This page contains general information about APA style based on the 2020 7th Edition of the APA Publication Manual.
For specific examples of how to format materials, choose the tab for the type of material.
References Page
APA Style requires a Reference List page at the end of research papers. It must be titled References and entries are double spaced throughout (without an extra space between entries).
If you have more than one item by the same author, they are listed as follows, by year of publication. One-author entries precede multiple-author entries.
Twain, M. (1896). Tom Sawyer abroad. Harper & Brothers.
Twain, M. (1899). Following the equator: A journey around the world. Harper &
Brothers.
In-Text Citations
APA Style uses parenthetical, author-date citations. After a quote, add parentheses containing the author's name, the year of publication, and the page number of the work.
Example: "Thankfully, the poet rings alarm bells" (Gross 2000, p. 80).
After a paraphrase of someone else's ideas, you are not required to add the page number or use quotation marks.
Example: In this book, Gross discusses the response of the poet (Gross 2000).
If more than one author has the same last name, add their first initial.
Example: "Thankfully, the poet rings alarm bells" (J. Gross 2000, p. 80).
If two authors wrote the work, use all their names.
Example: "Thankfully, the poet rings alarm bells" (Gross, & Judt 2000, p. 80).
If three to five authors wrote the work, use all their names the first time you refer to them, but not subsequently.
Example: "Thankfully, the poet rings alarm bells" (Deák, Gross, & Judt 2000, p. 80).
"Victims of deportations turned out to be the lucky ones" (Gross, et al., 2000, p. 100).
If six or more authors wrote the work, use just the name of the first author.
Example: "Thankfully, the poet rings alarm bells" (Gross, et al., 2000, p. 80).
The above quotes are from: Gross, J. (2000). A tangled web: Confronting stereotypes concerning relations between Poles, Germans, Jews, and Communists. In Deák, I., Gross, J. T., & Judt, T. (Eds.), The politics of retribution in Europe (pp. 74-129). Princeton University Press.
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association : The official guide to APA style. Seventh ed. American Psychological Association.
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Type of Source (Entry Location) |
General Example |
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Journal Article with DOI (10.1.1) |
Author, A.A., & Author, B.B. (Year of Publication). Title of Article. Title of Journal, Volume(Issue), page numbers. URL or DOI. Simmons, C., & Becker-Olsen, K. (2006). Achieving marketing objectives through social sponsorships. Journal of Marketing, 70(4), 154-169. doi: 10.1509/jmkg.70.4.154 Parenthetical Citation: (Author & Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author & Author (Year) |
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Journal Article without a DOI, with a nondatabase URL (10.1.2) |
Author, A.A., & Author, B.B. (Year of Publication). Title of Article. Title of Journal, Volume(Issue), page numbers. URL. Parenthetical Citation: (Author & Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author & Author (Year) |
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Journal, magazine, or newspaper article without a DOI, from most academic research databases or print version (10.1.3) |
Author, A.A. (Year of Publication). Title of Article. Title of Journal, Volume(Issue), page numbers. Clark, G., Ward A., & Yarrow, D. (2008). Climate policy's quiet giants. Environment, 50(4), 6-7. Green, C., & Halsall, S. (2004). Head start families sharing literature. Early Childhood Research & Practice (ECRP), 6. http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v6n2/green.html. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author (Year) *Note: Do not include the database name or URL; see Section 9.30 for more on excluding or including database information in references. |
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Journal Article with DOI, 8 or more authors (10.1.4) |
Author, F. F., Author S. S., Author T. T., Author F. F., Author F. F., Author S. S.,...Author L. L. (Year of publication). Title of Article. Title of Journal, Volume(Issue), page numbers. http://doi.org/xxxxxx Sol, D., Bacher, S., Reader, S.M., Lefebvre, L., Shipter, A., Ghaet, W.,...Smith, R. (2008). Brain size predicts the success of mammal species introduced into novel environments. The American Naturalist, 172(Suppl.), S6-S71. doi: 10.1086/588304 Parenthetical Citation: (Author et al., Year) Narrative Citation: Author et al. (Year) *Note: A shortDOI has been used in this example; both short or long form DOI would also be acceptable. See 9.36 for more information. |
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Journal Article with DOI, combination of individual and group authors (10.1.5) |
Author, F. F., Author S. S., Author T. T., Author F. F., & the members of An Awesome Organization Work Group. (Year of publication). Title of Article. Title of Journal, Volume(Issue), page numbers. DOI or URL. Parenthetical Citation: (Author et al., Year) Narrative Citation: Author et al. (Year) |
