ACKNOWLEDGING PRINT AND ELECTRONIC SOURCES IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

APA STYLE
Why Should I Reference? How Do I Reference?
References are used to record or document the source of The APA style uses the name-year system for referencing,
each piece of information in your paper obtained from not footnotes or endnotes. You will include an in-text
other researchers and writers. If you fail to document citation (also called parenthetical references) in the text
information that is not your own, you have committed immediately following the information (e.g., title, word,
plagiarism, a form of stealing. or phrase) that is being referenced, as well as an entry in
the Reference List. (Note: Footnotes in APA are used to
What Should I Reference? supplement or amplify important information in the text
or for copyright permission.)
You must reference all direct quotations; paraphrases of
material; and summaries of opinions, ideas and interpre- In-text citations include the author’s last name and year
tations obtained from other sources. If you fail to refer- of publication. These citations can be included within a
ence your information, you will be criticized for making sentence in various ways:
statements that appear to be unsupported by evidence. It
is not necessary to document information that is com-
• at the end of the sentence, in parentheses:
mon knowledge, but remember that it is always better to This hypothesis was tested (Smith, 1970).
overdocument than to underdocument.
• as part of the sentence, using the parentheses to include
whatever reference information is not in the sentence:
You may be concerned that, if you reference too much,
your instructors will think the paper is not your own Smith (1970) tested this hypothesis. OR
work. That is not so. The method of organization is yours, Smith’s (1970) study tested this hypothesis. OR
as well as the purpose which ties the material together, In 1970, Smith tested this hypothesis.
the topic sentences, concluding sentences, analytical and
evaluative comments which allow the reader to make Note: In the text of your paper, use “double quotation
sense out of the reference material, and probably most of marks” for the title of an article or chapter, and italics for
the introductory and concluding paragraphs. the title of a periodical or nonperiodical (book).

What Style Should I Use? This handout provides examples of the APA format for
citations within the text (see “In-Text Citations”) as well
Always ask the professor which documentation style is re-
as for your references (see “Reference List”).
quired for the assignment. Styles can vary greatly between
journals even within one scientific field. If no specifics
are given, this Fastfacts can serve as a guide to one of the
standard formats, described in the Publication Manual Additional Resources
of the American Psychological Association (known as the If you can’t find what you’re looking for here, the official
APA style), used in Psychology and many of the social APA sources have more complete information:
sciences.
American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication
Remember to choose one style for a particular paper, and manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.)
be consistent within that paper. Washington: American Psychological Association.

APA Web site: http://www.apastyle.org/pubmanual.html

Learning Commons Fastfacts Series ©2004

A. IN-TEXT CITATIONS MULTIPLE SOURCES, DIFFERENT AUTHORS
List them alphabetically, regardless of date, separated
A basic citation includes the author’s name and the year
by a semi-colon.
of publication, separated by a comma. The following list
explains what information should be included for various … (Alberts et al., 2003; Jones, 1998a, 1998b;
specific citation situations. These formats apply to both Klevezal & Thompson, 1980; Sergeant, 1973, 1975;
electronic and print sources. Stanford, 2001).

ONE AUTHOR DIFFERENT AUTHORS, SAME LAST NAME

… was tested (Smith, 1970).
Use initials to distinguish them, and place them in
… (Statistics Canada, 1995).
alphabetical order by first initial.

TWO AUTHORS … (N. B. Smith, 2000; T. R. Smith, 1993). OR

N. B. Smith (2000) and T. R. Smith (1993) . . . .
… (Elias & Williams, 1981). BUT
Elias and Williams (1981) tested …
NO DATE
THREE TO FIVE AUTHORS … (Smith, n.d.).

For the first citation:

A SPECIFIC PART OF A SOURCE
… (Franklyn, Rosen, Lock, Smith, & Chen, 1996).
Add a comma and the specific location after the
For another citation in the same paragraph: year. If there are no page numbers, use a paragraph
number or the closest heading.
… (Franklyn et al.).
… (Alberts, 2001, fig. 6).
For another citation in a different paragraph: … (Zelickson & Robbins, 1986, p. 24).
… (Henricks, 2003, Conclusion section, para. 1).
… (Franklyn et al., 1996).

ARTICLE REPRINTED IN A COLLECTION

SIX OR MORE AUTHORS
Provide dates of original publication and publication
… (Lui et al., 1995).
of the collection, separated by “/”:

NO AUTHOR … (Winston & Blais, 1996/2003).

Cite the first few words of the reference list entry

(usually the title of the article or book) and the year. ANOTHER CITATION WITHIN YOUR SOURCE
Avoid using “secondary” sources by finding and us-
… (Studies of Alcohol, 1999).
ing the original source (e.g. Brown) whenever pos-
sible. If you can’t find and use the original, list only
MULTIPLE SOURCES, SAME AUTHOR your “secondary” source (e.g. Smith) in the reference
Order them chronologically, earliest to latest. list.

