Working on academic publications and completing a college project requires a good grasp not only of everyday language but also of specific reference styles like Chicago, MLA, or APA. Additionally, understanding common abbreviations is vital when reading scientific articles or conducting research for a thesis or course paper.

Many students struggle to grasp acronyms or abbreviations in research papers because these terms can be easily confused with errors or specialized language. Here, we’ve put together a list of common questions and answers about abbreviations in research papers that students may find helpful.

An abbreviation is a short form of a word, phrase, or sentence, simplified by using single letters or parts of words as a clear code. There are different types of acronyms, each with its own purpose.

• Initialisms are acronyms created by capitalizing the first letters of words and pronouncing each letter individually. Examples include the New York Police Department (NYPD), the United Nations (UN), an unidentified flying object (UFO), and so on.
• Acronyms are abbreviations formed by combining the initial letters of words and capitalizing them. However, unlike initialisms, they are pronounced as a single word. For instance, PIN (personal identification number), VAT (value-added text), NASA (National Aeronautical and Space Administration), and so forth.
• Shortenings are abbreviations that involve splitting a word into two parts, deleting the second portion, and resulting in standard English words. For example, app stands for application, flu for influenza, ad for advertisement, and so on. Shortenings, keeping only the first part of a word, aren’t considered valid words and are spoken in their original form when read aloud. For example, Monday – Monday, October – October, and so forth.
• Contractions are specific words that, due to their frequent usage and popularity, have transformed into a more concise written form by combining the first and last letters, typically pronounced as the starting word. For example, St. Saint, Mrs. Missis, Ph.D. – Doctor of Philosophy, and so on.

Apart from differences in how words are formed and used, there are several main categories that neatly group abbreviations into the following sets.

1. Abbreviations linked to personal, professional, and titles. This set includes shortened forms used to describe a person’s social standing. It covers:

• Social standing, like academic degrees (Ph.D., BSN, M.D., etc.), along with Jr. (junior) and Sr.
• Marital Status, like Miss (unmarried woman), Mrs. (married woman), and Mr. (married/unmarried man).
• Personal names, such as JFK (John F. Kennedy), etc.

2. Local name abbreviations represent the names of places and locations, covering countries (USA, UK, New Zealand, etc.) and states (IL, OK, MS, etc.).

3. Specialized abbreviations encompass chemical elements (C, CO2, H2O, etc.), measuring systems (oz., cm, km, etc.), and other scientific terms that might or might not find common usage in everyday language.

4. Acronyms representing objects and concepts that are part of our daily lives, such as DVD, CDR, and others, are part of our shared knowledge, including commonplace terms like IQ, OCD, PTSD, etc.

5. Language abbreviations are broadly classified into two key categories:

• Standard English predominantly employs Latin expressions like etc., i.e., e.g., and so forth.

• Colloquial English consists of both appropriate and inappropriate words and expressions, including slang, like ASAP, BTW, and others.

What Are The Cases When An Abbreviation Is Used?

Abbreviations are created and widely used to make written communication simpler and shorter, rather than using a lot of fancy words. Another example of using such units is when an author or speaker wants to make communication easier for people who know a lot about a specific subject.

To figure out if it’s okay to use acronyms, ask a few simple questions:

1. Does the audience know these abbreviations? (If yes, feel free to use them as much as you want. You can also make up new abbreviations, but it’s best to talk about them first.)

2. How many times will an abbreviation be in the writing? (A good rule is to use an abbreviation at least three times. Using the full term and the short form a lot can confuse readers and make it hard to remember.)
3. Do you really need to use it? (Abbreviations help avoid repeating the same things and making the text too long. But sometimes, writing out a long term a few times is better than using its short form, which can be hard to remember. Acronyms are good when words and phrases are too long to write over and over.)

4. How many abbreviations are already in the writing? (Even though they’re meant to avoid repeating things, using them too much can be like repeating things. In these cases, it’s best to decide beforehand which abbreviations to use. Also, learn how to write numbers in text.)

How To Enlist Shortenings Into A Text?

When used initially, it is usually put in brackets next to its original form to show the change from one form to another.

For example, our team has decided to focus on IT (information technology) issues and come up with a plan to solve them.

Additionally, if an initial form is already written in brackets, all subsequent abbreviations must be enclosed in parentheses.

For instance, the condition (Borderline Personality Disorder [BPD]) is crucial in modern psychology as the main cause of drug abuse between the ages of 16 and 27.

How Do I Manage Abbreviations in References Within and Outside of a Source List?

It is common for a reference list to include abbreviations for authors, research groups, organizations, and so on. This involves making sure that such an abbreviation already exists. Also, such units do not need to be shortened, but they can be if needed.

Usually, the entire name is introduced first, followed by a short form. For example, the European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations (EFPA, 2015) suggested having an annual psychological conference with participants from across the European Union and invited guests from the United States.

In this case, an organization’s name comes before its abbreviation and the date of publication of its work, with the latter two enclosed in parentheses.

