APA Documentation
Credible, responsible writers use documentation in their writing. Accurate acknowledgement of their sources demonstrates writers' professionalism, allows them to use experts to support their research, and ensures they avoid plagiarism. This guide includes examples of APA (American Psychological Association) documentation formats for print and electronic sources including books, periodicals, databases and websites. Additional information and examples are available in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5h ed.) and on the APA website at http://www.apa.org. The current English 101 handbook, The New Century Handbook will also be helpful.
- Print Sources
- Books
- Parts of a Book
- Periodicals
- Electronic Sources
- Databases
- Websites
- Parenthetical Citations
Books
1 author
Author's Last name, First and Middle initial. (Publication year). Title: Subtitle. City of publication: Publisher.
Gilmore, D.D. (1990). Manhood in the making: Cultural concepts of masculinity. New Haven: Yale University Press.
2 or more authors
Last name of author listed first on title page, First and Middle initial, Last name of author listed second on title page, First and Middle initial. [Use & before the Last name of the final author listed.] (Publication year). Title: Subtitle. City of publication: Publisher.
Beech, H.R., Burns, L.E., & Sheffield, B.F. (1982). A behavioral approach to the management of stress: A practical guide to techniques. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Editor as author
Last name, First and Middle initial (Ed.). (Publication year). Title: subtitle. City of publication: Publisher.
Murphy, G., & Murphy L.B. (Eds.). (1969). Western psychology: From the Greeks to William James. New York: Basic Books, Inc.
Parts of Books
Article or chapter in an edited book
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of article or chapter. (Publication year of book). Title of article or chapter. In followed by First and Middle initial Last name of editor(s) separated by commas, with & before the final name (Ed(s).), Title of book: Subtitle (pp. range of pages of article or chapter). City of publication: Publisher.
Patterson, G.R. (1976). The aggressive child: Victim and architect of a coercive system. In E.J. Mash, L.A. Hamerlynck, & L.C. Handy (Eds.), Behavior modification and families (pp.267-316). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Article in a multivolume work
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of article. (publication year of book). Title of article. In Title of book (Vol. volume number, pp. range of pages). City of publication: Publisher.
Benton, A. (1994). Pathologies of the brain. In Encyclopedia of human intelligence (Vol. 1, pp. 220-226). New York: Macmillan.
Article or chapter reprinted from another source
Last name, First name and Middle initial of author of article or chapter. (Publication year of book). Title of article or chapter. In followed by First and Middle initial Last name of editor(s) separated by commas, with & before the final name (Ed(s).), Title of book (pp. range of pages). City of publication: Publisher. (Reprinted from Title of original publication, pp. range of pages, by First and Middle initial Last name of editor of original publication, Ed., year of original publication, City of original publication: Publisher of original publication)
Ashley-Montagu, M. F. (1968). The new litany of innate depravity, or original sin revisited. In M. F. Ashley-Montagu (Ed.), Man and aggression (pp. 3-17). New York: Oxford University Press. (Reprinted from The human revolution, by M. F. Ashley-Montagu, 1967, New York: Bantam Books).
Periodicals
Journal article
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of article. (Publication year of journal, publication Month for journals that don't have volume numbers). Title of article. Title of journal, volume number (issue number if each issue begins on page one), range of pages.
Goolkasian, P. (1999). Retinal location and its effect on the spatial distribution of visual attention. American Journal of Psychology, 112, 187-214.
Magazine article
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of article. (Publication year, Month Date). Title of article. Title of magazine, volume number, range of pages.
Gravitz, H. (2001, April). The binds that tie and heal: How families cope with mental illness. Psychology Today, 34, 70-76.
Newspaper article
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of article. (Publication year, Month Date). Title of article. Title of newspaper, p. page number [or pp. range of pages or list of discontinuous pages separated by commas].
Wilson, C. (2003, August 26). Put nicely, society's meanness points to trouble. USA Today, p.1D.
Databases
Libraries subscribe to databases like Proquest, Academic Search Premier, Project Muse, etc., that provide access to periodical articles in journals, magazines and newspapers. Some databases, like other reference books, excerpt from books, photographs, video and audio clips. The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association(5h ed.) recommends that in citing a database, "...follow the format appropriate to the work retrieved and add a retrieval statement that gives the date of retrieval and the proper name of the database. An item or accession number also may be provided but is not required" (2001, p. 278).
