apa reference list book review

APA Citation Guide (7th edition) CGS

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Book Review From Library Database (No Title)

Author of Review's Last Name, First Initial. (Year of Publication). [Review of the book  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Initial. Second Initial if Given Last Name].  Name of Journal ,  Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. https://doi.org/DOI-number  (if given)

For more information on how to cite Book Reviews in APA 7, refer to pages 334-335 of the Publication Manual of the APA located at the circulation desk.

Book Review from a Website (with Title)

Author of Review's Last Name, First Initial. (Year of Publication). Title of Review. [Review of the book  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Initial. Second Initial if Given Last Name].  Title of Website , URL

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APA Style 7th Edition

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• Books & eBooks
• Book Reviews
• Class Notes, Class Lectures and Presentations
• Encyclopedias & Dictionaries
• Government Documents
• Images, Charts, Graphs, Maps & Tables
• Journal Articles
• Magazine Articles
• Newspaper Articles
• Personal Communication (Interviews & Emails)
• Social Media
• Videos & DVDs
• What is a DOI?
• When Creating Digital Assignments
• When Information is Missing
• Works Cited in Another Source
• In-Text Citation Components
• Paraphrasing
• Paper Formatting
• Citation Basics
• Reference List and Sample Papers
• Annotated Bibliography
• Academic Writer
• Plagiarism & Citations

Hanging Indents:

All citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent in a Reference List.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

Hyperlinks:

Both blue underlined (live) hyperlinks and black without underlining are both acceptable.

All hyperlinks must include https://

Do not put a period after DOIs or hyperlinks.

Book Review from Library Database (No Title)

Author of Review's Last Name, First Initial. (Year of Publication). [Review of the book  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Initial. Second Initial if Given Last Name].  Name of Journal ,  Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. DOI Number if Given

For more information on how to cite Book Reviews in APA 7, refer to pages 334-335 in the APA Publication Manual. 

Book Review from a Website (with Title)

Author of Review's Last Name, First Initial. (Year of Publication). Title of Review. [Review of the book  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Initial. Second Initial if Given Last Name].  Title of Website , URL

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APA Citation Guide (7th edition) : Book Reviews

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• Journal Articles
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• Newspaper Articles
• Personal Communication (Interviews, Emails)
• Social Media
• Videos & DVDs
• Paraphrasing
• Works Cited in Another Source
• No Author, No Date etc.
• Sample Paper, Reference List & Annotated Bibliography
• Powerpoint Presentations

On This Page

Book review from library database (no title), book review from a website (with title).

Hanging Indents:

All citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent in a Reference List.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

Hyperlinks:

Both blue underlined (live) hyperlinks and black without underlining are both acceptable.

All hyperlinks must include https://

Do not put a period after DOIs or hyperlinks.

Author of Review's Last Name, First Initial. (Year of Publication). [Review of the book  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Initial. Second Initial if Given Last Name].  Name of Journal , Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. https://doi number if given

For more information on how to cite Book Reviews in APA 7, refer to pages 334-335 of the Publication Manual of the APA located at the circulation desk.

Author of Review's Last Name, First Initial. (Year of Publication). Title of Review. [Review of the book  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Initial. Second Initial if Given Last Name]. Title of Website , URL

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APA Citation Guide (7th edition) : Book Reviews

• Advertisements
• Books & eBooks
• Book Reviews
• Class Notes, Class Lectures and Presentations
• Encyclopedias & Dictionaries
• Government Documents
• Images, Charts, Graphs, Maps & Tables
• Indigenous Resources
• Journal Articles
• Magazine Articles
• Newspaper Articles
• Personal Communication (Interviews, Emails)
• Social Media
• Videos & DVDs
• When Creating Digital Assignments
• Works Cited in Another Source
• Works by the same author with the same year
• Paraphrasing
• No author, no date etc
• Sample Paper
• Annotated Bibliography

On This Page

Book review from library database (no title).

• Book Review From Library Database (with Title)

Hanging Indents:

All citations should be double-spaced and have a hanging indent in a Reference list.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

Hyperlinks:

Both blue underlined (live) hyperlinks and black without underlining are both acceptable.

All hyperlinks must include https://

Do not put a period after DOIs or hyperlinks.

