APA Citation Guide

How you cite the author element in the in-text citation depends on how many authors there are and who the author is 

• For works with one of two authors 

When citing a work by one or two authors, name the author or authors in the signal phrase or the parentheses each time you cite the work. Use the word “and” between the authors’ names within the text and use the ampersand in the parentheses.

Example

• For works with three or more authors 

When citing a work by three or more authors, list only the first author's last name, followed by "et al." in every citation. Do take note of the full stop after "al".

Example

• For works with an unknown author 

If the work doesn't have an author, include the title of the work and the year of publication in the in-text citation. However, consider the work's credibility, especially if you cannot find the author. 

Example

Opting to go green as a lifestyle choice can become a profitable business ("Green essentials," 2012). 

• For works where the agency, organisation or group is the author 

If the author is an agency, organisation, or group, mention the name of the agency, organisation or group and then the year. If the organisation has a well-known abbreviation, include the abbreviation in brackets the first time the source is cited and then use only the abbreviation in later citations.

Example

According to APA, a secondary source is "a secondary source refers to content first reported in another source."

For example, if you read a work by Lyon et al. (2014) in which Rabbitt (1982) was cited, and you were unable to read Rabbitt’s work yourself, cite Rabbitt’s work as the original source, followed by Lyon et al.’s work as the secondary source. Only Lyon et al.’s work appear in the reference list.

Example

For more information on secondary sources, go to the APA page. 

According to APA, personal communication refers to:

• emails
• text messages
• direct messages
• personal interviews
• telephone conversations
• live speeches
• non-archived social media live streams (e.g., Instagram Live, Twitter Spaces)
• unrecorded webinars
• unrecorded classroom lectures
• memos
• letters
• messages from non-archived discussion groups or online bulletin boards,

You can use a personal communication citation only when a recoverable source is unavailable.

Example 

For more information on personal communication, go to the APA page. 

According to APA, a classroom source includes works from a classroom website or learning management system (e.g., Canvas or Blackboard). These sources can be cited as classroom sources because they are recoverable by the instructor and fellow students. 

• For PowerPoint slides from a class 

Example 

• For study guides

The citation for your study guide can be found in the study guide itself 

There are specific ways to present tables and figures in APA format; to learn more about these ways, go to the APA website. 

Occasionally, you may not be able to find information to complete the in-text citation. In such cases, this table from Scribbr will help. 

• For missing author, date and page number 

Examples 

You can get more help writing in-text citations when information is missing from this West Cost University Library guide. 

• When to Quote?

Use direct quotations rather than paraphrasing:

• when reproducing an exact definition 
• when an author has said something memorably or succinctly, or
• when you want to respond to exact wording (e.g., something someone said).

Instructors, programs, editors, and publishers may establish limits on the use of direct quotations. Consult your instructor if you are concerned that your paper may have too much-quoted material.

• Short Quotations

Short quotations should consist of at most 40 words. 

The short quotation should include the following:

• quotation marks around the words
• incorporate the quote into your text

There is no additional formatting needed. Do not insert an ellipsis at the beginning and end of a quotation unless the original source includes an ellipsis.

Here is an example from the APA website 

• Block Quotations

Block quotations should consist of more than 40 words 

Format quotations of 40 words or more as block quotations:

• Do not use quotation marks to enclose a block quotation.
• Start a block quotation on a new line and indent the whole block 0.5 in. from the left margin.
• Double-space the entire block quotation.
• Do not add extra space before or after it.
• If additional paragraphs are within the quotation, indent the first line of each subsequent paragraph an additional 0.5 in. 
• Either (a) cite the source in parentheses after the quotation’s final punctuation or (b) cite the author and year in the narrative before the quotation and place only the page number in parentheses after the quotation’s final punctuation.
• Do not add a period after the closing parenthesis in either case.

Here is an example from the APA website 

For more information on how to cite with quotations, visit the APA Style Quotation website 

You can also use this In-Text Citation Checklist (PDF, 227KB) to check if you have cited your references correctly.