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Journal Article, republished in translation (10.1.10) |
Author, A.A. (Year of Publication). Title of Article (A. TranslatorLast, Trans.). Title of Journal, Volume(Issue), page numbers. URL or DOI. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author (Year)
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Magazine Article (10.1.15) |
Author, A.A. (Year of Publication, Month Day). Title of Article. Title of Magazine, Volume(Issue), page numbers. URL or DOI. Reed, S. (2006, August 21). Seeing past the war. Business Week, 290, 35-40. Masters, C. (2006, December 17). The takeaway diet of 2006. Time. http://www.time.com. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author (Year) *Note: URL or DOI is only needed for online Magazines. |
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Newspaper Article (10.1.16) |
Author, A.A. (Year of Publication, Month Day). Title of Article. Title of Newspaper, Volume(Issue), page numbers. URL. Pulliam, R. (2009, July 31). Education innovation starts here. The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved from http://www.indystar.com. Robbery victim dies in sleep. (2008, October 3). The Wall Street Journal, C2. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author (Year) *Notes: (1) URL is only needed for online Newspapers; (2) Newspaper articles may not have a volume or issue number; (3) C2, as listed above, is the page number where this article can be found. |
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association : The official guide to APA style. Seventh ed. American Psychological Association.
| Type of Source (Entry Location) | General Example |
| Authored Book with a DOI (10.2.20) |
Author, F. F. (Year of publication). Title of work. Publisher. DOI or URL. Brown, L. S. (2018). Feminist therapy (2nd ed.). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000092-000 Author, F. F., & Author S. S. (Year of publication). Title of work. Publisher. Hock, R., Smith, A., & Price, G. (2004). The extreme searcher’s Internet handbook: A guide for the serious searcher. CyberAge Books. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author (Year) |
| Authored book without a DOI, from most academic research databases or print version (10.2.21) |
Author, F. F. (Year of publication). Title of work. Publisher. Gutman, R. W. (1999). Mozart: A cultural biography. Harcourt Brace. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author (Year) |
| Corporate Author |
Author. (Year of publication). Title of work. Publisher. National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. (1929). The fourth yearbook. J.J. Little and Ives Company. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author (Year) |
| No Author |
Title of work. (Year of publication). Publisher. NAICS desk reference: The North American industry classification system desk reference. (2000). JIST Works. |
| Book, republished in translation (10.2.28) |
Author. (Year of publication). Title of work. (A. TranslatorLast, Trans.; # ed.). Publisher. (Original work published YEAR) Piaget, J., & Inhelder, B. (1969). The psychology of the child (H. weaver, Trans,; 2nd ed.). Basic Books. (Original work published 1966) Parenthetical Citation: (Author, YEAR/Year) Narrative Citation: Author (YEAR/Year) |
| One volume of a multivolume work (10.2.30) |
Author, F. F. (Year of publication). Title of work. (Volume number(s) consulted) Publisher. Smith, D. E. (1958). History of Poland. (Vol. 2). Dover Publications. Smith, D. E. (1958). History of Poland. (Vols. 1-3). Dover Publications. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author (Year) |
| Dictionary, thesaurus, or encyclopedia (10.2.33) |
American Psychological Association (n.d.). APA dictionary of psychology. Retrieved June 14, 2019, from https://dictionary.apa.org/ Parenthetical Citation: (American Psychological Association, n.d.) Narrative Citation: American Psychological Association, (n.d.) |
| Chapter in an edited book (10.2.38; 10.2.39) |
Author, F. F. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In A. Editor (Ed.), Title of work. (page numbers of chapter). Publisher. Barrett, R. (2005). Shakespeare's women. In J. Rosenblum (Ed.), The Greenwood companion to Shakespeare: A comprehensive guide for students (pp. 41-44). Greenwood Press. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, date) Narrative Citation: Author (date) *Note: Include DOI if provided |
| Chapter in a volume of a multivolume work (10.2.45) |
Goldin-Meadow, S. (2015). Gesture and cognitive development. In L. S. Liben & U. Mueller (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology and developmental science: Vol. 2. Cognitive processes (7th ed., pp. 339-380). John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10/1002/9781118963418.childpsy209 Paranthentical Citation: (Goldin-Meadow, 2015) Narrative Citation: Goldin-Meadow (2015) |
APA Citation Style does not have a separate category for government publications. According to APA, government documents can be considered Books, Technical/Research Reports or Brochures.