Author of Review's Last Name, First Initial. (Year of Publication). [Review of the book  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Initial. Second Initial if Given Last Name].  Name of Journal , Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. DOI Number if Given

For more information on how to cite Book Reviews in APA 7, refer to pages 334-335 of the Publication Manual of the APA.

Book Review from a Website (with Title)

Author of Review's Last Name, First Initial. (Year of Publication). Title of Review. [Review of the book  Title of Book: Subtitle if Any , by Book Author's First Initial. Second Initial if Given Last Name]. Title of Website , URL

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APA (7th ed.) referencing guide (Online)

• Paraphrasing
• Direct quotes
• Secondary Referencing
• More than one work cited
• Author with two or more works cited in the same year
• Personal Communication
• In-text citations

Reference list

• Referencing Tools
• Books with one author
• Books with two authors
• Books with three or more authors
• Edited book
• Chapter in an edited book
• Anthologies and Collected Works
• Critical Editions
• Dictionary/Encyclopaedia
• Multivolume work
• Religious and classical Works
• Thesis / Dissertation
• Translation
• Work within an Anthology
• Conference Paper
• Journal article with one author
• Journal article with two authors
• Journal articles with three or more authors
• Journal article with no identified author/anonymous author
• Newspaper articles
• Magazine articles
• Book review in a journal or newspaper

In text citations

• Conference Papers
• Act of Parliament
• Law report (case law)
• Business Reports
• Statistics & Datasets
• Government reports
• YouTube/online videos
• Episode of a TV Show
• Radio Broadcast
• Software/Apps
• Copyright statement

According to Nagorski (2013)... OR ...(Nagorski, 2013).

Book review in a journal

Last name of reviewer, Initial(s). (Year). Title of review [Review of the book  Title of book,  by name of book's author].  Journal Title,  Volume number in italics (issue or part number), page numbers. DOI (if available)

Nagorski, A. (2013). The totalitarian temptation [Review of the book  The devil in history: communism, fascism and some lessons of the 20th century,  by V. Tismaneanu].  Foreign Affairs, 92 (1), 172-176. 

Book review in a newspaper

Last name of reviewer, Initial(s). (Year, Month Date). Title of review [Review of the book  Title of book,  by name of book's author].  Name of Newspaper. URL

Santos, F. (2019, January 11). Reframing refugee children's stories [Review of the book We are displaced: My journey and stories from refugee girls around the world , by M. Yousafzai]. The New York Times. https://nyti.ms/2Hlgjk3

If the review is untitled, place the material in square brackets immediately after the year. Retain the brackets to indicate that this is a description of the form and content, not the review's title.

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• Writing Tips

How to Cite a Review in APA Referencing

• 2-minute read
• 8th November 2020

Reviews of books, films, and other media can be great sources in academic writing. But how do you cite a review using APA referencing ? In this post, we explain the basics of citations and the reference list entry.

In-Text Citations for a Review in APA Style

Citations for a review in APA referencing are similar to those for other sources. This means you cite the reviewer’s surname and year of publication:

One review was especially scathing (Smith, 2001).

In addition, if you quote a print source, make sure to cite a page number:

Smith (2001) dismisses the argument as “puerile” (p. 16).

For more on APA citations, see our blog post on the topic .

Reviews in an APA Reference List

The format for a review in an APA reference list will depend on where it was published. For instance, for a review published in a newspaper, you would cite it as a newspaper article . But for a review published on a blog or website, you would cite it as a blog post or website instead.

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In all cases, though, you will need to adapt the format by adding details of the thing being reviewed in square brackets after the review title.

You can see APA-style references for reviews from an academic journal and a website below, complete with this extra information:

Smith, G. (2001). A backward step for applied ethics [Review of the book Righteous Thought, Righteous Action , by X. Morrison]. Journal of Applied Philosophy , 18(1), 16–24.

Bert, E. (2018). Neil Breen outdoes himself again [Review of the film Twisted Pair , by N. Breen, Dir.]. BadMovieCentral. http://www.badmoviecentral.com/reviews/twisted-pair/

This ensures the reader can identify both the review you’re citing and the thing being reviewed from the reference list entry alone.

Expert APA Proofreading

To make sure your references are all in order, as well as the rest of your academic writing, check out our free online APA guide . You might also want to get your work proofread by one of our APA experts. Learn more about our APA proofreading services here.

