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APA Style 7th Edition

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Sample Paper & Reference List

  • APA Sample Paper Template This sample paper includes a title page, sample assignment page and references list in APA format. It can be used as a template to set up your assignment.
  • APA 7th Edition Student Sample Paper This example from Idaho State University presents guidelines for student papers following the American Psychological Association (APA) Publication Manual 7th edition.
  • Student APA 7th Edition Sample Paper Example of student APA 7th edition paper with notations from Antioch University Writing Center.
  • APA Headings If your instructor requires you to use APA style headings and sub-headings, this document will show you how they work. This sample demonstrates and describes how to use different levels of headings in APA format.
  • APA Sample Paper Template - with Appendix If you are adding an appendix to your paper there are a few rules to follow that comply with APA guidelines: The Appendix appears after the References list If you have more than one appendix you would name the first appendix Appendix A, the second Appendix B, etc. The appendices should appear in the order that the information is mentioned in your essay Each appendix begins on a new page

APA End of Paper Checklist

  • End of Paper Checklist Finished your assignment? Use this checklist to be sure you haven't missed any information needed for APA style.

Quick Rules for an APA Reference List

Your research paper ends with a list of all the sources cited in the text of the paper. Here are nine quick rules for this Reference list.

  • Start a new page for your Reference list. Centre the title, References, at the top of the page.
  • Double-space the list.
  • Start the first line of each reference at the left margin; indent each subsequent line five spaces (a hanging indent).
  • Put your list in alphabetical order. Alphabetize the list by the first word in the reference. In most cases, the first word will be the author’s last name. Where the author is unknown, alphabetize by the first word in the title, ignoring the words a, an, the.
  • For each author, give the last name followed by a comma and the first (and middle, if listed) initials followed by periods.
  • Italicize the titles of these works: books, audiovisual material, internet documents and newspapers, and the title and volume number of journals and magazines.
  • Do not italicize titles of most parts of works, such as: articles from newspapers, magazines, or journals / essays, poems, short stories or chapter titles from a book / chapters or sections of an Internet document.
  • In titles of non-periodicals (books, videotapes, websites, reports, poems, essays, chapters, etc), capitalize only the first letter of the first word of a title and subtitle, and all proper nouns (names of people, places, organizations, nationalities).
  • If a web source (not from the library) is not a stable archived version, or you are unsure whether it is stable, include a statement of the accessed date before the link.
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APA Citation Guide (7th edition) : Reference List and Sample Paper

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Quick Rules for an APA Reference List

Your research paper ends with a list of all the sources cited in your paper. Here are some quick rules for this Reference list:

  • Begin the reference list on a new page after the text.
  • Name it "References," and center the section label in bold at the top of the page.
  • Order the reference list alphabetically by author (last name of the first author followed by the initials of the author's given name(s)).
  • Alphabetize entries by authors who have the same given name and last name with suffixes indicating birth order chronologically, oldest first.
  • Double-space the entire list (both within and between entries).
  • Apply a hanging indent of 0.5 in. to each entry. This means that the first line of the reference is flush left and subsequent lines are indented 0.5 in. from the left margin.

Sample Paper with Reference List

The American Psychological Association (APA) has created  a sample paper  that includes explanations of the elements and formatting in APA 7th ed. 

Headings and Title Pages

APA Running Head   This resource discusses how to format running heads in APA style.

APA Title Page: Format and Templates   This article discusses how to format APA title pages and provides templates for MS Word.

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APA Citation Guide (7th edition) : Reference List & Sample Paper

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Quick rules for an apa reference list, sample paper & reference list.

  • APA End of Paper Checklist

Your research paper ends with a list of all the sources cited in the text of the paper. Here are nine quick rules for this Reference list.

  • Start a new page for your Reference list. Centre the title, References, at the top of the page.
  • Double-space the list.
  • Start the first line of each reference at the left margin; indent each subsequent line five spaces (a hanging indent).
  • Put your list in alphabetical order. Alphabetize the list by the first word in the reference. In most cases, the first word will be the author’s last name. Where the author is unknown, alphabetize by the first word in the title, ignoring the words a, an, the.
  • For each author, give the last name followed by a comma and the first (and middle, if listed) initials followed by periods.
  • Italicize the titles of these works: books, audiovisual material, internet documents and newspapers, and the title and volume number of journals and magazines.
  • Do not italicize titles of most parts of works, such as: articles from newspapers, magazines, or journals / essays, poems, short stories or chapter titles from a book / chapters or sections of an Internet document.
  • In titles of non-periodicals (books, videotapes, websites, reports, poems, essays, chapters, etc), capitalize only the first letter of the first word of a title and subtitle, and all proper nouns (names of people, places, organizations, nationalities).
  • If a web source (not from the library) is not a stable archived version, or you are unsure whether it is stable, include a statement of the accessed date before the link.
  • APA Research Paper Template

This sample paper includes a title page, sample assignment page and references list in APA format. It can be used as a template to set up your assignment.

If your instructor requires you to use APA style headings and sub-headings, this document will show you how they work.

  • APA Headings This sample demonstrates and describes how to use different levels of headings in APA format.

