APA STYLE IN-TEXT CITATIONS

APA uses the following conventions for in-text citations:

• Cites last names only. • Cites the year, within parentheses, immediately after the name of the author.

Include only the year in the text citation even if the reference includes the month. • Cites page numbers with a direct quotation but not with a paraphrase or summary. • Uses “p.” or “pp.” before page numbers.

Citing Last Name Only and the Year of Publication

An in-text citation in APA style requires the last name of the author and the year of publication.

Nguyen (2006) has advanced the idea of combining the social sciences and mathematics to chart human behavior.

If you do not use the author’s name in your text, place the name(s) within the parenthetical citation.

One study has advanced the idea of combining social science and mathematics to chart human behavior (Nguyen, 2006).

Providing a Page Number

If you quote the exact words of a source, provide the page number and use p. or pp. Place the page number either after the year (2006, p.4) or at the end of the quotation.

Nguyen (2006) has advanced the idea of “soft mathematics” which is the practice of “applying mathematics to study people’s behavior” (p. 4).

Citing a Block of Material

Present a quotation of forty words or more as a separate block, indented five spaces or ½ “ from the left margin. Do not enclose it in quotation marks. Do not indent the first line an extra five spaces. However, do indent the first line of any additional paragraphs that appear in the block an extra five spaces – that is, ten spaces from the left margin. Set parenthetical citations outside the last period.

Albert (2003) reported the following:

Whenever these pathogenic organisms attack the human body and begin to multiply, the infection is set in motion. The host responds……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… become visible, the disease exists.

(pp. 314-315)

More than One Author

Werner and Throckmorton (2006) offered statistics…..

It has been reported that….(Werner & Throckmorton, 2006).

For three to five authors use all five the first citation and afterwards use the first author and “et al.”. (Patterson et al., 2005).

Citing Indirect Sources

Use a double reference to cite a person quoted in an book or article, that is the original author in the text and the source at the end.

In an interview for Newsweek, George W. Bush (2007) stated………….

(qtd. in Osterling, 2007, p. 170). Osterling will be the entry on your references page.

Citation With No Publication Date

Use n.d. to denote no date. Example: (Sophocles, n.d.).

Note: The placement of the period ending the citation will appear after the citation, not at the end of the quote or paraphrase, except in the case of block quotes.

There are too many other variables to include in this brief. For additional information and examples, visit the Writing Center personally or use the links from the Center’s web page. You may also submit short questions to the Center through the website. Allow 24 hours for a response.