… (Jones, 1965, 1973, 1988). … Brown’s study (as cited in Smith, 1995, p. 14).

If there are several in the same year, add a designator If your quotation includes a citation, keep it in, but
(a, b, c, etc.) to the year in the citation and the refer- only include the source you are using (e.g. Lamont)
ence list. in the reference list:

… (Jones 1998a, 1998b). … several cases of “unusual side effects (Turner &
Jones, 1989)” have been reported (Lamont, 2003).

www.learningcommons.uoguelph.ca 2.
UNPUBLISHED INFORMATION TWO OR MORE AUTHORS
Unpublished information that is not available to List up to six authors, then add “et al.” if there are
other scholars — including your own lecture notes more:
— should be cited and described, but not included in
DeMarcos, D. J., Alexander, T. G., Turner, W. G., &
your reference list:
Zebrinsky, R. T., et al. (1998). Memory function
… (J. R. Ewing, personal communication, in patients with Alzheimer’s. New York:
November 16, 2003). Harbinger Press.

… (M. Li, lecture notes, POLS2000 Canadian Gov-

ernment, February 10, 2004). GOVERNMENT OR GROUP AS AUTHOR
Organization. (Date). Title. Identification
COURSE AND LECTURE MATERIALS description. Place: Publisher.

Course readers: Treat articles in course readers as Statistics Canada. (1995). National population
articles reprinted in a collection. health survey overview 1994-95. Catalogue No.
82-567. Ottawa, ON: Minister of Industry.
Course manuals: Treat these as books or non-
periodicals with the instructor as author (unless
another author is indicated). CHAPTER OR PART IN A COLLECTION
Author(s). (Date). Title of part. In T. H. E.
Lecture notes: Treat these as books or non- Editor(s) (Eds.), Title of Collection (pp.
periodicals if they are published, but as unpublished page–page). Place: Publisher.
information if they are your own notes, or are un-
Talbot, R. S., & Rouleau, J.-C. (2003). Psychiatric
published. Lecture notes are considered published if
care of adolescents. In A. C. Jones, T. R.
they have been copied and distributed in print or on
Smith, & L. T. Tabitha (Eds.), Culture,
the Web with the instructor’s permission.
adolescence, and mental illness (pp. 234-256).
Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press.

B. REFERENCE LIST If the chapter or part is considered a “reprint” (as it

The reference list comes at the end of your paper, on a would be in a course reader), add the original publi-
separate page, entitled Reference List. Put the list in alpha- cation information in parentheses at the end:
betical order by author, and use a hanging indent to format Winston, A. S., & Blais, D. J. (2003). What counts
all entries (as shown). as an experiment?: A transdisciplinary
analysis of textbooks, 1930-1970. In M. Billig
This list shows you how to format various kinds of refer- & H. Davis (Eds.), PSYCH*1100 Principles of
ence list entries. Titles of books and periodicals should al- Behaviour Course Reader (pp. 3-19). Guelph,
ways be in italics; articles should be in regular type without ON: University of Guelph, Office of Open
quotation marks. List authors by “Last name, First initials.” Learning. (Reprinted from American Journal of
Psychology, 109[4], 599-616, 1996.)
ONE AUTHOR
Author, A. (Date). Title (Edition). Place:
COURSE AND LECTURE MATERIALS
Publisher.
Course readers: Treat articles in course readers as
Rosenthal, R. (1987). Meta-analytic procedures for reprints in a collection. (See Chapter or Part in a
social research (Rev. ed.). Newbury Park, CA: Collection, above.)
Sage.
Course manuals: Treat these as books or non-
periodicals, with the instructor as author (unless
another author is indicated).

www.learningcommons.uoguelph.ca 3.
 Stengos, T. (2003). ECON*4640 Applied If the article is only available online (there is no print
Econometrics course manual. Guelph, ON: version), omit “[Electronic version].”
University of Guelph.
If you think the online version might differ from the
Lecture notes: Treat these as books or non-
print version, add the date you retrieved it and the
periodicals if they are published, but as unpublished
URL:
information (i.e. not included in the reference list) if
they are your own notes, or are unpublished. Lecture Le, H.-N., Muñoz, R. F., Ippen, C. G., & Stoddard,
notes are considered published if they have been J. L. (2003, September 15). Treatment is not
copied and distributed in print or on the web with enough: We must prevent major depression
the instructor’s permission. in women. Prevention and Treatment, 3,
Article 10. Retrieved January 12, 2004, from
Stengos, T. (2003). ECON*4640 Applied
http://journals.apa.org/prevention/volume6/
Econometrics course notes. Guelph, ON:
pre0060010a.html
University of Guelph.

