APA: Abbreviations
Avoid abbreviations (acronyms) except for long, familiar terms (MMPI). Explain what an abbreviation means the first time it occurs: American Psychological Association (APA). If an abbreviation is commonly used as a word, it does not require explanation (IQ, LSD, REM, ESP). Do not use the old abbreviations for subject, experimenter, and observer (S, E, O). The following abbreviations should NOT be used outside parenthetical comments: cf. [use compare] e.g. [use for example] etc. [use and so forth] i.e. [use that is] viz. [use namely] vs. [use versus] Use periods when making an abbreviation within a reference (Vol. 3, p. 6, 2nd ed.) Do not use periods within degree titles and organization titles (PhD, APA). Do not use periods within measurements (lb, ft, s) except inches (in.). Use s for second, m for meter. To form plurals of abbreviations, add s alone, without apostrophe (PhDs, IQs, vols., Eds). In using standard abbreviations for measurements, like m for meter, do not add ...