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APA Style Examples

Find how to cite a web page, journal, book, eBook, textbook, magazine, newspaper, video, DVD, TV show, Twitter, Tweet, Instagram, Facebook, or blog post. Find how to format in-text/parenthetical citations, papers or title pages and cite when no author.

Author examples for references

  • Invert all authors' names in the order in which they appear in the original text
    • EXAMPLE: Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C.
  • If a material has an editor, place the editors' names in the author position, and enclose the abbreviation Ed. or Eds. in parentheses after the last editor's name. The period follows the parenthetical abbreviation (Eds.). 
    • EXAMPLE: Author, A. A. (Ed.). 
  • If the author's first name is hyphenated, retain the hyphen and include a period after each initial
    • EXAMPLE: Johnson, A.-R. for Amelia-Rose Johnson
  • Use commas to separate authors, to separate surnames and initials, and to separate initials and suffixes (e.g., Jr. and III)
    • EXAMPLE: Smith, A. K., Jr., & Jameson, P. R.
  • If the reference list includes different authors with the same surname and first initial, the authors' full first names may be given in brackets
    • EXAMPLE: Mardis, L. [Lori].
    •                    Mardis, L. [Laura].
    • EXAMPLE IN TEXT: (Lori Mardis, 2015)

One Author

Two Authors

Three to Twenty Authors

Twenty-one or More Authors

Last name, First initial. Middle initial if provided.

Last name, First initial. Middle initial if provided., & Last name, First initial. Middle initial if provided.

Last name, First initial. Middle initial if provided., Last name, First initial. Middle initial if provided., & Last name, First initial. Middle initial if provided.

When authors number twenty-one or more, include the first nineteen authors' names, then insert an ellipsis (i.e., one set of three dots), and add the last author's name; example on p. 317 #4 of the 7th edition manual.

Mardis, L. A.

Mardis, L. A., & Johnson, C.

Mardis, L. M., Johnson,  C. J., & Brady, B. L.

​Mardis, L. A., Baudino, F. D., Christian, H. E., Wyatt, P. C., Brady, B., Howell, K., Cole, S., Meneely, B., Young, N., Briggs, L., Feick, T., Bennett, A., Gard, C., Robinson, J., George, G., Vest, J., Martin, R., Gourd, K., Sail, V., . . . Johnson, C. V.

Examples of group authors include government agencies, associations, nonprofit organizations, businesses, etc.   When numerous layers of government agencies are listed as the author of the work, use the most specific agency as teh author in the reference (parent agencies appear in the publisher area).

  • List the full name of the group author in the reference list entry, followed by a period: Department of Energy.

Start the entry with the Title of the Work:

  • Book Example:
    Maze. (2011). Maryville, MO: Northwest Missouri State University.
  • Newspaper Example:
    Sharing reference information. (2012, March 1). Northwest Missourian, pp. C1, C2.
  • Web page Example:
    Rechecking security for human safety appropriate for Kansas City Zoo. (2016, June 1). Retrieved from http://www.kansascity.com/opinion/editorials/article81217142.html
  • References List Example (order by publication date):
    Ehrenreich, B. (2001). Nickel and dimed: On (not) getting by in America. New York: Metropolitan Books.
    Ehrenreich, B. (2007). Dancing in the streets: A history of collective joy. New York: Metropolitan Books.
  • In Text Example (order by publication date in the same parentheses):
    (Ehrenreich, 2001, 2007)

For more References List examples, refer to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed. pages 280-352. 

Note

Consult the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed., for more examples of author and editor information (page 286, section 9.8-9.11)

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