Intext Citations in APA Style

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In-text Citations inAPA Style

• University of Scranton
• CTLE Writing Center

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In-text Citation

• In-text citation is also known as parenthetical
  documentation.
• It is a way to cite external sources at the point
  in the document at which they are used.
• In-text citation is used in conjunction with and
  not as a replacement for the References page.

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When to Use a Reference Within the Text of a
Paper

• When you directly quote text from a source
• Writing in the APA style could not be easier
  (Beelzebub, 1886, p. 42).
• When you summarize the ideas of a source
• The APA eschews clarity in favor of a tenebrous
  literary style (American Psychological
  Association, 2001).
• Whenever you express ideas taken from another
  writers material

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Basic Structure of a Reference Within the Text of
a Paper

• All information is enclosed within parentheses
• Name(s) of author(s) first
• A comma
• Year of publication
• A comma
• Page number for all quotations, summaries, and
  paraphrases (Faigley, 2003, p. 283).
• If the work does not provide page numbers,
  reference the work with a signal phrase.
• In Jim Jamuschs 1995 film Dead Man, William
  Blake, played by Johnny Depp embarks on . . .

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Electronic Sources

• For electronic sources that do not give page
  numbers, use the abbreviation para. or the symbol
  .
• (Watterson, 1998, 6)
• If no paragraph numbers are given, cite the
  heading of the source and the paragraph number
  counted from the heading cited, using the word
  para.
• (Nitsa, Conclusion, para. 8)

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Counting Your Authors

• If a source was written by a single author
• (Last Name, year, page )
• If a source was written by two authors
• (Last Name Last Name, page )

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Counting Your Authors (Cont.)

• If a source was written by 3 to 5 authors
• For the first time in each paragraph
• (Last Name, Last Name Last Name, year, page )
• For subsequent references use the first authors
  last name
• (Last Name et al., year, page )

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Counting Your Authors (Cont.)

• If a source was written by 6 or more authors use
  the last name of the first author
• (Last Name et al., year, page )

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A Work Written by an Organization or Group

• For the first reference, use the full name of the
  organization or group
• (National Aeronautics and Space Administration,
  1996, p. 28)
• If the name is long, abbreviate it for subsequent
  references
• (NASA, 1996, p. 28)

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No Author?

• Use the first two or three words of the title
• For articles or chapters, use quotation marks
• (Knitting With Safety, 2003, p. 23)
• For books, brochures and reports, use italics
• (The Joy of, 1972, p. 345)

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Letters, Email, Memos, Et Cetera

• Use the first initial, the last name, the phrase
  personal communication and then the date of the
  communication
• (B. Yeltsin, personal communication, Nov. 23,
  2002)
• Note Do not include personal communication in
  your reference list

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Need More Help?

• Visit http//www.apastyle.org/
• For more extensive help, visit
• The Writing Center
• Room 588 C
• Harper-McGinnis Wing
• Saint Thomas Hall
• [phone]