Guides: APA Style 7th Edition: References

Reference Examples

Books - (print or electronic, sec. 10.2 of the APA Publication Manual 7th ed.)

APA requires the DOI as a hyperlink when available.

Format	Author, A.A. (date). Title of book: Subtitle information (edition). Publisher.
Reference Example	Smith, J. A., Johnson, M. B., & Davis, C. R. (2020). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity (2nd ed). Harvard Business Review.
Reference Example With a DOI	Smith, J. A., Johnson, M. B., & Davis, C. R. (2020). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity (2nd ed). Harvard Business Review. https://doi.org/xxxxxxx
In-text Example	Parenthetical citation: … (Smith et al., 2020).

Book (Group / Corporate / Organization Author)

Format

Author, A.A. (date). Title of book: Subtitle information (edition). Publisher.

Reference Example With a DOI

Harvard Business School. (2020). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity (2nd ed). Harvard Business Review.

In-text Example

Parenthetical Citation:

… (Harvard Business School, 2020).

Narrative Citation:

According to the Harvard Business School (2020)...

Edited Book

Format

Editor, A.A. & Editor, B.B. (Eds.). (date). Title of book: Subtitle information (edition). Publisher. DOI (if available)

Reference Example With a DOI

Smith, J. A. (Ed.). (2020). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity (2nd ed). The University of Chicago Press.

In-text Example

Parenthetical Citation:

… (Smith, 2020).

Narrative Citation:

According to Smith (2020) ...

Chapter in Edited Book

Format

Author, A.A. & Author, B.B. (date). Title of chapter. In A. Editor & B. Editor (Eds.), Title of book: Subtitle information (Edition, pp. xx-xx). Publisher.

Reference Example With a DOI

Smith, J. A., & Johnson, M.B. (2020). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity. In P. A. Potter, & A. G. Perry (Eds.). Technology in the workplace (2nd ed., pp. 93-156). The University of Chicago Press.

In-text Example

Parenthetical Citation:

… (Smith & Johnson, 2020).

Narrative Citation:

According to Smith and Johnson (2020) ...

Journal Articles (Sec. 10.01 of the APA Publication Manual)

APA requires the DOI as a hyperlink when available. For journal articles without a DOI that come from common library databases do not include a URL or any database information (9.30 APA Publication Manual).
You may find a library database persistent link instead of the DOI to add the persistent link URL in place of the DOI.
If the article does not have a DOI and does not come from a library database use the URL.
If a print journal article does not have a DOI leave it blank.
For articles with 2 to 20 authors list all authors in the reference citation and use an ampersand (&) before the last author's name (9.8 APA Publication Manual).
For 21 or more authors, include the first 19 author names followed by an ellipsis (three dots ...) but no ampersand (&) and then add the final author's name.
For 3 or more authors include the name of only the first author plus "et al." in the in-text citation (8.17 APA Publication Manual).

Format	Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of the article. Title of the Journal, volume number(issue number), page range. DOI or URL
Reference Example (2-20 authors)	Smith, J. A., Johnson, M. B., & Davis, C. R. (2020). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity. Journal of Organizational Psychology, 25(3), 45-62. https://doi.org/xxxxxxx
Reference Example (21 or more authors)	Smith, J. A., Johnson, M. B., Davis, C. R., McCrab, S., Kingsland, M., Wright, J., Brown, A., Wyse, R., Nathan, N., Smith, R., Hodder, R. K., Fernandez, M., Lewis, C., Taylor, N., McKay, H., Garcia, J., Hall, A., Moulin, J., Albers, B., ...Young, S. L. (2020). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity. Journal of Organizational Psychology, 25(3), 45-62. https://doi.org/xxxxxxx
In-text Example	Parenthetical Citation: (Smith et al., 2020, p. 379) Narrative Citation: Smith et al. (2020) report that... Page numbers are optional for paraphrased content.

Newspaper Articles - print or electronic (Sec. 9.25 of the APA Publication Manual)

See also 10.1 example 16 and example 110 for difference between online newspaper articles and online news websites.
For articles without an author use article title as the first element and an abbreviated form in quotations for the in-text citation.

Format

Author, A. A. (year, Month day). Title of newspaper article: Subtitle information.Title of Newspaper, page number.

Author, A. A. (year, Month day). Title of newspaper article: Subtitle information.Title of Newspaper. URL

Reference Examples

Smith, J. A. (2023, December 12). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity. The Washington Post, 16.

Smith, J. A. (2023, December 12). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/

Impact of technology on workplace productivity. (2023, December 12). The Washington Post, 16.

In-text Examples

Parenthetical citation:

… (Smith, 2020).

… (“Impact of technology”, 2023).

Magazine Articles - print or electronic (Sec. 9.25 of the APA Publication Manual)

Print magazine articles do not require a URL
If the magazine article is retrieved from a common library database no URL is required

Format

Author, A. A. (year, Month day). Title of magazine article: Subtitle information.Title of Magazine, volume(issue), page-page. URL

Reference Examples

Smith, J. A. (2023, December 12). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity. Science News, 166(19), 31.

In-text Example

Parenthetical citation:

… (Smith, 2020).

Website

For a webpage written by an individual author, cite their name first.
If the resource was written by a group or organization, use the name of the group/organization as the author.
If the author and site name are the same, omit the site name from the citation.
If there is no date use (n.d.).

For more comprehensive examples of citing websites, consult the APA Style Webpage on a Website References.