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APA 7th referencing style

• About APA 7th
• Printing this guide
• In-text references
• Direct quotations

Reference list formatting

Difference between reference list and bibliography, order of works with no title, publisher details, publication date, page numbers, multiple works with same author(s) and same year, example reference list.

• Author information
• Additional referencing information
• Using headings
• Book chapter
• Brochure and pamphlets
• ChatGPT and other generative AI tools
• Conferences
• Dictionary or encyclopaedia
• Government legislation
• Journal article
• Lecture notes and slides
• Legal sources
• Newspaper or magazine article
• Other web sources
• Patents and standards
• Personal communication
• Press (media) release
• Secondary source (indirect citation)
• Social media
• Software and mobile apps
• Specialised health information
• Television program
• Works in non-English languages
• Works in non-English scripts, such as Arabic or Chinese
• No specific font type or size required. Recommendations include Calibri size 11, Arial size 11, Lucida size 10, Times New Roman size 12, Georgia size 11 or Computer Modern size 10 (LaTeX).
• The reference list is double spaced  (between each reference AND within the reference).
• A reference list is arranged alphabetically by author last name .
• Each reference appears on a new line.
• Each item in the reference list is required to have a hanging indent .

Zarate, K., Maggin, D. M., & Passmore, A. (2019). Meta‐analysis of mindfulness training on teacher well‐being. Psychology in the Schools , 56(10), 1700–1715. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.22308

• References should not be numbered.
• If a reference has no author, it is cited by title, and included in the alphabetical list using the first significant word of the title.
• If you have more than one item with the same author, list the items chronologically, starting with the earliest publication.
• If there is no date, the abbreviation n.d. may be used.
• Use the full journal name , not the abbreviated name.
• Web addresses or DOIs can either be live links (blue and underlined) or as normal black text with no underline. If the work containing the reference list is to be made available online, use the live link format.
• APA 7th sample papers Includes example papers formatted in the APA 7th style from the American Psychological Association
• A reference list only includes the books, articles, and web pages etc that are cited in the text of the document.
• A bibliography includes all sources consulted, even if they are not cited in the document
• ​ use  sentence case  (the first word uses a capital letter with each subsequent word in lower case). The exceptions are for names eg. countries and after a colon : eg. Writing prose in Australia: Words of wisdom from the best
• do not use single or double quotation marks.
• do not italicise.
• ​ use  sentence case   
• italicise the title 
• should be provided in full (not abbreviated) and use capitals where appropriate (rather than sentence case) eg.  Psychological Review .
• they should be  italicised .
• Website titles should be italicised.  
• add a description of the reference used, including the type of reference in square brackets. For example, [Image of a child playing in outdoor playground]. 
• For social media posts or comments without a title , add up to the first 20 words used in the post or comment and italicise it. Also include a description of the work in square brackets. For example, Join us for the UQ R User Group’s end-of-year event tomorrow! [Facebook post] .
• use the title in place of the author
• list alphabetically
• Use the first significant word of the title. Ignore "A", "And" and "The".

For example, 

The best 10 years of Radio magazine. (2003).  Radio ,  9 (9), 79.

The only 10 recipes you'll ever need. (1998).  Good Housekeeping ,  227 (3).

• List multiple publisher names in the order in which they appear, separated by semicolons. 
• For publisher names, words like "Co.", "Publishers" or "Inc." should not be included. For example, use Springer, not Springer Publishers.
• Places of publication are not included.
• Do not include publisher name if it is the same as the author.
• Use n.d. if there is no date available
• Use in press when the work is accepted for publication but has not been published
• When the work has been published online prior to publication , include the year of when it was added online.
• When a month, date or season is used, use (Year, Month Date) or (Year, Season). For example, (2019, November 8) or (2019, Autumn/Winter).
• If a "Last Updated" date in used, include this as the publication date. This is only when the information has been clearly changed, not just reviewed.
• For online works that are meant to be changed regularly eg. Facebook, dictionary entry, use Retrieved Month, Date, Year, from Web address. For example, Retrieved November 8, 2019, from https://www.facebook.com/uniofqldlibrary
• Use the full page range and full page numbers eg. 121-138
• For an online publication that uses article numbers or similar, include Article then the article number in the Page Number place. For example, Article e09645731
• Page numbers are included when you are referring to a section of a greater work eg. book chapter, journal article.
• Use pp. for book chapter  page numbers but not for journal articles.
• Arrange works with the same author(s) and same year alphabetically by title in the reference list. This then determines which references uses a, b, c etc.
• Add the relevant letter after the year (which is also used for corresponding in-text references). The first reference listed in the reference list uses "a", second uses "b" etc.

