how to write a reference page for a research paper

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How to Do a Reference Page for a Research Paper

Last Updated: December 7, 2022 References

This article was co-authored by Diane Stubbs . Diane Stubbs is a Secondary English Teacher with over 22 years of experience teaching all high school grade levels and AP courses. She specializes in secondary education, classroom management, and educational technology. Diane earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Delaware and a Master of Education from Wesley College. There are 7 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 73,069 times.

Once you finish writing a paper, you'll also have to create a reference page that lists all of your sources, whether they are from books, journals, interviews or websites. This page makes it easy for your readers to find the documents you used to write your paper.

During the Research and Writing Process

• For books, this includes the author, the title of the book, the editors (if it has named editors), the name of the essay plus the page numbers of the essays, the publishing company, the place of publication, the date of publication, and where you found the book (more for your own purposes).
• If you are using a journal article, you'll need the author's name, the name of the article, the name of the journal, the volume and issue number, the date of publication, the page numbers of the article, and likely the DOI (digital object identifier—a number like an ISBN for books) and/or the database or website you found the article.

• One helpful way of keeping track of your sources is to write source cards. These are small note cards that contain all of the relevant information on a particular source.
• Source cards are a neat and convenient way of organizing your sources - you can store all of your source cards in a small box or folder, in alphabetical order.

• However, in some instances, you may also need to reference sources that were beneficial to your argument, but that you didn't end up citing in the paper. These sources shouldn't be listed on the reference page itself, but on a separate page, such as the Modern Language Association's "Work Consulted" page.
• It is more common to use only a "Works Cited" page, therefore you should only include a "Works Consulted"page if your teacher or professor requests it.

Writing the Reference Page

• For instance, you may be required to use American Psychological Association style (APA), the Modern Language Association's guidelines (MLA), Chicago style, or American Sociological Association style (ASA).
• You'll find examples of each of these styles in the section below. Each will have you create slightly different references, though you will use the same basic information.

• When you have multiple works by the same author, you can also use the title to decide which reference comes first in an alphabetized list.

Formatting the Reference Page

• Double-space your reference page just as you double-spaced the rest of your paper.
• Use hanging indention. Hanging indentation is when the first line of each reference is all the way over to the left, while any subsequent lines are indented.

• MLA: Roberts, Georgina. Eating Pie for Dinner. Waco: Great Books for Eating, 2002. Print.
• APA: Roberts, G. (2002). Eating pie for dinner. Waco, Texas: Great Books for Eating.
• Chicago: Roberts, Georgina. Eating Pie for Dinner. Waco, Texas: Great Books for Eating, 2002.
• ASA: Roberts, Georgina. 2002. Eating Pie for Dinner. Waco, TX: Great Books for Eating.
• Note that the two styles used most often in the sciences, APA and ASA, both place higher value on the date, pushing it closer to the beginning of the reference. Chicago and MLA are used more often in the humanities, so the date is not quite as important in those styles.

• MLA: Thompson, Joy. "Pie for Life." Bakers Anonymous 8.2 (2005): 35-43. Web. 2 Feb. 2007.
• APA: Thompson, J. (2005). Pie for life. Bakers Anonymous, 8(2), 35-43. doi:102342343
• Chicago: Thompson, Joy. "Pie for Life." Bakers Anonymous 8, no. 2 (2005): 35-43. Accessed February 2, 2007. Doi: 102342343.
• ASA: Thompson, Joy. 2005. "Pie for Life." Bakers Anonymous 8 (2):35-43.

• If you want to go to the original sources, check out The Chicago Manual of Style, The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, or American Sociological Association (ASA) Style Guide.

Community Q&A

• To achieve hanging indention, highlight the text and use the small triangles located on the ruler at the top of the screen. Move the bottom triangle over by about half an inch. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

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Reference List: Basic Rules

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This resourse, revised according to the 7 th  edition APA Publication Manual, offers basic guidelines for formatting the reference list at the end of a standard APA research paper. Most sources follow fairly straightforward rules. However, because sources obtained from academic journals  carry special weight in research writing, these sources are subject to special rules . Thus, this page presents basic guidelines for citing academic journals separate from its "ordinary" basic guidelines. This distinction is made clear below.

Note:  Because the information on this page pertains to virtually all citations, we've highlighted one important difference between APA 6 and APA 7 with an underlined note written in red.  For more information, please consult the   Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , (7 th  ed.).

Formatting a Reference List

Your reference list should appear at the end of your paper. It provides the information necessary for a reader to locate and retrieve any source you cite in the body of the paper. Each source you cite in the paper must appear in your reference list; likewise, each entry in the reference list must be cited in your text.

Your references should begin on a new page separate from the text of the essay; label this page "References" in bold, centered at the top of the page (do NOT underline or use quotation marks for the title). All text should be double-spaced just like the rest of your essay.

Basic Rules for Most Sources

• All lines after the first line of each entry in your reference list should be indented one-half inch from the left margin. This is called hanging indentation.
• All authors' names should be inverted (i.e., last names should be provided first).
• For example, the reference entry for a source written by Jane Marie Smith would begin with "Smith, J. M."
• If a middle name isn't available, just initialize the author's first name: "Smith, J."
• Give the last name and first/middle initials for all authors of a particular work up to and including 20 authors ( this is a new rule, as APA 6 only required the first six authors ). Separate each author’s initials from the next author in the list with a comma. Use an ampersand (&) before the last author’s name. If there are 21 or more authors, use an ellipsis (but no ampersand) after the 19th author, and then add the final author’s name.
• Reference list entries should be alphabetized by the last name of the first author of each work.
• For multiple articles by the same author, or authors listed in the same order, list the entries in chronological order, from earliest to most recent.
• Note again that the titles of academic journals are subject to special rules. See section below.
• Italicize titles of longer works (e.g., books, edited collections, names of newspapers, and so on).
• Do not italicize, underline, or put quotes around the titles of shorter works such as chapters in books or essays in edited collections.

Basic Rules for Articles in Academic Journals

• Present journal titles in full.
• Italicize journal titles.
• For example, you should use  PhiloSOPHIA  instead of  Philosophia,  or  Past & Present   instead of  Past and Present.
• This distinction is based on the type of source being cited. Academic journal titles have all major words capitalized, while other sources' titles do not.
• Capitalize   the first word of the titles and subtitles of   journal articles , as well as the   first word after a colon or a dash in the title, and   any proper nouns .
• Do not italicize or underline the article title.
• Deep blue: The mysteries of the Marianas Trench.
• Oceanographic Study: A Peer-Reviewed Publication

Please note:  While the APA manual provides examples of how to cite common types of sources, it does not cover all conceivable sources. If you must cite a source that APA does not address, the APA suggests finding an example that is similar to your source and using that format. For more information, see page 282 of the   Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7 th  ed.

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Home » References in Research – Types, Examples and Writing Guide

References in Research – Types, Examples and Writing Guide

Table of Contents

References in Research

Definition:

References in research are a list of sources that a researcher has consulted or cited while conducting their study. They are an essential component of any academic work, including research papers, theses, dissertations, and other scholarly publications.

Types of References

There are several types of references used in research, and the type of reference depends on the source of information being cited. The most common types of references include:

References to books typically include the author’s name, title of the book, publisher, publication date, and place of publication.

Example: Smith, J. (2018). The Art of Writing. Penguin Books.

Journal Articles

References to journal articles usually include the author’s name, title of the article, name of the journal, volume and issue number, page numbers, and publication date.

Example: Johnson, T. (2021). The Impact of Social Media on Mental Health. Journal of Psychology, 32(4), 87-94.

Web sources

References to web sources should include the author or organization responsible for the content, the title of the page, the URL, and the date accessed.

Example: World Health Organization. (2020). Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) advice for the public. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public

Conference Proceedings

References to conference proceedings should include the author’s name, title of the paper, name of the conference, location of the conference, date of the conference, and page numbers.

Example: Chen, S., & Li, J. (2019). The Future of AI in Education. Proceedings of the International Conference on Educational Technology, Beijing, China, July 15-17, pp. 67-78.

References to reports typically include the author or organization responsible for the report, title of the report, publication date, and publisher.

Example: United Nations. (2020). The Sustainable Development Goals Report. United Nations.

Formats of References

Some common Formates of References with their examples are as follows:

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

The APA (American Psychological Association) Style has specific guidelines for formatting references used in academic papers, articles, and books. Here are the different reference formats in APA style with examples:

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of book. Publisher.

Example : Smith, J. K. (2005). The psychology of social interaction. Wiley-Blackwell.

Journal Article

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year of publication). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume number(issue number), page numbers.

Example : Brown, L. M., Keating, J. G., & Jones, S. M. (2012). The role of social support in coping with stress among African American adolescents. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 22(1), 218-233.

Author, A. A. (Year of publication or last update). Title of page. Website name. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, December 11). COVID-19: How to protect yourself and others. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html

Magazine article

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Title of Magazine, volume number(issue number), page numbers.

Example : Smith, M. (2019, March 11). The power of positive thinking. Psychology Today, 52(3), 60-65.

Newspaper article:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Title of Newspaper, page numbers.

Example: Johnson, B. (2021, February 15). New study shows benefits of exercise on mental health. The New York Times, A8.

Edited book

Editor, E. E. (Ed.). (Year of publication). Title of book. Publisher.

Example : Thompson, J. P. (Ed.). (2014). Social work in the 21st century. Sage Publications.

Chapter in an edited book:

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Title of book (pp. page numbers). Publisher.

Example : Johnson, K. S. (2018). The future of social work: Challenges and opportunities. In J. P. Thompson (Ed.), Social work in the 21st century (pp. 105-118). Sage Publications.

MLA (Modern Language Association) Style

The MLA (Modern Language Association) Style is a widely used style for writing academic papers and essays in the humanities. Here are the different reference formats in MLA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Smith, John. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Journal article

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal, volume number, issue number, Publication year, page numbers.

Example : Brown, Laura M., et al. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence, vol. 22, no. 1, 2012, pp. 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name, Publication date, URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC, 11 Dec. 2020, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Publication date, page numbers.

Example : Smith, Mary. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, Mar. 2019, pp. 60-65.

Newspaper article

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Publication date, page numbers.

Example : Johnson, Bob. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, 15 Feb. 2021, p. A8.

Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Thompson, John P., editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. Sage Publications, 2014.

Chapter in an edited book

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last name, Publisher, Publication year, page numbers.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, Sage Publications, 2014, pp. 105-118.

Chicago Manual of Style

The Chicago Manual of Style is a widely used style for writing academic papers, dissertations, and books in the humanities and social sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Chicago style:

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number, no. issue number (Publication year): page numbers.

Example : Brown, Laura M., John G. Keating, and Sarah M. Jones. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 22, no. 1 (2012): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name. Publication date. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. December 11, 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Publication date.

Example : Smith, Mary. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 2019.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Publication date.

Example : Johnson, Bob. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Example : Thompson, John P., ed. Social Work in the 21st Century. Sage Publications, 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last Name, page numbers. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, 105-118. Sage Publications, 2014.

Harvard Style

The Harvard Style, also known as the Author-Date System, is a widely used style for writing academic papers and essays in the social sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Harvard Style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Smith, John. 2005. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number (issue number): page numbers.

Example: Brown, Laura M., John G. Keating, and Sarah M. Jones. 2012. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 22 (1): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name. URL. Accessed date.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2020. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html. Accessed April 1, 2023.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, month and date of publication.

Example : Smith, Mary. 2019. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 2019.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, month and date of publication.

Example : Johnson, Bob. 2021. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Year of publication. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Thompson, John P., ed. 2014. Social Work in the 21st Century. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last Name, page numbers. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. 2014. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, 105-118. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Vancouver Style

The Vancouver Style, also known as the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals, is a widely used style for writing academic papers in the biomedical sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Vancouver Style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. 2nd ed. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell; 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title. Year of publication; volume number(issue number):page numbers.

Example : Brown LM, Keating JG, Jones SM. The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents. J Res Adolesc. 2012;22(1):218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Webpage. Website Name [Internet]. Publication date. [cited date]. Available from: URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others [Internet]. 2020 Dec 11. [cited 2023 Apr 1]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Title of Magazine. Year of publication; month and day of publication:page numbers.

Example : Smith M. The Power of Positive Thinking. Psychology Today. 2019 Mar 1:32-35.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Title of Newspaper. Year of publication; month and day of publication:page numbers.

Example : Johnson B. New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health. The New York Times. 2021 Feb 15:A4.

Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example: Thompson JP, editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. 1st ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Chapter. In: Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication. page numbers.

Example : Johnson KS. The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities. In: Thompson JP, editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. 1st ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2014. p. 105-118.

Turabian Style

Turabian style is a variation of the Chicago style used in academic writing, particularly in the fields of history and humanities. Here are the different reference formats in Turabian style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number, no. issue number (Year of publication): page numbers.

Example : Brown, LM, Keating, JG, Jones, SM. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” J Res Adolesc 22, no. 1 (2012): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Name of Website. Publication date. Accessed date. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. December 11, 2020. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Month Day, Year of publication, page numbers.

Example : Smith, M. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 1, 2019, 32-35.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Month Day, Year of publication.

Example : Johnson, B. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Thompson, JP, ed. Social Work in the 21st Century. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s Last name, First name, page numbers. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Johnson, KS. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by Thompson, JP, 105-118. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2014.

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Style

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) style is commonly used in engineering, computer science, and other technical fields. Here are the different reference formats in IEEE style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Oppenheim, A. V., & Schafer, R. W. Discrete-Time Signal Processing. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2010.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Abbreviated Journal Title, vol. number, no. issue number, pp. page numbers, Month year of publication.

Example: Shannon, C. E. “A Mathematical Theory of Communication.” Bell System Technical Journal, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 379-423, July 1948.

Conference paper

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Paper.” In Title of Conference Proceedings, Place of Conference, Date of Conference, pp. page numbers, Year of publication.

Example: Gupta, S., & Kumar, P. “An Improved System of Linear Discriminant Analysis for Face Recognition.” In Proceedings of the 2011 International Conference on Computer Science and Network Technology, Harbin, China, Dec. 2011, pp. 144-147.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Name of Website. Date of publication or last update. Accessed date. URL.

Example : National Aeronautics and Space Administration. “Apollo 11.” NASA. July 20, 1969. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/apollo11.html.

Technical report

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Report.” Name of Institution or Organization, Report number, Year of publication.

Example : Smith, J. R. “Development of a New Solar Panel Technology.” National Renewable Energy Laboratory, NREL/TP-6A20-51645, 2011.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Patent.” Patent number, Issue date.