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association : The official guide to APA style. Seventh ed. American Psychological Association.
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Type of Source (Entry Location) |
General Example |
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Social Media: Twitter or Instagram (10.15) |
Author, A. A. [@username]. (n.d.) Content of the post up to the first 20 words. Site Name. URL. Name of Group [@username]. (2019, Month Day). Content of the post up to the first 20 words [Description of audiovisuals]. Site Name. Retrieved Month Day, YEAR, from URL. |
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Social Media: Facebook (10.15) |
Author, A. A. (n.d.) Content of the post up to the first 20 words. Site Name. URL. Name of Group. (2019, Month Day). Content of the post up to the first 20 words [Description of audiovisuals]. Site Name. Retrieved Month Day, YEAR, from URL. |
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Webpage on a news website (10.16.110) |
Avramova, N. (2019, January 3). The secret to a long, happy, healthy life? Think age-positive. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/03/health/respect-toward-elderly-leads-to-long-life-intl/index.html. Parenthetical Citation: (Avramova, 2019) Narrative Citation: Avramova (2019) |
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Webpage on a website with a group author (10.16.111) |
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018, January 23). People at high risk of developing flu-related complications. https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/disease/high-risk.htm. Parenthetical Citation: (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018) Narrative Citation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2018) |
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Webpage on a website with an individual author (10.16.112) |
Martin Lillie, C. M. (2016, December 29). Be kind to yourself: How self-compassion can improve our resiliency. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/in-depth/self-compassion-can-improve-your-resiliency/art-20267193. Parenthetical Citation: (Martin Lillie, 2016) Narrative Citation: Martin Lillie (2016) |
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Webpage on a website with no date (10.16.113) |
Boddy, J., Neumann, T., Jennings, S., Morrow, V., Alderson, P., Rees, R., & Gibson, W., (n.d.) Ethics principles. The Research Ethics Guidebook: A Resource for Social Scientists. https://www.ethicsguidebook.ac.uk/EthicsPrinciples. Parenthetical Citation: (Boddy et al., n.d.) Narrative Citation: Boddy et al. (n.d.) |
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Webpage on a website with a retrieval date (10.16.114) |
U.S. Census Bureau. (n.d.). U.S. and world population clock. U.S. Department of Commerce. Retrieved July 3, 2019, from https://www.census.gov/popclock/. Parenthetical Citation: (U.S. Census Bureau, n.d.) Narrative Citation: U.S. Census Bureau (n.d.) |
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association : The official guide to APA style. Seventh ed. American Psychological Association.