Yang, Q., & Harris, J. G. (2010a). Dynamic range control for audio signals using fourth-order level estimation  [Paper presentation]. 129th Audio Engineering Society Convention, San Francisco, CA.

Yang, Q., & Harris, J. G. (2010b). A higher-order spectro-temporal integration model for predicting signal audibility  [Paper presentation]. International Conference on Acoustics, Speech, and Signal Processing, Dallas, TX. 

(Yang & Harris, 2010a)

(Yang & Harris, 2010b)

• If the date is n.d . (for no date), include a dash then the relevant letter at the end eg. n.d.-a. It will appear before any specified years.
• If the date is " in press ", include a dash then the relevant letter at the end eg. in press-a. It will appear after any specified years.
• If a month and day are included , references with just a year are first , followed by specified dates in chronological order. For example:-

(Taylor, 2019a)

(Taylor, 2019b, May 14)

(Taylor, 2019c, August 3)

• This applies to all reference types with the same author(s) and year.

Ballard, T., Yeo, G., B. Vancouver, J., & Neal, A. (2017). The dynamics of avoidance goal regulation [Advance online publication]. Motivation and Emotion , 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-017-9640-8

Brown, C. G. (2020). Ethical and legal considerations for using mind–body interventions in schools. In Promoting mind–body health in schools: Interventions for mental health professionals. (pp. 113-128). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000157-008

Carson-Chahhoud, K. V., Ameer, F., Sayehmiri, K., Hnin, K., van, A. J. E., Sayehmiri, F., Brinn, M. P., Esterman, A. J., Chang, A. B., & Smith, B. J. (2017). Mass media interventions for preventing smoking in young people. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (6). http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD001006.pub3/abstract

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Beyond boredom and anxiety . Jossey-Bass. (Original work published 1975).

Dravsnik, J., Signal, T., & Canoy, D. (2018). Canine co‐therapy: The potential of dogs to improve the acceptability of trauma‐focused therapies for children. Australian Journal of Psychology, 70 , 208-216. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/ajpy.12199

Leigh, J. (2010). Self-determined mindfulness and attachment style in college students (Publication Number 305210119) [Doctoral dissertation, Indiana State University]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

Malcolm, L. (2002-present). All in the mind [Audio podcast]. https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/allinthemind/

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. (n.d.). Wikipedia . Retrieved November 20, 2019, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mindfulness-based_cognitive_therapy&oldid=905716408

O’Brien, B. (2017, May 5). NVivo 11 training - full video (5/4/17) - updated [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNo-Qxsp-mk

Office of Fair Trading. (2018, August 17). Community groups key to seniors staying engaged [Press release]. https://www.qld.gov.au/law/laws-regulated-industries-and-accountability/queensland-laws-and-regulations/fair-trading-services-programs-and-resources/fair-trading-latest-news/media-statements/community-groups-key-to-seniors-staying-engaged

Quealy-Gainer, K. (2014, 16 April). I kill the mockingbird by Paul Acampora (review). Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books , 67 (10), 494-494. https://doi.org/10.1353/bcc.2014.0415

Rappaport, J., & Dubin, C. S. (1983, January 24). Say no more (Season 11, Episode 12) [Television series episode]. In B. Metcalfe, M*A*S*H . 20th Century Fox Television; CBS.

Shapiro, R. E., & Cowan, R. (2017, January 10). Key points about caffeine and migraines . American Migraine Foundation. https://americanmigrainefoundation.org/resource-library/caffeine-and-migraine/

Siegal, Z. V., Teasdale, J. D., & Williams, G. M. G. (2011). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy: Theoretical rationale and empirical status. In S. C. Hayes, V. M. Follette, & M. M. Linehan (Eds.), Mindfulness and acceptance: Expanding the cognitive-behavioral tradition (pp. 45-65). Guilford Publications. https://books.google.com.au/books?id=Tr0N7aGgAS4C

Simon, P., & Garfunkel, A. (1965). The sounds of silence. On Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. [Song]. Columbia.