Example : Suzuki, H. “Method of Producing Carbon Nanotubes.” US Patent 7,151,019, December 19, 2006.

Standard Title. Standard number, Publication date.

Example : IEEE Standard for Floating-Point Arithmetic. IEEE Std 754-2008, August 29, 2008

ACS (American Chemical Society) Style

ACS (American Chemical Society) style is commonly used in chemistry and related fields. Here are the different reference formats in ACS style:

Author’s Last name, First name; Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title Year, Volume, Page Numbers.

Example : Wang, Y.; Zhao, X.; Cui, Y.; Ma, Y. Facile Preparation of Fe3O4/graphene Composites Using a Hydrothermal Method for High-Performance Lithium Ion Batteries. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2012, 4, 2715-2721.

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title; Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication.

Example : Carey, F. A. Organic Chemistry; McGraw-Hill: New York, 2008.

Author’s Last name, First name. Chapter Title. In Book Title; Editor’s Last name, First name, Ed.; Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication; Volume number, Chapter number, Page Numbers.

Example : Grossman, R. B. Analytical Chemistry of Aerosols. In Aerosol Measurement: Principles, Techniques, and Applications; Baron, P. A.; Willeke, K., Eds.; Wiley-Interscience: New York, 2001; Chapter 10, pp 395-424.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Webpage. Website Name, URL (accessed date).

Example : National Institute of Standards and Technology. Atomic Spectra Database. https://www.nist.gov/pml/atomic-spectra-database (accessed April 1, 2023).

Author’s Last name, First name. Patent Number. Patent Date.

Example : Liu, Y.; Huang, H.; Chen, H.; Zhang, W. US Patent 9,999,999, December 31, 2022.

Author’s Last name, First name; Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. In Title of Conference Proceedings, Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication; Volume Number, Page Numbers.

Example : Jia, H.; Xu, S.; Wu, Y.; Wu, Z.; Tang, Y.; Huang, X. Fast Adsorption of Organic Pollutants by Graphene Oxide. In Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology, American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2017; Volume 1, pp 223-228.

AMA (American Medical Association) Style

AMA (American Medical Association) style is commonly used in medical and scientific fields. Here are the different reference formats in AMA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Article Title. Journal Abbreviation. Year; Volume(Issue):Page Numbers.

Example : Jones, R. A.; Smith, B. C. The Role of Vitamin D in Maintaining Bone Health. JAMA. 2019;321(17):1765-1773.

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : Guyton, A. C.; Hall, J. E. Textbook of Medical Physiology. 13th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Saunders; 2015.

Author’s Last name, First name. Chapter Title. In: Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: Page Numbers.

Example: Rajakumar, K. Vitamin D and Bone Health. In: Holick, M. F., ed. Vitamin D: Physiology, Molecular Biology, and Clinical Applications. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Springer; 2010:211-222.

Author’s Last name, First name. Webpage Title. Website Name. URL. Published date. Updated date. Accessed date.

Example : National Cancer Institute. Breast Cancer Prevention (PDQ®)–Patient Version. National Cancer Institute. https://www.cancer.gov/types/breast/patient/breast-prevention-pdq. Published October 11, 2022. Accessed April 1, 2023.

Author’s Last name, First name. Conference presentation title. In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Place of Conference.

Example : Smith, J. R. Vitamin D and Bone Health: A Meta-Analysis. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research; September 20-23, 2022; San Diego, CA.

Thesis or dissertation

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Thesis or Dissertation. Degree level [Doctoral dissertation or Master’s thesis]. University Name; Year.

Example : Wilson, S. A. The Effects of Vitamin D Supplementation on Bone Health in Postmenopausal Women [Doctoral dissertation]. University of California, Los Angeles; 2018.

ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) Style

The ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) style is commonly used in civil engineering fields. Here are the different reference formats in ASCE style:

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title, volume number, issue number (year): page numbers. DOI or URL (if available).

Example : Smith, J. R. “Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Sustainable Drainage Systems in Urban Areas.” Journal of Environmental Engineering, vol. 146, no. 3 (2020): 04020010. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EE.1943-7870.0001668.

Example : McCuen, R. H. Hydrologic Analysis and Design. 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education; 2013.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” In: Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: page numbers.

Example : Maidment, D. R. “Floodplain Management in the United States.” In: Shroder, J. F., ed. Treatise on Geomorphology. San Diego, CA: Academic Press; 2013: 447-460.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Paper Title.” In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Location. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: page numbers.

Example: Smith, J. R. “Sustainable Drainage Systems for Urban Areas.” In: Proceedings of the ASCE International Conference on Sustainable Infrastructure; November 6-9, 2019; Los Angeles, CA. Reston, VA: American Society of Civil Engineers; 2019: 156-163.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Report Title.” Report number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. “Hurricane Sandy Coastal Risk Reduction Program, New York and New Jersey.” Report No. P-15-001. Washington, DC: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; 2015.

CSE (Council of Science Editors) Style

The CSE (Council of Science Editors) style is commonly used in the scientific and medical fields. Here are the different reference formats in CSE style:

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Article Title.” Journal Title. Year;Volume(Issue):Page numbers.

Example : Smith, J.R. “Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Sustainable Drainage Systems in Urban Areas.” Journal of Environmental Engineering. 2020;146(3):04020010.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Chapter Title.” In: Editor’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial., ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year:Page numbers.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Paper Title.” In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Location. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : Smith, J.R. “Sustainable Drainage Systems for Urban Areas.” In: Proceedings of the ASCE International Conference on Sustainable Infrastructure; November 6-9, 2019; Los Angeles, CA. Reston, VA: American Society of Civil Engineers; 2019.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Report Title.” Report number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Bluebook Style

The Bluebook style is commonly used in the legal field for citing legal documents and sources. Here are the different reference formats in Bluebook style:

Case citation

Case name, volume source page (Court year).

Example : Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954).

Statute citation

Name of Act, volume source § section number (year).

Example : Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7401 (1963).

Regulation citation

Name of regulation, volume source § section number (year).

Example: Clean Air Act, 40 C.F.R. § 52.01 (2019).

Book citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. Book Title. Edition number (if applicable). Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example: Smith, J.R. Legal Writing and Analysis. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Aspen Publishers; 2015.

Journal article citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Article Title.” Journal Title. Volume number (year): first page-last page.

Example: Garcia, C. “The Right to Counsel: An International Comparison.” International Journal of Legal Information. 43 (2015): 63-94.

Website citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed month day, year).

Example : United Nations. “Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Oxford Style

The Oxford style, also known as the Oxford referencing system or the documentary-note citation system, is commonly used in the humanities, including literature, history, and philosophy. Here are the different reference formats in Oxford style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.

Example : Smith, John. The Art of Writing. New York: Penguin, 2020.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume, no. issue (year): page range.

Example: Garcia, Carlos. “The Role of Ethics in Philosophy.” Philosophy Today 67, no. 3 (2019): 53-68.

Chapter in an edited book citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title, edited by Editor’s Name, page range. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.

Example : Lee, Mary. “Feminism in the 21st Century.” In The Oxford Handbook of Feminism, edited by Jane Smith, 51-69. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed day month year).

Example : Jones, David. “The Importance of Learning Languages.” Oxford Language Center. https://www.oxfordlanguagecenter.com/importance-of-learning-languages/ (accessed 3 January 2023).

Dissertation or thesis citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Dissertation/Thesis.” PhD diss., University Name, Year of Publication.

Example : Brown, Susan. “The Art of Storytelling in American Literature.” PhD diss., University of Oxford, 2020.

Newspaper article citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Newspaper Title, Month Day, Year.

Example : Robinson, Andrew. “New Developments in Climate Change Research.” The Guardian, September 15, 2022.

AAA (American Anthropological Association) Style

The American Anthropological Association (AAA) style is commonly used in anthropology research papers and journals. Here are the different reference formats in AAA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example : Smith, John. 2019. The Anthropology of Food. New York: Routledge.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume, no. issue: page range.

Example : Garcia, Carlos. 2021. “The Role of Ethics in Anthropology.” American Anthropologist 123, no. 2: 237-251.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title, edited by Editor’s Name, page range. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example: Lee, Mary. 2018. “Feminism in Anthropology.” In The Oxford Handbook of Feminism, edited by Jane Smith, 51-69. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed day month year).

Example : Jones, David. 2020. “The Importance of Learning Languages.” Oxford Language Center. https://www.oxfordlanguagecenter.com/importance-of-learning-languages/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Title of Dissertation/Thesis.” PhD diss., University Name.

Example : Brown, Susan. 2022. “The Art of Storytelling in Anthropology.” PhD diss., University of California, Berkeley.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Article Title.” Newspaper Title, Month Day.

Example : Robinson, Andrew. 2021. “New Developments in Anthropology Research.” The Guardian, September 15.

AIP (American Institute of Physics) Style

The American Institute of Physics (AIP) style is commonly used in physics research papers and journals. Here are the different reference formats in AIP style:

Example : Johnson, S. D. 2021. “Quantum Computing and Information.” Journal of Applied Physics 129, no. 4: 043102.

Example : Feynman, Richard. 2018. The Feynman Lectures on Physics. New York: Basic Books.

Example : Jones, David. 2020. “The Future of Quantum Computing.” In The Handbook of Physics, edited by John Smith, 125-136. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Conference proceedings citation

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Title of Paper.” Proceedings of Conference Name, date and location: page range. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example : Chen, Wei. 2019. “The Applications of Nanotechnology in Solar Cells.” Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Nanotechnology, July 15-17, Tokyo, Japan: 224-229. New York: AIP Publishing.

Example : American Institute of Physics. 2022. “About AIP Publishing.” AIP Publishing. https://publishing.aip.org/about-aip-publishing/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Patent citation

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. Patent Number.

Example : Smith, John. 2018. US Patent 9,873,644.

References Writing Guide

Here are some general guidelines for writing references:

• Follow the citation style guidelines: Different disciplines and journals may require different citation styles (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago). It is important to follow the specific guidelines for the citation style required.
• Include all necessary information : Each citation should include enough information for readers to locate the source. For example, a journal article citation should include the author(s), title of the article, journal title, volume number, issue number, page numbers, and publication year.
• Use proper formatting: Citation styles typically have specific formatting requirements for different types of sources. Make sure to follow the proper formatting for each citation.
• Order citations alphabetically: If listing multiple sources, they should be listed alphabetically by the author’s last name.
• Be consistent: Use the same citation style throughout the entire paper or project.
• Check for accuracy: Double-check all citations to ensure accuracy, including correct spelling of author names and publication information.
• Use reputable sources: When selecting sources to cite, choose reputable and authoritative sources. Avoid sources that are biased or unreliable.
• Include all sources: Make sure to include all sources used in the research, including those that were not directly quoted but still informed the work.
• Use online tools : There are online tools available (e.g., citation generators) that can help with formatting and organizing references.

Purpose of References in Research

References in research serve several purposes:

• To give credit to the original authors or sources of information used in the research. It is important to acknowledge the work of others and avoid plagiarism.
• To provide evidence for the claims made in the research. References can support the arguments, hypotheses, or conclusions presented in the research by citing relevant studies, data, or theories.
• To allow readers to find and verify the sources used in the research. References provide the necessary information for readers to locate and access the sources cited in the research, which allows them to evaluate the quality and reliability of the information presented.
• To situate the research within the broader context of the field. References can show how the research builds on or contributes to the existing body of knowledge, and can help readers to identify gaps in the literature that the research seeks to address.

Importance of References in Research

References play an important role in research for several reasons:

• Credibility : By citing authoritative sources, references lend credibility to the research and its claims. They provide evidence that the research is based on a sound foundation of knowledge and has been carefully researched.
• Avoidance of Plagiarism : References help researchers avoid plagiarism by giving credit to the original authors or sources of information. This is important for ethical reasons and also to avoid legal repercussions.
• Reproducibility : References allow others to reproduce the research by providing detailed information on the sources used. This is important for verification of the research and for others to build on the work.
• Context : References provide context for the research by situating it within the broader body of knowledge in the field. They help researchers to understand where their work fits in and how it builds on or contributes to existing knowledge.
• Evaluation : References provide a means for others to evaluate the research by allowing them to assess the quality and reliability of the sources used.

Advantages of References in Research

There are several advantages of including references in research:

• Acknowledgment of Sources: Including references gives credit to the authors or sources of information used in the research. This is important to acknowledge the original work and avoid plagiarism.
• Evidence and Support : References can provide evidence to support the arguments, hypotheses, or conclusions presented in the research. This can add credibility and strength to the research.
• Reproducibility : References provide the necessary information for others to reproduce the research. This is important for the verification of the research and for others to build on the work.
• Context : References can help to situate the research within the broader body of knowledge in the field. This helps researchers to understand where their work fits in and how it builds on or contributes to existing knowledge.
• Evaluation : Including references allows others to evaluate the research by providing a means to assess the quality and reliability of the sources used.
• Ongoing Conversation: References allow researchers to engage in ongoing conversations and debates within their fields. They can show how the research builds on or contributes to the existing body of knowledge.

About the author

Muhammad Hassan

Researcher, Academic Writer, Web developer

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Home / Guides / Citation Guides / APA Format / APA Reference Page

How to Format an APA Reference Page

In APA, the “Works Cited” page is referred to as a “Reference List” or “Reference Page.” “Bibliography” also may be used interchangeably, even though there are some differences between the two.

If you are at the point in your article or research paper where you are looking up APA bibliography format, then congratulations! That means you’re almost done.

In this guide, you will learn how to successfully finish a paper by creating a properly formatted APA bibliography. More specifically, you will learn how to create a reference page . The guidelines presented here come from the 7 th edition of the APA’s Publication Manual .

A note on APA reference page style: In this guide, “bibliography” and “references” may be used interchangeably, even though there are some differences between the two. The most important thing is to use the label “References” when writing your paper since APA style recommends including a reference page.

Here’s a run-through of everything this page includes:

Difference between an APA bibliography and a reference page

What about annotated bibliographies, understanding apa reference page format, apa reference page formatting: alphabetizing by surname, q: what should not be on an apa reference page.

The difference between a bibliography and a reference page is a matter of scope. A bibliography usually includes all materials and sources that were used to write the paper. A reference page, on the other hand, only includes entries for works that were specifically cited in the text of the paper.

There are some cases in which a professor or journal might request an annotated bibliography . An annotated bibliography is basically a reference page that includes your comments and insights on each source.

