Printable Version (with fewer examples)
The examples below follow the Publication manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th ed., 2001 (APA-M) and the APA Style guide to electronic references, 2007 (APA-E). Correct spacing, use of italics, and punctuation are essential (APA-M, p. 290). APA style requires double-spacing throughout the paper, including the Reference List page. The first lines of paragraphs should be indented 5 to 7 spaces (APA-M, p. 289).
For additional examples, see APA-M, pp. 231-268. Sample pages of a completed paper appear on pages 306-320 of the APA-M. See pages 117-122 and 292-293 of the APA-M for information about direct quotations. For assistance with electronic references, please ask us!
Author-date citations, placed within the text at the appropriate point, replace footnotes or endnotes. Two examples:
Martin (1984) urges roommates to settle differences...
In her list of rules for roommates (Martin, 1984)...
If a citation you need is not illustrated here, please ask for the APA Publication Manual
at either the Reference Desk or Reserve Desk, or ask us.Note on Reference List formatting:
APA publishes references in a "hanging indent" format, meaning that the first line of each reference is set flush left and subsequent lines are indented. All citations are double-spaced. Page numbers refer to those in the APA-M.
Print Source (p. 248):
Gardner, H. (1993). Creating minds. New York: Basic Books.
Electronic Source:
Dujac, P. (n.d.). Ananda. Available from http://onlineoriginals.com/showitem.asp?itemID=82
Print Source (p. 248):
Bennis, W. G., & Nanus, B. (1985). Leaders: The strategies for taking charge. New York:
Harper and Row.
Electronic Source:
Basford, L. & Thorpe, K. (2004). Caring for the older adult. Retrieved from MyiLibrary database.
Print Source (follow rules for journals, pp. 240-241):
Skidmore, R. A., Thackeray, M. G., & Farley, O. W. (1997). Introduction to social work (7th ed.).
Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Print Source (follow rules for journals, pp. 240-241):
Wilson, E. O., Eisner A. B., Briggs, R. J., Dickerson, W. G., Metzenberg S. L., O’Brien, S. B., et al.
(1978). Life on our planet (2nd ed.). Boston: Dinosaur Publishing.
Print Source (p. 248):
Feldman, R. S. (2005). Development across the life span (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall.
Electronic Source:
Soanes, C. & Stevenson, A. (Eds.). (2005). The Oxford dictionary of English (2nd ed., Rev.).
Retrieved from Oxford Reference Online database.
Print Source (p. 249):
Davis, W. C. & Robertson, J. I., Jr. (Eds.). (2005). Virginia at war: 1861. Lexington: University
Press of Kentucky.
Electronic Source:
Lyng, S. (Ed.). (2005). Edgework: The sociology of risk-taking. Retrieved from netLibrary database.
Print Source (p. 252):
Carlyle, T. (1995). The hero as king. In J. T. Wren (Ed.), The leader's companion (pp. 53-55).
New York: Free Press.
Electronic Source:
Lowenthal, D. (2002). The disenchanted future. In R. D. Sack (Ed.), Progress: geographical essays
(pp.61-77). Retrieved from netLibrary database.
Example of text citation (p. 247): Glasser's study (as cited in Ellis, 1999)
References list entry:
Ellis, A. (1999). Rational emotive behavior therapy as an internal control psychology.
International Journal of Reality Therapy, 19(1), 4-11.
Print Source (p. 240):
Hall, D. T. (1990). Promoting work/family balance. Organizational Dynamics, 18(3), 5-18.
In this example, "18" is the volume number, “3” is the issue number, and "5-18" are the page numbers.
From an Electronic Database :
Mates, B. F., & Strommen, L. (1995). Why Ernie can't read: 'Sesame Street' and literacy. The
Reading Teacher, 49(4), 300-306. Retrieved from InfoTrac Expanded Academic Index.
Include the name of the database where the article is found, rather than the Internet address (URL).
From an Open-Access (Free) Journal:
Tullos, A. (2004, June 8). The Carolina piedmont. Southern Spaces. Retrieved from
http://www.southernspaces.org/contents/2004/tullos/5a.htm
Include the URL in the citation for open-access journals.
Text of an electronic journal article retrieved via a DOI number:
Smith, W.C. (1993). Role of early supervisory experience in supervisor performance.