If you are adding an appendix to your paper there are a few rules to follow that comply with APA guidelines:

  • The Appendix appears  after  the References list
  • If you have more than one appendix you would name the first appendix Appendix A, the second Appendix B, etc.
  • The appendices should appear in the order that the information is mentioned in your essay
  • Each appendix begins on a new page
  • APA Sample Paper with Appendix

Finished your assignment? Use this checklist to be sure you haven't missed any information needed for APA style.

APA Handbook

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Citing Sources: Sample Reference List Citations

  • Style Links & Samples
  • Sample Reference List Citations
  • Sample Notes and Bibliography Citations
  • Sample Author Date Citations
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When formatting a citation in APA style, pay particular attention to italics, punctuation, indentation, and capitalization.

Many more samples of citations presented in the APA style can be found in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association . Please consult this book or a librarian for help with unusual resources.

All of the following samples are taken from:

American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

(In the above sample, the name of the organization is the author. Note that only proper names are capitalized in the title, and the edition number follows the title.)

Book: (This sample from Purdue OWL )

Calfee, R. C., & Valencia, R. R. (1991).  APA guide to preparing manuscripts for journal publication . Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Book with an Editor:

Robinson, D. N. (Ed.). (1992). Social discourse and moral judgment . San Diego, CA: Academic Press.

Note: italicize the title of the book and do not capitalize any words in titles except the first word, proper names, and after a colon. Use the author's or editor's initials only for first and middle names.

Chapter from an Edited Volume or Anthology :

Haybron, D. M. (2008). Philosophy and the science of subjective well-being. In M. Eid & R. J. Larsen (Eds.),  The science of subjective well-being  (pp. 17-43). New York, NY: Guilford Press. 

Scholarly Article:

Fuentes, A. (2016). Contemporary evolutionary theory in biological anthropology: Insight into human evolution,  genomics  and challenges to  racialized  pseudo-science.   Revista   Cuicuilco , 23 (65), 293-304. 

Note: Do not set off the title of the article with quotes, italics, underlines, or capital letters (except for the first word, proper names or after a colon). Italicize the title of the journal and capitalize all words in the title of the journal. This sample includes the volume number (23) which is italicized to set it off from the other numbers. The issue number (65) appears in parentheses and is not italicized. You will also notice that there is no space left between the volume number and the first parenthesis for the issue number.

Scholarly Article (with multiple authors):

Calvo, M. G., & Lang, P. J. (2004). Gaze patterns when looking at emotional pictures: Motivationally biased attention. Motivation and Emotion, 28 , 221-243. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:MOEM.0000040153.26156.ed

Note: This sample includes the volume number (28), which is italicized to set it off from the page numbers. There is no issue number in this example because the journal is paginated by volume. Provide the DOI when available for electronic documents. If a DOI is not available for a scholarly article retrieved online, you should supply the URL of the journal's homepage (NOT the URL from the database). Note authors' names, indentations, spare use of capital letters, page numbers, and use of periods and commas.

Popular Article (with two authors):

Kandel, E. R., & Squire, L. R. (2000, November 10). Neuroscience: Breaking down scientific barriers to the study of brain and mind. Science, 290, 1113-1120.

Note: Do not set off the title of the article with quotes, italics, underlines, or capital letters (except for the first word, proper names, or after a colon). Italicize the title of the magazine and capitalize all keywords in the title. Italicize the volume number to set it off from the page numbers.

Newspaper Article:

Scwartz, J. (1993, September 30). Obesity affects economic, social status. The Washington Post , pp. A1, A4.

Note: Do not set off the title of the article with quotes, italics, underlines, or capital letters (except for the first word, proper names or after a colon). Italicize the title of the newspaper and capitalize all keywords in the title of the newspaper.

Webpage Examples:  (These samples from  Purdue OWL )

Author, A. A. & Author B. B. (Date of publication ,  or  n. d. if no date ). Title of page [Format description when necessary]. Retrieved from https://www.someaddress.com/full/url/

Eco, U. (2015). How to write a thesis [PDF file]. (Farina C. M. & Farina F., Trans.) Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/...How_to_write_a_thesis/.../Umberto+Eco-How+to+Write+... (Original work published 1977).

If the page's author is not listed, start with the title. If the date of publication is not listed, use the abbreviation (n.d.):

Spotlight Resources. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/about_the_owl/owl_information/spotlight_resources.html

Only include a date of access when page content is likely to change over time (ex: if you're citing a wiki):

Purdue University Writing Lab [Facebook page]. (n.d.). Retrieved January 22, 2019, from https://www.facebook.com/PurdueUniversityWritingLab/

Nonperiodical Web Document or Report (Examples: government data such as U.S. Census): (This sample from Purdue OWL )

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date of publication, or n.d. if no date).  Title of document . Retrieved from https://Web address

Angeli, E., Wagner, J., Lawrick, E., Moore, K., Anderson, M., Soderland, L., & Brizee, A. (2010, May 5).  General format.  Retrieved from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

Note: Italicize the title of the website but do not capitalize any words except the first, proper names, and the first word following a colon.

