Citing Sources: APA Style

The APA citation style was developed by the American Psychological Association and is
commonly used in education, business, and the social and behavioral sciences. Some disciplines
may require other citation styles, so check your assignment, course syllabus, or with your
instructor for a style recommendation.
Examples of In-text Citations and References are based on the 2020 Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association, 7th ed. Page references refer to the full print APA Manual.
This guide is intended to serve as a quick reference. For additional examples and more details
consult the full print APA Manual available at the Research Help Desk and in the Reference
Collection (call number: Ref BF76.7 .P83 2020). Additional information and helpful links are
available on our website at https://libraryguides.oswego.edu/citingsources.

In-Text (Parenthetical) Citations

General Guidelines: In-Text (Parenthetical) Citations
APA uses in-text citations (also known as parenthetical citations) to identify the source of your
information, whether quoted, paraphrased, or summarized. The in-text citation is brief
information referring the reader to your reference list. The citation includes the author’s
surname, unless the name is included in the sentence featuring the citation; the publication
date (year only); and the relevant page number or specific part of the work (e.g. chapter
number, section title, etc.), if any. If there is no author, use the title, or a shortened version of
the title; the publication date (year only); and the relevant page number or specific part of the
work, if any. Use commas to separate the elements in your in-text citations (Surname, YYYY,
page number). Use the abbreviation “p.” (for a single page) or “pp.” (for multiple pages) when
listing page numbers.

Examples: In-Text (Parenthetical) Citations

• One author: “…my secret is fresh ingredients” (Bell, 2005, p. 81).
o Alternative format if you’re already using the author’s name in your sentence:
…Bell (2005) has stated that “my secret is fresh ingredients” (p. 81).
• Two authors: …make great claims for their results” (Moore & Stuck, 1999, pp. 27-28).
• Three or more authors: “…light at the end of the tunnel?” (Hardee et al., 1936, p. 380).
• Corporate (organizational) author: … (Human Rights Watch, 2022, p. 8).
• Works with no known author: … (“Laughter and Stress," 2001, p. 88), … (Beowulf, 2015,
p. 143).
o Note: Use the title in place of the author’s surname. Shorten longer titles to
three words or fewer. Titles of short works (e.g. articles, short stories, books

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 chapters) are included in quotation marks, while titles of complete works (e.g.
books, films) are italicized. Capitalize all major words in the title (see p. 167 for
detailed instructions on title capitalization for in-text citations).
• Works with no publication date: …(Shelley, n.d., p. 36).
o Note: Use the abbreviation “n.d.” (no date) in place of the publication date.
• Sources with no page numbers (e.g. online articles, websites): … (Stonewall Forever,
n.d., “What are the Stonewall Riots?” section), … (Speltz, 2016, para. 5).
o Note: If page numbers aren’t provided, identify a specific part of the work
instead that will enable others to locate the original information. This could be a
section heading, chapter title or number, table heading, or paragraph number.
See pp. 264, 273-274 for detailed instructions on identifying specific parts of a
work.
• Indirect Sources: …(Miller, 1985, as cited in Boswell, 2003, p. 102).
o Note: Indirect sources are those quoted or cited in other sources. Use of the
original source is preferred if possible, but you can use an indirect source if the
original is unavailable. Cite the indirect source (Miller, 1985) with the phrase “as
cited in” and the source the reference appeared in (Boswell, 2003, p. 102). The
works cited list should include the source you accessed yourself (in this case,
Boswell).

Reference List
General Guidelines: Reference List
The reference list is an alphabetical list of all resources cited in your paper. There are several
general guidelines to use, regardless of the type of resource:
● Use double spacing between all lines.
● Use a hanging indent, with all lines after the first indented.
● Pay attention to punctuation and capitalization.
● List entries alphabetically by the first word of the citation, typically the first author
surname listed or the first significant word for a corporate author or title (exclude initial
articles like “A” or “The” when alphabetizing).

General Format and Citation Elements: Reference List

Reference list entries typically follow these general formats, but there are some exceptions.
Consult the specific examples below or the APA Manual for guidance for each source type. Not
all source types and citation entries will use all of the elements listed. If an element is not
included in your source, it can generally be omitted from the reference list citation, except for
the publication date (see “Citation Elements: Books 2” and “Citation Elements: Articles 2”
below for additional details).