An annotated bibliography can be a document all on its own, or part of a bigger document. That means creating an annotated bibliography by itself could be an assignment, or you may have to include one as part of your research paper, journal submission, or other project.

If you do need to add an APA annotated bibliography , it goes after the reference page on its own page, inside the appendices.

A properly formatted APA reference page begins on a new page, after the end of the text. It comes before any figures, tables, maps, or appendices. It’s double-spaced and features what’s called a hanging indent , where the first line of each reference is not indented, and the second line of each reference is indented 0.5 inches. The reference page is also labeled with a bold, center-justified, and capitalized “References.”

To summarize, the reference page should be:

• Placed on its own page, after the text but before any tables, figures, or appendices.
• In the same font as the rest of the paper.
• Double-spaced the whole way through (including individual references).
• Formatted with hanging indents (each line after the first line of every entry indented 0.5 inches).
• Labeled with a bold, center-justified, and capitalized “References.”

Note: You can use the paragraph function of your word processing program to apply the hanging indent.

Q: What font am I supposed to use for the reference page or bibliography?

The APA reference page/bibliography should be in the same font as the rest of your paper. However, APA Style does not actually call for one specific font. According to Section 2.19 of the Publication Manual , the main requirement is to choose a font that is readable and accessible to all users. Some of the recommended font options for APA style include:

• Sans serif fonts: Calibri (11pt), Arial (11pt), or Lucida (10pt).
• Serif fonts: Times New Roman (12pt), Georgia (11pt), or Normal/Computer Modern (10pt).

Q: What are the margins supposed to be for the reference page or bibliography?

Aside from the 0.5 inch hanging indent on the second line of each reference entry, you do not need to modify the margins of the reference page or bibliography. These should be the same as the rest of your paper, which according to APA is 1-inch margins on all sides of the page. This is the default margin setting for most computer word processors, so you probably won’t have to change anything.

Q: What information goes into an APA style reference page or bibliography?

An APA style reference page should include full citations for all the sources that were cited in your paper. This includes sources that were summarized, paraphrased, and directly quoted. Essentially, if you included an in-text citation in your paper, that source should also appear in your reference list. The reference list is organized in alphabetical order by author.

The formatting for reference list citations varies depending on the kind of source and the available information. But for most sources, your reference list entry will include the following:

• The last name(s) and initials of the author(s).
• The date the source was published (shown in parentheses).
• The title of the source in sentence case. The title should be in italics if the source stands on its own (like a book, webpage, or movie).
• The name of the periodical, database, or website if the source is an article from a magazine, journal, newspaper, etc. Names of periodicals are usually italicized; names of databases and websites usually are not.
• The publisher of the source and/or the URL where the source can be found.

Here are a few templates and examples for how common sources should be formatted in an APA style reference list. If your source is not found here, there is also a guide highlighting different APA citation examples .

Citing a Book

Author’s last name, Author’s first initial. Author’s middle initial. (Year of publication). Title of work . Publisher.

James, Henry. (2009). The ambassadors . Serenity Publishers.

Citing a Journal

Author’s last name, Author’s first initial. Author’s middle initial. (Year, Month Date published). Article title. Journal Name , Volume(Issue), page number(s). https://doi.org/ or URL (if available)

Jacoby, W. G. (1994). Public attitudes toward government spending. American Journal of Political Science , 38(2), 336-361. https://doi.org/10.2307/2111407

Citing a Website

Author’s last name, Author’s first initial. Author’s middle initial. (Year, Month Date published). Article title or page title . Site Name. URL

Limer, E. (2013, October 1). Heck yes! The first free wireless plan is finally here . Gizmodo. https://gizmodo.com/heck-yes-the-first-free-wireless-plan-is-finally-here

Next, let’s take a look at a real example of a properly formatted APA reference page to see how these pieces come together.

APA reference page example

Creating an APA reference page is actually a lot easier than creating a bibliography with other style guides. In fact, as long as you are aware of the formatting rules, the reference page practically writes itself as you go.

Below is an example reference page that follows the guidelines detailed above. EasyBib also has a guide featuring a complete APA style sample paper , including the reference page.

All APA citations included in the reference page should be ordered alphabetically, using the first word of the reference entry. In most cases, this is the author’s surname (or the surname of the author listed first, when dealing with citations for sources with multiple authors ). However, there are times when a reference entry might begin with a different element.

Creating an alphabetized reference page or bibliography might seem like a simple task. But when you start dealing with multiple authors and similar last names, it can actually get a little tricky. Fortunately, there are a few basic rules that can keep you on track.

The “nothing precedes something” rule

When the surnames of two or more authors begin with the same letters, the “nothing precedes something” rule is how to figure it out. Here is an example of how it works.

Imagine your reference page includes the authors Berg, M.S. and Bergman, H.D. The first four letters of each author are the same. The fifth letters are M and H respectively. Since H comes before M in the alphabet, you might assume that Bergman, H.D. should be listed first.

APA Style requires that “nothing precede something,” which means that Berg will appear before Bergman. Similarly, a James would automatically appear before a Jameson, and a Michaels before a Michaelson.

Disregard spaces and punctuation marks

If a surname has a hyphen, apostrophe, or other punctuation mark, it can be ignored for alphabetization purposes. Similarly, anything that appears inside of parentheses or brackets should be disregarded.

Ordering multiple works by the same author

It is not uncommon for a research paper to reference multiple books by the same author. If you have more than one reference entry by the same person, then the entries should be listed chronologically by year of publication.

If a reference entry has no year of publication available, then it should precede any entries that do have a date. Here’s an example of a properly alphabetized order for multiple entries from the same author:

Guzman, M.B. (n.d.).

Guzman, M.B. (2016).

Guzman, M.B. (2017).

Guzman, M.B. (2019).

Guzman, M.B. (in press).

“In press” papers do not yet have a year of publication associated with them. All “in press” sources are listed last, like the one shown above.

Ordering works with the same author and same date

If the same author has multiple entries with the same year of publication, you need to differentiate them with lowercase letters. Otherwise, the in-text citations in your paper will correspond to more than one reference page entry.

Same author and same year of publication

Here’s a look at how to use lowercase letters to differentiate between entries with the same author and same year of publication:

Guzman, M.B. (2020a).

Guzman, M.B. (2020b).

Guzman, M.B. (2020c).

These lowercase letters are assigned to make the in-text citations more specific. However, it does not change the fact that their year of publication is the same. If no month or day is available for any of the sources, then they should be ordered alphabetically using the title of the work.

When alphabetizing by title, ignore the words “A,” “An,”,and “The” if they’re the first word of the title.

Same author and same year of publication, with more specific dates

If more specific dates are provided, such as a month or day, then it becomes possible to order these entries chronologically.

Guzman, M.B. (2020b, April 2).

Guzman, M.B. (2020c, October 15).

Ordering authors with the same surname but different initials

Authors who share the same surname but have different first or middle names can be alphabetized by their first initial or second initial.

Guzman, R.L. (2015).

Ordering works with no listed author, or an anonymous author

If you have reference entries with no listed author, the first thing to double-check is whether or not there was a group author instead. Group authors can be businesses, task forces, nonprofit organizations, government agencies, etc.

If there is no individual author listed, then have another look at the source. If it is published on a government agency website, for instance, there is a good chance that the agency was the author of the work, and should be listed as such in the reference entry. You can read more about how to handle group authors in Section 9.11 of the Publication Manual .

What if the work is actually authored by “Anonymous”?

If the work you’re referencing actually has the word “Anonymous” listed as the author, then you can list it as the author and alphabetize it as if it were a real name. But this is only if the work is actually signed “Anonymous.”

What if there is no listed author and it’s definitely not a group author?

If you have confirmed that there is no individual or group author for the work, then you can use the work’s title as the author element in the reference entry. In any case where you’re using the work’s title to alphabetize, you should skip the words “A,” “An,” and “The.”

An APA reference page should not contain any of the following:

• The content of your paper (the reference page should start on its own page after the end of your paper).
• Entries for works for further reading or background information or entries for an epigraph from a famous person (the reference page should only include works that are referenced or quoted in your paper as part of your argument).
• Entries for personal communications such as emails, phone calls, text messages, etc. (since the reader would not be able to access them).
• Entries for whole websites, periodicals, etc. (If needed, the names of these can be mentioned within the body of your paper instead.)
• Entries for quotations from research participants (since they are part of your original research, they do not need to be included).

Published October 28, 2020.

APA Formatting Guide

APA Formatting

• Annotated Bibliography
• Block Quotes
• et al Usage
• In-text Citations
• Multiple Authors
• Paraphrasing
• Page Numbers
• Parenthetical Citations
• Reference Page
• Sample Paper
• APA 7 Updates
• View APA Guide

Citation Examples

• Book Chapter
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Website (no author)
• View all APA Examples

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The following rules will help you identify when to use DOIs and when to use URLs in references:

• Use a DOI wherever available, be it a print version or online version.
• For a print publication that does not have a DOI, do not add a DOI or URL (even if a URL is available).
• For an online publication, if both a DOI and URL are given, include only the DOI.
• For online publications that only have a URL (and no DOI), follow the below recommendations:
• Add a URL in the reference list entry for publications from websites (other than databases). Double check that the URL will work for readers.
• For publications from most academic research databases, which are easily accessible, do not include a URL or database information in the reference. In this case, the reference will be the same as the print version.
• For publications from databases that publish limited/proprietary work that would only be available in that database, include the database name and the URL. If the URL would require a login, include the URL for the database home page or login page instead of the URL for the work.
• If a URL will not work for the reader or is no longer accessible, follow the guidance for citing works with no source.

To format your APA references list, follow these recommendations:

• Begin the references on a new page. This page should be placed at the end of the paper.
• All sides of the paper should have a 1-inch margin.
• Set the heading as “References” in bold text and center it.
• Arrange the reference entries alphabetically according to the first item within the entries (usually the author surname or title).
•  Add a hanging indent of 0.5 inches (i.e., indent any line after the first line of a reference list entry).

See above for a visual example of a reference page and additional examples.

Special Cases

Multiple entries with the same author(s) are arranged by publication year. Entries with no dates first, then in chronological order. If the year published is also the same, a letter is added to the year and the entries are arranged alphabetically (after arrangement by year).

• Robin, M. T. (n.d.)
• Robin, M. T. (1987)
• Robin, M. T. (1989a)
• Robin, M. T. (1989b)

Single-author source and multi-author source that share one author. One-author entries are listed first even if the multi-author entries were published earlier.

• Dave, S. P., Jr. (2006)
• Dave, S. P., Jr., & Glyn, T. L. (2005)

For references with multiple authors that have the same first author but different subsequent authors, alphabetize the entries by the last name of the second author (or third if the first two authors are the same).

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Reference List: Common Reference List Examples

Article (with doi).

Alvarez, E., & Tippins, S. (2019). Socialization agents that Puerto Rican college students use to make financial decisions. Journal of Social Change , 11 (1), 75–85. https://doi.org/10.5590/JOSC.2019.11.1.07

Laplante, J. P., & Nolin, C. (2014). Consultas and socially responsible investing in Guatemala: A case study examining Maya perspectives on the Indigenous right to free, prior, and informed consent. Society & Natural Resources , 27 , 231–248. https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2013.861554

Use the DOI number for the source whenever one is available. DOI stands for "digital object identifier," a number specific to the article that can help others locate the source. In APA 7, format the DOI as a web address. Active hyperlinks for DOIs and URLs should be used for documents meant for screen reading. Present these hyperlinks in blue and underlined text (the default formatting in Microsoft Word), although plain black text is also acceptable. Be consistent in your formatting choice for DOIs and URLs throughout your reference list. Also see our Quick Answer FAQ, "Can I use the DOI format provided by library databases?"

Jerrentrup, A., Mueller, T., Glowalla, U., Herder, M., Henrichs, N., Neubauer, A., & Schaefer, J. R. (2018). Teaching medicine with the help of “Dr. House.” PLoS ONE , 13 (3), Article e0193972. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0193972

For journal articles that are assigned article numbers rather than page ranges, include the article number in place of the page range.

For more on citing electronic resources, see  Electronic Sources References .

Article (Without DOI)

Found in a common academic research database or in print.

Casler , T. (2020). Improving the graduate nursing experience through support on a social media platform. MEDSURG Nursing , 29 (2), 83–87.

If an article does not have a DOI and you retrieved it from a common academic research database through the university library, there is no need to include any additional electronic retrieval information. The reference list entry looks like the entry for a print copy of the article. (This format differs from APA 6 guidelines that recommended including the URL of a journal's homepage when the DOI was not available.) Note that APA 7 has additional guidance on reference list entries for articles found only in specific databases or archives such as Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, UpToDate, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global, and university archives. See APA 7, Section 9.30 for more information.

Found on an Open Access Website

Eaton, T. V., & Akers, M. D. (2007). Whistleblowing and good governance. CPA Journal , 77 (6), 66–71. http://archives.cpajournal.com/2007/607/essentials/p58.htm

Provide the direct web address/URL to a journal article found on the open web, often on an open access journal's website. In APA 7, active hyperlinks for DOIs and URLs should be used for documents meant for screen reading. Present these hyperlinks in blue and underlined text (the default formatting in Microsoft Word), although plain black text is also acceptable. Be consistent in your formatting choice for DOIs and URLs throughout your reference list.

Weinstein, J. A. (2010).  Social change  (3rd ed.). Rowman & Littlefield.

If the book has an edition number, include it in parentheses after the title of the book. If the book does not list any edition information, do not include an edition number. The edition number is not italicized.

American Nurses Association. (2015). Nursing: Scope and standards of practice (3rd ed.).

If the author and publisher are the same, only include the author in its regular place and omit the publisher.

Lencioni, P. (2012). The advantage: Why organizational health trumps everything else in business . Jossey-Bass. https://amzn.to/343XPSJ

As a change from APA 6 to APA 7, it is no longer necessary to include the ebook format in the title. However, if you listened to an audiobook and the content differs from the text version (e.g., abridged content) or your discussion highlights elements of the audiobook (e.g., narrator's performance), then note that it is an audiobook in the title element in brackets. For ebooks and online audiobooks, also include the DOI number (if available) or nondatabase URL but leave out the electronic retrieval element if the ebook was found in a common academic research database, as with journal articles. APA 7 allows for the shortening of long DOIs and URLs, as shown in this example. See APA 7, Section 9.36 for more information.

Chapter in an Edited Book

Poe, M. (2017). Reframing race in teaching writing across the curriculum. In F. Condon & V. A. Young (Eds.), Performing antiracist pedagogy in rhetoric, writing, and communication (pp. 87–105). University Press of Colorado.