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Type of Source (Entry Location) |
General Example |
|
Film or video (10.12.84) |
Forman, M. (Director). (1975). One flew over the cuckoo's next [Film]. United Artists. Parenthetical Citation: (Forman, Year) Narrative Citation: Forman (Year) |
| TV Series (10.12.86) |
Simon, D., Colesberry, R. F., & Kostroff Noble, N. (Executive Producers). (2002-2009). The wire [TV series]. Blown Deadline Productions; HBO. Parenthetical Citation: (Simon et al., Year) Narrative Citation: Simon et al. (Year) |
| TV Series episode of webisode (10.12.86) |
Barris, K. (Writer & Director). (2017, January 11). Lemons (Season 3, Episode 12) [TV series episode]. In K. Barris, J. Groff, A. Anderson, E. B. Dobbins, L. Fishburne, & H. Sugarland (Executive Producers), Black-ish. Wilmore Films; Artists First; Cinema Gypsy Productions; ABC Studios. Parenthetical Citation: (Barris, Year) Narrative Citation: Barris (Year) |
| YouTube Video or other streaming video (10.12.90) |
Cutts, S. (2017, November 24). Happiness [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/244405542 Parenthetical Citation: (Cutts, Year) Narrative Citation: Cutts (Year) *Note: The person or group who uploaded the video is credited as the author for retrievability, even if they did not create the work. |
| Music album (10.13.91) |
Bach, J. S. (2010). The Brandenburg concertos: Concertos BWV 1043 & 1060 [Album recorded by Academy of St Martin in the Fields]. Decca. (Original work published 1721) Bowie, D. (2016). Blackstar [Album]. Columbia. Parenthetical Citation: (Bowie, 1721/2010) Narrative Citation: Bowie (Year) |
| Single song or track (10.13.92) |
Childish Gambino. (2018). This is America [Song]. mcDJ; RCA. Parenthetical Citation: (Childish Gambino, 2018) Narrative Citation: Childish Gambino (2018) |
| Speech audio recording (10.13.96) |
King, M. L., Jr. (1963, August 28). I have a dream [Speech audio recording]. American Rhetoric. https//www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm Parenthetical Citation: (King, 1963) Narrative Citation: King (1963) |
| Artwork in a museum or on a museum website (10.14.97) |
Delacroix, E. (1826-1827). Faust attempts to seduce Marguerite [Lithograph]. The Louvre, Paris, France. Parenthetical Citation: (Delacroix, 1826-1827) Narrative Citation: Delacroix (1826-1827) |
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association : The official guide to APA style. Seventh ed. American Psychological Association.
| Type of Source (Entry Location) | General Example |
| Conference session (10.5.60) |
Presenter, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of contribution. Conference Information, location. DOI or URL. Fistek, A., Jester, E., & Sonnenberg, K. (2017, July 12-15). Everybody's got a little music in them: Using music therapy to connect, engage, and motivate [Conference session]. Autism Society National Conference, Milwaukee, WI, United States. https://asa.confex.com/asa/2017/webprogramarchives/Session9517.html Parenthetical Citation: (Presenter, Year) Narrative Citation: Presenter (Year) |
| Paper presentation (10.5.61) |
Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of contribution. Conference Information, location. Maddox, S., Hurling, J., Stewart, E., & Edwards, A. (2016, March 30-April 2). If mama ain't happy, nobody's happy: The effect of parental depression on mood dysregulation in children [Paper presentation]. Southeastern Psychology Association 62nd Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA, United States. Parenthetical Citation: (Author, Year) Narrative Citation: Author (Year) |
| Dissertation/Thesis (unpublished) (10.6) |
Author, A. A. (2020). Title of dissertation [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Name of Institution Awarding the Degree. Author, A. A. (2020). Title of thesis [Unpublished master's thesis]. Name of Institution Awarding the Degree. |
| Dissertation/Thesis (Published) (10.6) |
Author, A. A. (2020). Title of dissertation [Doctoral dissertation, Name of Institution Awarding the Degree]. Database Name OR Archive Name. URL. Author, A. A. (2020). Title of thesis [Master's thesis, Name of Institution Awarding the Degree]. Database Name OR Archive Name. URL. |
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association : The official guide to APA style. Seventh ed. American Psychological Association.