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Example of General Format: Books [see pp. 283, 321]
Author, A. A., & Author, A. A. (Publication Date). Title of book: Subtitle of book (Version or

edition, Volume). Publisher. Location (URL or DOI)

Citation Elements: Books [see pp. 283-309, 321]

1. Provide the author’s name formatted as “Surname, First Initial. Second Initial.” with a
comma after the surname, a period after each initial, and a space between each initial. If
two or more authors, list them in the order they are listed in the publication. See
“Examples: Reference List: Books” below for examples with multiple authors, editors
instead of authors, and other variations.
2. Provide the publication date in parentheses in YYYY, MM DD format, with a comma after
the year if including a month or month and day. Write out the full month (e.g. November).
Add a period after the parentheses. If no date is provided, use the abbreviation “n.d.” (no
date) instead.
3. Provide the title and subtitle of the book, italicized. Capitalize the first word of the title, the
first word of the subtitle, the first word after a colon, and proper nouns (see pp. 167-168 for
detailed instructions on capitalization; book titles follow the “Sentence Case” instructions).
Add a period at the end, unless the title ends with other punctuation or
version/edition/volume information is included in your reference.
4. Provide the version or edition and volume information within parentheses, if applicable.
You do not need to specify that a book is an ebook unless the content or page numbers are
different from the print version of the book. Use the abbreviation “ed.” for edition and
“vol.” for volume. Separate version/edition and volume information with a comma. Add a
period after the parentheses.
5. Provide publisher information. This element can also be a website sponsor or a media
distributor (e.g. for movies, podcasts) or an online platform title (e.g. Instagram, Twitter,
YouTube). Add a period at the end.
6. Provide the URL or DOI (if provided) for online resources. Use a permalink URL if provided.
DOIs are strings of numbers and letters most often used for scholarly journal articles. If the
DOI does not include it, add “https://doi.org/” before the DOI string. Do not include a
period at the end of the URL or DOI.

Example of General Format: Journal Articles [see pp. 283, 316]

Author, A. A., & Author, A. A. (Publication Date). Title of article or short work: Subtitle of article.

Journal or Complete Work Title, volume #(issue #), location (page numbers). Location

(URL or DOI)

Citation Elements: Journal Articles [see pp. 283-309, 316]

1. Provide the author’s name formatted as “Surname, First Initial. Second Initial.” with a
comma after the surname, a period after each initial, and a space between each initial. If
two or more authors, list them in the order they are listed in the publication. See

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 “Examples: Reference List: Books” below for examples with multiple authors, editors
instead of authors, and other variations.
2. Provide the publication date in parentheses in YYYY, MM DD format, with a comma after
the year if including a month or month and day. Write out the full month (e.g. November).
Add a period after the parentheses. If no date is provided, use the abbreviation “n.d.” (no
date) instead.
3. Provide the title and subtitle of the article/short work. Capitalize the first word of the title,
the first word of the subtitle, the first word after a colon, and proper nouns (see pp. 167-
168 for detailed instructions on capitalization; article/short work titles follow the “Sentence
Case” instructions). Add a period at the end, unless the title ends with other punctuation.
4. Provide the title and subtitle of the journal/complete work, italicized. Capitalize all
significant words, such as nouns, verbs, and adjectives (see pp. 167-168 for detailed
instructions on capitalization; journal/complete work titles follow the “Title Case”
instructions). Add a comma at the end.
5. Provide the volume number, italicized. Do not write out “volume,” only the number.
Provide the issue number in parentheses, not italicized, immediately after the volume
number. Do not include a space between the volume number and the parenthesis. Do not
write out “issue,” only the number. Add a comma at the end.
6. Provide page numbers. Do not write out “page,” only the numbers. Add a period at the end.
7. Provide the URL or DOI (if provided) for online resources. Use a permalink URL if provided.
DOIs are strings of numbers and letters most often used for scholarly journal articles. If the
DOI does not include it, add “https://doi.org/” before the DOI string. Do not include a
period at the end of the URL or DOI.

Examples: Reference List

Examples of single author, multiple author, anonymous author, and other contributor (e.g.
editor, translator) formatting have been included under the Books heading for quick reference.
Refer to these contributor formatting examples when needed for all source types.
Books
Book with one author [see p. 321]
Bell, C. (2005). Tender is the knight. Cookbooks Galore.

Book with two authors [see p. 321]

Moore, O. C., & Stuck, S. (1999). Overcoming xenophobia. World Images.

Book with three or more authors [see p. 321]

Alonso Bejarno, C., Lopez Juarez, L., Mijangos Garcia, M. A., & Goldstein, D. M. (2019).

Decolonizing ethnography: Undocumented immigrants and new directions in social

science. Duke University Press.

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Book with corporate (organizational) author [see p. 321]
American Association of University Professors. (2015). Policy documents and reports. Johns

Hopkins University Press.

Book with an anonymous (unknown) author [see pp. 284, 321]

Beowulf. (2015). First Avenue Editions.

Book with editors instead of authors [see p. 322]

Benson, S. G., & Matuszak, N. (Eds.). (2003). History behind the headlines: The origins of

conflicts worldwide. Gale.

Electronic book [see pp. 321-322]

Fukari, H., & Krooth, R. (2003). Race in the jury box [Ebook]. State University of New York Press.

