Format an Abstract Page in APA Style

Essay Basics: Format an Abstract Page in APA Style

Created May 11, 2018

By Jeanette Dick

Format an Abstract Page in APA Style | Essay Formatting Resource

In APA style, an Abstract page is a separate page that comes between your title page and the actual start of your paper.  It includes a general overview of the paper without presenting any of the argument, evidence, or thesis of the writing.  This page has a very specific layout, word count minimum/maximum, and keyword section that is crafted in the top half of the 1-page abstract. It includes all the essential information to guide the reader in the paper’s overall development and focus to know the inclusive purpose for the document.

While many students confuse the abstract as being part of the essay’s development, it is not.  Even though the abstract is placed directly after the title page, the abstract page does not start the essay.  This page serves to provide a reader with a summary of the writing to come.  The abstract is created ‘based’ on the essay’s development, after the writing is complete.  It serves as a brief overview of the paper’s key points prior to the essay’s start.  Therefore, while the abstract is part of the document, it is not part of the essay.  The abstract serves the reader in knowing how the essay will develop. 

An abstract is entirely different than an introduction of a paper.  While an introduction paragraph—within an essay—serves to briefly introduce the topic (in 3-7 sentences) that will be developed throughout the writing, an abstract covers the main points that the essay addresses, providing the reader with a summary of the whole document, not just the overall topic. 

An introduction paragraph of an essay has three parts: ‘hook,’ transitional background information, and the thesis statement.  Therefore, an introduction paragraph must be at least 3 sentences long, but it is typically not more than 7-sentences.  The introduction paragraph’s purpose is to introduce the topic. 

The abstract page, on the other hand, has 2 sections: the summary paragraph and the keywords section.  Therefore, the abstract page must be visually formatted into these two sections to convey the overall ‘points’ of the document.

Figure 1: Abstract Layout Image

Often, writers will construct the abstract by including the main idea from each of the body-paragraphs of the writing while providing a summary of for the audience.  This is accomplished by including the:

·        Context of the research used in the paper,

·        Purpose of the writing (to expose an issue, argue a side to an issue, to describe new findings on a topic and compare/contrast those findings to earlier views, perceptions, or beliefs),

·        Major finding/argument (you will need multiple sentences here, and this content is typically based on the topic sentences of the body-paragraphs of the essay),

·        Overall conclusion, and the

·        Main recommendation to the audience.

A good way to mentally imagine this content in the correct layout is provided in Figure 1.  However, for a full image for an abstract, see the content visual below.  It not only provides a visual sample, but it leads you through the criteria of an abstract within its paragraphs.

Figure 2: Abstract Page

Created by Jeanette Dick

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Format an Abstract in APA Style

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