Checklist

The heading must be References or Reference list. Do not use "bibliography", "sources", or "works cited".
The reference list must start at the top of a new page.
The reference list goes at the end of your paper. If you have appendices, they come after the reference list.
References must be listed in alphabetical order by the author's last name, with no bullet points or numbers. (See how to sort references in APA style
If a reference runs over two lines, all lines from the second onwards must have a hanging indent. (See example )
If an organisation or institution is the author, write the full name every time, even if you cite several sources from the same organisation. For example:
- Write World Health Organization, not WHO
- Write National Institute of Health, not NIH
If the author and publisher are the same, only include the name once, in the author position.
If the publisher's name includes words such as forlag, Inc., AS, Publisher, or similar, leave these out. For example, write Akilles, not Akilles forlag. However, Fagbokforlaget should be written in full as it is a proper name.
APA uses what is called "down style". This means only the first word of the title and subtitle are capitalised – along with proper nouns, of course. This is similar to how titles are written in Norwegian. Note: Journal names are an exception – all major words in a journal title should be capitalised and written in italics, e.g. Journal of Sports Medicine.

Warning: Do not use AI tools to find or generate references!

AI tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, Gemini, GPT UiO and Sikt KI-chat can produce references that look completely real – with author names, titles, publication years and page numbers – but are in fact entirely or partially fabricated. This is known as hallucination.

Important! Even though many AI tools now have access to the internet, this does not solve the problem. They can still hallucinate or misrepresent sources they find online.

Submitting false references is considered serious academic misconduct, regardless of whether you knew they were false. You are personally responsible for every reference you use.

If an AI tool gives you references, you must always:

Verify that the source actually exists in the library system Oria or in academic databases.
Read the original source yourself before citing it – author names, titles and page numbers can all be wrong.
Bear in mind that the information is more likely to be incorrect than correct.

OBS! AI tools and reference lists:

Even if you feed the AI tool your own reference list, it may alter your sources without you noticing. Always check that your reference list is correct according to APA style afterwards.

AI tools can, however, be useful for:

Understanding academic topics and concepts
Getting help with structure, language and phrasing

Questions about citations and references? Visit the library or email us at library@nih.no

Useful links

Reference list example in APA style: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/paper-format/reference-list
Capitalisation in APA style: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/capitalization.
APA-style: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines