Guidelines of Figures - APA Style - 7th Edition - Thiyagu

All types of graphical displays other than tables are considered figures in APA Style. Figure is the best way to communicate the information. This presentation explains the Principles and Guidelines for Figure Construction with suitable illustrations.

1. APA Style
Guidelines for Figure
Construction
K.THIYAGU, Assistant Professor,Department of Education, Central University of Kerala,Kasaragod
(Research Article / Dissertation / Thesis)

2. Figures (Consists)
Graph
Display the
relationship
between two
quantitative indices
or between a
continuous
quantitative
variable
(X-axis and Y-axis)
For Example,
Bar Graph and
Line Graph
Charts
Display
nonquantitative
information
(Boxes, squares, or circles
connected with straight or
curved lines or arrows.)
For Example,
Flow diagrams,
Research Design,
Framework, SEM,
CFA models & path
models;
Drawing
Show information
pictorially
and can be used
to illustrate
For Example,
Experimental setups
and Experimental
stimuli.
Maps
Display
Spatial
Information
For Example,
Geographic
Census Information
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3. Figures (Consists)
Plots
Plots present individual
data points as a
function of axis
variables.
For Example,
Scatterplot, which is
used to explore the
relationship between
two variables
Photographs
Contain direct visual
representations of
information.
For Example,
Facial Expression
Multipanel Figures
A multipanelfigure may
combinebar graphs,
linegraphs, histograms,
and other figure types
into one figure
For Example,
Combine panels into one
figure
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4. Standards
for
Good
Figures
Simplicity
Clarity
Continuity
Information
Value
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5. Principles of Figure Construction
Agoodfigureaugmentsratherthanduplicatesthetext
Conveysonlyessentialinformation
Omitsvisuallydistractingdetail,
Easytoread—itselements(e.g.,type,lines,labels,symbols)
Easytounderstand—itspurposeisreadilyapparent,
Carefullyplannedandprepared
Consistentwithandinthesamestyleassimilarfiguresinthesamearticle.
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6. Images
Clear
Lines
Smooth
Sharp
Font
Simple
Legible
Units
Measurement
should
provided
Axes
Clearly
Labeled
Elements
Within the
figure are
labeled
For figures of all types, Check that
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7. Figure Components
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8. Figure Components
Number
Appear
Above the
figure
-
Left
Font Look
Bold
Title
Appear
One Double-
spaced line
below the
figure number
Font Style
Italic Title case
Image
Image
Portion
Chart, Graph,
Photograph,
Drawing,
or
other
illustration
itself.
Legend
Position
Within the
borders of the
figure
Explains
Any symbols
used in the
figure image
Note
Types
General,
Specific, and
Probability
Appear
Below the
Figure
Example
Definitions of
abbreviations,
Copyright
Attribution
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9. Basic Components of a Figure
Source:
7
th
Edition :
Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association
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10. Figure Numbers
•ArabicNumerals
•Eg:Figure1,Figure2andFigure3
Numbers
•AssignnumberstoallfiguresintheorderAssign
•BoldFont
•FlushLeft(Notindentedorcentered)Appear
•Figuresthatappearinappendicesfollow
adifferentnumberingschemeAppendix
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11. Figure Titles
Figure
•Everyfigureabriefbutclearand
explanatorytitle
Content
•Thebasiccontentofthefigureshouldbe
easilyinferredfromthetitle.
Font
•Italic title case
Appear
•Belowthefigurenumberanddouble-space
thefigurenumberandtitle
Avoid
•Avoidoverlygeneralandoverlydetailed
figuretitlesCC-BY-NC-SA 11

12. Figure Images
Size and Proportion of Elements
Eachelementinafiguremustbelarge
enoughandsharpenoughtobelegible.
Useasimplesansseriffont(e.g.,Arial,Calibri,
LucidaSansUnicode)
Fontsizeshouldbenosmallerthan8points
andnolargerthan14points.
Asageneralguideline,plotsymbolsshould
beaboutthesizeoflowercaselettersthat
appearinalabelwithinthefigure.
Spelling, Capitalization, and Numbers
Within Figure Images
Abbreviatethewords“number”to“no.”and
“percentage”to“%.”
Wordswithinfigureimagesotherthanthose
ontheaxislabelsorinthefigurelegendmay
bewrittenineithertitlecaseorsentencecase
itispermissibletousenumeralsforall
numbersinafigureifthiswouldbecleareror
savespace.
Statistics,Greekletters,andunitsof
measurementdonotneedtobedefinedina
figurenote
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13. Figure Images
Shading
Limit the number of
different shadings used in a
single graphic.
If different shadings are
used to distinguish bars or
segments of a graph, choose
shadings that are distinct;
If more than two shadings
are needed, use patterns,
again making sure that the
patterns are distinct
Color
Color can serve both
Communicative and
Decorative Purposes in
Figures
Article Publication
Should avoid the use of
color
(Because of the relatively high
cost of color reproduction for
printed materials)
Panel
The decision of whether to divide a
figure into panels or create a
separate figure for each panel
(e.g., Top panel, Left panel, Middle
panel).
To label panels, assign each one a
capital letter (e.g., A, B) and place
the label at the top left of the
panel. Refer to the panels as
“Panel A,” “Panel B,” and so
forth.
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14. A Legend
Alegend(alsocalledakey)explainsanysymbols,line
styles,orshadingorpatternvariantsusedintheimage
portionofthefigure
Thelegendisanintegralpartofthefigure;
Onlyfiguresthathavesymbols,linestyles,orshadings
needingdefinitionshouldincludelegends.
Whenpossible,placelegendswithinorbelowtheimage
insteadoftothesidetoavoidhavingemptyspacearound
thelegend.
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15. Figure Notes
Figure notes contain
information needed to clarify
the contents of the figure for
readers.
As with tables, figures may
have three kinds of notes:
General, specific, and
probability.
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16. General Note
Appears below
the figure.
General note to a
figure appears
first and contains
information
needed to
understand the
figure
Eg:
Abbreviation, Copyright
Attribution
Specific Note
Explains a
particular
elements of the
figure and
appears in a
separate
paragraph below
any general notes
Probability Note
It appears as a
separate
paragraph below
any specific notes
follow in the
same paragraph
(For p Values)
Figure Notes
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17. Sample
Figures
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18. Basic Components of a Figure
Source:
7
th
Edition :
Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association
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19. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
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20. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
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21. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
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22. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
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23. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
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24. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
CC-BY-NC-SA 24

25. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
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26. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
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27. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
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28. Source:
7
th
Edition
-
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
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29. Thank You
Jai Bharat!
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