How to Cite References Using APA Style

This guide provides examples of the American Psychological Association (APA) citation style, which is used primarily in the social sciences. For additional examples, consult the most recent edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, located at the Reference Desk (REF DESK BF76.7 P83 2001).

REFERENCE LIST

APA style requires that an alphabetical listing of the sources actually used and cited be placed at the end of term papers and reports. Some of the general features of APA style are:

• The first line of each citation begins flush left, and the second and subsequent lines are indented five spaces. (This is called a "hanging indent.") .
• Only initials are used for authors' first and middle names. Names are inverted: Miller, J. K
• Single spaces separate each element.
• Citations are arranged alphabetically by authors' last names; works by the same author are in alphabetical order. If the author is unknown, alphabetization is by the first word of the title..
• Only the first letter of the first word of the title of books and articles is capitalized, with the exception of proper nouns. The first word of subtitles (after a colon) is also capitalized.

Books

• The city and state in which the publisher is located are included, using United States postal codes to abbreviate states. However, the state (and/or country) is omitted for major cities and for university presses that include the name of the state. If more than one location is listed, the first is used.
• Book titles are italicized.

No author

World development report. (1989). New York: Oxford University Press.

One author

Perloff, R. M. (1995). The dynamics of persuasion. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Two or more authors (up to six authors)

Shain, Y., & Linz, J. J. (1995). Between states: Interim governments and democratic

transitions. New York: Cambridge University Press.

• After the 6th author, "et al." is used. (…, Smith, P. J., et al. (1997). …)

 

Book other than first edition

Abbott, C. (1982). Colorado: A history of the Centennial State (Rev. ed.). Boulder: Colorado

Associated University Press.

• Other abbreviations include: 1st ed., 2nd ed, etc.

 

Society, association, or institution as author and publisher

American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological

Association (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.

Edited Book

Abbott, A. A. (Ed.). (2000). Alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs: Challenging myths, assessing

theories, individualizing interventions. Washington, DC: National Association of Social

Workers Press.

• For multiple editors, use abbreviation, Eds.

 

Article or chapter in an edited book

Tillich, P. (1952). Being and love. In R. N. Anshen (Ed.), Moral principles in action

(pp. 661-672). New York: Harper.

Periodical Articles

• The title of the periodical is italicized, but the title of the article is not.
• The first letter of each word of the periodical title is capitalized (except for prepositions and articles).
• The volume number of the periodical is italicized.

Scholarly journal that numbers pages continuously throughout the annual volume

Bekerian, D. A. (1993). In search of the typical eyewitness. American Psychologist,

48, 574-576.

Scholarly journal that paginates each issue separately

Turow, J. (1994). Hidden conflicts and journalistic norms: The case of self-coverage.

Journal of Communication, 44 (2), 12-31.

Magazine article (in contrast to an article in a scholarly journal)

King, R. D. (1997, April). Should English be the law? Atlantic Monthly, 279, 55-64.

 

Island of trouble. (1988, March 12). The Economist, 306, 53-54.

Newspaper article

Schwartz, J. (1993, September 10). Obesity affects economic, social status. The Washington Post,

pp. B1, B3, B5-B7.

U.S. trade deficit. (1994, August 19). The Wall Street Journal (Eastern ed.), p. A1.

 

Encyclopedia Articles

Signed article

Tracy, J. D. (1993). Erasmus. In The new encyclopedia Britannica (Vol. 18, pp.

489-491). Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica.

Unsigned article

Right of asylum. (1995). In Academic American Encyclopedia (Vol. 16, p. 222).

Danbury, CT: Grolier.

Audiovisual Materials

• Persons primarily responsible for the item are named; their roles are identified in parentheses after their names.
• The medium, placed in brackets, is supplied after the title. Media designations include [Audio recording], [CD] (for music CD), and [Motion picture] for both film and videotape.

Videotape

Weir, P. B. (Producer), & Harrison, B. F. (Director). (1992). Levels of

consciousness [Videotape]. Boston: Filmways.

