Skip to Main Content

APA Style Guide (7th Edition)

The Generic Reference

References appear at the end of your document in an alphabetical order. A reference list entry generally has four elements: the author, date, title, and source. Each element answers a question:

  • author: Who is responsible for this work? Who can be: a single author; multiple authors; an organization or corporation; editor/s; or the director and producer.
  • date: When was this work published? For most source types, simply provide a year of publication. Exceptions as follows: year followed by month for papers and posters presented at conferences; year followed by month and date for blogs, social media, newspaper and magazine publications. When there is no publication date (common for web documents and other content) use the abbreviation n.d. for "no date."
  • title: What is this work called? This is the title identified for the individual source, rather than where the source is published. 
  • source: Where can I retrieve this work? Information that the reader can be used to retrieve the source.

Reference list formatting:

  • The font type and size should match those used for the main text. Recommended options include Calibri size 11, Arial size 11, and Times New Roman size 12.
  • The reference list is double spaced (between each reference AND within the reference).
  • A reference list is arranged alphabetically by author last name.
  • Each reference appears on a new line.
  • Each item in the reference list is required to have a hanging indent.

Check the individual type of material to see further formatting and examples for your source type.

Articles

Articles General Formatting Rules

The following formats apply to all journals, periodicals, magazines, newspapers, etc. whether you found them in an online database, search engine, or in print.

  • Volume, issue and page numbers in periodicals. Continuous pagination throughout a volume, only cite the volume number (in italics), followed by a comma and then the page numbers, e.g., 20(5), 344-367.
  •  Do Not copy and paste URLS from library databases or other platforms that restrict public access.

Formats and Examples:

 

Journal article with DOI

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (year). Title of the article. Title of Journal, volume number(issue number), pages. DOI if available

Wang, T., Jin, H., & Sieverding, H. L. (2023). Factors affecting farmer perceived challenges towards precision agriculture. Precision Agriculture: An International Journal on Advances in Precision Agriculture, 24(6), 2456–2478. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11119-023-10048-2

 

Journal article without DOI

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume number(issue number), pages. DOI if available and if not then provide the URL

Savage, T. (2007). Relationship between assault frequency and length of hospitalization in older patients with dementia: Determining the maximum benefit of inpatient treatment. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 33(4), 13–20. https://www.healio.com/nursing/journals/jgn
Online newspaper article

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year, Month Day). Title of article. Title of Newspaper. URL

Logan, T. (2014, December 21). Highland Park residents feel the squeeze of gentrification. The Los Angeles Times. http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-highland-park-renters-20141221-story.html
Online magazine article

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year, Month Day). Title of article. Title of Magazine. URL

Park, A. (2018, December 1). The future of HIV treatment might not involve pills. Time. http://time.com/5455488/future-of-hiv-treatment-pills/

 

Blog post

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year, Month Day). Title of blog post. Blog Name. URL

Morton, S. (2020, January 12). A midlife crisis or a midlife unraveling? PsychCentral. https://psychcentral.com/blog/a-midlife-crisis-or-a-midlife-unraveling/

Back to Top ↑

Books

Books & eBooks General Formatting Rules

  • Italicize book titles
  • Utilize sentence case for book titles:
    • The first word of the title and first word of the subtitle capitalized
    • Capitalize proper nouns
    • Every other word is lower case
  • Shorten long URLs or DOIs: When a DOI or URL is long or complex, you may use shortDOIs or shortened URLs if desired. Use the shortDOI service provided by the International DOI Foundation (http://shortdoi.org/) to create shortDOIs.
  • Reference works include dictionaries, encyclopedias, and diagnostic manuals.
  • eBooks do not include platform, format or device
  • Audiobooks include the narrator and audiobook notation.

Formats and Examples:

 

Book or eBook

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (year). Title of book. Publisher. DOI if available

Richardson, V. (1999). Teaching gerontological social work: A compendium of model syllabi. Council on Social Work Education.
Book, specific edition (other than the first edition)

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (year). Title of book (edition). Publisher.

Skogstad, G. (2008). Internationalization and Canadian agriculture: Policy and governing paradigms (2nd ed.). University of Toronto Press.

 

 

A chapter from an Edited Book

Chapter Author’s last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. (year). Title of chapter. In Editor’s First Initial. Middle Initial. Last name (Ed.), Title of book (edition, pages). Publisher. DOI if available

Rappaport, B. A. (1999). On-site school-based mental health clinics: 15 years of experience in Orange County, California. In A. H. Esman, & L. T. Flaherty, (Eds.), Adolescent psychiatry: Development and clinical studies (pp. 91-100). The Analytic Press.
Entry in dictionary, thesaurus, or encyclopedia, with the individual author

Dictionary or Encyclopedia name. (Year). Title of entry. In Title of reference work. Retrieved Month Day, Year, from URL

Dictionary.com LLC (n.d.). Hyperboreal. In Thesuaus.com. Retrieved March 10, 2020, from https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/hyperboreal

 

Translation of works

Original Author's Last Name, First Initial. Middle Initial. (Year). Title of work (translator First Initial. Last Name, Trans., edition). Basic Books. (Original work published 1966)