Include the page numbers of the chapter in parentheses after the book title.

Christensen, L. (2001). For my people: Celebrating community through poetry. In B. Bigelow, B. Harvey, S. Karp, & L. Miller (Eds.), Rethinking our classrooms: Teaching for equity and justice (Vol. 2, pp. 16–17). Rethinking Schools.

Also include the volume number or edition number in the parenthetical information after the book title when relevant.

Freud, S. (1961). The ego and the id. In J. Strachey (Ed.),  The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud  (Vol. 19, pp. 3-66). Hogarth Press. (Original work published 1923)

When a text has been republished as part of an anthology collection, after the author’s name include the date of the version that was read. At the end of the entry, place the date of the original publication inside parenthesis along with the note “original work published.” For in-text citations of republished work, use both dates in the parenthetical citation, original date first with a slash separating the years, as in this example: Freud (1923/1961). For more information on reprinted or republished works, see APA 7, Sections 9.40-9.41.

Classroom Resources

Citing classroom resources.

If you need to cite content found in your online classroom, use the author (if there is one listed), the year of publication (if available), the title of the document, and the main URL of Walden classrooms. For example, you are citing study notes titled "Health Effects of Exposure to Forest Fires," but you do not know the author's name, your reference entry will look like this:

Health effects of exposure to forest fires [Lecture notes]. (2005). Walden University Canvas. https://waldenu.instructure.com

If you do know the author of the document, your reference will look like this:

Smith, A. (2005). Health effects of exposure to forest fires [PowerPoint slides]. Walden University Canvas. https://waldenu.instructure.com  

A few notes on citing course materials:

• [Lecture notes]
• [Course handout]
• [Study notes]
• It can be difficult to determine authorship of classroom documents. If an author is listed on the document, use that. If the resource is clearly a product of Walden (such as the course-based videos), use Walden University as the author. If you are unsure or if no author is indicated, place the title in the author spot, as above.
• If you cannot determine a date of publication, you can use n.d. (for "no date") in place of the year.

Note:  The web location for Walden course materials is not directly retrievable without a password, and therefore, following APA guidelines, use the main URL for the class sites: https://class.waldenu.edu.

Citing Tempo Classroom Resources

Clear author: 

Smith, A. (2005). Health effects of exposure to forest fires [PowerPoint slides]. Walden University Brightspace. https://mytempo.waldenu.edu

Unclear author:

Health effects of exposure to forest fires [Lecture notes]. (2005). Walden University Brightspace. https://mytempo.waldenu.edu

Conference Sessions and Presentations

Feinman, Y. (2018, July 27). Alternative to proctoring in introductory statistics community college courses [Poster presentation]. Walden University Research Symposium, Minneapolis, MN, United States. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/symposium2018/23/

Torgerson, K., Parrill, J., & Haas, A. (2019, April 5-9). Tutoring strategies for online students [Conference session]. The Higher Learning Commission Annual Conference, Chicago, IL, United States. http://onlinewritingcenters.org/scholarship/torgerson-parrill-haas-2019/

Dictionary Entry

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Leadership. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary . Retrieved May 28, 2020, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leadership

When constructing a reference for an entry in a dictionary or other reference work that has no byline (i.e., no named individual authors), use the name of the group—the institution, company, or organization—as author (e.g., Merriam Webster, American Psychological Association, etc.). The name of the entry goes in the title position, followed by "In" and the italicized name of the reference work (e.g., Merriam-Webster.com dictionary , APA dictionary of psychology ). In this instance, APA 7 recommends including a retrieval date as well for this online source since the contents of the page change over time. End the reference entry with the specific URL for the defined word.

Discussion Board Post

Osborne, C. S. (2010, June 29). Re: Environmental responsibility [Discussion post]. Walden University Canvas.  https://waldenu.instructure.com  

Dissertations or Theses

Retrieved From a Database

Nalumango, K. (2019). Perceptions about the asylum-seeking process in the United States after 9/11 (Publication No. 13879844) [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses.

Retrieved From an Institutional or Personal Website

Evener. J. (2018). Organizational learning in libraries at for-profit colleges and universities [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University]. ScholarWorks. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6606&context=dissertations

Unpublished Dissertation or Thesis

Kirwan, J. G. (2005). An experimental study of the effects of small-group, face-to-face facilitated dialogues on the development of self-actualization levels: A movement towards fully functional persons [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Saybrook Graduate School and Research Center.

For further examples and information, see APA 7, Section 10.6.

Legal Material

For legal references, APA follows the recommendations of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation , so if you have any questions beyond the examples provided in APA, seek out that resource as well.

Court Decisions

Reference format:

Name v. Name, Volume Reporter Page (Court Date). URL

Sample reference entry:

Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954). https://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1955/347us483

Sample citation:

In Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Supreme Court ruled racial segregation in schools unconstitutional.

Note: Italicize the case name when it appears in the text of your paper.

Name of Act, Title Source § Section Number (Year). URL

Sample reference entry for a federal statute:

Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq. (2004). https://www.congress.gov/108/plaws/publ446/PLAW-108publ446.pdf

Sample reference entry for a state statute:

Minnesota Nurse Practice Act, Minn. Stat. §§ 148.171 et seq. (2019). https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/148.171

Sample citation: Minnesota nurses must maintain current registration in order to practice (Minnesota Nurse Practice Act, 2010).

Note: The § symbol stands for "section." Use §§ for sections (plural). To find this symbol in Microsoft Word, go to "Insert" and click on Symbol." Look in the Latin 1-Supplement subset. Note: U.S.C. stands for "United States Code." Note: The Latin abbreviation " et seq. " means "and what follows" and is used when the act includes the cited section and ones that follow. Note: List the chapter first followed by the section or range of sections.

Unenacted Bills and Resolutions

(Those that did not pass and become law)

Title [if there is one], bill or resolution number, xxx Cong. (year). URL

Sample reference entry for Senate bill:

Anti-Phishing Act, S. 472, 109th Cong. (2005). https://www.congress.gov/bill/109th-congress/senate-bill/472

Sample reference entry for House of Representatives resolution:

Anti-Phishing Act, H.R. 1099, 109th Cong. (2005). https://www.congress.gov/bill/109th-congress/house-bill/1099

The Anti-Phishing Act (2005) proposed up to 5 years prison time for people running Internet scams.

These are the three legal areas you may be most apt to cite in your scholarly work. For more examples and explanation, see APA 7, Chapter 11.

Magazine Article

Clay, R. (2008, June). Science vs. ideology: Psychologists fight back about the misuse of research. Monitor on Psychology , 39 (6). https://www.apa.org/monitor/2008/06/ideology

Note that for citations, include only the year: Clay (2008). For magazine articles retrieved from a common academic research database, leave out the URL. For magazine articles from an online news website that is not an online version of a print magazine, follow the format for a webpage reference list entry.

Newspaper Article (Retrieved Online)

Baker, A. (2014, May 7). Connecticut students show gains in national tests. New York Times . http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/08/nyregion/national-assessment-of-educational-progress-results-in-Connecticut-and-New-Jersey.html

Include the full date in the format Year, Month Day. Do not include a retrieval date for periodical sources found on websites. Note that for citations, include only the year: Baker (2014). For newspaper articles retrieved from a common academic research database, leave out the URL. For newspaper articles from an online news website that is not an online version of a print newspaper, follow the format for a webpage reference list entry.

OASIS Resources

Oasis webpage.

OASIS. (n.d.). Common reference list examples . Walden University. https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/apa/references/examples

For all OASIS content, list OASIS as the author. Because OASIS webpages do not include publication dates, use “n.d.” for the year.

Interactive Guide

OASIS. (n.d.). Embrace iterative research and writing [Interactive guide]. Walden University. https://academics.waldenu.edu/oasis/iterative-research-writing-web

For OASIS multimedia resources, such as interactive guides, include a description of the resource in brackets after the title.

Online Video/Webcast

Walden University. (2013).  An overview of learning  [Video]. Walden University Canvas.  https://waldenu.instructure.com  

Use this format for online videos such as Walden videos in classrooms. Most of our classroom videos are produced by Walden University, which will be listed as the author in your reference and citation. Note: Some examples of audiovisual materials in the APA manual show the word “Producer” in parentheses after the producer/author area. In consultation with the editors of the APA manual, we have determined that parenthetical is not necessary for the videos in our courses. The manual itself is unclear on the matter, however, so either approach should be accepted. Note that the speaker in the video does not appear in the reference list entry, but you may want to mention that person in your text. For instance, if you are viewing a video where Tobias Ball is the speaker, you might write the following: Tobias Ball stated that APA guidelines ensure a consistent presentation of information in student papers (Walden University, 2013). For more information on citing the speaker in a video, see our page on Common Citation Errors .

Taylor, R. [taylorphd07]. (2014, February 27). Scales of measurement [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDsMUlexaMY

Walden University Academic Skills Center. (2020, April 15). One-way ANCOVA: Introduction [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/_XnNDQ5CNW8

For videos from streaming sites, use the person or organization who uploaded the video in the author space to ensure retrievability, whether or not that person is the speaker in the video. A username can be provided in square brackets. As a change from APA 6 to APA 7, include the publisher after the title, and do not use "Retrieved from" before the URL. See APA 7, Section 10.12 for more information and examples.

See also reference list entry formats for TED Talks .

Technical and Research Reports

Edwards, C. (2015). Lighting levels for isolated intersections: Leading to safety improvements (Report No. MnDOT 2015-05). Center for Transportation Studies. http://www.cts.umn.edu/Publications/ResearchReports/reportdetail.html?id=2402

Technical and research reports by governmental agencies and other research institutions usually follow a different publication process than scholarly, peer-reviewed journals. However, they present original research and are often useful for research papers. Sometimes, researchers refer to these types of reports as gray literature , and white papers are a type of this literature. See APA 7, Section 10.4 for more information.

Reference list entires for TED Talks follow the usual guidelines for multimedia content found online. There are two common places to find TED talks online, with slightly different reference list entry formats for each.

TED Talk on the TED website

If you find the TED Talk on the TED website, follow the format for an online video on an organizational website:

Owusu-Kesse, K. (2020, June). 5 needs that any COVID-19 response should meet [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/kwame_owusu_kesse_5_needs_that_any_covid_19_response_should_meet

The speaker is the author in the reference list entry if the video is posted on the TED website. For citations, use the speaker's surname.

TED Talk on YouTube

If you find the TED Talk on YouTube or another streaming video website, follow the usual format for streaming video sites:

TED. (2021, February 5). The shadow pandemic of domestic violence during COVID-19 | Kemi DaSilvalbru [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGdID_ICFII

TED is the author in the reference list entry if the video is posted on YouTube since it is the channel on which the video is posted. For citations, use TED as the author.

Walden University Course Catalog

To include the Walden course catalog in your reference list, use this format:

Walden University. (2020). 2019-2020 Walden University catalog . https://catalog.waldenu.edu/index.php

If you cite from a specific portion of the catalog in your paper, indicate the appropriate section and paragraph number in your text:

...which reflects the commitment to social change expressed in Walden University's mission statement (Walden University, 2020, Vision, Mission, and Goals section, para. 2).

And in the reference list:

Walden University. (2020). Vision, mission, and goals. In 2019-2020 Walden University catalog. https://catalog.waldenu.edu/content.php?catoid=172&navoid=59420&hl=vision&returnto=search

Vartan, S. (2018, January 30). Why vacations matter for your health . CNN. https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/why-vacations-matter/index.html

For webpages on the open web, include the author, date, webpage title, organization/site name, and URL. (There is a slight variation for online versions of print newspapers or magazines. For those sources, follow the models in the previous sections of this page.)

American Federation of Teachers. (n.d.). Community schools . http://www.aft.org/issues/schoolreform/commschools/index.cfm

If there is no specified author, then use the organization’s name as the author. In such a case, there is no need to repeat the organization's name after the title.

In APA 7, active hyperlinks for DOIs and URLs should be used for documents meant for screen reading. Present these hyperlinks in blue and underlined text (the default formatting in Microsoft Word), although plain black text is also acceptable. Be consistent in your formatting choice for DOIs and URLs throughout your reference list.

Related Resources

Knowledge Check: Common Reference List Examples

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APA References Page Formatting and Example

Saul Mcleod, PhD

Editor-in-Chief for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester

Saul Mcleod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

Learn about our Editorial Process

Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc

Associate Editor for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education

Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.

The APA reference page (also called the reference list) is the final page of your paper where all sources you cited in the main text are listed.

It should include the full details of all sources you cited in the main text, arranged A-Z alphabetically by author’s surname.

Everything cited in the text must appear in the reference list, and everything on your reference page must be something you have referred to in the text. Make sure you don”t have anything in one place that isn’t in the other.

Reference Page vs. Bibliography

A reference list includes all works that have been cited in the assignment. A bibliography is a detailed list of references cited in your work, plus the background readings or other material you may have read, but not cited.

Note : This page reflects the latest version of the APA Publication Manual (i.e., APA 7), which released in October 2019.

Reference Page: Basic Rules

List references on a new page. Type “References” as page heading, written in boldface, at the top center of the page. Use double spacing. Reference list entries should be alphabetized by the last name of the first author of each work. For multiple articles by the same author, list the entries in chronological order, from earliest to most recent. Indent second and subsequent lines of each entry using a hanging indent of 5-7 spaces (by pressing Ctrl + T on a PC, or Command (⌘) + T on a Mac). All references in APA end with a full stop except when the reference ends with a URL or a DOI.

APA Reference List Example

Journal Article Reference in APA Format

• Author or authors. The surname is followed by a comma and the first initials.
• Year of publication of the article (in parentheses). End with a period.
• Article title. Capitalize only the first letter of the first word. End with a period.
• Capitalize all major words in the title of the journal, followed by a comma.
• Italicize journal title and volume number. Do not put a space between in the volue number and the parentheses around the issue number.
• Issue number of journal in parentheses (no italics) followed by a comma.
• Page range of article. Use an en dash (not a hyphen); do not put spaces around the dash. End with a period.
• Include a DOI (digital object identifier) for all works that have one (i.e. online journal articles). Do not put a period after the DOI url.