U2. (1988). Rattle and hum [Album]. Island; Sun Studio; Point Depot; Danesmoat; STS Studio; A&M Studios; Ocean Way.

University of Queensland Library [@UQ_Library]. (2017, October 4). Turtles down by UQ St Lucia lakes today. Air conditioned library or enjoying the sun and the view - tough choice! [Image attached] [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/uqlibrary/status/915782138905034752

University of Queensland Library. (2017, October 4). The winners of the 2017 Queensland Literary Awards will be revealed at tonight’s ceremony. Good luck to all shortlisted writers! [Status update]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/pg/uniofqldlibrary/posts/

Zachary, K. C. (2018). Treatment of seasonal influenza in adults. UpToDate . Retrieved May 3, 2018, from https://www-uptodate-com.ezp3.library.uq.edu.au/contents/treatment-of-seasonal-influenza-in-adults

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How to Write a Book Review in the APA Format

How to write a paper in mba style.

The academic disciplines of psychology and sociology require authors to submit work that conforms to APA standards. These standards are set by the American Psychological Association (APA) to “advance scholarship by setting sound and rigorous standards for scientific communication.” When writing an APA book review to conform to these standards, authors should also be mindful of APA formatting, style and usage issues.

General APA Book Review Requirements

When writing a book review, spend some time introducing the author's background, motivation and qualifications for writing the book. Note that an APA style book report describes what happens in the book with descriptions of the book's contents and ideas. In contrast, an APA style book review looks at the book's ideas but focuses primarily on the reviewer's opinion and analysis of the book itself. In your book review, begin by introducing the concepts of the book clearly and thoroughly. Summarize the author’s intentions and methods and then evaluate the effectiveness of those methods. Did the book make a convincing argument? Did the data or information presented effectively prove the thesis? Was it interesting? Humorous? How does the book engage the reader?

In-text Citations

When using direct quotations or a paraphrase from a book in your book review, you must cite the author according to the book review format in APA style. This is done by including the name of the author, the year of publication and the page number. You can accomplish this by using a signal phrase that includes the author’s last name. As an example, “According to Gosling (2008), 'We know that creative people tend to be more philosophical but no more or less anxious than other types' (p. 36)." Be sure to place the punctuation after the parenthetical citation rather than directly after the quote. If, throughout the article, you are only quoting from the one book you are reviewing and this is clear to the reader, it is not necessary to include the date after each quote or paraphrased section.

APA Style Reference List

Each quote cited in the APA book review must correspond to a source in a reference list at the end of the article. In a book review, this usually consists of only one book. On occasion, a reviewer may cite other texts in comparison with the one being reviewed. In those cases, the references must appear alphabetically. Sources must be double-spaced and formatted with a hanging indent with all lines but the first line of each entry must be indented. The references should be presented with the author’s name, the publication year in parenthesis, the title (in italics and in sentence case), the city and state of publication and the publisher. If an author's name is not available for the source, verify the reference by visiting the related .edu website. Note the placement of specific punctuation in this example: Gosling, Sam. (2008). Snoop: What your stuff says about you. New York, NY: Basic Books.

APA Book Review Formatting

APA format requires some general formatting standards. The preferred typeface for APA publications is Times New Roman with a 12 point font size, according to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. Use a one-inch margin all around. Double space lines of text throughout the document. This includes the title, headings, body and any references. Align the lines using the flush-left feature in your word processing software. Never divide words at the end of a line by using a hyphen. It is better to keep the line short than break a word at the end of a line.

Check Before Submitting

Before submitting, always check with the source to verify whether certain features are required in the document. For instance, many APA publications require an abstract or a brief summary of the article. However, this is not usually required with a book review and is reserved for papers containing scientific research. Do not hesitate to check with your professor or copy editor with any questions before submitting your manuscript.

