the APA guidelines. A perfect abstract in APA format should not be longer than 250 words if the APA guidelines are anything to go by. 

• Avoid complex terms. Each sentence in your abstract should stand as a separate piece of writing and remain easy to understand. It is recommended that the complex terms and definitions be presented in layman’s terms so the audience will not be forced to search for the explanation of specific terms and phrases while reading.

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Structuring the abstract

Are you concerned about how to make an abstract APA that will be concise, appealing, and influential? To be sure your abstract is always perfectly arranged and fits the norms of APA formatting, you can stick to the simple scheme below:

• Title. Start with positioning the word ABSTRACT in the center of the page. 
• Single paragraph. The abstract should be written as a single paragraph with no indentation.
• Introduction. Your introduction is the best way to introduce your research and its main problems. Make sure your introduction is not too long or drawn out (1-2 sentences are enough to illustrate the problem).
• Methods. Describe the methods you are going to use in your research, along with the number of participants and the necessary procedures that will make a part of the research process. Do not write more than 3-4 sentences.
• Results. Here, researchers are required to summarize the key findings in no more than 3-4 sentences, reiterating previous points.
• Conclusion. By stating the main implications of the study, you remind readers about the importance of your research.
• Keywords. An abstract will feature a list of keywords in italics, preceded by the word KEYWORDS at the center of the page.

How to format an APA abstract

When it comes to the recommendations on how to write an abstract in APA format, it is indispensable to mind all the challenges that appear. It ties in with the fact that you will have to study specific guidelines for APA formatting, as well as know the research paper setup, to be able to structure your paper successfully. Thankfully, there are a few tried and tested strategies that can help you format the abstract with relative ease:

• You should center the word ABSTRACT at the top of the page. The word should not be written in bold or italicized. Do not underline the word or write it in cursive.
• The abstract should present a single double-spaced paragraph. The first line of the abstract should not be indented, and the total word count should never exceed 150-250 words.
• Only standard fonts are used for an APA format abstract. You may choose Times New Roman, Calibri, or Arial for your paper.
• Researchers have to make sure that the page number is included in the header and aligned to the right. 
• The content structure of this abstract type has to include an introduction, methods, results, and a conclusion that summarizes your key findings.

Keywords in an abstract in APA can help your research paper to make a frequent appearance in databases, which also means that your research will be easily found and identified. In addition, having relevant keywords added to your abstract will provide insight into the key aspects of your research. If you want to help academic institutions find your work, you should always place keywords at the end of the abstract on a new line. Keywords are not a part of the main word count, so they should always follow the main text of the abstract.

With keywords, researchers have to indent the first line of the keywords section. The word KEYWORDS is followed by a list of the selected keywords. Each keyword is separated by a comma. You should not choose more than 3-5 keywords for your APA abstract page. Your keywords need to reflect the main topic of your research paper while also remaining simple and comprehensible for the broader audiences. It is not recommended to overwhelm readers with an excessive number of keywords related to your paper.

If you’re preparing a research paper in MLA style, our guide on MLA research proposal format can help you understand alternative structuring methods and citation styles.

Conclusion

How to create an abstract in APA formatting style, introducing readers to the main ideas of the paper? Researchers should always start by identifying the main concepts of your abstract and choosing the relevant keywords that would improve your paper’s visibility in online databases. 

Once you have covered the basics, you can organize the paper according to the APA formatting structure and follow a precise protocol for APA abstracts, which includes an introduction, methods, results, and a clear conclusion. If you're curious about APA and MLA differences, it’s worth exploring how these styles compare to Chicago and Harvard citation formats.