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WRT 254 - Advanced Professional Communication - PimaOnline: APA Annotated Bibliography

What is an Annotated Bibliography? Why do I have to do one?

An annotated bibliography is composed of an APA citation of a source followed by notes and commentary about that source. The word “annotate” means “to make critical or explanatory notes” and the word “bibliography” means “a list of sources”--so, an annotated bibliography is a list of sources combined with notes about each source.

Creating an annotated bibliography helps you to become a better researcher and focus your research topic. By starting the research process early (before your extended proposals are due), you can make sure that you've picked a topic that will yield enough information to write your proposal. You'll also read the articles you find and write about them, which ensures that you've found information that is relevant to your topic. Annotated bibliographies are great preparation for major research assignments!

Formatting an Annotated Bibliography

Formatting your annotated bibliography is the same as formatting an APA reference list. You use the same author-date style and place the elements in the same order. Here’s a quick rundown of the guidelines:

  • Right-aligned page number
  • Running header (Optional)
  • One-inch margins
  • Double spaced
  • The title “Annotated Bibliography” centered
  • Hanging indent for second and subsequent lines of the citation

APA Annotated Bibliography Example

APA Format Annotated Bibliography

Organizing an Annotated Bibliography

An annotated bibliography is organized in the same manner as the reference list. Alphabetize using the letter by letter system by the author’s last name.

Creating an APA Citation

After your APA annotated bibliography is formatted, you create a citation for each entry. The composition of your citation varies based on the type of source you are using. For example, a book citation in APA is different than a journal citation. Therefore, when creating your citation, use the format APA has designated for that specific source

How to Write an Annotation

The first step to creating your APA annotations is reading the source and making notes about the relevant information it contains. Once you've read the source, create your annotation using the guidelines below:
• 2 to 4 sentences to summarize the main idea(s) of the source.
     - What are the main arguments?
     - What is the point of this book/article?
     - What topics are covered?
• 1 or 2 sentences to assess and evaluate the source.
     - How does it compare with other sources in your bibliography?
     - Is this information reliable? current?
     - Is the author credible? have the background to write on this topic?
     - Is the source objective or biased?
• 1 or 2 sentences to reflect on the source.
     - Was this source helpful to you? Why?
     - How can you use this source for your research project?
     - Has it changed how you think about your topic?

The length of your bibliographic entry depends on your instructor’s guidelines but typically is about 100-300 words.