Style and Usage Issues

Style and usage requirements are not universal across all disciplines. When conforming to APA book review standards, keep these requirements in mind. Capitalize major words in titles of books and articles within the body of the paper. This excludes conjunctions, articles and prepositions unless they contain over four letters. Capitalize both words in a hyphenated compound when it appears in a title. Use the serial comma throughout your work. Place a comma after each element in a series of three or more items even when the last element is followed by a conjunction. For instance, “the students measured the height, width, and depth of the nests.” Use numerals to express numbers ten and above and all numbers that represent statistical data. For example, you would write, “Mr. Smith spent five years writing the book,” but “Mr. Smith spent 25 years writing the book” and “more than 5 percent of the sample.”

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Debbie McCarson is a former English teacher and school business administrator. Her articles have appeared in "School Librarians’ Journal" and "The Encyclopedia of New Jersey." A South Jersey native, she is a regular contributor to "South Jersey MOM" magazine.

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Reference List: Basic Rules

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Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

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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• Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America
• Archival Materials
• Additional Resources
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Fundamentals of APA

American Psychological Association (APA) style includes  parenthetical in-text citations  and a  reference list . 

APA uses  parenthetical citations  as its form of in-text citation. Provide a parenthetical citation  before the period  directly following the information you are citing. These citations should correspond to a more detailed citation in the reference list but only need to specify a page number if directly quoting or borrowing from the source material. The essential elements for this in-text citation are the author's last name and the date for the specific publications. The last name may be omitted if the sentence states or makes clear the source material.

APA uses a  reference list ,  an alphabetized list of sources following the end of the book or paper,  for its complete list of sources referenced. This list should be titled "References" in bold and alphabetized by the first item in the citation, which, in most cases, is the author's last name. Each reference from this list must be cited in your paper and vice versa.

Basic Format

Author Last Name, Author First Initial. (Year of publication). Title . Publisher Name.

Print Articles

Author Last Name, Author First Initial, & Author Last Name, Author First Initial. (Year). Article Title. Periodical Title , volume number(issue number), pages.

Electronic Articles

Author Last Name, Author First Initial. (Year). Article Title. Periodical Title , volume number(issue number), pages. doi or static url.

Physical Images/Artwork

Artist Last Name, Artist First Initial. (Year). Artwork Title [medium]. Host Institution Name, City, State, Country. URL of institution.

Electronic Images/Artwork

Artist Last Name, Artist First Initial. (Year). Image Title [medium]. Source Title. URL of image.

In-text Citation Examples

Standard case :

"Lorem   ipsum  dolor sit  amet ,  consectetur   adipiscing   elit" (Last name, 2000, p.10).

If the author is not available , the title of the source may be used:

Lorem   ipsum  dolor sit  amet ,  consectetur   adipiscing   elit ("Source title", 2000, pp.10-11).

If multiple authors cited have the same last name , use the author's first initial along with their last name:

"Lorem   ipsum  dolor sit  amet ,  consectetur   adipiscing   elit" (E. Bronte, 1847, p.10).

Lorem   ipsum  dolor sit  amet ,  consectetur   adipiscing   elit (C. Bronte, 1847, p.10).

Full Citation Examples for the Reference List

Archival material :

Child, J. (1974).  Journal, 1974 . [Unpublished journal].  Papers of Julia Child, 1925-1993(MC 644, item 4).  Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America, Radcliffe Institute,  https://id.lib.harvard.edu/ead/c/ sch00222c00006 /catalog .

Child, P. (1967). Julia Child at the White House [Photograph]. Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America, Radcliffe Institute, https://id.lib.harvard.edu/images/olvwork539731/urn-3:RAD.SCHL:4510469/catalog.

Beck, S., Bertholle, L., & Child, J. (1961).  Mastering the art of French cooking.  Knopf.

Child, J. & Child, P. (1968).  The French chef cookbook . Alfred A. Knopf .

Journal article :

Muneal, M. (2011).  Studies in Popular Culture , 34(1), 152–154. www.jstor.org/stable/23416357.

Nussbaum, D. (2005). "In Julia Child's Kitchen, October 5 1998".  Gastronomica , 5(3), 29-38. doi: 10.1525/gfc.2005.5.3.29.

• APA Style website The online version of the APA Style Manual, this website offers to help with the technical elements of formatting in APA as well as writing and citing your work.
• Purdue OWL APA Guide The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) is one of the most complete citation guides available online. The APA Guide explains how to format a paper in APA and breaks down citations by type with numerous examples.
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• APA Style 6th edition

Quick Guide to APA Citation (6th ed.) | In-Text Citation & Reference List

APA style is one of the most common formats for citing sources Other well known citation styles include  MLA and Chicago .

