APA Style Guide 7th Edition

General Guidelines for Social Media 

Author Last name, First Initials. [@username]. (Year). Title of post up to first 20 words. Site name. web address

Examples -- Posts 

Tweet 
Farhadi, B. [@BBFarhadi]. (2020, June 15). I hate the phrase classroom management. The work is not
         managing; it's fostering communities of care and mutual accountability. Twitter. https://twitter.com
         /BBFarhadi/status/1272713246240387075

Tweet with Outside Link, Image, or Video 
Brainspring [@BrainspringOG]. (2020, May 13). The three great spelling rules are difficult for many students,
          often requiring additional practice sessions to truly master. [Link to outside source attached] [Image
          attached] [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/Brainspring OG/status/1260555417660334082

​Instagram Photo or Video 

Psychology Today [@psych_today]. (2020, May 26). Mental health care is even more vital these days as
         people are cut off from usual sources of stress relief. [Link to outside source attached]. [Photograph].
         Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CAqh5sTjP1c/

​Facebook or Other Social Media Post 

Psychology Today (2020, June 22). Mental health problems become more common in midlife, and there may
          be some clear biological and psychological reasons why. [Image attached] [Link to outside source
          attached]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/pg/psychologytoday/posts/27564

Examples -- Profiles and Homepages 

Twitter Profile 
Zero to Three [@ZEROTOTHREE]. (n.d.). Tweets [Twitter profile]. Twitter. Retrieved May 26, 2020, from
         https://twitter.com/ZEROTOTHREE

Note: Twitter profiles can change often which is why a retrieval date is included. 

Facebook Home Page or Other Social Media Home Page 

Child Development Institute. (n.d.). Home [Facebook page]. Facebook. Retrieved May 26, 2020, from https://www.facebook.com/childdevelopmentinstitute/

Note: Social Media home pages can change often which is why a retrieval date is included. 

Instagram Highlight 

Lessons for Learning [@lessonsforlearning]. (n.d.). Behaviour [Highlight]. Instagram. Retrieved May 15,
         2020, from https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17940981103318205/

Note: Instagram Highlights include a retrieval date but Instagram posts do not. 

 

Notes About Author, Date, Title, and Source 

Author 

• List each author alphabetically by the authors last name and first name initial(s). 
• If citing a group author, use the entire group name. 
• After the author, include their username in brackets. For example [@BBFarhadi]  

Date 

• Enclose the date of publication. Put the year first, followed by the month and day separated by a comma. For Example: (2020, July 18). 
• If the publication date is unknown or cannot be determined, list the date as n.d. (which stands for no date). For example: (n.d.). Use the (n.d.) format for Twitter profiles and Instagram Highlights). 

Title 

• Italicize the title using up to 20 words of the post as the title. 
• The first word of the title is capitalized as are proper nouns but all other words are lowercase.
• If a title ends with a question mark or exclamation point, use those punctuation marks instead of a period at the end.
• Include emojis. If can't replicate emoji, list as a description in brackets. For example: [thumbs up emoji].
• If a post contains link to an outside source, photograph, or videos, list as a description in brackets. For example: [Link to outside source attached], [Image attached], [Video attached].    

Site Name  

• Include the name of the site where the post came from. For example: Twitter.   

URLs ​

• Include the web address.
• Only include a retrieval date if the source is likely to change over time or was designed to be updated. Twitter/Instagram profiles and Facebook and social media home pages would include a retrieval date while Tweets, Instragram and Facebook posts would not.