Journal Article (Online): One Author

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume number (issue number), page numbers. doi: or URL of the journal’s home page

Matsunaga, M. (2011). Underlying circuits of social support for bullied victims: An appraisalbased perspective on supportive communication and postbullying adjustment. Human Communication Research, 37 (2), 174-206. doi:10.1111/j.1468-2958.2010.01398.x

Journal Article (Online): 2-7 Authors

Author, A. A., Author, A. A., Author, A. A., Author, A. A., & Author, A. A. (Year). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume number (issue number), page numbers. doi: or URL of the journal’s home page

Williams, S. L., & Mickelson, K. D. (2008). A paradox of support seeking and rejection among the stigmatized. Personal Relationships, 15 (4), 493-509. doi:10.1111/j.1475-6811.2008.00212.x

Book Reference in APA Format

• Book title (in italics ). Capitalize only the first letter of the first word. End with a period.
• Edition (in parentheses), if other than first. Position this after the title but before the period.
• Incude the name of the publisher, followed by a period. Do not include the publisher location.
• Include a DOI for all workds that have one, regardless of whether you used the online version or print version. Do not put a period after the DOI url.

Book: One Author

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of the work . Publisher.

Fletcher, D. P. (2018). Disrupters: Success strategies for women who break the mold . Entrepreneur Press.

Book: Two Authors, and Edition

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of the work (edition). Publisher.

Moran, A., & Toner, J. (2017). A critical introduction to sport psychology (3rd ed.). Routledge.

• Chapter in an Edited Book: One Author

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of chapter. In A. Editor & B. Editor (Eds.), Title of the book (pages of chapter). Publisher.

Haybron, M. D. (2008). Philosophy and the science of the subjective well-being. In M. Eid & R. J. Larsen (Eds.), The science of subjective well-being (pp. 17-43). Guilford Press.

Reference for a Chapter in Edited Book in APA Format

• Title of the book chapter. Capitalize only the first letter of the first word. End with a period.
• Write the word “In” and the initials and last name (not inverted) of each editor. Use “(Ed.)” for one editor or “(Eds.)” for multiple editors. End with a comma.
• Write “pp.” and include the chapter page range (in parentheses). End with a period.
• Include a DOI if available. Do not put a period after the DOI url.

Reference for a Website in APA Format

• Year, Month Day of publication (in parentheses). Use the most exact date possible. End with a period.
• Title (in italics ). End with a period.
• Website name. Capitalize all major words. End with a period.
• Website URL. Do not put a period after the url.

APA Website Reference Example

McLeod, S. A. (2019, September 29). APA reference page formatting and example . Simply Psychology. www.www.www.www.www.www.simplypsychology.org/apa-reference-page.html

Further Information

• APA Style 7th Edition Quick Reference Guide
• APA Style Citations & References

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• Knowledge Base
• Referencing

A Quick Guide to Harvard Referencing | Citation Examples

Published on 14 February 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on 15 September 2023.

Referencing is an important part of academic writing. It tells your readers what sources you’ve used and how to find them.

Harvard is the most common referencing style used in UK universities. In Harvard style, the author and year are cited in-text, and full details of the source are given in a reference list .

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Table of contents

Harvard in-text citation, creating a harvard reference list, harvard referencing examples, referencing sources with no author or date, frequently asked questions about harvard referencing.

A Harvard in-text citation appears in brackets beside any quotation or paraphrase of a source. It gives the last name of the author(s) and the year of publication, as well as a page number or range locating the passage referenced, if applicable:

Note that ‘p.’ is used for a single page, ‘pp.’ for multiple pages (e.g. ‘pp. 1–5’).

An in-text citation usually appears immediately after the quotation or paraphrase in question. It may also appear at the end of the relevant sentence, as long as it’s clear what it refers to.

When your sentence already mentions the name of the author, it should not be repeated in the citation:

Sources with multiple authors

When you cite a source with up to three authors, cite all authors’ names. For four or more authors, list only the first name, followed by ‘ et al. ’:

Sources with no page numbers

Some sources, such as websites , often don’t have page numbers. If the source is a short text, you can simply leave out the page number. With longer sources, you can use an alternate locator such as a subheading or paragraph number if you need to specify where to find the quote:

Multiple citations at the same point

When you need multiple citations to appear at the same point in your text – for example, when you refer to several sources with one phrase – you can present them in the same set of brackets, separated by semicolons. List them in order of publication date:

Multiple sources with the same author and date

If you cite multiple sources by the same author which were published in the same year, it’s important to distinguish between them in your citations. To do this, insert an ‘a’ after the year in the first one you reference, a ‘b’ in the second, and so on:

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A bibliography or reference list appears at the end of your text. It lists all your sources in alphabetical order by the author’s last name, giving complete information so that the reader can look them up if necessary.

The reference entry starts with the author’s last name followed by initial(s). Only the first word of the title is capitalised (as well as any proper nouns).

Sources with multiple authors in the reference list

As with in-text citations, up to three authors should be listed; when there are four or more, list only the first author followed by ‘ et al. ’:

Reference list entries vary according to source type, since different information is relevant for different sources. Formats and examples for the most commonly used source types are given below.

• Entire book
• Book chapter
• Translated book
• Edition of a book

Journal articles

• Print journal
• Online-only journal with DOI
• Online-only journal with no DOI
• General web page
• Online article or blog
• Social media post

Sometimes you won’t have all the information you need for a reference. This section covers what to do when a source lacks a publication date or named author.

No publication date

When a source doesn’t have a clear publication date – for example, a constantly updated reference source like Wikipedia or an obscure historical document which can’t be accurately dated – you can replace it with the words ‘no date’:

Note that when you do this with an online source, you should still include an access date, as in the example.

When a source lacks a clearly identified author, there’s often an appropriate corporate source – the organisation responsible for the source – whom you can credit as author instead, as in the Google and Wikipedia examples above.

When that’s not the case, you can just replace it with the title of the source in both the in-text citation and the reference list:

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Harvard referencing uses an author–date system. Sources are cited by the author’s last name and the publication year in brackets. Each Harvard in-text citation corresponds to an entry in the alphabetised reference list at the end of the paper.

Vancouver referencing uses a numerical system. Sources are cited by a number in parentheses or superscript. Each number corresponds to a full reference at the end of the paper.

A Harvard in-text citation should appear in brackets every time you quote, paraphrase, or refer to information from a source.

The citation can appear immediately after the quotation or paraphrase, or at the end of the sentence. If you’re quoting, place the citation outside of the quotation marks but before any other punctuation like a comma or full stop.

In Harvard referencing, up to three author names are included in an in-text citation or reference list entry. When there are four or more authors, include only the first, followed by ‘ et al. ’

Though the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, there is a difference in meaning:

• A reference list only includes sources cited in the text – every entry corresponds to an in-text citation .
• A bibliography also includes other sources which were consulted during the research but not cited.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2023, September 15). A Quick Guide to Harvard Referencing | Citation Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 6 May 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/referencing/harvard-style/

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How to Write an APA Style References Page

Last Updated: April 4, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Michelle Golden, PhD . Michelle Golden is an English teacher in Athens, Georgia. She received her MA in Language Arts Teacher Education in 2008 and received her PhD in English from Georgia State University in 2015. There are 13 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 919,783 times.

Once you finish writing a research paper, you will need to cite the sources you used to do your research. How you format your Works Cited page depend on the style guidelines you are required to use. The American Psychological Association (APA) citation style is primarily used in the social sciences. This format differs from the Modern Language Association (MLA) style because it emphasizes the date by placing it earlier in the citation, and it helps reduce bias by using only the last names and first initials of the author, thereby removing gender from the author’s name.

Creating APA Style References Manually

• Example of one author: Krauss, L. M. (1993).
• Example of two authors: Wegener, D. T., & Petty, R. E. (1994).
• Example of three or more authors: Kernis, M. H., Cornell, D. P., Sun, C. R., Berry, A., Harlow, T., & Bach, J. S. (1993).
• Example of more than seven authors: Miller, F. H., Choi, M. J., Angeli, L. L., Harland, A. A., Stamos, J. A., Thomas, S. T., . . . Rubin, L. H. (2009). Book title. New York, NY: Basic Books.

• Example, book: (1999).
• Example, newspaper, magazine, newsletter: (1993, June).
• Example, daily or weekly periodicals: (1994, September 28).
• Example, for a work with no date given: (n.d.)

• Italicize book titles. For example, Call of the wild.
• Do not italicize journal, newspaper, or magazine titles. Just include these as normal text. For example, “Making the grade in chemistry: A story of trial and error.”

• Example: Boston, MA: Random House.
• Example: New York, NY: Scribner.
• Example: Palmerston North, New Zealand: Dunmore Press.

• For example, ReCall instead of RECALL , and Knowledge Management Research & Practice, not Knowledge Management Research and Practice.
• Use the ampersand if the journal does, instead of spelling out the word and.

• Title of Periodical, volume number (issue number), pages referenced.
• For example, Psychology Today, 72 (3), 64-84 or The Statesman Journal , 59(4), 286-295.

• Example: Eid, M., & Langeheine, R. (1999). The measurement of consistency and occasion specificity with latent class models: A new model and its application to the measurement of affect. Psychological Methods, 4, 100-116. Retrieved from http: // www.apa.org/journals/exampleurl
• You do not need to include your date of access for APA references.

Creating APA References with an Online Generator

• Some generators require you to supply your email address and they will send you the citations. It's best to avoid these, because they may sell your information to businesses that will clog your inbox with spam.
• Many searchable library databases also provide citations in multiple styles, such as EBSCO. If you are using your university library’s databases , then you should have the option of getting an APA style citation for the source from the article’s page in the database.
• Just remember to check any references that you get from an online generator for accuracy because they may have errors.

• The auto-fill method will supply a lot of information instantly, which you will then verify to make sure it's correct.
• The manual entry method will give you a form to complete yourself, and you will enter the appropriate author names, dates, and other relevant information manually.
• Make sure to select the type of work you are citing. The BibMe generator has five main boxes: Journal, Website, Book, Video, and Other. Click on the box that corresponds to the type of work you need to cite. [12] X Research source

• For a journal, enter the title of the journal.
• For a website, enter the URL or a keyword. Generally, using the url for the source will get more accurate results.
• For a book, enter the book title, author's name, or ISBN. You can find the ISBN on the book jacket, usually next to the price and the barcode. The ISBN will provide the most complete information.
• For a video, enter the URL or a major keyword. The URL will yield more specific results.
• If you choose “Other,” you will see a long list of alternative formats to choose from. Select the one that is appropriate (e.g., Magazine Article, Blog/Podcast, Painting/Artwork), and follow the prompts to enter the publication details manually.

• If you supply specific information (such as a URL or ISBN), this will be a short list.
• If you enter less specific information (such as a keyword), you will get a longer list. Your source may or may not be included, depending on whether the generator located it. If your source is not on the list, then try supplying more specific information, or using the manual-fill entry mode.
• If you enter a common book title, then you will see a list of options. Check the author and date to be sure you're choosing the right one. For example, the book title Nemesis will return a list of 20 different books, each written by a different author.

• Your references should always include title, author, publication date, publication location, and publisher. If any of these are missing, then you'll need to refer to the work itself to find that information.

• Copy and paste the generated citation if you want to add it to your references manually.
• Continue to enter more works if you want the generator to compile an alphabetized reference list of all your references.

• Check for misspellings or glaring omissions, such as missing dates or author names.
• Check to be sure you have included every source you wanted to include.

Formatting and Ordering Your References

• Do not use bold, italics, or quotation marks on the word “References.”
• Double space the entire “References” page.
• Do not add an extra line between the title '”References” and your first reference item. [19] X Research source

• To set your indentations to hanging, open the “Paragraph” dialog box by clicking the small arrow to the right of “Paragraph” near the top of your MS Word document.
• After the box opens, look for the section called “Indentation.”
• Click on the drop down menu called “Special” that is in this section and select “Hanging.”
• Your entries will now automatically have hanging indentations.

• Alphabetize letter by letter. Remember that “nothing precedes something,” or in other words, the shorter version of two similar names should come first. For example, Brown, J. R. would come before Browning, A. R.
• Alphabetize the prefixes M', Mc, and Mac exactly as they are shown. Do not alphabetize them as if they were all spelled out (Mac).
• Ignore apostrophes in names. For example, MacNeil would come before M'Carthy.

• List one-author entries before multiple-author entries, when the first author is the same. For example, “Alleyne, R. L. (2001).” would come before “Alleyne, R. L. & Evans, A. J. (1999).”

• For example, “American Society for the Prevention and Cruelty of Animals,” not “ASPCA”.
• For example, “University of Michigan, Department of Psychology,” not “Department of Psychology, University of Michigan”.

• For example, “ Merriam-Webster's collegiate dictionary (11th ed.). (2005) Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster."

APA Style Reference Page Template

Community Q&A

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa6_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_author_authors.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_basic_rules.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_electronic_sources.html
• ↑ http://www.waikato.ac.nz/library/study/referencing/styles/apa
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_articles_in_periodicals.html
• ↑ https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/dois-urls
• ↑ http://www.bibme.org/
• ↑ http://www.citationmachine.net/
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_format.html
• ↑ https://writingcenter.uagc.edu/format-your-reference-list
• ↑ https://libguides.jcu.edu.au/apa/reference-list
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_author_authors.html
• ↑ https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/missing-information

About This Article

To write an APA style "References" page, list your sources in alphabetical order on a new page at the end of your document. Seperate each source with a hanging indent, which will make the first line of each source flush with your left margin and every other line indented. For each source, include all required bibliographic information, like the author's name and the date of publication. You can use an APA citation generator, like Bibme or Citation Machine to help you format each citation correctly. To learn how to do manual citations in APA style, keep reading. Did this summary help you? Yes No

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APA Style 6th Edition: Citing Your Sources

• Basics of APA Formatting
• In Text Quick View
• Block Quotes
• Books & eBooks
• Thesis/Dissertation
• Conference Presentations
• Course Documents
• Social Media
• Government Documents
• Academic Integrity and Plagiarism
• Additional Resources

Sample Reference Page

• Generic Example
• Identified Reference Types
• Formatting Rules

• References cited in text must appear in the reference list and vice versa (exception for personal communication which is not included in a Reference list).
• Make sure that all citation information (names of authors, titles, volume and issue numbers, edition number, page numbers, city and state name, publisher name and location information) is correct.
• When listing titles, the only words you should capitalize are the first word of the title, the first word of the subtitle (if there is one), and proper nouns (Russia, Eleanor Roosevelt).  The only exception to this rule is when you list the titles of magazines, newspapers, or academic journals that contain the articles you’re quoting.  In these cases, use “headline” capitalization (meaning you capitalize all words except articles, conjunctions, and prepositions).  See examples below for clarification
• The following should be italicized:  Titles of books, ebooks, newspapers, journals, magazines, movies, dissertation/thesis, films, videos, television series, podcasts, YouTube videos, artwork, maps, music albums and unpublished manuscripts.  Additionally, volumes of journals are also italicized.
• Reference lists must be double-spaced , with a hanging indent:
• The following cities can be listed without a state because they are well known for publishing: Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Amsterdam, Jerusalem, London, Milan, Moscow, Paris, Rome, Stockholm, Tokyo, Vienna.