APA Style citations consist of two parts:

• In-text citation : A brief citation in parentheses when you mention a source, citing the author’s last name and the year of publication, e.g. (Smith, 2019) . It identifies the full source in the reference list.
• Reference list entry : Full publication details listed on the reference page , which appears at the end of your paper. The reference provides all the information needed to find the source, e.g. Smith, P. (2019, April 18). Citing Sources in APA Format. Retrieved April 21, 2019, from https://www.scribbr.com/apa-style/

This citation guide is based on the 6th edition of the APA Manual. The latest edition, published in October 2019, is not yet supported, but we have compiled a quick guide to the most important 7th edition changes . You can also use our free APA Citation Generator to automatically create accurate citations.

Table of contents

In-text citations, reference list, apa formatting for papers.

An in-text citation is a concise way to show the reader where the original idea came from and to give credit to the original author. Use one every time you quote or paraphrase a source.

Include the author’s last name and the year of publication. When quoting a source, it’s also necessary to include the page number(s) of the quote.

• An earlier study in which X and Y were compared revealed that … (Smith, 2017) .
• Smith (2017) shows how, in the past, research into X was mainly concerned with …

When there are two authors, separate their last names with an ampersand (&), or with the word ‘and’ when they appear in the running text.

• Research shows that there is a great need for … (Reynolds & Thomas, 2014) .
• Reynolds and Thomas (2014) write that there is a great need for …

3-5 authors

When there are three or more authors, separate their last names using commas . The last two authors’ last names should be separated by both a comma and an ampersand.

• Recent research suggests that there is … (McGuire, Morrison, Reynolds, & Thomas, 2014) .
• McGuire, Morrison, Reynolds, and Thomas (2014) argue that …

If you cite the same source again, to save space, you shorten the citation. Instead of including all the authors’ names, include only the first author, followed by “ et al. ” (meaning “and others”).

• In this research, many participants made use of … (McGuire et al., 2014) .
• McGuire et al. (2014) noticed that …

6 or more authors

If a source has six or more authors, use the shortened version from the first citation.

• Lunott et al. (2015) discuss the …

Organization as author

When a source does not list an individual author, it can often be attributed to an organization instead.

• According to new research … (Microsoft, 2014) .

When you quote a source , you also have to add the page number to the in-text citation.

• According to the company’s business plan, “making an APA Citation Generator is a lot of work, but many students benefit from it” (Swan, 2014, p. 5) .

Multiple sources in one citation

Sometimes, it’s necessary to cite multiple sources in one sentence. You can combine them into one set of parentheses, separated by semicolons .

• Various studies show that … ( Docker & Vagrant, 2002 ; Porter, 1997 ; Lima, Swan, & Corrieri, 2012 ).

Full in-text citation guide

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

Every source cited in the text must also appear in your reference list .

The format differs depending on the source type, but every reference begins in the same way: with the author’s last name and initials, the publication year or date, and the title of the source.

Book citations

Note: Book titles should be italicized .

• Format Last Name, Initials. (Year). Book title (edition). City, State/Country: Publisher.
• Example Porter, M. E. (1998). Competitive strategy: Techniques for analyzing industries and competitors (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Free Press.

Journal article citations

Note: The journal title and volume number should be italicized .

• Format Last Name, Initials., & Last Name, Initials. (Year). Article title. Journal Name , Volume (Issue), Page Number(s). https://doi.org/DoiNumber
• Example Andreff, W., & Staudohar, P. D. (2000). The evolving European model of professional sports finance. Journal of Sports Economics , 1 (3), 257–276. https://doi.org./10.1177/152700250000100304

Website citations

• Format Last Name, Initials. (Year, Month Day). Page title [OptionalType]. Retrieved from http://webaddress
• Example Worland, J. (2015, July 27). U.S. flood risk could be worse than we thought. Retrieved from http://time.com/3973256/flooding-risk-coastal-cities

Report citations

Note: The title should be italicized .

