Citing Sources in Academic Papers
NOTE: This document is merely a “taste” of the formatting style. The formatting requirements are constantly being refined. Please refer to a current style guide
MLA Format
APA Format
Field most often used
Humanities
Social Sciences
In-Text Citations
Use combination of signal phrases and parenthetical references. A
signal phrase indicates that something taken from a source (a
quotation, summary, paraphrase, or fact) is about to be used; usually
the signal phrase includes the author's name. The parenthetical
reference, which comes after the cited material, normally includes at
least a page number.
EX: with signal phrase
One driver, Peter Cohen, says that after he was rear-ended, the guilty
An in-text citation gives the author of the source (often in a signal
phrase), the date of publication, and at times a page number in
parentheses. At the end of the paper, a list of references provides
publication information about the source; the list is alphabetized by
authors' last names (or by titles for works without authors.
party emerged from his vehicle still talking on the phone (127).
treatment for obesity is similar to the state of the treatment of
NOTE: Readers can look
up the author's last name in
the alphabetized list of
works cited, where they
will learn the work's title
and other publication
information. If readers
decide to consult the
source, the page number
will take them straight to
the passage that has been
cited.
hypertension several decades ago” (p. 600).
If no signal phrase, use the author’s last name and the page number.
NOTE: APA requires date,
but MLA doesn’t.
EX: with signal phrase
Yanovski and Yanovski (2002) reported that “the current state of the
EX: Without signal phrase
One driver says that after he was rear-ended, the guilty party
If no signal phrase, use the author’s last name, date of publication,
and the page number.
EX: Without signal phrase
The current level of treatment for obesity has been compared to the
emerged from his vehicle still talking on the phone (Cohen 127).
level available for obesity several decades ago (Yanovski and
Yanovski, 2002, p. 600).
Above Example in
“Bibliography” page:
Sundeen, Matt. "Cell Phones and Highway Safety: 2000 State
Legislative Update." National Conference of State
[Electronic version]. The New England Journal of
Legislatures. Dec. 2000. 9 pp. 27 Feb. 2001
Medicine, 346, 591-602.
<http://ncsl.org/programs/esnr/cellphone.pdf>.
Reference Page
Yanovski, S. Z., Yanovski, J. A. (2002). Drug therapy: Obesity
In MLA, this is labeled (note that it’s centered):
Works Cited
From: http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc
(NOTE location of date, capitalization style, only first initials)
In APA, this is labeled (note that it is centered):
References
page 1 of 6
Article in a Journal
Paginated by Volume
Many scholarly journals continue page numbers throughout the year
instead of beginning each issue with page 1; at the end of the year,
the issues are collected in a volume. To find an article, readers need
only the volume number, the year, and the page numbers.
EX:
Ryan, Katy. "Revolutionary Suicide in Toni Morrison's Fiction."
Many professional journals continue page numbers throughout the
year instead of beginning each issue with page 1; at the end of the
year, the issues are collected in a volume. After the italicized title of
the journal, give the volume number (also italicized), followed by the
page numbers.
EX:
Morawski, J. (2000). Social psychology a century ago.
African American Review 34 (2000): 389-412.
AmericanPsychologist, 55, 427–431.
Article in a Journal
Paginated by Issue
If each issue of the journal begins with page 1, you need to indicate
the number of the issue. After the volume number, put a period and
the issue number.
EX:
Wood, Michael. "Broken Dates: Fiction and the Century." Kenyon
Review 22.3 (2000): 50-64.
Work from a Service such
as INFOTRAC:
For sources retrieved from
a library's subscription
database service, give as
much of the following
information as is available:
publication information for
the source; the name of the
database, underlined; the
name of the service; the
name and location of the
library where you retrieved
the source; your date of
access; and the URL of the
service.
These models are for
articles retrieved through
three popular library
subscription services. The
InfoTrac source is a
scholarly article in a
journal paginated by
volume; the EBSCOhost
When each issue of a journal begins with page 1, include the issue
number in parentheses after the volume number. Italicize the volume
number but not the issue number.
EX:
Smith, S. (2003). Government and nonprofits in the modern age.
Society, 40(4), 36–45.
EX: InfoTrac
EX: InfoTrac
Johnson, Kirk. "The Mountain Lions of Michigan." Endangered
Johnson, Kirk. "The Mountain Lions of Michigan." Endangered
Species Update 19.2 (2002): 27+. Expanded Academic
Species Update 19.2 (2002): 27+. Expanded Academic
Index. InfoTrac. U of Michigan Lib., Ann Arbor. 26 Nov.
Index. InfoTrac. U of Michigan Lib., Ann Arbor. 26 Nov.
