Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) 7th ed.
The APA has established an editorial style, commonly used in the social and behavioral sciences, that combines in-text citations with a corresponding list of references for documenting sources.
- References are formatted based on the category and reference type (e.g., book chapter, journal article, movie), not by how they were accessed or in what format you obtained them.
- Examples below show reference list entries for the most common reference types cited by students. (See the manual for additional examples of more unusual situations.)
- Both parenthetical and narrative styles of in-text citations are also provided for each reference list example.
Periodicals - See Manual 10.1
Journal article with a DOI (Digital Object Identifier):
Feiring, C., Simon, V., & Cleland, C. (2009). Childhood sexual abuse, stigmatization, internalizing symptoms, and the development of sexual difficulties and dating aggression. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 77(1), 127-137. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013475
Parenthetical citation: (Feiring et al., 2009)
Narrative citation: Feiring et al. (2009)
Journal article without a DOI (from an academic database or print version):
Siddle Walker, V. (2019). What Black educators built. Educational Leadership, 76(7), 12-18.
Parenthetical citation: (Siddle Walker, 2019)
Narrative citation: Siddle Walker (2019)
Journal article with an article number or eLocator:
Mudrak, J., Slepicka, P., & Slepickova, I. (2018). Sport motivation and doping in adolescent athletes. PLOS ONE, 13(10), Article e0205222. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0205222
Parenthetical citation: (Mudrak et al., 2018)
Narrative citation: Mudrak et al. (2018)
Magazine articles:
Cho, A. (2017, January 27). Can dark matter vanquish controversial rival theory? Science, 355(6323), 337. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.355.6323.337
Clay, R. A. (2008, June). Science v. ideology: Psychologists fight back against the misuse of research. Monitor on Psychology, 39(6), 41.
Yong, E. (2018, November 19). Psychology's replication crisis is running out of excuses. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/11/psychologys-replication-crisis-real/576223
Parenthetical citation: (Cho, 2018; Clay, 2008; Yong, 2018)
Narrative citation: Cho (2018), Clay (2008), and Yong (2018)
Newspaper articles:
Basken, P. (2007, August 10). Nonprofit lenders, while helping students, help themselves. The Chronicle of Higher Education. https://www.chronicle.com/article/Nonprofit-Lenders-While/25004
Ruhe, P. (2007, August 8). Pouring it on: Heat churns in vicious cycle. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 1A.
Parenthetical citation: (Basken, 2007; Ruhe, 2007)
Narrative citation: Basken (2007) and Ruhe (2007)
Blog post:
Fister, B. (2019, October 22). The writing on the Unpaywall. Library Babel Fish. https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/library-babel-fish/writing-unpaywall
Parenthetical citation: (Fister, 2019)
Narrative citation: Fister (2019)
Books and Reference Works - See Manual 10.2 and 10.3
Books:
Monmonier, M. S. (2018). How to lie with maps (3rd ed.). University of Chicago Press. https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226436081.001.0001
Hüfner, S. (Ed.). (2007). Very high resolution photoelectron spectroscopy. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-68133-7
Parenthetical citation: (Monmonier, 2018; Hüfner, 2007)
Narrative citation: Monmonier (2018) and Hüfner (2007)
Eggins, S., & Slade, D. (1997). Analyzing casual conversation. Cassell.
Robins, R. W., Fraley, R. C., & Krueger, R. F. (Eds.). (2007). Handbook of research methods in personality psychology. Guilford Press.
Parenthetical citation: (Eggins & Slade, 1997; Robins et al., 2007)
Narrative citation: Eggins and Slade (1997) and Robins et al. (2007)
Chapter in an edited book:
Black, L., & Jackson, V. (2005). Families of African origin: An overview. In M. McGoldrick, J. Giordano, & N. Garcia-Preto (Eds.), Ethnicity and family therapy (3rd ed., pp. 77-86). Guilford Press.
Parenthetical citation: (Black & Jackson, 2005)
Narrative citation: Black and Jackson (2005)
Dictionary entry (group author):
Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Dissociation. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved December 17, 2019, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dissociation
Parenthetical citation: (Merriam-Webster, n.d.)
Narrative citation: Merriam-Webster (n.d.)