• Format Organization Name or Author Last Name, Initials. (Year). Report title . Retrieved from http://webaddress
• Example Royal Bank of Scotland. (2015). Annual report and accounts 2014 . Retrieved from http://investors.rbs.com/~/media/Files/R/RBS-IR/2014-reports/annual-report-2014.pdf

More APA Style examples

Do you want to cite an image , interview , YouTube video , movie , or another source type that is not on this list? We have many more APA Style examples to help you cite correctly.

Sorting the reference list

Sort the references in alphabetical order based on the author’s last name. If you cite multiple sources by the same author, then sort them by publication year.

When you use the APA Citation Generator , your reference list is alphabetized automatically.

Full reference list guide

There are certain formatting rules you must adhere to when writing a paper in APA format .

The basic requirements are:

• Times New Roman 12 pt
• Double line spacing
• One-inch (2.54 cm) margins
• Left-aligned running head with a shortened title and page number

In addition to these general rules, there are more specific requirements for formatting the title page , running head , abstract , reference page , and headings and subheadings .

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Reference Examples

More than 100 reference examples and their corresponding in-text citations are presented in the seventh edition Publication Manual . Examples of the most common works that writers cite are provided on this page; additional examples are available in the Publication Manual .

To find the reference example you need, first select a category (e.g., periodicals) and then choose the appropriate type of work (e.g., journal article ) and follow the relevant example.

When selecting a category, use the webpages and websites category only when a work does not fit better within another category. For example, a report from a government website would use the reports category, whereas a page on a government website that is not a report or other work would use the webpages and websites category.

Also note that print and electronic references are largely the same. For example, to cite both print books and ebooks, use the books and reference works category and then choose the appropriate type of work (i.e., book ) and follow the relevant example (e.g., whole authored book ).

Examples on these pages illustrate the details of reference formats. We make every attempt to show examples that are in keeping with APA Style’s guiding principles of inclusivity and bias-free language. These examples are presented out of context only to demonstrate formatting issues (e.g., which elements to italicize, where punctuation is needed, placement of parentheses). References, including these examples, are not inherently endorsements for the ideas or content of the works themselves. An author may cite a work to support a statement or an idea, to critique that work, or for many other reasons. For more examples, see our sample papers .

Reference examples are covered in the seventh edition APA Style manuals in the Publication Manual Chapter 10 and the Concise Guide Chapter 10

Related handouts

• Common Reference Examples Guide (PDF, 147KB)
• Reference Quick Guide (PDF, 225KB)

Textual Works

Textual works are covered in Sections 10.1–10.8 of the Publication Manual . The most common categories and examples are presented here. For the reviews of other works category, see Section 10.7.

• Journal Article References
• Magazine Article References
• Newspaper Article References
• Blog Post and Blog Comment References
• UpToDate Article References
• Book/Ebook References
• Diagnostic Manual References
• Children’s Book or Other Illustrated Book References
• Classroom Course Pack Material References
• Religious Work References
• Chapter in an Edited Book/Ebook References
• Dictionary Entry References
• Wikipedia Entry References
• Report by a Government Agency References
• Report with Individual Authors References
• Brochure References
• Ethics Code References
• Fact Sheet References
• ISO Standard References
• Press Release References
• White Paper References
• Conference Presentation References
• Conference Proceeding References
• Published Dissertation or Thesis References
• Unpublished Dissertation or Thesis References
• ERIC Database References
• Preprint Article References

Data and Assessments

Data sets are covered in Section 10.9 of the Publication Manual . For the software and tests categories, see Sections 10.10 and 10.11.

• Data Set References
• Toolbox References

Audiovisual Media

Audiovisual media are covered in Sections 10.12–10.14 of the Publication Manual . The most common examples are presented together here. In the manual, these examples and more are separated into categories for audiovisual, audio, and visual media.

• Artwork References
• Clip Art or Stock Image References
• Film and Television References
• Musical Score References
• Online Course or MOOC References
• Podcast References
• PowerPoint Slide or Lecture Note References
• Radio Broadcast References
• TED Talk References
• Transcript of an Audiovisual Work References
• YouTube Video References

Online Media

Online media are covered in Sections 10.15 and 10.16 of the Publication Manual . Please note that blog posts are part of the periodicals category.

• Facebook References
• Instagram References
• LinkedIn References
• Online Forum (e.g., Reddit) References
• TikTok References
• X References
• Webpage on a Website References
• Clinical Practice References
• Open Educational Resource References
• Whole Website References