For citing company or industry reports from the library's MarketLine database, also see:

https://guides.library.ualberta.ca/apa-citation-style/business

Publication manual of the American Psychological Association 7.07

If map is within a book, cite as In Title of book after [Type of map].

Cite primary contributors in the Author's space followed by their contributing role in parentheses.

Other forms for [Type of map] include:

  • [Demographic map]
  • [Topographical map]

Use (n.d.) for No date.

Title of map. (Year). [Type of Map]. Publisher Location: Publisher.

Citation Examples:

Plattsburgh, Clinton County: Dannemora, Peru, Keeseville, Champlain, Rouses Point, New York State, 3rd ed.

(1999). [Road map]. Clifton Park, NY: Jimapco.

Topographical Map:

Berlin, N.Y. - Mass. - VT. (1988). [Topographical map]. reston, VA: U.S. Geological Survey.

Online Map:

Follow the map citation guidelines as above, but also include a stable URL where the map is found.

Title of map. (Year). [Type of map]. Retrieved from http://xxx.xx

Manhattan sightseeing map. (2010). [City map]. Retrieved from http://www.ny.com/maps/shopmap.html

MTA Metro-North railroad. (2010). [Railroad map]. Retrieved from http://www.mta.info/mnr/html/mnrmap.htm

MTA New York City subway. (2010). [Subway map]. Retrieved from http://www.mta.info/nyct/maps/submap.htm

Charts and Graphs

Since the APA manual does not give direct information for citing every type of source, including charts or graphs, they instruct you to follow the example that is most like the source you are trying to cite. Be sure to provide enough information so your readers can locate the source on their own. When possible provide author or creator, year of publication, title, and publishing and/or retrieval data. When citing a chart, graph or map it may be best to follow the citation style for the format in which the information is presented.

All captions for charts should follow the guidelines below for captions for figures.

Captions for Figures (Charts, Graphs, and Maps): Publication manual of the American Psychological Association 5.20-5.25

All captions should be labeled as Figure followed by a number. The caption should begin with a descriptive phrase and include a citation to the original source and copyright information at the end.

reference list research paper sample

Figure 1. Relations between trust beliefs and school adjustment at T1 and loneliness changes during development in early childhood. All paths attained significance at p> .05. Adapted from “The Relation Between Trust Beliefs and Loneliness During Early Childhood, Middle Childhood, and Adulthood,” by K. J. Rotenberg, N. Addis, L. R. Betts, A. Corrigan, C. Fox, Z. Hobson, & … and M. J. Boulton, 2010, Personality and social psychology bulletin , 36, p. 1090. Copyright 2010 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

Documentaries or Feature Films:

David, L., Bender, L., Burns S.Z. (Producers), & Guggenheim, P.D. (Director). (2006). An inconvenient truth [Motion picture]. United States: Paramount Pictures.

Note : If a film is not available in wide distribution, add the following to the citation after the country of origin: (Available from Distributor name, full address and zip code).

Online Resources

More examples and samples of papers written using the APA style can be found at the following websites:

  • APA Style.Org The APA Citation Style's official website, as excerpted from the 6th edition.
  • Excelsior College OWL APA style guide from Excelsior College's Online Writing Lab.
  • Slate Citation Machine Excellent tool for citing sources in MLA and APA style. Simple fill in the form for the type of source you are citing, i.e. a book, journal article, website, etc., and this tool will show you the way to cite the reference. Be careful of your capitalization.
  • Cornell University Library Guide to APA Citation Style

Additional Information for Citing Special Sources

  • Ohio Wesleyan University - Citing Maps
  • Map Citation Guide from the University of North Carolina
  • Citation Fox (citation generator)
  • Knight Cite from Calvin College (citation generator)
  • Last Updated: Feb 15, 2024 12:48 PM
  • URL: https://libguides.dickinson.edu/citing

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A Quick Guide to Harvard Referencing | Citation Examples

Published on 14 February 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on 15 September 2023.

Referencing is an important part of academic writing. It tells your readers what sources you’ve used and how to find them.

Harvard is the most common referencing style used in UK universities. In Harvard style, the author and year are cited in-text, and full details of the source are given in a reference list .

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Table of contents

Harvard in-text citation, creating a harvard reference list, harvard referencing examples, referencing sources with no author or date, frequently asked questions about harvard referencing.

A Harvard in-text citation appears in brackets beside any quotation or paraphrase of a source. It gives the last name of the author(s) and the year of publication, as well as a page number or range locating the passage referenced, if applicable:

Note that ‘p.’ is used for a single page, ‘pp.’ for multiple pages (e.g. ‘pp. 1–5’).

An in-text citation usually appears immediately after the quotation or paraphrase in question. It may also appear at the end of the relevant sentence, as long as it’s clear what it refers to.