Format

Webpage with an author:

Lastname, F. M. (Year, Month Date). Title of page. Site name. URL

For a webpage without an author use the name of the group/organization as the author:

Group name. (Year, Month Date). Title of page. Site name. URL

Reference Examples

Smith, J. A. (2023, December 12). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022). COVID-19: Vaccines for you and your family. CDC. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/index.html

In-text Example

Parenthetical Citation:

… (Smith, 2023).

Narrative Citation:

According to Smith (2023) …

For abbreviated authors, Include the full name in the first mention of the text, then include the abbreviation.

Examples:

First time with an abbreviation

Parenthetical:

... spreading the flu to others (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2019).

Narrative:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2019) ...

Then all subsequent citations: (CDC, 2019)

Parenthetical:

In order to stop the spreading flu, anyone with flu-like symptoms should stay home until they are better (CDC, 2019).

Narrative:

CDC (2019) highlights that in order to stop the spreading flu ...

Dissertation or Thesis

A dissertation or thesis is considered published when it is available from a database such as ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global or PDQT Open, an institutional repository, or an archive.
If the database assigns publication numbers to dissertations and theses, include the publication number in parentheses after the title of the dissertation or thesis without italics.
Include the description “Doctoral dissertation” or “Master’s thesis” followed by a comma and the name of the institution that awarded the degree. Place this information in square brackets after the dissertation or thesis title and any publication number.
In the source element of the reference, provide the name of the database, repository, or archive.
The same format can be adapted for other published theses, including undergraduate theses, by changing the wording of the bracketed description as appropriate (e.g., “Undergraduate honors thesis”).
Include a URL for the dissertation or thesis if the URL will resolve for readers.
Check out more examples for citing dissertations and theses on the APA Style site.

Format

Author. (date). Title of dissertation or thesis (Publication Number) [Doctoral dissertation or Master's thesis, Name of University]. Source. URL

Reference Examples

Smith, J. A. (2023). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity [Master’s thesis, University of Central Missouri]. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global.

In-text Example

Parenthetical Citation:

… (Smith, 2023).

Narrative Citation:

According to Smith (2023) …

Generative AI Tools

It is highly recommended that you confirm with your instructor what is permitted for a specific assignment prior to using an AI tool.

The following guidelines were retrieved from the American Psychological Association (APA) Style Blog. Because of rapid developments in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and generative AI technologies such as ChatGPT, these guidelines may be updated periodically. Please refer to the APA Style Blog for the most recent updates: https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/how-to-cite-chatgpt

The citations below are adapted from the template for software in Section 10.10 of the APA Style Publication Manual. ChatGPT uses dates to differentiate versions. Other AI generative software may use other labeling conventions (i.e. Version 2.0)
In the case of ChatGPT, provide the descriptor for the tool [Large language model]
Do not repeat the publisher if the same as the author name
If you used ChatGPT or other AI tools in your research include this in your Methods section or in your Introduction
As each ChatGPT response is unique, full-text ChatGPT responses may also be added to the essay as an appendix.

Format

Author. (date). Title of tool (version) [Tool descriptor].Publisher. Source

Reference Examples

OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/

In-text Example

Parenthetical Citation: … (OpenAI, 2023).

Narrative Citation: OpenAI (2023) …

In the text of your essay, provide the prompt you used and any portion of the relevant text that was generated. For example:

When prompted with "Does technology increase productivity in the workplace?", the ChatGPT-generated text indicated that although this is a complex question, "the technology has the potential to increase productivity in the workplace" (OpenAI, 2023; see Appendix A for the full transcript).

Creating References

The reference list should include essential elements of a source (author(s), date, title, and source) so that the reader can easily locate the source.

Cite sources that you have used in the body of your paper (in-text citation) and in the Reference List at the end of your paper.
Include the complete citation at the end of your paper in a references section.
References are organized by the author's last name in alphabetic (A-Z) order.
For sources with 2 to 20 authors list all authors in the reference citation and use an ampersand (&) before the last author's name (9.8 APA Publication Manual).
For 21 or more authors, include the first 19 author names followed by an ellipsis (three dots ...) but no ampersand (&) and then add the final author's name.
Use a hanging indent to separate each list item.
Only capitalize the first word of the document title (and proper nouns). If there is a colon, only capitalize the first word after the colon, and any proper nouns.

Hanging Indent

Hanging Indent in Word:

1. Highlight the citation with your cursor.

2. Right click.

3. Select Paragraph.

4. Under Indentation, select Special and Hanging.

Hanging Indent in Google Docs:

Highlight the citation(s) you want to indent.
Along the top menu, click on "Format," then go down to "Align & indent," then click on "Indentation options."
In the Indentation options menu, under "Special," select "Hanging."
Click "Apply."

Sentence Case vs. Title Case

Title of documents is always sentence case in APA style. Only capitalize the first word of the document title (and proper nouns). If there is a colon, only capitalize the first word after the colon, and any proper nouns.

In title case the first letter of each word is capitalized, except for certain small words, such as articles and short prepositions.

Sentence Case Example: Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity: A new approach in the United States.

Title Case Example: Exploring The Impact Of Technology On Workplace Productivity: A New Approach In The United States.

Correct:

Smith, J. A., Johnson, M. B., & Davis, C. R. (2020). Exploring the impact of technology on workplace productivity: A new approach in the United States. Journal of Organizational Psychology, 25(3), 45-62. https://doi.org/xxxxxxx

Wrong:

Smith, J. A., Johnson, M. B., & Davis, C. R. (2020). Exploring The Impact Of Technology On Workplace Productivity: A New Approach In The United States. Journal of Organizational Psychology, 25(3), 45-62. https://doi.org/xxxxxxx