2002 <http://infotrac. galegroup.com>.
2002 <http://infotrac.galegroup.com>.
EX: EBSCOhost
EX: EBSCOhost
Barrera, Rebeca María. "A Case for Bilingual Education." Scholastic
Barrera, Rebeca María. "A Case for Bilingual Education." Scholastic
Parent and Child Nov.-Dec. 2004: 72-73. Academic Search
Parent and Child Nov.-Dec. 2004: 72-73. Academic Search
Premier. EBSCOhost. St. Johns River Community Coll.
Premier. EBSCOhost. St. Johns River Community Coll.
Lib., Palatka, FL.
Lib., Palatka, FL. 1 Feb. 2005 <http://search.epnet.com>.
1 Feb. 2005 <http://search. epnet.com>.
From: http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc
page 2 of 6
source is an article in a
bimonthly magazine; and
the ProQuest source is an
article in a daily
newspaper.
NOTE: When you access a
work via a personal
subscription service (e.g.,
America Online), give the
information about the
source, the name of the
service, the date of access,
and the keyword used to
retrieve the source.
Article in an Online
Periodical
When citing online articles,
follow the guidelines for
printed articles, giving
whatever information is
available in the online
source. End the citation
with your date of access
and the URL.
NOTE: In some online
articles, paragraphs are
numbered. For such
articles, include the total
number of paragraphs in
your citation, as in the next
example.
EX: ProQuest
EX: ProQuest
Kolata, Gina. "Scientists Debating Future of Hormone Replacement."
Kolata, Gina. "Scientists Debating Future of Hormone Replacement."
New York Times 23 Oct. 2002: A20. ProQuest. Drew U
New York Times 23 Oct. 2002: A20. ProQuest. Drew U
Lib., Madison, NJ. 26 Nov. 2002
Lib., Madison, NJ. 26 Nov. 2002
<http://www.proquest.com>.
<http://www.proquest.com>.
EX: Accessed via personal subscription service
EX: Accessed via personal subscription service
Conniff, Richard. "The House That John Built." Smithsonian Feb.
Conniff, Richard. "The House That John Built." Smithsonian
2001. America Online. 11 Mar. 2001. Keyword:
Feb. 2001. America Online. 11 Mar. 2001. Keyword:
Smithsonian Magazine.
Smithsonian Magazine.
EX: Online scholarly journal
EX: Online scholarly journal
Belau, Linda. "Trauma and the Material Signifier." Postmodern
Belau, Linda. "Trauma and the Material Signifier." Postmodern
Culture 11.2 (2001): 37 pars. 30 Mar. 2001
Culture 11.2 (2001): 37 pars. 30 Mar. 2001 <http://
http://jefferson.village.virginia.edu/pmc/current.issue/
jefferson.village.virginia.edu/pmc/current.issue/
11.2belau.html>.
11.2belau.html>.
EX: Online magazine
EX: Online magazine
Morgan, Fiona. "Banning the Bullies." Salon.com 15 Mar. 2001. 21
Morgan, Fiona. "Banning the Bullies." Salon.com 15 Mar. 2001. 21
Sept. 2004 <http://www.salon.com/news/
Sept. 2004 <http://www.salon.com/ news/feature/
feature/2001/03/15/bullying/index.html>.
2001/03/15/bullying/index.html>.
EX: Online newspaper
EX: Online newspaper
Rubin, Joel. "Report Faults Charter School." Los Angeles
Rubin, Joel. "Report Faults Charter School." Los Angeles Times 22
Times 22 Jan. 2005. 24 Jan. 2005 <http:/
Jan. 2005. 24 Jan. 2005 http:// pqasb.pqarchiver.com/
pqasb.pqarchiver.com /latimes/search.html>.
latimes/search.html>.
From: http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc
page 3 of 6
Basic Format for a Book
Take data from the book’s
title and copyright page.
Use a short form of the
publisher's name; omit
terms such as Press, Inc.,
and Co. except when
naming university presses
(Harvard UP, for example).
If more than one date, use
the most recent one.
For most books, arrange the information into three units, each
followed by a period and one space: the author's name; the title and
subtitle, underlined; and the place of publication, the publisher, and
the date.
Begin with the author’s name, followed by the date and the book’s
title. End with the place of publication and the name of the publisher.
Take the information about the book from its title page and copyright
page. If more than one place of publication is given, use only the
first; if more than one date is given, use the most recent one.
EX:
EX:
Tan, Amy. The Bonesetter's Daughter. New York: Putnam, 2001.
Highmore, B. (2001). Everyday life and cultural theory. New York:
Entire Website
Begin with the name of the author or corporate author (if known) and
the title of the site, underlined. Then give the names of any editors,
the date of publication or last update, the name of any sponsoring
organization, the date you accessed the source, and the URL in angle
brackets. Provide as much of this information as is available.