When your sentence already mentions the name of the author, it should not be repeated in the citation:

Sources with multiple authors

When you cite a source with up to three authors, cite all authors’ names. For four or more authors, list only the first name, followed by ‘ et al. ’:

Sources with no page numbers

Some sources, such as websites , often don’t have page numbers. If the source is a short text, you can simply leave out the page number. With longer sources, you can use an alternate locator such as a subheading or paragraph number if you need to specify where to find the quote:

Multiple citations at the same point

When you need multiple citations to appear at the same point in your text – for example, when you refer to several sources with one phrase – you can present them in the same set of brackets, separated by semicolons. List them in order of publication date:

Multiple sources with the same author and date

If you cite multiple sources by the same author which were published in the same year, it’s important to distinguish between them in your citations. To do this, insert an ‘a’ after the year in the first one you reference, a ‘b’ in the second, and so on:

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reference list research paper sample

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A bibliography or reference list appears at the end of your text. It lists all your sources in alphabetical order by the author’s last name, giving complete information so that the reader can look them up if necessary.

The reference entry starts with the author’s last name followed by initial(s). Only the first word of the title is capitalised (as well as any proper nouns).

Harvard reference list example

Sources with multiple authors in the reference list

As with in-text citations, up to three authors should be listed; when there are four or more, list only the first author followed by ‘ et al. ’:

Reference list entries vary according to source type, since different information is relevant for different sources. Formats and examples for the most commonly used source types are given below.

  • Entire book
  • Book chapter
  • Translated book
  • Edition of a book

Journal articles

  • Print journal
  • Online-only journal with DOI
  • Online-only journal with no DOI
  • General web page
  • Online article or blog
  • Social media post

Sometimes you won’t have all the information you need for a reference. This section covers what to do when a source lacks a publication date or named author.

No publication date

When a source doesn’t have a clear publication date – for example, a constantly updated reference source like Wikipedia or an obscure historical document which can’t be accurately dated – you can replace it with the words ‘no date’:

Note that when you do this with an online source, you should still include an access date, as in the example.

When a source lacks a clearly identified author, there’s often an appropriate corporate source – the organisation responsible for the source – whom you can credit as author instead, as in the Google and Wikipedia examples above.

When that’s not the case, you can just replace it with the title of the source in both the in-text citation and the reference list:

Prevent plagiarism, run a free check.

Harvard referencing uses an author–date system. Sources are cited by the author’s last name and the publication year in brackets. Each Harvard in-text citation corresponds to an entry in the alphabetised reference list at the end of the paper.

Vancouver referencing uses a numerical system. Sources are cited by a number in parentheses or superscript. Each number corresponds to a full reference at the end of the paper.

A Harvard in-text citation should appear in brackets every time you quote, paraphrase, or refer to information from a source.

The citation can appear immediately after the quotation or paraphrase, or at the end of the sentence. If you’re quoting, place the citation outside of the quotation marks but before any other punctuation like a comma or full stop.

In Harvard referencing, up to three author names are included in an in-text citation or reference list entry. When there are four or more authors, include only the first, followed by ‘ et al. ’

Though the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, there is a difference in meaning:

  • A reference list only includes sources cited in the text – every entry corresponds to an in-text citation .
  • A bibliography also includes other sources which were consulted during the research but not cited.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2023, September 15). A Quick Guide to Harvard Referencing | Citation Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved 6 May 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/referencing/harvard-style/

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References: common reference list examples, article (with doi).

Alvarez. E., & Tippins, S. (2019). Socialization agents that Puerto Rican college students use to make financial decisions. Journal of Social Change , 11 (1), 75–85. https://doi.org/10.5590/JOSC.2019.11.1.07

Laplante, J. P., & Nolin, C. (2014). Consultas and socially responsible investing in Guatemala: A case study examining Maya perspectives on the Indigenous right to free, prior, and informed consent.  Society & Natural Resources ,  27 , 231–248.   https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2013.861554

Provide a DOI number if there is one. DOI stands for "digital object identifier," a number specific to the article that can help others locate the source. Use  CrossRef.org  to locate DOI information. This rule applies regardless of how the source was accessed (e.g., online, paper, etc.; see APA 7, Section 9.34).
In APA 7, format the DOI as a web address. Active hyperlinks for DOIs and URLs should be used for documents meant for screen reading. Present these hyperlinks in blue and underlined text (the default formatting in Microsoft Word), although plain black text is also acceptable. Be consistent in the formatting choice for DOIs and URLs throughout the reference list. (Note that this guidance has changed from APA 6 where all hyperlink formatting was removed and no active links were included. In APA 6, the URLs appeared in plain, black type and did not link out from the document.)
Also see our Quick Answer FAQ, "Can I use the DOI format provided by library databases?"

Jerrentrup, A., Mueller, T., Glowalla, U., Herder, M., Henrichs, N., Neubauer, A., & Schaefer, J. R. (2018). Teaching medicine with the help of “Dr. House.” PLoS ONE , 13 (3), Article e0193972. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0193972

For journal articles that are assigned article numbers rather than page ranges, include the article number in place of the page range.
For more on citing electronic resources, see  Electronic Sources References .

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Article (Without DOI)

Found in a common academic research database or in print.

Casler , T. (2020). Improving the graduate nursing experience through support on a social media platform. MEDSURG Nursing , 29 (2), 83–87.