Order of References in Reference List

• Alphabetize letter by letter
• Alphabetize prefixes such as Mc and Mac literally
• Alphabetize surnames that contain articles and prepositions (de, la, du, von, etc.) according to the rules of the language of origin
• Alphabetize items with numerals as if the numerals were spelled out
• Alphabetize group authors such as associations or agencies by the first significant word of the name, and use the full official name, not an acronym
• If the author is designated as Anonymous, then the entry is alphabetized as if Anonymous were a true name
• If there is no author, the entry is alphabetized by the first significant word in the title
• << Previous: Additional Resources
• Last Updated: Sep 22, 2022 11:20 AM
• URL: https://libguides.usc.edu/APA-citation-style

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The Reference Page

The Reference list provides information for readers who may want to access the sources you cite in your paper. The Reference page is located at the end of your paper. Start a new page and title your list Reference. Then list in alphabetical order all the sources that you have cited in the paper. Unless your instructor asks for them, sources not actually cited in the paper should not be given in this list, even if you have read them.

How to alphabetize your print sources

• Organize your Reference page by the last names of the authors (or editors).
• If a work has no author or editor, alphabetize by the first word of the title other than a, an, or the.
• Arrange same author sources using their last names every time. Arrange chronologically by date of publication
• “References” is centered at the top of the page
• Double spacing is used throughout
• Use a hanging indent, so that the first line is at the margin and all following lines are indented.

Read more information about citing on-line sources .

Harris, J. G. The return of the witch hunts. Witchhunt Information Page . Retrieved May 28, 1996 from &lt;http://liquid2-sun.mit.edu/fells.short.html&gt;.

Booth, W. (1990, October 29). Monkeying with language: Is chimp using words or merely aping handlers? The Washington Post , p. A3.

Gibbons, A. (1991). Déjà vu all over again: Chimp-language wars. Science , 251,1561-1562.

Klimoski, R., & Palmer, S. (1993). The ADA and the hiring process in organizations. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research , 45(2), 10-36.

Read more information about citing books .

Parker & K. R. Gibson (Eds.). (2000). “Language” and intelligence in monkeys and apes: Comparative developmental perspectives (pp.540-578). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Leakey, R., & Lewin, R. (1992). Origins reconsidered: In search of what makes us human . New York: Doubleday.

Lewin, R. (1991, April 29). Look who's talking now. New Scientist , 130, 49-52.

National Geographic Society (Producer). (1987). In the Shadow of Vesuvius [Videotape]. Washington, DC: National Geographic Society.

Note: Cite material from an information service or database as you would any other material including all publishing information. At the end add the name of the service (i.e. Ask Eric) and the number the service assigns to the material.

Some of the information written on this page has been excerpted from handbook: Hacker, D. A Writer's Reference . (2003). (5th ed.). Boston: St. Martin's. American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. (5th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Updated January 28, 2005 by Renee Brown

• Kathleen Jones White Writing Center
• Stabley Library, Room 203 431 South Eleventh Street Indiana, PA 15705
• Phone: 724-357-3029
• [email protected]

How to Write References and Cite Sources in a Research Paper

Table of contents

• 1.1 Academic Integrity
• 1.2 Avoiding Plagiarism
• 1.3 Building Credibility
• 1.4 Facilitating Further Research
• 2.1 APA (American Psychological Association)
• 2.2 MLA (Modern Language Association)
• 2.3 Chicago Style
• 2.4 IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers)
• 3.1 Author(s)
• 3.2 Title of the Source
• 3.3 Publication Date
• 3.4 Publisher
• 3.5 Page Numbers
• 3.6 DOI (Digital Object Identifier) or URL (Uniform Resource Locator)
• 4.1.3 Chicago
• 4.2.1 Citing Multiple Authors
• 4.2.4 Chicago
• 4.3 Page Numbers in In-Text Citations
• 5.1 Formatting and Organizing Your References
• 5.2 Alphabetizing Your References
• 5.3.2 Journal
• 5.3.3 Chapter
• 5.3.4 Conference Paper/Presentation
• 5.3.5 Online Sources
• 6.1 Verify Your Source
• 6.2 Follow the One Style Guide
• 6.3 Verify DOI and URLs
• 6.4 Online Citation Generators
• 6.5 Use University Libraries and Writing Centers
• 7 Leave No Stone Unturned!

Citation is necessary while writing your school essay, a publication, or a Master’s thesis. We all want our efforts to be acknowledged, right? The lack of references and citations can make the source think you are trying to steal their work. Hence, the question is how to go about making references.

Do you want to learn how to cite in a research paper? Then this article is for you, as it contains the details of how to reference when writing a research paper. There is a standard way to do this in educational journals and organizational publications.

Hence, a researcher must understand how to reference their writings or journals. It is another thing to write a journal properly, but crediting the sources is more crucial.

Follow this guide to learn:

• The importance of referencing and citations for your academic works;
• How to cite in APA, MLA, Chicago, IEEE, and ASA styles;
• Essential guidelines to follow for a published work.

Why Referencing and Citation Matter

Another important question is: What is the need for referencing and citation? The major reason for citations in research paper format is to serve as directional cues for the employed knowledge. When you cite, readers can know that some portions of your content belong to you. Hence, it is easier to identify how recent the information is.

Citation for your paper comes with several advantages. They include:

Academic Integrity

The citation affirms the integrity of your academic writing. In this information age, there are several details, and it can be difficult to authenticate. When you reference, it helps readers understand the necessity of the discussed topic. Referencing certain authors can give more authority to your papers.

Avoiding Plagiarism

Plagiarism refers to the mindless lifting of details from another material without acknowledging the details. For the source, they could believe you are stealing from them. In most countries, copyright infringement is a punishable crime and can make you lose your hard work.

Building Credibility

Credibility is the goal of every academic scholar. There is no better way to gain relevance than by citing sources from other credible ones.

Facilitating Further Research

For other researchers like you, providing citations can serve as other sources for more information. It helps them to know other philosophies about the subject.

Choosing the Right Citation Style

Now that the advantages have been established, the new worry is the choice of the right style. There are several styles with their respective peculiarities. For example, the MLA writing style is common in liberal scientific paper citations. Let’s delve more into MLA formatting for research papers and other styles.

APA (American Psychological Association)

The commonest style used by many scholars is APA formatting , especially if there is no stated style. This approach employs the use of in-text citations to explain the source. It’s the simplest form of citation.

Here is an in-text referencing example:

“Exercise is a good way to recover from ailments.” APA, n.d. (American Psychological Association).

The reference style includes:

• The author’s name;
• The author’s name is in parenthesis to follow the referenced excerpt;
• The publication date.

MLA (Modern Language Association)

MLA-style formation is concise and known for its scientific referencing format. The peculiarity of the MLA citation is its source citation, episode title, and document layout. You have to:

• Include the parenthetical citation;
• Create some spaces away from the left margin;
• Include the author’s or source’s name.

Ensure you capitalize every word when including the names. You can employ professional MLA Citation Generators to make the compilation easier. It is perfect for the citation format of scientific papers.

Chicago Style

Chicago’s style is famous for two things:

• The in-text citation within the paper;
• The reference list is at its end.

It is an author-date approach. Hence, the in-text citation for a research paper has the author’s or source name and publication year.

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers)

This employs the use of numbers. It is chronological as it arranges the citation based on the order of appearance. A click on it takes the reader to the full reference at the end of the paper. To make it easier, you can employ IEEE Citation Maker for a well-curated task. This way, you won’t have to worry about the manual compilation of the IEEE citation style.

This is similar to the author-date approach by Chicago Style. You can:

• Create the quotation;
• Include the parentheses for the author’s name and publication date;
• Add the page number using a colon.

Components of a Citation

Do you want to know how to complete a citation for your professional research paper writing service and research paper? Learn about its components.

The author is also regarded as the source. It is the original writer of the material you are referencing. Sometimes, there may be multiple authors. Do not miss out on anyone while citing a research paper.

Title of the Source

The title of the source is often the name given to the material by the author.

Publication Date

As the name implies, this refers to the date the source was published. Frequently, most writers include it at the start of their material. State the exact month and year of publication, separated with a comma. See example:

“(2016, March 7).”

Including the publisher’s details is only necessary for the full reference. It should be at the end of the paper. It can facilitate further research.

Page Numbers

The page number is necessary, as it helps to easily refer to different sections of the paper.

DOI (Digital Object Identifier) or URL (Uniform Resource Locator)

A DOI is a link to a resource on the internet. The resource can be a book or its chapter. On the other hand, a URL is an address that indicates where the resource can be found. It helps to locate the resource. The use of URLs and DOIs directs readers to the digital identifier of the source.

In-Text Citations

An in-text citation for a research paper is the brief form of the bibliography that you include in the body of the content. It contains the author’s family name and year of publication. It provides enough details to help users know the source in their reference list. Each citation format for research papers is unique.

See citation examples below.

How to Cite Direct Quotations for Each Citation Style

The general rule in referencing is that in-text citations must have a corresponding entry in your reference list. Let’s see how!

There are two types of APA in-text citations:

Parenthetical:

The researchers concluded, “Climate change poses significant challenges for coastal communities” (Johnson & Lee, 2021, p. 78).

In their study on the effects of exercise on mental health, Smith and Johnson (2019) found that regular physical activity was associated with a significant decrease in symptoms of anxiety and depression. According to their research, engaging in exercise three times a week for at least 30 minutes had a positive impact on participants’ overall well-being.

APA in-text citation style employs the source’s name and publication year. A direct quotation will include the page number. Remember, you can generate a citation in a research paper using the APA style via a citation generator.

MLA is known as the scientific style of citation. The uniqueness of MLA Style formatting is the use of a direct quote (in quotes), the Author’s name and page number (in parentheses).

In the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Atticus Finch imparts wisdom to his children, saying, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (Lee 30).

For Chicago, you are to include a parenthetical citation, the author’s name, the publication year, and the quote’s page number.

As Adams (2009) argues, “History is a vast early warning system” (53).

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) style typically uses numerical citations in square brackets for in-text citations. It doesn’t rely heavily on direct quotations in the same way as some other citation styles, like APA or MLA. Instead, IEEE generally prefers paraphrasing and citing the source, but direct quotations can be used when necessary. Here’s an example of a direct quotation in IEEE style:

In-Text Citation:

As stated by Smith, “In most cases, the impedance of the transmission line remains relatively constant throughout its length” [1].

Corresponding Reference Entry:

[1] A. Smith, “Transmission Line Impedance Analysis,” IEEE Transactions on Electrical Engineering, vol. 45, no. 3, pp. 212-225, 2010.

ASA is different because it contains the author’s name, publication year, and even the page number.

According to Smith (2010), “Social institutions shape our behaviors and interactions in profound ways” (p. 45).

How to Cite Paraphrased Information

While writing a college paper, paraphrasing is important to achieve clarity, but it is ideal to cite the source of the paraphrased information. The proper way to cite paraphrased information is to include a parenthetical citation. The style of referencing for all citation styles doesn’t change, but they should be in parenthesis.

“Strength can be defined in terms of ability and acquired skills, according to (Jack et al. 2023).

Citing Multiple Authors

The technique is different when you are citing a source that has multiple authors. For the first-time citation, you should include the names of all the authors. The subsequent activities to generate a citation in APA should only include the first author’s surname and the proper use of ‘et al.’ However, you should include the surname and initials of all these authors in the full reference. Separate the authors with commas and ampersands before the final name.

Two Authors:

When a source has two authors, include both authors’ names in the in-text citation every time you reference the source. Use an ampersand (&) between the authors’ names, and include the year of publication in parentheses. For example:

(Smith & Johnson, 2020) found that…

Three to Five Authors:

When a source has three to five authors, list all authors in the first in-text citation. Use an ampersand (&) between the last two authors’ names. For subsequent citations of the same source, use only the first author’s name followed by “et al.” and the year. For example:

First citation: (Smith, Johnson, & Williams, 2018)…

Subsequent citations: (Smith et al., 2018)…

Six or More Authors:

When a source has six or more authors, you should use “et al.” in both the first and subsequent in-text citations, along with the year. For example:

(Smith et al., 2019) conducted a study on…

Group Authors:

When citing sources authored by a group, organization, or company, use the full name of the group or organization as the author in the in-text citation. If the abbreviation is well-known, you can use the abbreviation in subsequent citations. For example:

First citation: (American Psychological Association [APA], 2019)…

Subsequent citations: (APA, 2019)

When a source has two authors, include both authors’ names in the in-text citation, separated by the word “and.” For example:

(Smith and Johnson 45) found that…

Three or More Authors:

When a source has three or more authors, include only the first author’s name followed by “et al.” in the in-text citation. For example:

(Smith et al. 72) conducted a study on…

If a source has no identifiable author, use a shortened version of the title in the in-text citation. Enclose the title in double quotation marks or use italics if it’s a longer work (e.g., a book or film). For example:

(“Title of the Source” 28) argues that…

(American Psychological Association 62) states that…

Author-Date System:

In the Author-Date system, when a source has two authors, include both authors’ last names and the publication year in parentheses in the in-text citation, separated by an ampersand (&). For example:

(Smith & Johnson 2020) found that…

When a source has three or more authors, you can use “et al.” after the first author’s name in the in-text citation. For example:

(Smith et al. 2018) conducted a study on…

Notes and Bibliography System:

In the Notes and Bibliography system, when a source has two authors, include both authors’ full names in the note. For example:

John Smith and Jane Johnson, Title of the Work (Place of Publication: Publisher, Year), page number.

When a source has three or more authors, list the first author’s name followed by “et al.” in the note. For example:

John Smith et al., Title of the Work (Place of Publication: Publisher, Year), page number.