To cite a nonperiodical Web document, such as a report, list as many
of the following elements as are available: Author’s name, Date of
publication (if there is no date, use “n.d.”), Title of document (in
italics), Date you accessed the source, a URL that will take readers
directly to the source
EX: With Author
EX: With Author & date
Peterson, Susan Lynn. The Life of Martin Luther. 2002. 24 Jan. 2005
Cain, A., & Burris, M. (1999, April). Investigation of the use of
When a Web address in a
works cited entry must be
divided at the end of a line,
MLA recommends that you
break it after a slash. Do
not insert a hyphen.
Routledge.
<http://www.susanlynnpeterson.com/ luther/home.html>.
mobile phones while driving. Retrieved January 15, 2000,
from http://www.cutr.eng.usf.edu/its/
mobile_phone_text.htm
EX: With corporate (group) author
United States. Environmental Protection Agency. Drinking Water
EX: With Author but no date
Archer, Z. (n.d.). Exploring nonverbal communication. Retrieved
Standards. 8 July 2004. 24 Jan. 2005
July 18, 2001, from http:// zzyx.ucsc.edu/~archer
<http://www.epa.gov/safewater/standards.html>.
EX: Author unknown
EX: Author unknown
Margaret Sanger Papers Project. 18 Oct. 2000. History Dept., New
If a source has no author, begin with the title and follow it with the
York U. 6 Dec. 2004 <http://www.nyu.edu/projects/sanger>.
From: http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc
date in parentheses.
page 4 of 6
EX: With Editor
Exploring Ancient World Cultures. Ed. Anthony F. Beavers. 1997. U
NOTE: If you retrieved the source from a university program’s Web
site, name the program in your retrieval statement.
Cosmides, L., & Tooby, J. (1997). Evolutionary psychology: A
of Evansville. 24 Jan. 2005
primer. Retrieved July 5, 2001, from the University of
<http://eawc.evansville.edu/index.htm>.
California, Santa Barbara, Center for Evolutionary
NOTE: If the site has no title, substitute a description, such as "Home
page," for the title. Do not underline the words or put them in
quotation marks.
Psychology Web site: http://www.psych.ucsb.edu/
research/cep/primer.html
Yoon, Mina. Home page. 29 Sept. 2004. 12 Jan. 2005
<http://www.pa.msu.edu/~mnyoon>.
Article in a Newspaper
Begin with the name of the author, if known, followed by the title of
the article. Next give the name of the newspaper, the date, and the
page numbers (including the section letter). Use a plus sign (+) after
the page number if the article does not appear on consecutive pages.
Begin with the name of the author followed by the exact date of
publication. Page numbers are introduced with “p.” (or “pp.”).
EX:
EX:
Brummitt, Chris. "Indonesia's Food Needs Expected to Soar." Boston
Lohr, S. (2004, December 3). Health care technology is a promise
Globe 1 Feb. 2005: A7.
unfinanced. The New York Times, p. C5.
NOTE: If the section is marked with a number rather than a letter,
handle the entry as follows:
Wilford, John Noble. "In a Golden Age of Discovery, Faraway
Worlds Beckon." New York Times 9 Feb. 1997, late ed.,
sec. 1: 1+.
NOTE: When an edition of the newspaper is specified on the
masthead, name the edition after the date and before the page
reference (eastern ed., late ed., natl. ed., and so on), as in the example
just given.
NOTE: If the city of publication is not obvious, include it in brackets
after the name of the newspaper: City Paper [Washington, DC].
From: http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc
page 5 of 6
Article in a Magazine
List, in order, separated by periods, the author's name; the title of the
article, in quotation marks; and the title of the magazine, underlined.
Then give the date and the page numbers, separated by a colon. If the
magazine is issued monthly, give just the month and year. Abbreviate
the names of the months except May, June, and July.
In addition to the year of publication, list the month and, for weekly
magazines, the day. If there is a volume number, include it
(italicized) after the title.
EX:
EX:
Fay, J. Michael. "Land of the Surfing Hippos." National Geographic
Raloff, J. (2001, May 12). Lead therapy won’t help most kids.
Aug. 2004: 100+.
Science News, 15, 292.
NOTE: If the magazine is issued weekly, give the exact date.
Lord, Lewis. "There's Something about Mary Todd." US News and
World Report 19 Feb. 2001: 53.
Sample Papers
http://dianahacker.com/pdfs/Hacker-Daly-MLA.pdf
From: http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc
http://dianahacker.com/pdfs/Hacker-Mira-APA.pdf
page 6 of 6