If an article does not have a DOI and you retrieved it from a common academic research database through the university library, there is no need to include any additional electronic retrieval information. The reference list entry looks like the entry for a print copy of the article. (This format differs from APA 6 guidelines that recommended including the URL of a journal's homepage when the DOI was not available.)
Note that APA 7 has additional guidance on reference list entries for articles found only in specific databases or archives such as Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, UpToDate, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global, and university archives. See APA 7, Section 9.30 for more information.

Found on an Open Access Website

Eaton, T. V., & Akers, M. D. (2007). Whistleblowing and good governance. CPA Journal , 77 (6), 66–71. http://archives.cpajournal.com/2007/607/essentials/p58.htm

Provide the direct web address/URL to a journal article found on the open web, often on an open access journal's website.
In APA 7, active hyperlinks for DOIs and URLs should be used for documents meant for screen reading. Present these hyperlinks in blue and underlined text (the default formatting in Microsoft Word), although plain black text is also acceptable. Be consistent in your formatting choice for DOIs and URLs throughout your reference list. (Note that this guidance has changed from APA 6 where all hyperlink formatting was removed and no active links were included. In APA 6, the URLs appeared in plain, black type and did not link out from the document.)

Website Icon

Weinstein, J. A. (2010).  Social change  (3rd ed.). Rowman & Littlefield.

If the book has an edition number, include it in parentheses after the title of the book. If the book does not list any edition information, do not include an edition number. The edition number is not italicized. (Note: In APA 6, the location of the publisher was included. This is no longer the case in APA 7; only the publisher name is provided.) Regarding publisher name, when a publisher is named after a person (as is the case with Lawrence Erlbaum or John Wiley), list only the surname (Erlbaum or Wiley). In addition, exclude “Publishers,” “Inc.,” and “Co.” from publisher names in reference entries. 

American Nurses Association. (2010).  Nursing: Scope and standards of practice  (2nd ed.).  

In APA 7, if the author and publisher are the same, only include the author in its regular place and omit the publisher. (Note that this is a change from APA 6, where the term “Author” was used for the publisher instead of repeating the name.)

Lencioni, P. (2012). The advantage: Why organizational health trumps everything else in business . Jossey-Bass. https://amzn.to/343XPSJ

As a change from APA 6 to APA 7, it is no longer necessary to include the ebook format in the title. However, if you listened to an audiobook and the content differs from the text version (e.g., abridged content) or your discussion highlights elements of the audiobook (e.g., narrator's performance), then note that it is an audiobook in the title element in brackets. For ebooks and online audiobooks, also include the DOI number (if available) or nondatabase URL but leave out the electronic retrieval element if the ebook was found in a common academic research database, as with journal articles. APA 7 allows for the shortening of long DOIs and URLs, as shown in this example. See APA 7, Section 9.36 for more information. 

Chapter in an Edited Book

Poe, M. (2017). Reframing race in teaching writing across the curriculum. In F. Condon & V. A. Young (Eds.),  Performing antiracist pedagogy in rhetoric, writing, and communication  (pp. 87–105). University Press of Colorado.

Include the page numbers of the chapter in parentheses after the book title. The page range should not be italicized.

Christensen, L. (2001). For my people: Celebrating community through poetry. In B. Bigelow, B. Harvey, S. Karp, & L. Miller (Eds.),  Rethinking our classrooms: Teaching for equity and justice  (Vol. 2, pp. 16–17). Rethinking Schools.

Also include volume number and edition numbers in the parenthetical information after the book title where relevant.

Freud, S. (1961). The ego and the id. In J. Strachey (Ed.), The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud (Vol. 19, pp. 3-66). Hogarth Press. (Original work published 1923)

When a text has been republished as part of an anthology collection, after the author’s name include the date of the version that was read. At the end of the entry, place the date of the original publication inside parenthesis along with the note “original work published.” For in-text citations of republished work, use both dates in the parenthetical citation, original date first with a slash separating the years, as in this example: Freud (1923/1961). For more information on reprinted or republished works, see APA 7, Sections 9.40-9.41.

Dissertations or Theses

Retrieved from a database

Nalumango, K. (2019). Perceptions about the asylum-seeking process in the United States after 9/11 (Publication No. 13879844) [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses.

Retrieved From an Institutional or Personal Website

Evener. J. (2018). Organizational learning in libraries at for-profit colleges and universities [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University]. ScholarWorks. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6606&context=dissertations

Unpublished Dissertation or Thesis

Kirwan, J. G. (2005). An experimental study of the effects of small-group, face-to-face facilitated dialogues on the development of self-actualization levels: A movement towards fully functional persons [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Saybrook Graduate School and Research Center.

For further examples and information, see APA 7, Section 10.6.

Legal Material

For legal references, APA follows the recommendations of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation , so if you have any questions beyond the examples provided in APA, seek out that resource as well.

Court Decisions

Reference format:

Name v. Name, Volume Reporter Page (Court Date). URL

Sample reference entry:

Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954). https://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1955/347us483

Sample citation:

In Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Supreme Court ruled racial segregation in schools unconstitutional.

Note: Italicize the case name when it appears in the text of your paper rather than citing it—for example, “Cases such as  Brown v. Board of Education  and  Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle  illustrate ...”