When a source has two authors, include both authors’ last names in the in-text citation, separated by the word “and.” For example:

(Smith and Johnson 2020) found that…

Three Authors:

When a source has three authors, include all three authors’ last names in the in-text citation, separated by commas. For example:

(Smith, Johnson, and Williams 2018) conducted a study on…

More than Three Authors:

When a source has more than three authors, you should use the first author’s last name followed by “et al.” in the in-text citation. For example:

(Smith et al. 2019) conducted a study on…

When a source has two authors, include both authors’ last names in the in-text citation, separated by “and.” For example:

[1] Smith and Johnson found that…

When a source has three or more authors, use the first author’s last name followed by “et al.” in the in-text citation. For example:

[2] Smith et al. conducted a study on…

Page Numbers in In-Text Citations

The use of page numbers in in-text citations is more peculiar to APA style. You can use paragraphs as indicated above if the source has no page, as seen in some e-books and websites.

Creating a Reference List or Bibliography

Creating a reference list is one of the most important tips for writing a research paper because it shows the general scheme of paper citation. This part of the content is a step-by-step process you can follow to create your reference list for your research paper.

Formatting and Organizing Your References

Formatting and organizing your references is the first step when you want to create your bibliography. You need to arrange all the full references to the in-text citation in the downward part of your paper. To avoid missing out on any, writing every full reference when you write the in-text citation is advisable.

Alphabetizing Your References

Alphabetizing your references ensures you create your bibliography in an orderly fashion for easy comprehension. Hence, you can do it numerically or alphabetically. The numerical order is dependent on the referencing system you are using, while the alphabetical order uses the author’s name to organize the reference.

Citations for Different Source Types

Different source types have their respective references, even for scientific papers. The commonest sources include books, journals, chapters, presentations, and online (to cite a website).

See how to cite an example for each source below:

Author, Initial. (Year). Book Title. City of publication, Country/State: Publisher.

“Social, M. (2023). The effect of the internet in this modern era . London, England: Ink.”

Author last name, First name. Book Title: Subtitle . Edition, Publisher, Year.

Donaldson, Bruce. Dutch: A Comprehensive Grammar . 3rd ed., Routledge, 2017..

Author last name, First name. Book Title: Subtitle . Edition. Place of publication: Publisher, Year. E-book format.

Donaldson, Bruce. Dutch: A Comprehensive Grammar . 3rd ed. Abingdon-on-Thames: Routledge, 2017.

• N. Last Name, Title , Edition. City: Publisher, 2000.
• Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings , 1st ed. New York: Random House, 1969

Quote (Name Date)

Referencing is vital in research (Smith 2020).

Author, Initial. (Year). Article Title. Journal Title. The volume of the Journal (in italics), issue number of journal in round brackets, page range of articles, URL, and first time.

Social, M. (2023). The effect of the internet in this modern era . Digital Technology, 26(8), 22-24. (Insert URL).

Author. Journal title Date, Page. DOI

Ahmed, Sara. “What is Whiteness.” Feminist Theory , vol. 8, no. 2, Aug. 2007, pp. 149–168. https://doi.org/10.1177/1464700107078139.

Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Article Title.” Journal Name Volume, No. Issue (Month or Season Year): Page range. DOI or URL.

Pickard, Hanna. “What Is Personality Disorder?” Philosophy, Psychiatry, & Psychology 18, no. 3 (September 2011): 181–84. https://doi.org/10.1353/ppp.2011.0040.

Author Initial(s) and Surname, “Article title,” Journal Title , volume number, issue number, page range, month, and year of publication.

• Chesum, “Innovations in Catalyzation,” J Adhes Sci Technol , Vol. 7, No. 1., pp. 11–24, July-September 2012.

Author Surname, Author Forename. Year Published. ‘Title’. Publication Title Volume Number (Issue Number): Pages Used. Retrieved October 10, 2013 (http://Website URL).

Sandelowski, Margarete. 1994. ‘Focus On Qualitative Methods. Notes On Transcription’. Research in Nursing \& Health 17(4):312.

Chapter Author’s Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial. (Year). Chapter or article title. Editor First Initial. Second Initial. Editor’s Last Name (Ed.). Book title: Subtitle (edition number, if not the first pages of the chapter). Location of publication: Publisher.

Social, M.O., (2023). Coarctation. In D.S. Moodie (Ed.). Management of heart disease: Indulthood (pp. 142-170). Minneapolis, Minnesota: Cardiotext Publishing.

Name. Book title: Subtitle. Editors. Location of publication: publisher.

Schwartz, Paula. “Redefining Resistance: Women in France.” Behind the Lines: Two World Wars , edited by Margaret R. Higonnet et al., Yale UP, 1987, pp. 141–53.

Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title: Subtitle , edited by Editor first name Last name, Page range. Place of publication: Publisher, Year.

Nussbaum, Martha C. “Legal Reasoning.” In The Cambridge Law , edited by John Tasioulas, 59–77. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020.

Author(s), “Chapter title,” in Book Title, Editor(s), Ed(s). City, Country: Publisher, year, p(p). page(s).

• Saito, A. Jorio, and M. S. Dresselhaus, “Properties of nanographene,” in The Oxford Book of Technology, vol. 2, Materials , A. V. NarlikarEds. Oxford, U.K.: Oxford Univ. Press, 2010, pp. 1–30.

Author’s Last Name, First Name. Year of publication. “Title of Chapter.” Pp. Numbers in Title of Book (italicized), edited by F.I. MI. Last. Location of publisher, state or province postal code or name of country (if a foreign publisher): Publisher’s Name.

Rubin, Avi. 2015. “The Slave: A Drama from the Last Century.” Pp. 87-103 in Society, Culture in Asia: The Modernities , edited by E. R. Toledano: Walter De Gruyter Incorporated.

Conference Paper/Presentation

Last name, initial (Year). Conference paper title. Editor initial, last name (Ed.), Proceedings Book Title . Place of Publication: Publisher.

Winstone, N. & Boud, D. (2017). Supporting students’ engagement: the adoption of practices in the U.K. and Australia. A nnual Conference . Newport, South Wales

Surname, First Name. “Paper Title.” Proceedings Title, Conference Location and Date , edited by Editor Name(s), Publisher, Date of Publication.

Lewis, Jack. “Literature: The Consequences of Loss.” Library Proceedings Conference, Amsterdam, 13–14 June , edited by W. Oldham, LCP Publications, 2015.

Author First Name Last Name, “Title of the Paper” (paper presentation, Conference, Location, Date of conference).

Allison Cloyd, “An Examination of College Students” (paper presentation, EasyBib Conference, New York, NY, July 30, 2014) .

Author initials. Last name, Book Title . City, Country: Publisher, Year.

• P. Hailman, Coding: Man-Made Signals . Cambridge: Harvard Univ. Press, 2008.

Author Surname, Author Forename. Year Published. ‘Title’. P. Pages Used in Publication Title . City: Publisher. Retrieved October 10, 2013 (http://Website URL).

Vargas, Jose. 2014. ‘The End Of Liberty’. Pp. 40-42 in The end . Buenos Aires: Elsevier.

Online Sources

Last Name, Initials. (Year, Month Day). Article title . Site Name. URL

The countdown: A prophecy takedown . (2020, October 19). BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/election-us-2020-54596667

Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Book . Edition, Publisher, Year of publication.

Smith, Thomas. The Citation Manual for Students: A Guide . 2nd ed., Wiley, 2020.

Author First and Last Name, Title of Book (Place of publication: publisher, year), page number(s).

Albert Einstein, The Meaning of Relativity (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1923), 44–45.

Author initials. Last Name, Book Title . City (and state if in the U.S.), Country: Publisher, Year.

• P. Hailman, Redundancy: Man-Made Signals . Cambridge, MA, USA: Harvard Univ. Press, 2008.

Last Name, First M. Year. “Title of article.” Title of Journal volume (issue): pages.

DOI/Retrieved Month Day, Year (URL)

Granello, Paul F. 1999. “College Students’ Wellness Due to Social Support.” Journal of Counseling 2(2):110-120.

Doi: 10.1002/j.2161-1882.1999.tb00149.x.

Tips for Accuracy

The goal of citing your paper is because of the advantages stated above. As such, you should not negotiate the accuracy of your citation. Here are the tips you can follow for accurate referencing:

Verify Your Source

Confirm if your source is credible or not. It is easier to verify books, journal articles, and chapters. You should check multiple links to confirm their authenticity.

Follow the One Style Guide

Maintain a single referencing style throughout your paper. It is improper to employ multiple referencing styles. If not specified, you can consider the APA style.

Verify DOI and URLs

DOI and URLs can be tricky and sensitive. A simple error with the punctuation can make them invalid. Hence, verifying every DOI and URL with a click is advisable. Discrediting your citation format for a scientific research paper reference based on an invalid URL is not worth it.

Online Citation Generators

Thanks to the digital age, you don’t have to worry about manually compiling your reference or generating its in-text citation. You can employ online generators to do the rough work for you. In turn, you will have more time to focus on the major content of your research work.

Use University Libraries and Writing Centers

Libraries and writing centers have extensive collections of cited sources. Since books, publications, and journals are more credible sources, university libraries remain a valid source to increase the credibility of your paper.

Leave No Stone Unturned!

Referencing and citation are the best way to preserve the relevance of your academic paper. It gives it the appropriate credibility for future use. That means another writer can refer to your work over many years, even when the level of advancement may be unmatched. A well-referenced work is evergreen.

One must note that well-oriented research paper citations have a proper format. The options include APA, MLA (citation style for science), Chicago, IEEE, and ASA. If not stated, it is advisable to follow the APA formatting style, as it is the most common. However, stick with formatting while compiling cited sources for a research paper.

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How To Write A Research Paper

Step-By-Step Tutorial With Examples + FREE Template

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) | Expert Reviewer: Dr Eunice Rautenbach | March 2024

For many students, crafting a strong research paper from scratch can feel like a daunting task – and rightly so! In this post, we’ll unpack what a research paper is, what it needs to do , and how to write one – in three easy steps. 🙂 

Overview: Writing A Research Paper

What (exactly) is a research paper.

• How to write a research paper
• Stage 1 : Topic & literature search
• Stage 2 : Structure & outline
• Stage 3 : Iterative writing
• Key takeaways

Let’s start by asking the most important question, “ What is a research paper? ”.

Simply put, a research paper is a scholarly written work where the writer (that’s you!) answers a specific question (this is called a research question ) through evidence-based arguments . Evidence-based is the keyword here. In other words, a research paper is different from an essay or other writing assignments that draw from the writer’s personal opinions or experiences. With a research paper, it’s all about building your arguments based on evidence (we’ll talk more about that evidence a little later).

Now, it’s worth noting that there are many different types of research papers , including analytical papers (the type I just described), argumentative papers, and interpretative papers. Here, we’ll focus on analytical papers , as these are some of the most common – but if you’re keen to learn about other types of research papers, be sure to check out the rest of the blog .

With that basic foundation laid, let’s get down to business and look at how to write a research paper .

Overview: The 3-Stage Process

While there are, of course, many potential approaches you can take to write a research paper, there are typically three stages to the writing process. So, in this tutorial, we’ll present a straightforward three-step process that we use when working with students at Grad Coach.

These three steps are:

• Finding a research topic and reviewing the existing literature
• Developing a provisional structure and outline for your paper, and
• Writing up your initial draft and then refining it iteratively

Let’s dig into each of these.

Need a helping hand?

Step 1: Find a topic and review the literature

As we mentioned earlier, in a research paper, you, as the researcher, will try to answer a question . More specifically, that’s called a research question , and it sets the direction of your entire paper. What’s important to understand though is that you’ll need to answer that research question with the help of high-quality sources – for example, journal articles, government reports, case studies, and so on. We’ll circle back to this in a minute.

The first stage of the research process is deciding on what your research question will be and then reviewing the existing literature (in other words, past studies and papers) to see what they say about that specific research question. In some cases, your professor may provide you with a predetermined research question (or set of questions). However, in many cases, you’ll need to find your own research question within a certain topic area.

Finding a strong research question hinges on identifying a meaningful research gap – in other words, an area that’s lacking in existing research. There’s a lot to unpack here, so if you wanna learn more, check out the plain-language explainer video below.

Once you’ve figured out which question (or questions) you’ll attempt to answer in your research paper, you’ll need to do a deep dive into the existing literature – this is called a “ literature search ”. Again, there are many ways to go about this, but your most likely starting point will be Google Scholar .

If you’re new to Google Scholar, think of it as Google for the academic world. You can start by simply entering a few different keywords that are relevant to your research question and it will then present a host of articles for you to review. What you want to pay close attention to here is the number of citations for each paper – the more citations a paper has, the more credible it is (generally speaking – there are some exceptions, of course).

Ideally, what you’re looking for are well-cited papers that are highly relevant to your topic. That said, keep in mind that citations are a cumulative metric , so older papers will often have more citations than newer papers – just because they’ve been around for longer. So, don’t fixate on this metric in isolation – relevance and recency are also very important.

Beyond Google Scholar, you’ll also definitely want to check out academic databases and aggregators such as Science Direct, PubMed, JStor and so on. These will often overlap with the results that you find in Google Scholar, but they can also reveal some hidden gems – so, be sure to check them out.

Once you’ve worked your way through all the literature, you’ll want to catalogue all this information in some sort of spreadsheet so that you can easily recall who said what, when and within what context. If you’d like, we’ve got a free literature spreadsheet that helps you do exactly that.

Step 2: Develop a structure and outline

With your research question pinned down and your literature digested and catalogued, it’s time to move on to planning your actual research paper .

It might sound obvious, but it’s really important to have some sort of rough outline in place before you start writing your paper. So often, we see students eagerly rushing into the writing phase, only to land up with a disjointed research paper that rambles on in multiple

Now, the secret here is to not get caught up in the fine details . Realistically, all you need at this stage is a bullet-point list that describes (in broad strokes) what you’ll discuss and in what order. It’s also useful to remember that you’re not glued to this outline – in all likelihood, you’ll chop and change some sections once you start writing, and that’s perfectly okay. What’s important is that you have some sort of roadmap in place from the start.

At this stage you might be wondering, “ But how should I structure my research paper? ”. Well, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution here, but in general, a research paper will consist of a few relatively standardised components:

• Introduction
• Literature review
• Methodology

Let’s take a look at each of these.

First up is the introduction section . As the name suggests, the purpose of the introduction is to set the scene for your research paper. There are usually (at least) four ingredients that go into this section – these are the background to the topic, the research problem and resultant research question , and the justification or rationale. If you’re interested, the video below unpacks the introduction section in more detail. 

The next section of your research paper will typically be your literature review . Remember all that literature you worked through earlier? Well, this is where you’ll present your interpretation of all that content . You’ll do this by writing about recent trends, developments, and arguments within the literature – but more specifically, those that are relevant to your research question . The literature review can oftentimes seem a little daunting, even to seasoned researchers, so be sure to check out our extensive collection of literature review content here .