Audio recording

Carter, B. (Speaker). (1977). The growth of English [Audio Recording]. New

York: Audio Associates.

Electronic Publications

APA guidelines for online sources are subject to frequent updating. For the most current information, check Electronic Reference Formats Recommended by the APA at http://www.apa.org/journals/webref.html

• To the extent possible, information is provided as for a printed source.
• Information identifying the electronic source is placed at the end.
• Date of retrieval is included.
• Periods are omitted at the end of an Internet address, if that is the last element in the citation.

Electronic Book

Humm, M. (1997). Feminism and film. Bloomington, IN: Edinburgh University Press. Retrieved

October 20, 2001 from University of Wisconsin-Parkside Library, netLibrary Web site:

http://www.netlibrary.com

Article from an Internet journal based on a print source (exact duplicate with same page numbers)

Killingbeck, D. (2001). The role of television news in the construction of school violence as

"moral panic" [Electronic Version]. Journal of Criminal Justice and Popular Culture, 8,

186-202.

Article from an Internet journal based on a print source (format differs or page numbers are not indicated)

Killingbeck, D. (2001). The role of television news in the construction of school violence as

"moral panic." Journal of Criminal Justice and Popular Culture, 8, 186-202. Retrieved

October 30, 2001, from http://www.albany.edu/scj/jcjpc/vol8is3/killingbeck.html

Daily newspaper article, electronic version available by search

Greenhouse, S., & Lipton, E. (2001, October 30). Possible anthrax case shuts New York

hospital. New York Times. Retrieved October 31, 2001, from http://www.nytimes.com

Article from Internet-only magazine

Saletan, W. (2001, October 17). The power of negative thinking. Slate. Retrieved October 20,

2001, from http://slate.msn.com/framegame/entries/01-10-17_117527.asp

Periodical article retrieved from periodical database

Madukjok, J. (1999). Militarization and gender violence in South Sudan. Journal of Asian &

African Studies, 34, 427-442. Retrieved October 19, 2001, from Academic Search Premier

database.

Document retrieved from World Wide Web site

American Psychological Association. (1992, December 1). American Psychological Association

Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. Retrieved October 30, 2001,

from http://www.apa.org/ethics/code.html

In-text parenthetical citations

APA style requires the use of parenthetical citations within the text of a paper to document quotes, paraphrases, summaries, and other sources used. These references refer to entries on the References list at the end of the paper and take the place of footnotes or endnotes. All authors cited in the text must appear in the references list, and all authors listed must have been cited in the text.

Basic form: Include author's surname (if not already mentioned in the text), and the date:

 

Rogers (1994) compared reaction times...

A recent study of reaction times (Rogers, 1994) found...

 

Two authors: Use both:

... (Wellek & Warren, 1992)...

Three to five authors: Include all authors the first time mentioned. In subsequent entries include the first author only, followed by et al.:

 

Wasserstein et al. (1994) found...

 

Corporate author: Use full name the first time; abbreviate later:

 

(National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH], 1991) ...
(NIMH, 1991)

No author: Punctuate the first title words as in the reference list:

…on free care ("Study finds," 1982, p.115) …
... the book College Bound Seniors (1979) …

Multiple works:

 

 

Several studies (Balda, 1980; Kamil, 1988; Pepperbert & Funk, 1990) ...

 

Multiple works by an author in one year. Assign letters to each citation to distinguish them. (The letters must also be used in the reference list.):

...(Johnson, 1991a, 1991b, 1991c)...

 

Specific pages:

…(Cheek and Buss, 1981, p. 332; Shimamura, 1989, chap. 3)…

Secondary source citing a primary source: Include both:

 

Seidenberg and McClelland's study (as cited in Coltheart, Curtis, Atkins, & Haller, 1993)...
(Include Coltheart, not Seidenberg, in reference list)

 

World Wide Web site (but not a specific document): Provide the address (for example, http://www.apa.org) in the text. No reference entry is needed.