Name of Act, Title Source § Section Number (Year). URL

Sample reference entry for a federal statute:

Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq. (2004). https://www.congress.gov/108/plaws/publ446/PLAW-108publ446.pdf

Sample reference entry for a state statute:

Minnesota Nurse Practice Act, Minn. Stat. §§ 148.171 et seq. (2019). https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/148.171

Sample citation: Minnesota nurses must maintain current registration in order to practice (Minnesota Nurse Practice Act, 2010).

Note: The § symbol stands for "section." Use §§ for sections (plural). To find this symbol in Microsoft Word, go to "Insert" and click on Symbol." Look in the Latin 1-Supplement subset.

Note: U.S.C. stands for "United States Code."

Note: The Latin abbreviation " et seq. " means "and what follows" and is used when the act includes the cited section and ones that follow.

Note: List the chapter first followed by the section or range of sections.

Unenacted Bills and Resolutions

(Those that did not pass and become law)

Title [if there is one], bill or resolution number, xxx Cong. (year). URL

Sample reference entry for Senate bill:

Anti-Phishing Act, S. 472, 109th Cong. (2005). https://www.congress.gov/bill/109th-congress/senate-bill/472

Sample reference entry for House of Representatives resolution:

Anti-Phishing Act, H.R. 1099, 109th Cong. (2005). https://www.congress.gov/bill/109th-congress/house-bill/1099

The Anti-Phishing Act (2005) proposed up to 5 years prison time for people running Internet scams.

These are the three legal areas you may be most apt to cite in your scholarly work. For more examples and explanation, see APA 7, Chapter 11.

Magazine Article

Clay, R. (2008, June). Science vs. ideology: Psychologists fight back about the misuse of research. Monitor on Psychology , 39 (6). https://www.apa.org/monitor/2008/06/ideology

Note that for citations, include only the year: Clay (2008). For magazine articles retrieved from a common academic research database, leave out the URL. For magazine articles from an online news website that is not an online version of a print magazine, follow the format for a webpage reference list entry.

Newspaper Article

Baker, A. (2014, May 7). Connecticut students show gains in national tests. New York Times . http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/08/nyregion/national-assessment-of-educational-progress-results-in-Connecticut-and-New-Jersey.html

Include the full date in the format Year, Month Day. Do not include a retrieval date for periodical sources found on websites. Note that for citations, include only the year: Baker (2014). For newspaper articles retrieved from a common academic research database, leave out the URL. For newspaper articles from an online news website that is not an online version of a print newspaper, follow the format for a webpage reference list entry.

Technical and Research Reports

The general structure for a technical or research report is as follows:

Author, A. A. (Publication Year). Title of work . Publisher Name. DOI or URL

Edwards, C. (2015). Lighting levels for isolated intersections: Leading to safety improvements (Report No. MnDOT 2015-05). Center for Transportation Studies. http://www.cts.umn.edu/Publications/ResearchReports/reportdetail.html?id=2402

Technical and research reports by governmental agencies and other research institutions usually follow a different publication process than scholarly, peer-reviewed journals. However, they present original research and are often useful for research papers. Sometimes, researchers refer to these types of reports as gray literature , and white papers are a type of this literature. See APA 7, Section 10.4 for more information.

American Federation of Teachers. (n.d.). Community schools . http://www.aft.org/issues/schoolreform/commschools/index.cfm

If there is no specified author, then use the organization’s name as the author. In such a case, there is no need to repeat the organization's name after the title.

Vartan, S. (2018, January 30). Why vacations matter for your health . CNN. https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/why-vacations-matter/index.html

For webpages from news websites, include the site name after the title and before the URL. If the source is an online newspaper or magazine, follow the models in the previous sections of this page. In APA 7, active hyperlinks for DOIs and URLs should be used for documents meant for screen reading. Present these hyperlinks in blue and underlined text (the default formatting in Microsoft Word), although plain black text is also acceptable. Be consistent in your formatting choice for DOIs and URLs throughout your reference list. (Note that this guidance has changed from APA 6 where all hyperlink formatting was removed, and no active links were included. In APA 6, the URLs appeared in plain, black type and did not link out from the document.)
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  • Subject guides
  • Citing and referencing

Sample reference list

Citing and referencing: sample reference list.

