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Citation Styles & Tools

A brief explanation of citation fundamentals and a guide to useful resources.

APA citations

Peer-reviewed articles (single author)

Peer-reviewed articles are the most commonly cited academic materials. They are typically published in academic journals, which may be either print- or Web-based. Some Web-based journals do not include page numbers.

 

Multiple authors (articles, books, any formats)

Unlike prior versions of APA, you can now include up to 20 author names for an article! When you have 21 or over authors on a paper, you add an ellipse. The author part of the citation would look like the following:

For 20 or fewer authors

Author, A. A., Author B. B., Author, C. C., Author, D. D., Author, E. E., Author, F. F., Author, G. G., Author, H. H., Author, I. I., Author, J. J., Author, K. K., Author, L. L., Author, M. M., Author, N. N., Author, O. O., Author, P. P., Author, Q. Q., Author, R. R., Author, S. S., & Author, T. T. 

For 21 or more authors

Author, A. A., Author B. B., Author, C. C., Author, D. D., Author, E. E., Author, F. F., Author, G. G., Author, H. H., Author, I. I., Author, J. J., Author, K. K., Author, L. L., Author, M. M., Author, N. N., Author, O. O., Author, P. P., Author, Q. Q., Author, R. R., Author, S. S., . . . Author, W. W.

Books (single author)

Books by one author are among the simplest materials to cite.

Book chapter (or essay in an anthology)

Collective works, which typically include several chapters or essays by various authors on a single theme or topic, are common in academia.

Online periodical (news or magazine article)

Real-world examples would include the Web versions of the Seattle Times and People.

Online encyclopedia/dictionary

This is the format you would use if, for example, you were citing material from the online version of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Websites

APA specifies various formats for Web-based materials and you should check Purdue OWL for more examples. The following would apply if you were citing an article or story that lists the author. In this example, you also only know that the article was published in 2016, but would include the exact date of publication if available, such as (2016, February 13). Occasionally there is no author listed for a webpage; in those cases, look for the group name for the website. Some web material is designed to be updated continuously, such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics; in those cases plan to include "Retrieved Month, Date Year from" before your URL.  

Legal Documents

When it comes to federal or state codes, legal cases, and law documents, the APA style uses the formats of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation. We recommend the guide by Cornell Law School's Legal Information Institution.

Artificial Intelligence/ChatGPT

Because ChatGPT produces generated text, there is no personal communication; responses should be treated as the output of an algorithm. Therefore, APA recommends crediting the author of the algorithm with a reference list entry and the corresponding in-text citation.

APA AI citation example

Online resources

APA Style Guides @ Brooks Library