With the introduction and lit review out of the way, the next section of your paper is the research methodology . In a nutshell, the methodology section should describe to your reader what you did (beyond just reviewing the existing literature) to answer your research question. For example, what data did you collect, how did you collect that data, how did you analyse that data and so on? For each choice, you’ll also need to justify why you chose to do it that way, and what the strengths and weaknesses of your approach were.

Now, it’s worth mentioning that for some research papers, this aspect of the project may be a lot simpler . For example, you may only need to draw on secondary sources (in other words, existing data sets). In some cases, you may just be asked to draw your conclusions from the literature search itself (in other words, there may be no data analysis at all). But, if you are required to collect and analyse data, you’ll need to pay a lot of attention to the methodology section. The video below provides an example of what the methodology section might look like.

By this stage of your paper, you will have explained what your research question is, what the existing literature has to say about that question, and how you analysed additional data to try to answer your question. So, the natural next step is to present your analysis of that data . This section is usually called the “results” or “analysis” section and this is where you’ll showcase your findings.

Depending on your school’s requirements, you may need to present and interpret the data in one section – or you might split the presentation and the interpretation into two sections. In the latter case, your “results” section will just describe the data, and the “discussion” is where you’ll interpret that data and explicitly link your analysis back to your research question. If you’re not sure which approach to take, check in with your professor or take a look at past papers to see what the norms are for your programme.

Alright – once you’ve presented and discussed your results, it’s time to wrap it up . This usually takes the form of the “ conclusion ” section. In the conclusion, you’ll need to highlight the key takeaways from your study and close the loop by explicitly answering your research question. Again, the exact requirements here will vary depending on your programme (and you may not even need a conclusion section at all) – so be sure to check with your professor if you’re unsure.

Step 3: Write and refine

Finally, it’s time to get writing. All too often though, students hit a brick wall right about here… So, how do you avoid this happening to you?

Well, there’s a lot to be said when it comes to writing a research paper (or any sort of academic piece), but we’ll share three practical tips to help you get started.

First and foremost , it’s essential to approach your writing as an iterative process. In other words, you need to start with a really messy first draft and then polish it over multiple rounds of editing. Don’t waste your time trying to write a perfect research paper in one go. Instead, take the pressure off yourself by adopting an iterative approach.

Secondly , it’s important to always lean towards critical writing , rather than descriptive writing. What does this mean? Well, at the simplest level, descriptive writing focuses on the “ what ”, while critical writing digs into the “ so what ” – in other words, the implications. If you’re not familiar with these two types of writing, don’t worry! You can find a plain-language explanation here.

Last but not least, you’ll need to get your referencing right. Specifically, you’ll need to provide credible, correctly formatted citations for the statements you make. We see students making referencing mistakes all the time and it costs them dearly. The good news is that you can easily avoid this by using a simple reference manager . If you don’t have one, check out our video about Mendeley, an easy (and free) reference management tool that you can start using today.

Recap: Key Takeaways

We’ve covered a lot of ground here. To recap, the three steps to writing a high-quality research paper are:

• To choose a research question and review the literature
• To plan your paper structure and draft an outline
• To take an iterative approach to writing, focusing on critical writing and strong referencing

Remember, this is just a b ig-picture overview of the research paper development process and there’s a lot more nuance to unpack. So, be sure to grab a copy of our free research paper template to learn more about how to write a research paper.

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13.1 Formatting a Research Paper

Learning objectives.

• Identify the major components of a research paper written using American Psychological Association (APA) style.
• Apply general APA style and formatting conventions in a research paper.

In this chapter, you will learn how to use APA style , the documentation and formatting style followed by the American Psychological Association, as well as MLA style , from the Modern Language Association. There are a few major formatting styles used in academic texts, including AMA, Chicago, and Turabian:

• AMA (American Medical Association) for medicine, health, and biological sciences
• APA (American Psychological Association) for education, psychology, and the social sciences
• Chicago—a common style used in everyday publications like magazines, newspapers, and books
• MLA (Modern Language Association) for English, literature, arts, and humanities
• Turabian—another common style designed for its universal application across all subjects and disciplines

While all the formatting and citation styles have their own use and applications, in this chapter we focus our attention on the two styles you are most likely to use in your academic studies: APA and MLA.

If you find that the rules of proper source documentation are difficult to keep straight, you are not alone. Writing a good research paper is, in and of itself, a major intellectual challenge. Having to follow detailed citation and formatting guidelines as well may seem like just one more task to add to an already-too-long list of requirements.

Following these guidelines, however, serves several important purposes. First, it signals to your readers that your paper should be taken seriously as a student’s contribution to a given academic or professional field; it is the literary equivalent of wearing a tailored suit to a job interview. Second, it shows that you respect other people’s work enough to give them proper credit for it. Finally, it helps your reader find additional materials if he or she wishes to learn more about your topic.

Furthermore, producing a letter-perfect APA-style paper need not be burdensome. Yes, it requires careful attention to detail. However, you can simplify the process if you keep these broad guidelines in mind:

• Work ahead whenever you can. Chapter 11 “Writing from Research: What Will I Learn?” includes tips for keeping track of your sources early in the research process, which will save time later on.
• Get it right the first time. Apply APA guidelines as you write, so you will not have much to correct during the editing stage. Again, putting in a little extra time early on can save time later.
• Use the resources available to you. In addition to the guidelines provided in this chapter, you may wish to consult the APA website at http://www.apa.org or the Purdue University Online Writing lab at http://owl.english.purdue.edu , which regularly updates its online style guidelines.

General Formatting Guidelines

This chapter provides detailed guidelines for using the citation and formatting conventions developed by the American Psychological Association, or APA. Writers in disciplines as diverse as astrophysics, biology, psychology, and education follow APA style. The major components of a paper written in APA style are listed in the following box.

These are the major components of an APA-style paper:

Body, which includes the following:

• Headings and, if necessary, subheadings to organize the content
• In-text citations of research sources
• References page

All these components must be saved in one document, not as separate documents.

The title page of your paper includes the following information:

• Title of the paper
• Author’s name
• Name of the institution with which the author is affiliated
• Header at the top of the page with the paper title (in capital letters) and the page number (If the title is lengthy, you may use a shortened form of it in the header.)

List the first three elements in the order given in the previous list, centered about one third of the way down from the top of the page. Use the headers and footers tool of your word-processing program to add the header, with the title text at the left and the page number in the upper-right corner. Your title page should look like the following example.

The next page of your paper provides an abstract , or brief summary of your findings. An abstract does not need to be provided in every paper, but an abstract should be used in papers that include a hypothesis. A good abstract is concise—about one hundred fifty to two hundred fifty words—and is written in an objective, impersonal style. Your writing voice will not be as apparent here as in the body of your paper. When writing the abstract, take a just-the-facts approach, and summarize your research question and your findings in a few sentences.

In Chapter 12 “Writing a Research Paper” , you read a paper written by a student named Jorge, who researched the effectiveness of low-carbohydrate diets. Read Jorge’s abstract. Note how it sums up the major ideas in his paper without going into excessive detail.

Write an abstract summarizing your paper. Briefly introduce the topic, state your findings, and sum up what conclusions you can draw from your research. Use the word count feature of your word-processing program to make sure your abstract does not exceed one hundred fifty words.

Depending on your field of study, you may sometimes write research papers that present extensive primary research, such as your own experiment or survey. In your abstract, summarize your research question and your findings, and briefly indicate how your study relates to prior research in the field.

Margins, Pagination, and Headings

APA style requirements also address specific formatting concerns, such as margins, pagination, and heading styles, within the body of the paper. Review the following APA guidelines.

Use these general guidelines to format the paper:

• Set the top, bottom, and side margins of your paper at 1 inch.
• Use double-spaced text throughout your paper.
• Use a standard font, such as Times New Roman or Arial, in a legible size (10- to 12-point).
• Use continuous pagination throughout the paper, including the title page and the references section. Page numbers appear flush right within your header.
• Section headings and subsection headings within the body of your paper use different types of formatting depending on the level of information you are presenting. Additional details from Jorge’s paper are provided.

Begin formatting the final draft of your paper according to APA guidelines. You may work with an existing document or set up a new document if you choose. Include the following:

• Your title page
• The abstract you created in Note 13.8 “Exercise 1”
• Correct headers and page numbers for your title page and abstract

APA style uses section headings to organize information, making it easy for the reader to follow the writer’s train of thought and to know immediately what major topics are covered. Depending on the length and complexity of the paper, its major sections may also be divided into subsections, sub-subsections, and so on. These smaller sections, in turn, use different heading styles to indicate different levels of information. In essence, you are using headings to create a hierarchy of information.

The following heading styles used in APA formatting are listed in order of greatest to least importance:

• Section headings use centered, boldface type. Headings use title case, with important words in the heading capitalized.
• Subsection headings use left-aligned, boldface type. Headings use title case.
• The third level uses left-aligned, indented, boldface type. Headings use a capital letter only for the first word, and they end in a period.
• The fourth level follows the same style used for the previous level, but the headings are boldfaced and italicized.
• The fifth level follows the same style used for the previous level, but the headings are italicized and not boldfaced.

Visually, the hierarchy of information is organized as indicated in Table 13.1 “Section Headings” .

Table 13.1 Section Headings

A college research paper may not use all the heading levels shown in Table 13.1 “Section Headings” , but you are likely to encounter them in academic journal articles that use APA style. For a brief paper, you may find that level 1 headings suffice. Longer or more complex papers may need level 2 headings or other lower-level headings to organize information clearly. Use your outline to craft your major section headings and determine whether any subtopics are substantial enough to require additional levels of headings.

Working with the document you developed in Note 13.11 “Exercise 2” , begin setting up the heading structure of the final draft of your research paper according to APA guidelines. Include your title and at least two to three major section headings, and follow the formatting guidelines provided above. If your major sections should be broken into subsections, add those headings as well. Use your outline to help you.

Because Jorge used only level 1 headings, his Exercise 3 would look like the following:

Citation Guidelines

In-text citations.

Throughout the body of your paper, include a citation whenever you quote or paraphrase material from your research sources. As you learned in Chapter 11 “Writing from Research: What Will I Learn?” , the purpose of citations is twofold: to give credit to others for their ideas and to allow your reader to follow up and learn more about the topic if desired. Your in-text citations provide basic information about your source; each source you cite will have a longer entry in the references section that provides more detailed information.

In-text citations must provide the name of the author or authors and the year the source was published. (When a given source does not list an individual author, you may provide the source title or the name of the organization that published the material instead.) When directly quoting a source, it is also required that you include the page number where the quote appears in your citation.

This information may be included within the sentence or in a parenthetical reference at the end of the sentence, as in these examples.

Epstein (2010) points out that “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive” (p. 137).

Here, the writer names the source author when introducing the quote and provides the publication date in parentheses after the author’s name. The page number appears in parentheses after the closing quotation marks and before the period that ends the sentence.

Addiction researchers caution that “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive” (Epstein, 2010, p. 137).

Here, the writer provides a parenthetical citation at the end of the sentence that includes the author’s name, the year of publication, and the page number separated by commas. Again, the parenthetical citation is placed after the closing quotation marks and before the period at the end of the sentence.

As noted in the book Junk Food, Junk Science (Epstein, 2010, p. 137), “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive.”

Here, the writer chose to mention the source title in the sentence (an optional piece of information to include) and followed the title with a parenthetical citation. Note that the parenthetical citation is placed before the comma that signals the end of the introductory phrase.

David Epstein’s book Junk Food, Junk Science (2010) pointed out that “junk food cannot be considered addictive in the same way that we think of psychoactive drugs as addictive” (p. 137).

Another variation is to introduce the author and the source title in your sentence and include the publication date and page number in parentheses within the sentence or at the end of the sentence. As long as you have included the essential information, you can choose the option that works best for that particular sentence and source.

Citing a book with a single author is usually a straightforward task. Of course, your research may require that you cite many other types of sources, such as books or articles with more than one author or sources with no individual author listed. You may also need to cite sources available in both print and online and nonprint sources, such as websites and personal interviews. Chapter 13 “APA and MLA Documentation and Formatting” , Section 13.2 “Citing and Referencing Techniques” and Section 13.3 “Creating a References Section” provide extensive guidelines for citing a variety of source types.

Writing at Work

APA is just one of several different styles with its own guidelines for documentation, formatting, and language usage. Depending on your field of interest, you may be exposed to additional styles, such as the following:

• MLA style. Determined by the Modern Languages Association and used for papers in literature, languages, and other disciplines in the humanities.
• Chicago style. Outlined in the Chicago Manual of Style and sometimes used for papers in the humanities and the sciences; many professional organizations use this style for publications as well.
• Associated Press (AP) style. Used by professional journalists.

References List

The brief citations included in the body of your paper correspond to the more detailed citations provided at the end of the paper in the references section. In-text citations provide basic information—the author’s name, the publication date, and the page number if necessary—while the references section provides more extensive bibliographical information. Again, this information allows your reader to follow up on the sources you cited and do additional reading about the topic if desired.

The specific format of entries in the list of references varies slightly for different source types, but the entries generally include the following information:

• The name(s) of the author(s) or institution that wrote the source
• The year of publication and, where applicable, the exact date of publication
• The full title of the source
• For books, the city of publication
• For articles or essays, the name of the periodical or book in which the article or essay appears
• For magazine and journal articles, the volume number, issue number, and pages where the article appears
• For sources on the web, the URL where the source is located

The references page is double spaced and lists entries in alphabetical order by the author’s last name. If an entry continues for more than one line, the second line and each subsequent line are indented five spaces. Review the following example. ( Chapter 13 “APA and MLA Documentation and Formatting” , Section 13.3 “Creating a References Section” provides extensive guidelines for formatting reference entries for different types of sources.)

In APA style, book and article titles are formatted in sentence case, not title case. Sentence case means that only the first word is capitalized, along with any proper nouns.

Key Takeaways

• Following proper citation and formatting guidelines helps writers ensure that their work will be taken seriously, give proper credit to other authors for their work, and provide valuable information to readers.
• Working ahead and taking care to cite sources correctly the first time are ways writers can save time during the editing stage of writing a research paper.
• APA papers usually include an abstract that concisely summarizes the paper.
• APA papers use a specific headings structure to provide a clear hierarchy of information.
• In APA papers, in-text citations usually include the name(s) of the author(s) and the year of publication.
• In-text citations correspond to entries in the references section, which provide detailed bibliographical information about a source.

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