  • In-text citations
  • Reference list
  • Books and book chapters
  • Journals/Periodicals
  • Newspapers/Magazines
  • Government and other reports
  • Legal sources
  • Websites and social media
  • Audio, music and visual media
  • Conferences
  • Dictionaries/Encyclopedias/Guides
  • Theses/Dissertations
  • University course materials
  • Company and Industry reports
  • Patents and Standards
  • Tables and Figures
  • Abbreviations used in referencing
  • Medicine and Health sources
  • Foreign language sources
  • Music scores
  • Journals and periodicals
  • Government sources
  • News sources
  • Web and social media
  • Games and apps
  • Ancient and sacred sources
  • Primary sources
  • Audiovisual media and music scores
  • Images and captions
  • University lectures, theses and dissertations
  • Interviews and personal communication
  • Archival material
  • In-Text Citations: Further Information
  • Reference List: Standard Abbreviations
  • Data Sheets (inc. Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS))
  • Figures & Tables (inc. Images)
  • Lecture Materials (inc. PowerPoint Presentations)
  • Reports & Technical Reports
  • Theses and Dissertations
  • Reference list guidelines
  • Journal articles
  • Government and industry publications
  • Websites, newspaper and social media
  • Conference papers, theses and university material
  • Video and audio
  • Images, graphs, tables, data sets
  • Personal communications
  • In-text Citations
  • Journals / Periodicals
  • Encyclopedias and Dictionaries
  • Interviews and lectures
  • Music Scores / Recordings
  • Film / Video Recording
  • Television / Radio Broadcast
  • Online Communication / Social Media
  • Live Performances
  • Government and Organisation Publications
  • Medicine & health sources
  • Government/organisational/technical reports
  • Images, graphs, tables, figures & data sets
  • Websites newspaper & magazine articles, socia media
  • Conferences, theses & university materials
  • Personal communication & confidential unpublished material
  • Video, audio & other media
  • Generative AI
  • Indigenous knowledges

APA Contents

  • Introduction to APA style
  • In-Text Citations
  • Abbreviations
  • Audio and Visual media
  • Journals/periodicals
  • Tables and figures

Reference list format

  • Requirements for line spacing in assignment reference lists can vary so it is important to check with your lecturer or unit/assignment guide for what the requirements are.
  • The APA 6th Style manual specifies the following for the reference list.
  • The word References should appear in bold in upper and lower case and be centred at the top of the page
  • All reference entries should be double-spaced
  • All references should be in a " hanging indent " format. (This means that the first line of each reference is flush against the left margin and the subsequent lines of each reference are indented ).
  • Unless otherwise advised, the APA style above should be used.
  • Please note:  the sample reference list below is only in single line spacing to conserve room on this page for display.

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2008). Childhood education and care (No. 4402.0) . Retrieved from http://www.abs.gov.au

Beckett, S. T. (2008). The science of chocolate (2nd ed.). Cambridge, United Kingdom: Royal Society of Chemistry.

Branch, S., Ramsay, S., & Barker, M. (2008). The bullied boss: A conceptual exploration of upwards bullying. In A. Glendon, B. M. Thompson & B. Myors (Eds.), Advances in organisational psychology (pp. 93-112). Retrieved from http://www.informit.com.au/humanities.html

Cioe, J. (2012). The normal distribution [Lecture notes]. Retrieved from http://moodle.vle.monash.edu.au

Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). Available from http://www.austlii.edu.au

Department of Health and Ageing. (2012). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health performance framework 2012 report . Retrieved from http://www.health.gov.au/internet/publications/publishing.nsf/Content/oatsih-hpf-2012-toc

MacIntyre, S. (2008, August). Participation in the classroom, productivity in the workforce: Unfulfilled expectations . Paper presented at the 13th Australian Council for Educational Research Conference, Brisbane Qld. Retrieved from research.acer.edu.au/research_conference_2008/8

Preston, R. (2010). Observations in acute care: Evidence based approach to patient safety. British Journal of Nursing 19 , 442-447. Retrieved from http://www.britishjournalofnursing.com

Ramsey, J. K., & McGrew, W. C. (2005). Object play in great apes: Studies in nature and captivity. In A. D. Pellegrini & P. K. Smith (Eds.), The nature of play: Great apes and humans (pp. 89-112). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Sievers, W. (1966). Monash University [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/15565401 q=monash&c=picture&versionId=18284000

Tranquilli, A. L., Lorenzi, S., Buscicchio, G., Di Tommaso, M., Mazzanti, L. & Emanuelli, M. (2014). Female fetuses are more reactive when mother eats chocolate. The Journal of Maternal-Fetal & Neonatal Medicine, 27 (1), 72-74. doi:10.3109/14767058.2013.804053

Winter, J., Hunter, S., Sim, J., & Crome, P. (2011). Hands-on therapy interventions for upper limb motor dysfunction following stroke. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2011 (6). doi:10.1002/14651858.CD006609.pub.2

Wolchik, S. A., West, S. G., Sandler, I. N., Tein, J., Coatsworth, D., Lengua, L., ...Griffin, W. A. (2000). An experimental evaluation of theory-based mother and mother-child programs for children of divorce. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68 (5), 843–856. doi:10.1037//0022-006X.68.5.843

APA Citation Guide: Reference List & Sample Paper

  • Books & eBooks
  • Journal Articles
  • Class Notes, Lectures & Presentations
  • Magazine Articles
  • Newspaper Articles
  • Personal Communication (Interviews, Emails)
  • Social Media
  • Artificial Intelligence & Chatbots
  • Streaming Video & Digital Media
  • When Information is Missing
  • When Cited in Another Source
  • Paraphrasing
  • Reference List & Sample Paper
  • Annotated Bibliography

Sample Paper & Reference List

Apa student paper checklist.

Finished your assignment?

Use this checklist to be sure you haven't missed any information needed for APA style.

