Massachusetts Bay Community College Virtual Library

How to Cite Sources According to the A.P.A.
Books                Articles                Computer Sources

 
The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association is used by faculty and students in psychology, other social and behavioral sciences, and allied health. Other disciplines may use alternative formats designed by their professional associations. Check with your professor if you are not sure which style to use. This handout gives simple and general guidelines. For greater detail, please consult The Publication Manual of the APA in the reference collection; its call number is REF. BF 76.7 .P83 2001. Other general manuals may also explain A.P.A. style specifics.

BRIEF CITATIONS WITHIN THE TEXT OF YOUR PAPER

Document your sources throughout the text of your paper by briefly citing in parentheses the author and date of the source. This enables the reader to locate the source of information in the alphabetical list of references which you will include at the end of your paper. The citation within the body of the paper will look like this:

Jealousy has intrigued poets, playwrights. . .and novelists for centuries. Recently, attention has also been paid by social scientists to jealousy experience and expression (Aune & Comstock, 1991).

Footnotes are used occasionally to briefly elaborate on content or give specifics in attributing the source of a direct quotation. They appear at the bottom of the page and are numbered.

REFERENCE LIST AT THE END OF YOUR PAPER

The reference list documents your sources and contains enough information for your reader to locate and retrieve your sources. Your list of resources appears at the end of your paper under the heading: References, which is centered at the top of the page. Your ist must be alphabetized by the last nares of your authors.

BOOKS
    book by one author

Gardner, H. (1983) . Frames of mind. New York: HarperCollins.


    book by up to three authors

Fiske, N. & Chiriboga, D. A. (1990) . Chanae and continuity in adult life. San Francisco: JosseyBass.


    book by more than three authors: use et al.

Thorndike, E. L. et al. (1973) . The Measurement of intelligence. New York: Arno Press.


    editor of a collection

Parker, M. E. (Ed.). (1993). Patterns of nursing theories in practice. New York: National League for Nursing Press.

ARTICLES
    journal article

Tate, D.C., Reppucci, N.D., & Mulvey, E.P. (1995). Violent juvenile delinquents. American Psychologist, 59, 777-781.


    magazine article

Epstein, R. (1997, Nov.). Folk wisdom: Was your grandmother right? Psychology Today, 46ó50.


    newspaper article

Verhovek, S.H. (1997, Nov. 30) . Homosexual foster parent sets off a debate in Texas. New York Times, p. A20.


COMPUTER SOURCES, INCLUDING INTERNET AND THE WORLD WIDE WEB
    general format (include as much of the following information as is available):

Author, A. (date of document). Title of article or document. Title of complete work. Volume or page numbers (if available). Retrieved (date), from the World Wide Web: URL


    Example:

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (2000, June 12) National Center for PTSD: Research and Education on PostóTraumatic Stress Disorder. Retrieved Jime 11, 2001, from the World Wide Web: http: //www.dartmouth. edu/dms/ptsd/#Information


 

more detailed information for formats to use for citing electronic resources is available at: http://www.apa.org/journals/webref.html