How do I Report Different Statistical Tests in APA Format?

While many people know American Psychological Association style as a way to document research sources, the format covers broader applications. Some research papers require scholars to report statistical values or tests as part of their work. The most common types of statistical information researchers have to illustrate in their papers can easily be documented using APA style.

Use an italicized, uppercase N to report the number of cases in an entire sample. For instance, N = 110. As the Purdue University Online Writing Lab notes, use an italicized, lowercase n to report the number of cases in the portion of a sample, such as n = 21.

Enclose confidence-level intervals in brackets, according to Purdue OWL. For example:

95% CIs [2.4, 2.2], [-6.0, 3.0], and [7.0, 2.25]

Report the correlation (r) and significance level (p) when reporting correlations in your paper, advises the University of Connecticut Writing Center. Ensure that you italicize the r and p when following the subsequent examples.

Summer temperature and ice cream consumption were significantly correlated, r = .71, p < 0.05.

An insignificant correlation of .12 (p = n.s.) was found between years of experience and number of errors.

Include the means (M) and standard deviations (SD) for each group as well as the t value (t), degrees of freedom (placed in parentheses directly next to the t) and significance level (p). M, SD, t and p must be italicized in APA Style. For example:

Aliens (M = 2.5, SD = .40) reported significantly higher levels of contentment than human beings (M = 1.8, SD = .21), t(1) = 6.79, p < .05.

List the same values for ANOVAs as you do t-tests, replacing the t-value, however, for the ANOVA's F-value. Include the numerator and denominator of the degrees of freedom in parentheses after the F-value, separated by a comma. Follow the example below, based on data from the University of Connecticut Writing Center.

A main effect of heart rate was discovered F(2, 99) = 9.81, p < .01. Men (M = 119.5, SD = 4.67) reported significantly less depressive symptoms than women (M = 141.0, SD = 5.24).

Italicize the F, p, M and SD.