APA Citation Guide

APA (American Psychological Association) style is most frequently used within the social sciences, in order to cite various
sources. This APA Citation Guide, revised according to the 6th edition of the APA manual, provides the general format for in-text
citations and the reference page.

A. How to Cite a Book in APA

Citing a book in print

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Year of Publication). Title of work. Publisher City, State: Publisher.
APA format example:
Finney, J. (1970). Time and again. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.
Notes: When citing a book in APA, keep in mind:

 Capitalize the first letter of the first word of the title and any subtitles, as well as the first letter of any proper nouns.
 The full title of the book, including any subtitles, should be stated and italicized.

Citing an e-book from an e-reader

E-book is short for “electronic book.” It is a digital version of a book that can be read on a computer, e-reader (Kindle, Nook,
etc.), or other electronic device.
APA format structure:
Author, A. (Year of Publication). Title of work [E-Reader Version]. Retrieved from [Link] or DOI:xxxx
APA format example:
Eggers, D. (2008). The circle [Kindle Version]. Retrieved from [Link]

Citing a book found in a database

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Year of Publication). Title of work. Retrieved from [Link] or DOI:xxxx
APA format example:
Sayre, Rebecca K., Devercelli, A.E., Neuman, M.J., & Wodon, Q. (2015). Investment in early childhood
development: Review of the world bank’s recent experience. DOI: 10.1596/978-1-4648-0403-8
Notes: When citing an online book or e-book in APA, keep in mind:

 A DOI (digital object identifier) is an assigned number that helps link content to its location on the Internet. It is
therefore important, if one is provided, to use it when creating a citation. All DOI numbers begin with a 10 and are
separated by a slash.

B. How to Reference a Magazine in APA

Citing a magazine article in print

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Year, month of Publication). Article title. Magazine Title, Volume(Issue), pp.-pp.
APA format example:
Tumulty, K. (2006, April). Should they stay or should they go? Time, 167(15), 3-40.
Notes: When citing a magazine in APA, keep in mind:

 You can find the volume number with the other publication information of the magazine.
 You can typically find page numbers at the bottom corners of a magazine article.
 If you cannot locate an issue number, simply don’t include it in the citation.

Citing a magazine article found online

APA format structure:

Author, A.A.. (Year, Month of Publication). Article title. Magazine Title,Volume(Issue), Retrieved from [Link]
APA format example:
Tumulty, K. (2006, April). Should they stay or should they go? Time, 167(15) Retrieved from
[Link]
Notes: When creating an online magazine citation, keep in mind:

 The volume and issue number aren’t always on the same page as the article. Check out the other parts of the website
before leaving it out of the citation.

C. How to Reference a Newspaper in APA

Citing a newspaper article in print

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Year, Month Date of Publication). Article title. Newspaper Title, pp. xx-xx.
APA format example:
Rosenberg, G. (1997, March 31). Electronic discovery proves an effective legal [Link] New York Times, p.
D5.
Notes: When creating your newspaper citation, keep in mind:

 Precede page numbers for newspaper articles with p. (for a single page) or pp. (for multiple pages).
 If an article appears on discontinuous pages, give all page numbers, and separate the numbers with a comma (e.g., pp.
B1, B3, B5-B7).

Citing a newspaper article found online

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Year, Month Date of Publication). Article title. Newspaper Title, Retrieved from newspaper
homepage URL
APA format example:
Rosenberg, G. (1997, March 31). Electronic discovery proves an effective legal [Link] New York Times,
Retrieved from [Link]
Notes: When citing a newspaper in APA, keep in mind:

 APA does NOT require you to include the date of access for electronic sources. If you discovered a newspaper article
via an online database, that information is NOT required for the citation either.
 Multiple lines: If the URL runs onto a second line, only break URL before punctuation (except for [Link]
D. How to Cite a Website in APA

Citing a general website article with an author

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Year, Month Date of Publication). Article title. Retrieved from URL
APA format example:
Simmons, B. (2015, January 9). The tale of two Flaccos. Retrieved from [Link]
tale-of-two-flaccos/

Citing a general website article without an author

APA format structure:

Article title. (Year, Month Date of Publication). Retrieved from URL
APA format example:
Teen posed as doctor at West Palm Beach hospital: police. (2015, January 16). Retrieved from
[Link]
[Link]

E. How to Reference a Journal Article in APA

Citing a journal article in print

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Publication Year). Article title. Periodical Title, Volume(Issue), pp-pp.

