Referencing and APA
When writing academically, you must cite the sources you use. The first thing you need to do is find the correct referencing style, i.e. which template you should follow in your referencing. Most programs at NLA use APA 7. APA stands for "American Psychology Association" and is parenthetical-based as opposed to footnote-based. This means that the source references appear continuously in the text, and that all references are listed alphabetically at the end in a reference list.
The second thing you need to do is to find out what type of source you have in front of you. You must provide different information for different types of sources, and the reason for this is that it should be easy to find the source again for the person reading your assignment. Frequently used source types are books, chapters in edited books, journal articles, and websites with authors. In the source compass, you can search for the source type and see what the reference should look like in the text and in the reference list. Here you will also find answers to frequently asked questions. Be careful that periods, italics, commas, etc. are correct.
All the sources you refer to in the text must be in your reference list. Only the references you have used in your text should be in the reference list.
Useful links:
kildekompasset.no - Rules and setup for citations, references in text and the reference list
Norsk APA-manual - Contains more examples and extended explanations
Søk og Skriv – Source criticism and good source use, as well as examples, rules and setup for referencing, citations and APA
If you find it difficult to know which source type to choose, how to cite in the text, or want more introduction to APA, it may be useful to attend the library's introductory course. Remember that you can also ask the library about referencing and APA.