If a complete name is already in parentheses, the abbreviation and date are surrounded by brackets.

For example, the Annual International Psychological Conference was held in Brussels, as requested by several psychological societies around the world (The European Federation of Psychologists’ Societies [EFPA], 2015).

When it comes to reference entries, a writer should remember that using abbreviations is incorrect and must always be written with a full name.

For example, the correct version is:

European Federation of Psychological Associations. (2015). European Psychologist. (3.372).

If a paragraph has a couple of works by a certain research team, use abbreviation only the first time. Also, when the text mentions names of organizations or entities with the same brief form, don’t shorten them; write out the full names.

Abbreviations can be used in citations, but only if the reference name already includes them. Make sure to use abbreviations here, so readers can find the work easily.

What if shortening is joined with a reference that appears in a text?

It’s quite common to come across a citation that includes both a reference and an acronym. Usually, these involve codes and metrics presented in a straightforward and concise manner.

Typically, the full name is introduced first, followed by a semicolon used to separate the full name from the subsequent abbreviation and work details. These details are placed within parentheses. It’s essential to use parentheses only once, ensuring all relevant information is included, rather than opting for a two-fold usage and dividing the information.

For example:

According to Bech, Rasmussen, and Olsen (2001), individuals who score 5 on the Major Depression Inventory are more likely to attempt suicide within the next 3-4 months.

Is an abbreviation applicable to a topic?

Usually, it isn’t. Writers like to use a person’s full name in a title because it gives more information about a topic and makes it clearer and easier to understand. Official publishers may use abbreviations in titles only if they are commonly used and easy for the audience to get.

Is an abbreviation applicable to a header?

Unfortunately, the APA style guidelines don’t give specific directions for using abbreviations in headings. Therefore, there aren’t any particular rules. However, it’s recommended to use the complete name as a heading, especially if the paper is part of a collection covering multiple study fields. If you still choose to use an abbreviation in a header, it should be common knowledge and avoid field-specific terms.

Moreover, if employed as a header, there’s no need for an explanation within the content, assuming that all readers are already familiar with it.

Is an abbreviation applicable to a summary?

The main reason for using acronyms is to avoid repeating words too much in a text. A summary is a short paragraph that stops the writer from using too many words. So, this part is not likely to have any abbreviations.

However, if an acronym is more well known than the full form, it might be included here. For example, post-traumatic stress disorder is a well-known problem, but most people just call it PTSD. So, including it in a summary would be good for explaining a topic to a reader.

To sum up, when using an acronym in a summary, it’s important to explain it both in the summary and when it’s first used in a document.

Is an abbreviation applicable to the title of a chapter?

Official APA Style guidelines do not tell you to use abbreviations in titles, like they do for headers. But it’s a good idea to avoid using abbreviations in a title. Before diving into an article, people usually scan it quickly to understand its overall structure. If you use acronyms, it can make this pre-reading process confusing because readers have to figure out what these abbreviations mean.

So, the better approach is to use complete names in chapter titles and then use abbreviations when a term is first mentioned in the text.

Is an abbreviation applicable to diagrams and charts?

Yes, for sure! Using abbreviations is a helpful way to save space and make a table look neat and easy to understand. Just remember, you should provide meanings and explanations for the abbreviations at the bottom of the table. Even if you already explained them in the text, it’s important because readers might forget what an abbreviation means by the time they finish reading.

This also helps when others, like future scholars, use this paper for their work. It makes writing and organizing information simpler for them, ensuring they can easily understand and use the content and its appendices in their own research.

Does every abbreviation have to have the definition?

Honestly, not every shortening needs an explanation. To figure out which ones do and which ones don’t, an author should check dictionaries. If an abbreviation has “abbr.” after its full name in the dictionary, explain it in the text. If not, there’s no need because it’s become a term on its own.

For example, these abbreviations don’t need explanations:

VISA, NATO, Rd, CEO, etc.

Also, you don’t have to decode abbreviations for dimensions like kg, sec, km, lbs, etc.

Are indefinite articles applicable to abbreviations?

Yes, an article ‘a’ and ‘an’ can be used with abbreviations if needed. Some abbreviations work as sentence units since they are read as single words. For instance, such abbreviations require an article about an NYPD (office), an R.S.A. (citizen), a CWA (official), and so on.

The choice between ‘a’ and ‘an’ is determined by the first letter. A vowel sound is preceded by ‘an,’ while a consonant sound is preceded by ‘a.’

Why do some abbreviations have a period whereas others don’t?

This is because of specific exceptions, like the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and so on. Most abbreviations do not have periods and are written at the same time. Also, in the United States and the United Kingdom, periods are only used as adjectives, not as nouns.

Are abbreviations countable?

Some abbreviations can be counted, while others cannot. To figure out if an abbreviation is countable, just look at the whole name. If the last word in the full name is a word you can count, you can sometimes make it more than one by following the usual rule for making words more than one, like adding -s or -es.