Journal article in a database
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of article. (Publication year, Month Day). Title of article. Title of journal, volume # (issue#), page range. Retrieved Month day, year, from Name of database.
Heidt, R.S., Jr. (2000, September-October). Avoidance of soccer injuries with preseason conditioning. American Journal of Sports Medicine, 28(5), 659-662. Retrieved September 25, 2000, from ProQuest database.
Magazine article in a database
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of article. (Publication year, Month Day). Title of article. Title of magazine, page range. Retrieved Month day, year, from Name of database.
Hurley, K. (1990, August). What are gamma-ray bursters? Sky & Telescope, 143-147. Retrieved December 11, 2000, from SIRS Knowledge Source.
Newspaper article in a database
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of article. (Publication year, Month Day). Title of article. Title of newspaper. p. or pp. followed by page numbers separated by commas. Retrieved Month day, year, from Name of database.
Gershenson, A. (1998, December 17). After eviction, family struggles back to stability. New York Times, p. B4. Retrieved December 11, 2000, from Maryland Digital Library.
Previously published essay, chapter or book, etc. in a database
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of item. (print publication year). Title of essay, chapter, etc. In Title of print source (pp. page range). City of print publication: Print publisher. Retrieved Month day, year, from Name of database.
Greenblatt. S.J. (1965). George Orwell. In Three modern satirists: Waugh, Orwell, and Huxley (pp. 35-74). New Haven: Yale University Press. Retrieved January 5, 2001, from Galenet database.
Web Sites
Document within a website
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of document. (publication year, Month day or most recent update of website). Title of document. City of website publisher: Website publisher. Retrieved Month day, year, from URL of document
Macy, J. A. (2001). Physical therapy and the Alexander Technique: An overview. Lincoln, Nebraska: Alexander Technique. Retrieved February 2, 2001, from http://alexatechnique.com/pt/macy
Previously published periodical article within a website
Last name, First and Middle initial of author of article. (Print publication year, Month Day). Title of article. Title of periodical, volume number(issue number), range of pages. Retrieved Month day, year, from URL of article
Jacobson, J.W., Mulick, J.A., & Schwartz, A.A. (1995). A history of facilitated communication: Science working group on facilitated communication. American Psychologist, 50, 750-765. Retrieved January 25, 1996, from http://www.apa.org/journals/jacobson.html
Citing Sources, Parenthetical Style
Whenever you use direct quotations, summaries, paraphrases, statistics, tables, or diagrams, you must acknowledge the source of the borrowed information.
References to an Article
The source may be cited at the end of the sentence.
Only one article mentioned the high cost of training radiographers (Harper, 1985).
If the author's name is given in the text, do not repeat it in the citation.
Harper (1985) reported that the cost of training students in health related fields is higher because of the equipment that must be kept up to date.
Note: The current APA manual recommends including the page number to cite a specific part of a source and always use page numbers for quotations. For electronic sources, use the paragraph number preceded by the paragraph symbol or the abbreviation "para." For example: (Smith, 2001, para. 8)
Harper (1985) reported that the cost of training students in health related fields is higher because of the equipment that must be kept up to date (p. 48).
Multiple Authors -
Cheek and Sewell (2001), Quinn (2000) and Earls (1999) agree that ...
OR:
Several researches report ..... (Cheek & Sewell, 2001; Quinn, 2000; Earls, 1999).
Direct Quotation -
According to Harper (1985), "Many students in health related fields find it necessary to seek financial assistance to complete their education" (p. 48).
OR:
This special training is so expensive that "many students in health related fields find it necessary to seek financial assistance to complete their education" (Harper, 1985, p. 48).
Secondary Source:
Sometimes the writer wants to borrow information cited in the source at hand from another source. For example, the writer uses the Sewell, Hildenbrand, Quinn, and Chance source but wants to cite Faulkner and Cheek's study , which they cite in their text. Follow this example:
Faulkner and Cheek's study (as cited in Sewell, Hildenbrand, Quinn & Chance, 2001) notes several new findings.
Sample APA Title Page:
See pp. 296-298 and p. 306 in the APA Manual for more information on the Title Page. Also, your professor may want the date, course and section number, or other information on the title page in addition to what is standard APA format. Be sure to check with your professor.
If there is inaccurate information on this page, please send correction or comments to: lrcdesk@chesapeake.edu