Stengos, T. (2003). ECON*4640 Applied

ONLINE DOCUMENT
Econometrics course notes. Guelph, ON:
Author, A. A. (Date). Title of work. Retrieved
University of Guelph. Retrieved November
month day, year, from source
23, 2003, from http://www.uoguelph.ca/
econometrics.htm Stevenson, R. T. (2003). Helping children help
themselves. Retrieved November 23, 2003,
NEWSPAPER ARTICLE from http://www.children.com/articles/

Author(s). (Date). Title of article. Newspaper If there’s no author, start with the title (your in-text
title, page number. citation should use the first words from the title).
Stevenson, J. T. (2003, December 17). Depression Depression drug causes legal furor. (2004, March
contributes to weight gain in adolescents. The 16). Retrieved March 24, 2004, from http://
Toronto Star, p. D17. news.ninemsn.com.au/Health/story_35725.
If there’s no author, start with the article title (your asp
in-text citation should use the first words from the
title). WEBSITE
When you are citing an entire website (not a docu-
ARTICLE IN A JOURNAL/PERIODICAL ment found on the website), APA style suggests you
should provide the address (URL) of the site within
Author(s). (Date). Title of article. Title of
the text, and not include it in the reference list. For
Journal, volume[issue], page–page.
example,
Sobell, L. C., Cunningham J. A., & Sobell, M. B.
“Kidspsych is an interactive website for children
(1996). Recovery from alcohol problems with
(http://www.kidspsych.org).”
and without treatment: Prevalence in two
population surveys. American Journal of Public Subsequent references, if close enough to the first to
Health, 86, 966-972. be clear, can refer simply to the title of the website
rather than repeating the URL. Note: If referencing
a specific document found on the website, use the
ARTICLE IN AN ONLINE PERIODICAL
format provided above under Online Document.
Author(s). (Date). Title of article [Electronic
version]. Title of Journal, volume, page-
page. ELECTRONIC MESSAGE POSTINGS
Author. (date). Subject line of message
Patterson, Q. S. (1999). Psychology and the
[number]. Message posted to List name,
student [Electronic version]. Journal of
archived at location
Psychiatric Research, 23, 225-227.

www.learningcommons.uoguelph.ca 4.
 Simon, M. N., Jr. (2003, July 23). Finding
resources for psychology [Msg. 4]. Message
Additional Relevant Fastfacts
posted to References for Psychology mailing • Using Quotations in your Essay
list, archived at http://groups.yahoo.com/
group/psychologyres/msg000999.html
• Plagiarism and Academic Integrity

SOME GUIDELINES FOR REFERENCING

ELECTRONIC SOURCES Need Advice or More Information?
Remember to acknowledge electronic sources and to evalu- Writing Services, located in the Learning Commons on
ate them critically since much of the material on the inter- the 1st floor of the Library, is the best source for advice
net is inappropriate for use in an academic paper. Is this and information on writing issues.
reference current? Has the work been critically evaluated
and if so, by whom? Who is the publisher or sponsoring • Peer Helpers from a variety of disciplines offer indi-
organization? Does the work cite sources? For information vidual writing assistance to first-year students and ESL
about how to evaluate a website, go to the library’s home students. And all University of Guelph students —
undergraduate and graduate — are entitled to three free
page and click on Online Tutorials. individual writing consultations per semester with our
professional staff. Appointments are recommended.
• When an Internet document (nonperiodical) comprises
multiple pages with different URLs, provide a URL that • Writing Central is a walk-in service where trained
links to the home (or entry) page for the document. graduate student writing advisors look at undergraduate
and graduate student papers. Students can access this
service as many times as they wish.
• For an online periodical, the URL should link directly
to the specific article whenever possible. • Visit www.writingservices.uoguelph.ca to find out about
all our writing programs and services, or e-mail ques-
• Use the complete publication date given on an article or tions to [email protected].
document. Use n.d. (no date) when a publication date is
not available. • Fastfacts handouts (like this one) provide information
on a range of learning, writing, and academic com-
• Because page numbers may not be available in an online puting issues and are free to registered students. The
complete range of Fastfacts is available on the Learning
source, nor volume and issue numbers, provide as much
Commons website.
information as you can about the closest heading and
paragraph number. Please note that this material is protected by copyright. For
permission to reproduce this document in any form, con-
• Break a URL after a slash or before a period. Do not tact Writing Services, The Learning Commons, University
insert (or allow your wordprocessor to insert) a hyphen of Guelph.
at the break.

• If the author of a document is not identified, begin the

reference with the title of the document.

• If the document retrieved is an abstract rather than a

full paper, begin the retrieval statement with “Abstract
retrieved…”

Writing Services
The Learning Commons, 1st Floor, Library
www.learningcommons.uoguelph.ca
[email protected]