Piaget, J., & Inhelder, B. (1969). The psychology of the child (H. Weaver, Trans., 2nd ed.). Basic Books. (Original work published 1966)
Authored audiobook without a DOI, with nondatabase URL

Author’s Last Name, First Initial. Middle Initial. (Year). Title of audiobook (Narrator’s First Initial. Last Name, Narr.). Publisher. URL

Reid, K. (2019). Such a fun age (N. Lewis, Narr.) [Audiobook]. Penguin Audio.  https://www.audiobooks.com/audiobook/such-a-fun-age/381177

Back to Top ↑ 

Websites

Website General Formatting Rules:

  • Use when there is no other reference category that fits the source type and the work has no overarching publication (e.g., journal, blog, conference proceedings, etc.) other than the website itself
  • If you refer to a website in general in your text, do not create a reference or in-text citation, instead, refer to the websites named in the text followed by the URL in parentheses
  • Provide the most specific date possible
  • When the site name is the designated author, omit including the site name from the reference
  • Include a retrieval date when content is designed to change and the page is not archived

Formats and Examples:

Webpage on a website with an individual as author

  • APA Manual p. 351 (#112)

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Website Name if different from author. URL

Hensrud, D. (2022, March 19). Does coffee offer health benefits? Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/coffee-and-health/faq-20058339

Webpage on a website with a group author

  • APA Manual p. 351 (#111)

Name of Organization. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Website Name if different from author. URL

World Health Organization. (2021, May 20). New international expert panel to address the emergence and spread of zoonotic diseases. https://www.who.int/news/item/20-05-2021-new-international-expert-panel-to-address-the-emergence-and-spread-of-zoonotic-diseases

Webpage on a news website

  • APA Manual p. 351 (#110)

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site Name. URL

Chappell, B.  (2020, January 15). Virginia ratifies the Equal Rights  Amendment, decades after the deadline. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2020/01/15/796754345/virginia-ratifies-the-equal-rights-amendment-decades-after-deadline
Webpage on a website with no date

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (n.d.). Title of page. Site Name. URL

IBM. (n.d.). What is quantum computing? https://www.ibm.com/topics/quantum-computing

Back to Top ↑

Audiovisuals

Audiovisuals General Formatting Rules:

  • Includes content that may have visual and audio components, audio only, or visual only
  • Formatting varies whether stand alone or part of a great whole
  • Author is determined by media type (see p. 341 of APA Manual 7th edition)
  • Work is described using square brackets following the title

Formats and Examples:

Streaming video (e.g., YouTube, Vimeo)

  • The person/group who uploaded the video is credited as the author even though they may not have created the video.
  • APA Style website explanation
  • APA Manual p. 344 (#90)

Author’s last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year, Month Day). Title of video [Video]. Name of Streaming Website. URL

Canola Council. (2023, March 23). Precision agriculture technology today [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocRzQAQHR2A&t=161s  

Film or movie

  • Provide the director in the author element of the reference, followed by the notation “(Director).”
  • APA Manual p. 342 (#84)

Director's last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Director). (Year). Title of film [Format]. Production Company(s).

Cameron, J. (Director). (2009). Avatar [Film]. 20th Century Fox.

TV Series

  • Provide the producer in the author element of the reference, followed by the notation “(Executive producer).”
  • If the series is still airing, replace the second year with the word "present", e.g., 2015-present
  • APA Manual p. 342 (#84)

Producer's Last Name, First initial. Middle initial. (Executive Producer). (Year-Year). Title of TV Series. Production Company.

Herskovitz, M., & Zwick, E. (Executive Producers). (1994-1995). My so-called life. [TV series]. The Bedford Falls company ABC Productions.

Back to Top ↑ 

Conference Sessions and Presentations

Formats and Examples:

Article published in conference proceedings available online

  • Conference proceedings published in a journal or book follow the same format as for a journal article or edited book
  • APA Manual p. 332 (Section 10.5)

Presenter's Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year). Title of Contribution. Volume(issue). DOI or URL if applicable 

Herculano-Houzel, S., Collins, C. E., Wong, P., Kaas, J. H., & Lent, R. (2008). The basic nonuniformity of the cerebral cortex. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 105(34), 12593-12598. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0805417105

Paper presentation

  • APA Manual p. 332 (Section 10.5)

Presenter's Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year, Month day). Title of Contribution [Type of contribution]. Conference Name, Location. DOI or URL if applicable 

Mason, I. & Missingham, R. (2019, October 21–25). Research libraries, data curation, and workflows [Paper presentation].  eResearch Australasia Conference, Brisbane, QLD, Australia. https://bit.ly/2v1CjRg

Back to Top ↑ 

Open Educational Resources (OER)

Open educational resource (OER) references follow the same format as webpages, which are covered in the seventh edition APA Style manuals in the Publication Manual Section 10.16 and the Concise Guide Section 10.4.