Encyclopedia article (individual author) in an edited volume:
Driver, J. (2014). The history of utilitarianism. In E. N. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy (Winter 2014 ed.). Stanford University. https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2014/entries/utilitarianism-history/
Davis, H. D. (2003). State boards of education. In J. W. Guthrie (Ed.), Encyclopedia of education (2nd ed., Vol. 7, pp. 2350-2364). Macmillan Reference USA.
Parenthetical citation: (Driver, 2014; Davis, 2003)
Narrative citation: Driver (2014) and Davis (2003)
Webpages and Websites - See Manual 10.16
Webpage on a news website (with and without a known author):
Tarlo, S. (2019, December 9). Experts say kids still have way too much homework. Salon. https://www.salon.com/2019/12/08/experts-say-kids-still-have-way-too-much-homework
Parenthetical citation: (Tarlo, 2019)
Narrative citation: Tarlo (2019)
Trump impeachment: US House ready for historic vote. (2019, December 18). BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-50834324
Parenthetical citation: (Trump Impeachment, 2019)
Narrative citation: Trump Impeachment (2019)
*For sources with no author listed, capitalize these titles in the text using title case, even though sentence case is used in the reference list entry.
Webpage on a website with a group author (author same as site name):
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019, May 15). Depression during and after pregnancy. https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/features/maternal-depression
American Diabetes Association. (n.d.). Skin complications. https://www.diabetes.org/diabetes/complications/skin-complications
Parenthetical citation: (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2019; American Diabetes Association, n.d.)
Narrative citation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2019) and American Diabetes Association (n.d.)
*If you include the abbreviation in the first in-text citation as above, you can use just the abbreviation in subsequent in-text citations.
Government, Business, and Technical Reports - See Manual 10.4
Government report (group author):
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. (2003). Managing asthma: A guide for schools (NIH Publication No. 02-2650). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/prof/lung/asthma/asth_sch.pdf
Parenthetical citation: (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute [NHLBI], 2003)
Narrative citation: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI, 2003)
*If you include the abbreviation in the first in-text citation as above, you can use just the abbreviation in subsequent in-text citations.
Industry Report from IBISWorld:
Ahmad, A. (2014, September). Candy production in the US (IBISWorld Industry Report No. 31134). IBISWorld.
Parenthetical citation: (Ahmad, 2014)
Narrative citation: Ahmad (2014)
Working Papers:
Deming, D., & Dynarski, S. (2008). The lengthening of childhood (NBER Working Paper No. 14124). National Bureau of Economic Research. https://www.nber.org/papers/w14124
Victor, N. M. (2008). Gazprom: Gas giant under strain (Working Paper No. 71). Stanford University Program on Energy and Sustainable Development. https://pesd.fsi.stanford.edu/publications/gazprom_gas_giant_under_strain/
Parenthetical citation: (Deming & Dynarski, 2008; Victor, 2008)
Narrative citation: Deming and Dynarski (2008) and Victor (2008)
Dissertations and Theses - See Manual 10.6
Published in a database:
Bryce, M. S. (2013). The own-age bias in memory and memory monitoring for faces (Publication No. 3572775) [Doctoral dissertation, University of Virginia]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.
Parenthetical citation: (Bryce, 2013)
Narrative citation: Bryce (2013)
Published in an institutional or university archive:
Davis, J. (2015). A tale of two landscapes: Examining alienation and non-visitation among local African American fishers at Congaree National Park [Master's thesis, University of South Carolina]. Scholar Commons. https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/3135
Parenthetical citation: (Davis, 2015)
Narrative citation: Davis (2015)
Unpublished (only in print at the degree-granting college or university):
Miller, M. W. (1981). Professional/client interaction: Implications for education and management [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. University of Minnesota.
Parenthetical citation: (Miller, 1981)
Narrative citation: Miller (1981)
PolicyMap Examples (for student papers)
Interactive Map from PolicyMap Database (for student papers):
Crude percent of adults who binge drink in 2020 [Interactive map]. (n.d.) PolicyMap (based on data from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Population Level Analysis and Community Estimates). Retrieved February 2, 2023.
Medically Underserved Areas (MUA), as of 2022 [Interactive map]. (n.d.) PolicyMap (based on data from the Health Resources and Services Administration). Retrieved November 17, 2022.
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What is a DOI and when do I use it?
A DOI is a unique alphanumeric string that provides a persistent link to content online.