APA format example:

Nevin, A. (1990). The changing of teacher education special education. Teacher Education and Special Education: The Journal of
the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, 13(4), 147-148.

Citing a journal article found online

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Publication Year). Article title. Periodical Title, Volume(Issue), pp-pp. doi:[Link] or Retrieved
from URL
APA format example:

Jameson, J. (2013). E-Leadership in higher education: The fifth “age” of educational technology
research. British Journal of Educational Technology, 44(6), 889-915. doi: 10.1111/bjet.12103
Notes: When creating your online journal article citation, keep in mind:

 APA does NOT require you to include the date of access/retrieval date or database information for electronic sources.
 You can use the URL of the journal homepage if there is no doi number assigned and the reference was retrieved
online.
 Example: Retrieved from [Link]
8535;jsessionid=956132F3DE76EEB120577E99EE74CE9C.f04t01
 A doi (digital object identifier) is an assigned number that helps link content to its location on the Internet. It is
therefore important, if one is provided, to use it when creating a citation. All doi numbers begin with a 10 and are
separated by a slash.
F. How to Cite a Movie/Film in APA

Citing a film/Citing a movie

APA format structure:

Producer, A. (Producer), & Director, A. (Director). (Release Year). Title of motion picture [Motion Picture].
Country of Origin: Studio.
APA format example:
Bender, L. (Producer), & Tarantino, Q. (Director). (1994). Pulp fiction [Motion Picture]. United States:
Miramax.

Citing a film from YouTube

APA format structure:

Author, A. [screename]. (Year, Month Date of Publication). Title of video [Video file]. Retrieved from URL
APA format example:
Smith, Rick. (2013, September 20). Favre to Moss!. [Video file]. Retrieved from
[Link]
Notes: When citing a video from YouTube, keep in mind:

 Screen names are more prominent that actual names on YouTube. If you come across a user whose real name isn’t
available, use only their screen name without brackets.

G. How to Reference an Interview in APA

Important Note on Personal Interviews:

 A personal interview should NOT be included in a reference list in APA. They are not considered recoverable data
(they cannot be found by a researcher). You should reference personal interviews as in-text citations instead.
 Example: (J. Doe, personal communication, December 12, 2004)

That being said, there is a general structure if you want to cite a personal interview as part of your APA works cited list:
Author, A. (Year, Month Date). Interview type.
APA format example:
Marino, B. (2014, October 18). Personal Interview.

H. How to Reference a Lecture in APA

Citing online lecture notes or presentation slides

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Publication Year). Name or title of lecture [file format]. Retrieved from URL
APA format example:
Saito, T. (2012). Technology and me: A personal timeline of educational technology [Powerpoint slides].
Retrieved from [Link]
Tip: If you want to cite information from your own personal notes from a lecture as personal communication and refer to it only
in the body of your essay, you can follow the style guide for personal communication available in the Interview section.
I. How to Cite a TV/Radio Broadcast in APA

Citing an episode from TV or radio show

APA format structure:

Writer, A. (Writer), & Director, A. (Director). (Year of Airing). Episode title [Television series episode]. In
Executive Producer, A. (Executive Producer), TV series name. City, State of original channel: Channel.
APA format example:
Kang, K. (Writer), & Fryman, P. (Director). (2006). Slap bet [Television series episode]. In Bays, C. (Executive
Producer), How I met your mother. Los Angeles, CA: Columbia Broadcasting System.
Note: When citing a TV show or episode, keep in mind:

 IMDB is a great resource for finding the information needed for your citation (Director, Writer, Executive Producer,
etc.) This information can also be found in the opening and closing credits of the show.

J. How to reference an Encyclopedia Entry in APA

Citing an encyclopedia entry in print

APA format structure:

Author, A. (Publication Year). Entry title. In Encyclopedia title, (Vol. XX, pp. XX). City, State of publication:
Publisher.
APA format example:
Kammen, C., & Wilson, A.H. (2012). Monuments. In Encyclopedia of local history. (pp. 363-364). Lanham, MD:
AltaMira Press.

K. How to Reference a Photograph in APA

Citing a photograph

APA format structure:

Photographer, A.. (Photographer). (Year, Month Date of Publication). Title of photograph[photograph]. City,
State of publication: Publisher/museum.
APA format example:
Roege, W.J. (Photographer). (1938). St. Patrick’s cathedral, fifth avenue from 50th street to 51st street [photograph]. New
York, NY: New-York Historical Society.