APA Citation Guide
IN-TEXT CITATION
APA style uses signal phrases and parentheticals to mark in-text citations.
Include the author’s last name, the year of publication, and (if using a direct
quotation or paraphrase) a page number. For example:
Godde and X (2012) report that “medical care made headway” (p. 52).
Scholarship shows treatment improved (Godde & X, 2012, p. 52).
PRINT SOURCES
Books: One Author
Last name, initial(s). (Year). Title of book. Place of Publication: Publisher.
Ditzler, M. (2012). Fighting scots history. Monmouth, IL: Library Publishing.
Books: Multiple Authors
Last name, initial(s) & Last name, initial(s). (Year). Title of book. Place of Publication:
Publisher.
Timmerman, D. M. & Shiappa, E. (2010). Classical greek rhetorical theory and the
disciplining of discourse. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Books: Edited Edition or Anthology
Last name, initial(s) (Eds.). (Year). Title of book. (Edition number). Place of
Publication: Publisher.
Poling, Z. (Ed.). (2012). Poling is where the business office is located. (10th ed.).
Monmouth, IL: Library Publishing.
Academic Articles (print)
Last name, initial(s). (Year). Article title. Journal Title, Volume(Issue), page range.
Vivan, C. (2009). Three strikes and you’re out: reasons to eliminate sports from
schools. Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education, 2(2), 178-187.
PRIMARY SOURCES
Interview
Under APA guidelines, unpublished interviews are not necessary on a reference page.
However, they should be cited in the text, as follows:
(Initial. Last name, interview, Month Day, Year).
(C. Goble, interview, January 10, 2012).
-For published interview citation information, see the Bedford Handbook, pp. 667.
Survey
Under APA guidelines, unpublished surveys are not necessary on a reference page.
However, they should be cited in the text, as follows:
(Initial. Last name, interview, Month Day, Year).
(C. Goble, Introduction to Communication survey, January 10, 2012).
Published surveys are treated like published interviews, cited in the bibliography:
Last name, first name. "Name of survey." Survey. Day Month Year.
Goble, Chris. “Introduction to Communication Survey.” Survey. 10 January 2012.
Lecture
Last name, first name. (Year, month). Title of lecture (if any). Lecture presented at
University, City, State.
Sargent, Thomas. (2012, April). Foundations of Education. Lecture presented at
Monmouth College, Monmouth, Illinois.
DIGITAL AND MULTIMEDIA SOURCES
Academic Articles (online)
Last name, initial(s). (Year). Article title. Journal Title, Volume(Issue), page range.
DOI
[Note: If there is no DOI available, include the URL of the article.]
Sostarecz, A., McQuaw, C. M., Wucher, A., & Winograd, N. (2004). Depth profiling
of Langmuir-blodgett films with a buckminsterfullerene probe. Analytical
Chemistry, 76(22), 6651-6658. doi:10.1021/ac0492665
Newspapers (online)
Last name, initial(s). (Year, Month Day). Article title. Newspaper Title. Retrieved from
URL
Kinigson, A. (2010, November 5). Trudi Peterson presents her “last lecture”. The
Courier. Retrieved from http://mccourier.com/
How to Evaluate Sources
Authority / Credibility: Determining the author for a source is
important in deciding whether information is credible. The author
should show some evidence of being knowledgeable, reliable and
truthful.
• Who is the author (person, company, or organization)? If it
is a website, who is the sponsor?
• Does the source provide any information that leads you to
believe the author is an expert on the topic?
• Can you describe the author's background (experience,
education, knowledge)?
• Does the author provide citations? Do you think they are
reputable?
• If it is a website, is the URL .edu, .gov, or .org?
Accuracy: The source should contain accurate and up-to-date
information that can be verified by other sources.
• Can facts or statistics be verified through another source?
• Based on your knowledge, does the information seem
accurate? Does it match the information found in other
sources?
• Are there spelling or grammatical errors?
Scope / Relevance: It is important that the source meets the
information needs and requirements of your research assignment.
• To what extent does the source fit your research question?
• Is the source considered popular or scholarly?
• If the resource uses specialized terminology and language,
are able to interpret it correctly?
Date: Some written works are ageless (e.g., classic literature) while
others (e.g., technological news) become outdated quickly. It is
important to determine if your source is up-to-date, if necessary.
• When was the source written and published?
• Has the information been updated recently?
• Is the source current and pertinent to your research?
Objectivity / Bias: Every author has an opinion. Recognizing this
fact is instrumental in determining if the information presented is
objective or biased.
• What is the purpose or motive for the source (educational,
commercial, entertainment, promotional, etc.)?
• Who is the intended audience?
• Is the author trying to persuade, promote or sell something?
Style / Functionality: If the source is not professionally written, its
value and credibility may be diminished.
• Is the source well-written and organized?
• To what extent does it appear professional visually?
• If it is a website, can you navigate it easily? are links broken?
Websites
Author/organization. (Year, Month Day of publication/update). Title of document.
Retrieved from URL
[If there isn't a date available for the document use (n.d.) for no date.]
Monmouth College. (2012, Jaunary). The MC Writing Center. Monmouth College.
Retrieved from http://examplecitation.edu
Films
Last name, Initial. (Director), & Last name, Initial. (Producer). (Year). Film title
[media]. Country: Studio.
Wallace, A. (Director), & Poling, Z. (Producer). (1993). What college was meant to
be [DVD]. United States: Monmouth College Production Studio.
See The Bedford Handbook pp. 638-69 or http://owl.english.
purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/05/ for more information.
Faculty may have specific expectations for citation,
so always check with your professors about their preferences.
How to Evaluate Sources
This checklist is from the Hewes Library Research Process Guide.
Questions about evaluating sources? Contact a librarian at
[email protected] or visit the Writing Center,
3rd floor of Mellinger Mon-Thurs 3-5 and Sun-Thurs 7-10.