Dr. Andree
Swanson, EdD and Chris Crites, MBA
So, you
have to write a paper and you were told that it must be in MLA format. Did some
of these thoughts enter into your mind?
What the heck is MLA format?
I remember using some sort of style
back in high school, but that was ages ago!
At the college I attended everything
was in APA style.
I vaguely remember MLA
Oh yes, that’s where you use
footnotes, right?
Although
this is a comparison of the two styles, ultimately, the decision on whether to
use MLA or APA style is up to the University or College that you are
attending.
MLA vs. APA
Scholars need
to lead his or her reader as close to the information as a possible. The research should be current, typically
within the last five years. As you can
imagine in the field of business, engineering, and health care administration,
information that is 20 years old would be of little or no use. The one exception would be historical or
literature reviews. The MLA reference
does not provide a means to show the date, volume, and page numbers of the
document, only the date of retrieval.
The APA
Publication Manual focuses on scientific research versus a literature base. The study of business and finance is more
closely aligned with scientific research than it is with literature. Scholars must include peer-reviewed, current
literature. The APA style manual allows
for this documentation. Important
elements include providing a specific link back to the research. Currency of data is important in this field as
new research is accomplished and published. Social sciences use the APA Style Manual to
document current studies that have been published. To this end, business courses tend to follow
the social sciences (e.g., economics is based on social behavior) than the
literature base, thus the importance of using an APA reference.
Comparison of Two Styles
MLA Reference
Bowling, Daniel,
& Hoffman, David. “Bringing Peace into the Room: The Personal Qualities of
the Mediator and Their Impact on the Mediation.” Negotiation Journal. Jan 2000: 16, 1. ProQuest. Web. 20 May 2012.
Notice: the only date that is shown is the date of
retrieval
APA Reference
Borstorff, P. C., & Lowe, S.
K. (2007). Student perceptions and opinions toward e-learning in the college
environment. Academy of Educational
Leadership Journal, 11(2), 13-29. Retrieved from ABI/INFORM Global
database. doi: 1432002441.
The date of publication clues scholars and other
readers that this information is current, and important in the world of
business. The page numbers provide
precise information for scholars so that this information can be located easily
for further research.
Learning
to apply APA formatting when writing your papers is something that is truly
useful in all business applications. Perhaps
you may not use true APA formatting, but hopefully learning this style will
enhance your critical thinking skills. In
future writings, you will consider a statement of fact only to wonder where the
author gained the source of this information and check for their parenthetical
citations. The ability to research and
document sources garnered her selection as a national training manager in a
male-dominated field. Thus, knowing APA
style and understanding the importance of documentation could be what gets you
your next job.
