There are two elements of the APA format: the in-text citation and the list of references.
 

• In-Text Citation

•   date of publication
•   page or page numbers of a quotation (if you are quoting directly or even paraphrasing)

The following are common types of citations:

 A Work by Two Authors
Use and in the text but & in parentheses.

• Jones and Smith (1989) summarized the earlier research (pp. 44-59).

• Although earlier research has been discussed, other points have been expanded upon (Jones & Smith, 1989, pp. 44-59)

 Two or More Works by the Same Author
If you are citing two works by the same author but from different years, distinguish them by the date of publication.  If the author has published two separate works in the same year, you must list the works in alphabetical order by title in your list of references, then assign each one a lowercase letter.

• (Jones, 1990a) discussed the research in his article, "Writing and Creativity," while (Jones, 1990b) refers to the writing process itself.

 A Work by Three to Five Authors
Provide the names of all authors the first time you refer to a work, but after the first reference give only the first of the names followed by et al.

• Jones, Smith, and Gooden (1992) believe that writing falls into three phases: prewriting, writing, and rewriting.  Like many other processes, this one is the most common to all college students (Jones et al.).

 A Work by a Corporate Author
Give a corporate author's full name in the first parenthetical reference.  Abbreviate the name, supplying it in brackets within the parentheses of the first reference.  Subsequently, use the abbreviation only.

• PMLA (Modern Language Association [MLA], 1991) has published many articles on the subject of the writing process.  One of the most common of the processes is the prewriting period, often referred to as brainstorming (MLA, 1991).

Distinguishing Two Authors with the Same Last Name
Distinguish authors with the same last name by supplying first and middle initials in each citation, such as (P.  Jones, 1994) and (C. K. Jones, 1995).

Two or More Sources in a Single Reference
Separate multiple sources in one citation by semicolons.  List authors alphabetically within the parentheses.

• The writing process has brought about much change in the way writing is taught in schools (Jones, 1995; Richards, 1994; Smith, 1990).

• List of Works Cited

• Author's name.  Put the last name first, followed by a comma, and then the first name or initials.
• Date.  Give the year of publication in parentheses, followed by a period.  If your list includes several titles by the same author that were published in one year, assign each book a lowercase letter.
• Title of book.  Underline the entire book title.  Capitalize only the first word in the title (except for proper names)
• Publication information.  Name the city of publication, followed by a colon.  Then give the full name of the publisher, but without designations like co. or inc.  If you need to go on to another line, indent each subsequent line.

A Periodical: List the following information:

• Author's name.  List the last name, a comma, and then the first name or initials.
• Date.  List the date of publication in parentheses.  If it is a weekly or monthly publication, list the year, then a comma, then the month and day.
• Title of article.  Capitalize only the first word of the title.  Do not put the title in quotations.
• Title of periodical.  List the title of the periodical and underline it, and put a comma after it.
• Volume number.  After the comma, put down the number only without abbreviations like "vol."  Underline it with the periodical title. If there's an issue number included, put it in parentheses after the volume number (do not underline this).  Put a comma after the number or parentheses.
• Page numbers.  Use the abbreviations p. or pp. when referring to page numbers in a magazine or newspaper.  Use no abbreviations when referring to page numbers in a journal.  Put a period after the number.  Indent any subsequent lines.

An Electronic Source: Begin with the same information on author, title, and date.  Following this initial information and as part of the title (before the comma or period), list Online or CD-ROM in brackets.  You must end with the word Available and the address of the source.  For CD-ROM information, list the publisher.

 Example of a CD-ROM source:
        NCTE.  (1987) . On writing centers   [CD-ROM] .  Urbana:  ERIC Clearinghouse for
                Resolutions on the Teaching of Composition.  Silver Platter.

  Example of an Internet source:
        Tompkins, D. P.  (1993, June) .  Thucydides constructs his speakers: The case of  Diodotus.
                Electronic Antiquity   [Online ],   1   (1) .  Available FTP: into.utas.ed.au
                dpartments/classics/antiquity/1,1- June1993/(4)-Articles/Tompkins-Thucydides
 

• Special Cases in APA Format

A government publication:
National Institute of Mental Health.  (1982) .  Television and behavior: Ten years of scientific
        progress and implications in the eighties (DHS Publication No. ADM 821195) .  Washington,
        DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

A film or videotape: Identify the medium in brackets just after the title.  For a TV or radio program, include the date it aired.
Maas, J. B.  (Producer), & Gluck, D. H.  (Director) .  (1979) .  Deeper into hypnosis [Film] .
        Englewood Cliffs, NJ:   Prentice-Hall.

An information service:
Robertson, Linda R.  (1981) .  Stranger in a strange land, or stimulating faculty interest in writing
        across the curriculum.   (Report No. CS 206 717) .  Portland, OR:  Northwest Regional
        Educational Lab.  (ERIC   Document Reproduction Service No. ED 211 996)

A selection from an edited book or anthology: Underline the title of the book.  The selection title, as with a periodical article, is not underlined or enclosed in quotation marks.  In APA style, spell out the name of a university press.
Flower, Linda.  (1995) .  Writer-based prose: A cognitive basis for problems in writing.  In Robert
        Connors & Cheryl Glenn (Eds.) ,  The St. Martin's guide to teaching writing  (pp. 277-298)
        New York:  St. Martin's.

A corporate author: Alphabetize the entry in the references list by the first significant word in the name, which is given in normal order.
American Sociological Association.  (1996) .  Style guide.  Washington, DC:  American Sociological
        Association.

A government publication:
National Institute of Mental Health.  (1990) .  Clinical training in serious mental illness.  (DHHS
        Publication No.ADM 90-16791)

Miscellaneous Concerns:

•  In a citation for a work by a corporate author, alphabetize it by the first significant word in its name.
• If a book lists that it is a second, third, etc. edition, indicate the edition in parentheses, following the book title, such as Post -traumatic stress disorder: Diagnosis, treatment, and legal issues   (2nd ed.) .
• For a book with two or more authors, list both authors by last name first, then first name or initial.  Before the last one listed, insert an ampersand (&).  List the authors in the order in which they are printed in the source.

For more detailed Information, consult your department's writing consultant or these sources:

American Psychological Association.  (1996) .  Publication manual of the American Psychological
        Association  (4th ed.) .  Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

American Sociological Association.  (1996) .  Style guide.  Washington, DC: American
        Sociological Association.
 

© 1997 Kit O'Toole, all rights reserved.

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