Chapter or essay in a book [see p. 326]

Grunig, L. A., & Toth, E. L. (2006). The ethics of communicating with and about difference in a

changing society. In K. Fitzpatrick & C. Bronstein (Eds.), Ethics in public relations:

Responsible advocacy (pp. 39-52). Sage Publications.

Magazine and News Articles

Magazine/Trade journal article (online) [see p. 320]
Speltz, M. (2016, September 22). How photographs define the civil rights and Black Lives Matter

movements. Time. https://time.com/4429096/black-lives-matter-civil-rights-

photography/

Magazine/Trade journal article (print) [see p. 320]

Roback, D. (2007, December 10). Children’s fiction bestsellers. Publisher’s Weekly, 254(49), 18.

News article (online) [see p. 351]

Workers at Washington Starbucks vote to unionize. (2022, June 3). The Associated Press.

https://apnews.com/article/washington-everett-seattle-labor-unions-

27aa606b02a7594174b9fbd27c479464

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News article (print) [see p. 320]
Maynard, M. (2004, September 19). Lake Ontario ferry ceases service. The New York Times,

TR3.

Scholarly Journal Articles

Scholarly journal article (accessed using a library database, or print) [see p. 317]
Dearborn, S. (1999). Family planning: A case study. Journal of Family Finance, 33(4), 114-20.

Scholarly journal article (online, with a DOI) [see p. 317]

Mattaini, M. A., & Aspholm, R. (2016). Contributions of behavioral systems science to

leadership for a new progressive movement. The Behavior Analyst, 39(1), 109-121.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40614-015-0043-4

Scholarly journal article (online, without DOI or journal volume/number) [see p. 317]

Esmail, R. (2021, October 21). Confronting anti-Asian racism: A statement on (in)visibility and

targeted online harassment. up//root. https://www.uproot.space/features/confronting-

anti-asian-racism

Web, Social Media, and Streaming Sources

Blog [see p. 320]
Ibrahim, Z. (2020, June 8). A double life: The thoughts of a first-generation college student.

Active Minds Blog. https://www.activeminds.org/blog/a-double-life-the-thoughts-of-a-

first-generation-college-student/

Podcast [see p. 345]

Clark, J., & Bryant, C. (Hosts). (2021, November 2). How mRNA vaccines work [Audio podcast

episode]. In Stuff You Should Know. iHeart. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-stuff-

you-should-know-26940277/episode/how-mrna-vaccines-work-88752715/

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Twitter post [see p. 348]
World Institute on Disability [@WID_org]. (2022, July 1). Happy #DisabilityPrideMonth! Here’s

how it started and why it’s important…[Tweet]. Twitter.

https://twitter.com/WID_org/status/1542889271320772610

Twitter post with image [see pp. 348-349]

Sun Steph Brown Is Robin [@Sunlitlake]. (2022, July 1). Happy #DisabilityPrideMonth

everyone!... [Image attached] [Tweet]. Twitter.

https://twitter.com/Sunlitlake/status/1542978964352020480

Video accessed using a sharing platform (e.g. Vimeo, YouTube) [see p. 344]
SUNY Oswego. (2022, May 16). May 2022 commencement highlights [Video]. YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Q6kDaOZHgI

Video accessed using a streaming app (e.g. Amazon Prime Video, Netflix) [see pp. 342-343]
Newnham, N., & LeBrecht, J. (Directors). (2020). Crip camp: A disability revolution [Film].

Netflix; Higher Ground; Rusted Spoke Productions.

Website [see p. 351]

National Park Service. (2022, June 18). Stonewall National Monument.

https://www.nps.gov/ston/index.htm

Website with no publication date [see p. 352]

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center. (n.d.). About the monument.

Stonewall Forever. Retrieved July 3, 2022, from https://stonewallforever.org/about/

Selected Additional Sources

Encyclopedia entry (accessed using a library database or online) [see pp. 324-325, 328]
Jackson, S. T. (n.d.) Climate change. In Britannica academic. Retrieved July 3, 2022, from

https://academic.eb.com/levels/collegiate/article/climate-change/384741

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Encyclopedia entry (print, multi-volume set) [see p. 328]
Hall, L. (2007). Environmental racism. In G. L. Anderson & K. Herr (Eds.), Encyclopedia of

activism and social justice (Vol. 2, pp. 532-534). Sage Publications.

Government document (online, report) [see pp. 364-365]

H.R. Rep. No. 116-378. (2020). https://purl.fdlp.gov/GPO/gpo130945

Government document (print, hearing) [see pp. 364]

Hearings on the “Equal Rights Amendment,” 91st Cong. (1970).

Image of artwork (accessed online) [see p. 346]

Sherald, A. (2018.) Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama [Painting]. 2018. National Portrait

Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. https://npg.si.edu/Michelle_Obama

Personal communications (e.g. emails, personal interviews) [see p. 260]

Personal communications are not included in the Reference List. Use an in-text (parenthetical)
citation: …(B. Barlow, personal communication, June 16, 2022).

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