Journal of Applied Psychology, 78(4), 443-449. doi:10.1037/002-9432.76.4.482
Text of an electronic article from a publisher or organization website:
Examples:
Environmental Science and Technology comes from the American Chemical Society. Environment and Planning A comes from the publisher, Pion. Journal Finder may show the source as "Independent Publication." If the database you are using routes you through Journal Finder to another location for the full text, before you click on the link in Journal Finder, you should take note of whether the new link looks like a publisher/organization or another database. If you aren't sure, feel free to check with a librarian.
Painter, J. (2008). Cartographic anxiety and the search for regionality. Environment and planning A,
40, 342-361. Retrieved from http://www.envplan.com/epa/fulltext/a40/a38255.pdf
Print Source (p. 242):
Blanton, K.(2007, August 24). Short sales of homes on rise. The Boston Globe, pp. A1, A6.
Electronic Source:
Goodnough, A. (2007, August 29). Census shows a modest rise in U.S. income. The New York Times.
Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com
Print Source (p. 242):
Don't blame the U.N. (1995, October 25). The Wall Street Journal, p. A22.
Electronic Source:
Yesterday, today and tomorrow. (2007, June 24). The Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved from NewsBank
America’s Newspapers database.
When no author is given, put the title in the author position.
Print Source (pp. 241-242):
Dicum, G. (2007, September). Eyes in the sky and on your desktop. Sierra, 92(5), 58-62.
Electronic Source (No Author):
A wiser wiki. (2007, May). Utne Reader, (141), 10-11. Retrieved from ProQuest Research Library database.
Print Source (p. 254):
Mennonites. (1991). In Encyclopedia of World Cultures (Vol. 1, pp.216-220). Boston: G. K. Hall.
Electronic Source:
Greenland. (2007). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved August 30, 2007, from Encyclopædia
Britannica Online: http://search.eb.com/
Print Source (p. 254):
Corey, G. (1994). Self-esteem. In Encyclopedia of Psychology (Vol. 3, pp. 369-370). New York: Wiley.
Electronic Source:
Selman, P. (2003). Adoption. In P. Demeny & G. McNicoll (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Population (Vol. 1,
pp. 16-20). Retrieved from Gale Virtual Reference Library database.
Print Source:
Oratory. (1997). In R. B. Costello (Ed.), The American Heritage College Dictionary (3rd ed., p. 960).
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Electronic Source:
Rhetoric. (n.d.). In Dictionary.com Unabridged. Retrieved May 7, 2007, from http://dictionary.reference.com/
Print Source (pp. 260-261):
Renteria, R. W. (2001). Teaching as spiritual practice (Doctoral dissertation, University of North Carolina at
Greensboro, 2001). Dissertation Abstracts International, 62 (03A), 959.
From a Database:
Sechrist, S. M. (2006). The form and function of females’ aggression. Retrieved from Dissertations &
Theses @ UNCG database. (AAT 3213383)
From a Website:
Sechrist, S. M. (2006). The form and function of females’ aggression (Doctoral dissertation, University of North
Carolina at Greensboro, 2006). Retrieved from http://libres.uncg.edu/edocs/etd/1167/umi-uncg-1167.pdf
From a Database (pp. 260-261):
Howey, S. C. (1999). The relationship between motivation and academic success of community college
freshmen orientation students. Dissertation Abstracts International, 60 (06), 1879A. (UMI No.
DA9933084). Abstract retrieved from Dissertation Abstracts database.
Print Source (p. 257):
U.S. Department of Education. (1989). Youth indicators 1988: trends in the well-being of American
youth. Washington, DC: Author.
Electronic Source:
U.S. Government Accountability Office. (2006). Aviation Finance: Observations on Potential FAA
Funding Options (GAO Publication No. GAO-06-973). Retrieved from U.S. Government Printing
Office: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/
Microfiche (p. 257):
Murphy, R. T. (1991). Educational effectiveness of Sesame Street. (Report No. ETS-RR-91-55).
Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Service. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED385553)
Electronic Source:
Scott, B. D. (1999). Standing up for community and school. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service
No. ED440788). Retrieved from Education Resources Information Center: http://eric.ed.gov/
Because they do not provide recoverable data, personal communications are not included in the Reference list. Cite personal communication in the text only. Give initials, surname of the communicator, and provide as exact a date as possible: (N. Schwartz, personal communication, April 1, 2001).
Website:
Bixley, T. S. (1995). Sentient microfilaments. Retrieved May 8, 2006 from http://www.microfilaments.com
Wiki:
Personality. (n.d.). Retrieved August 28, 2007, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personality
More on Citing Electronic Resources:
Information on in-text citations for electronic sources, from the American Psychological Association: http://www.apastyle.org/electext.html