  • Create a reference to an OER only when the materials are available for download directly (i.e., the materials are on the page and/or can be downloaded as PDFs or other files). If you are directed to another website, create a reference to the specific webpage on that website where the materials can be retrieved. Use this format for material in any OER repository, such as OER Commons, OASIS, or MERLOT.
  • Provide as specific a date as is available on the webpage. This might be a year only; a year and month; or a year, month, and day.
  • Italicize the title of a webpage.
  • When contents of a page are meant to be updated over time but are not archived, include a retrieval date in the reference.

NOTE: For more information, visit APA style explanation

Format and Example: 

 

OER

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Middle Initial. (Year, Month day). Title of work. OER repository. Retrieved Month day, Year, from URL.

Lee, D., & Suza, W. (2021, October 15). Genetics, agriculture, and biotechnology. OER Commons. Retrieved July 18, 2024, from https://iastate.pressbooks.pub/genagbiotech/

Back to Top ↑ 

Theses and Dissertations

The following format can be used to construct references for published dissertations and theses. 

Format:

Dissertation:

Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year). Title of dissertation [Doctoral dissertation, Name of Institution Awarding the Degree]. Database or Archive Name. URL. 

Theses:

Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year). Title of thesis [Master’s thesis, Name of Institution Awarding the Degree]. Database or Archive Name. URL. 

 

Examples: 

Dissertation from a commercial database

Lope, M. D. (2014). Perceptions of global mindedness in the international baccalaureate middle years programme: The relationship to student academic performance and teacher characteristics (Order No. 3682837) [Doctoral dissertation, University of Maryland]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global. 
Dissertation from an institutional database

Zambrano-Vazquez, L. (2016). The interaction of state and trait worry on response monitoring in those with worry and obsessive-compulsive symptoms [Doctoral dissertation, University of Arizona]. UA Campus Repository. https://repository.arizona.edu/handle/10150/620615

NOTE: For more information, visit APA style website or APA Style manuals in the Publication Manual Section 10.6 (pp. 333-334)

Back to Top ↑ 

ChatGPT

ChatGPT is relatively new and a very popular Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) model. You will NEED to confirm with your instructor, if you are permitted to use and how to use Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), such as ChatGPT in your assignments. To cite ChatGPT-generated content in APA 7th edition style, you should follow the format for software or algorithm citation.

Format and Example:

 

ChatGPT

Author. (year). Title of model (month day of version used) [Format description]. URL

OpenAI. (2024). ChatGPT (June 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat
  • Parenthetical citation: (OpenAI, 2023)
  • Narrative citation: OpenAI (2023)

Let’s break that reference down and look at the four elements (author, date, title, and source):

  • Author: The author of the model is OpenAI.
  • Date: The date is the year of the version you used. Following the template in Section 10.10, you need to include only the year, not the exact date. The version number provides the specific date information a reader might need.
  • Title: The name of the model is “ChatGPT,” so that serves as the title and is italicized in your reference, as shown in the template. Although OpenAI labels unique iterations (i.e., ChatGPT-3, ChatGPT-4), they are using “ChatGPT” as the general name of the model, with updates identified with version numbers.
  • Source: When the publisher name and the author name are the same, do not repeat the publisher name in the source element of the reference, and move directly to the URL. This is the case for ChatGPT. The URL for ChatGPT is https://chat.openai.com/chat.

NOTE: For more information, visit the guide to using and citing generative AI

Back to Top ↑ 

Data Sets

Data Sets General Formatting Rules:

  • Provide a retrieval date only if the data set is designated to change over time
  • Date for published data is the year of publication
  • If version number exists, include in parentheses after the title

Formats and Examples:

 

Data Set

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Middle Initial. (Year). Title of data set (Version #) [Data set]. Publisher Name. DOI or URL

Cohen, M. A., & Miller, T. R. (1991). Cost of mental health care for victims of crime in the United States (ICPSR 6581, Version V1) [Data set]. ICPSR. https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR06581.v1

Back to Top ↑

Reports

Reports General Formatting Rules:

  • Italicize report titles
  • Utilize sentence case for report titles:
    • First word of the title and first word of the subtitle capitalized
    • Capitalize proper nouns
    • Every other word is lower case
  • When the publisher is the same as the author, which is often the case for group authors or a government agency, omit the publisher from the source element.

Formats and Examples:

Report by a government agency or other organization

Name of agency or organization. (Year). Title of report. DOI or URL

Canada Council for the Arts. (2013). What we heard: Summary of key findings: 2013 Canada Council's Inter-Arts Office consultation. https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2017/canadacouncil/K23-65-2013-eng.pdf 
Report by individual authors at a government agency or other organization

Author's Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year). Title of report. Publisher Name. DOI or URL

Baral, P., Larsen, M., & Archer, M. (2019). Does money grow on trees? Restoration financing in Southeast Asia. Atlantic Council. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-research-reports/report/does-money-grow-on-trees-restoring-financing-in-southeast-asia/

Back to Top ↑ 

Social Media

If you quote or paraphrase social media content that cannot be accessed by your audience (due to privacy settings/restricted access), cite the content as personal communication.

For information on how to cite online media:

Back to Top ↑