If you are adding an appendix to your paper there are a few rules to follow that comply with APA 7 guidelines:

  • The Appendix appears  after  the References list
  • If you have more than one appendix you would name the first appendix Appendix A, the second Appendix B, etc.
  • The appendices should appear in the order that the information is mentioned in your essay
  • Each appendix begins on a new page

For more information, see Jack Caulfield's excellent guide at Scribbr

Caulfield, J. (2020, November 13).  How to create an APA Style appendix . Scribbr. 

How to Create an APA Style Appendix | Format & Examples (scribbr.com)

General Guidelines for your Reference List

Your research paper ends with a list of all the sources cited in the text of the paper. Here are nine quick rules for this Reference list.

  • Start a new page for your Reference list. Center the title, References, at the top of the page.
  • Double-space the list.
  • Start the first line of each reference at the left margin; indent each subsequent line five spaces (a hanging indent).
  • Put your list in alphabetical order. Alphabetize the list by the first word in the reference. In most cases, the first word will be the author’s last name. Where the author is unknown, alphabetize by the first word in the title, ignoring the words a, an, the.
  • For each author, give the last name followed by a comma and the first (and middle, if listed) initials followed by periods.
  • Italicize the titles of these works: books, audiovisual material, web documents and newspapers, and the title and volume number of journals and magazines.
  • Do not italicize titles of most parts of works, such as: articles from newspapers, magazines, or journals / essays, poems, short stories or chapter titles from a book / chapters or sections of a web documents.
  • In titles of non-periodicals (books, videotapes, websites, reports, poems, essays, chapters, etc.), capitalize only the first letter of the first word of a title and subtitle, and all proper nouns (names of people, places, organizations, nationalities).
  • If a web source (not from the library) is not a stable archived version, or you are unsure whether it is stable, include a statement of the accessed date before the link.
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APA 7: Reference List

  • Paper Sections
  • Quote & Paraphrase
  • Format in Word
  • In-Text Citations

Reference List

  • Sample Paper

Format the Reference List

The reference page provides information about the resources used in your paper. Except for a few exceptions (classical works and personal communications, etc.), any source cited in your paper must have an entry in the reference list. 

To format the reference page of the paper:

Center the word References at the top of the page.

Place your references in alphabetical order

Select all of the references and set them to be double spaced and have a hanging indent.

  • APA Style Reference Examples More than 100 reference examples and their corresponding in-text citations. Look for the type of work (e.g., journal article, webpage) to determine the format.
  • Journal Article
  • Social Media
  • Videos & Films
  • Government Resources

Journal Articles

General format.

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Article title. Journal Title, volume number (issue number), pages. https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy

Freeman, R., Doughty, J., Macdonald, M. E., & Muirhead, V. (2020). Inclusion oral health: Advancing a theoretical framework for policy, research and practice. Community Dentistry & Oral Epidemiology, 48 (1), 1 – 6. https://doi-org.suscorp.idm.oclc.org/10.1111/cdoe.12500

Grady, J. S., Her, M., Moreno, G., Perez, C., & Yelinek, J. (2019). Emotions in storybooks: A comparison of storybooks that represent ethnic and racial groups in the United States. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 8 (3), 207–217. https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000185

Note: If the journal article does not have a DOI and is from an academic research database, end the reference after the page range. Do not include database information in the reference unless the journal article comes from a database that publishes works of limited circulation or original, proprietary content, such as UpToDate.

  • Journal Article References: APA Style

Newspaper Articles

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year, Month Day). Title of article.  Title of Newspaper , pages.

Carey, B. (2019, March 22). Can we get better at forgetting? The New York Times . https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/22/health/memory-forgetting-psychology.html

Rodell, B. (2020, January 15). Looking toward a new era of Australian cuisine. New York Times . https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/15/dining/australian-food-restaurants.html

  • Newspaper Article References: APA Style

Webpage with Author

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year, Month Day). Title of page . Site Name. URL

National Institute of Mental Health. (2018, July). Anxiety disorders . U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders/index.shtml

Woodyatt, A. (2019, September 10). Daytime naps once or twice a week may be linked to a healthy heart, researchers say . CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/10/health/nap-heart-health-wellness-intl-scli/index.html

Website: No Author Listed

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

Programming language . (2020, February 15). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Programming_language

Webpage with an organization group author

Organization Name. (Year, Month Day). Title of page . URL

World Health Organization. (2018, May 24) . The top 10 causes of death . https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/the-top-10-causes-of-death

  • Website References: APA Style
  • Online Media References: APA Style

Magazine Articles

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year, Month Day). Article title. Magazine Title, volume number (issue number), pages. https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy

Lyons, D. (2009, June 15). Don’t ‘iTune’ us: It’s geeks versus writers. Guess who’s winning. Newsweek , 153 (24), 27.

Schaefer, N. K., & Shapiro, B. (2019, September 6). New middle chapter in the story of human evolution. Science , 365 (6457), 981–982. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aay3550

Schulman, M. (2019, September 9). Superfans: A love story. The New Yorker . https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/09/16/superfans-a-love-story

  • Magazine Article References: APA Style

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle . Publisher Name.

  • Use the same format for both print books and ebooks.
  • Use the copyright date shown on the book’s copyright page as the year of publication in the reference, even if the copyright date is different than the release date.
  • Include any edition information in parentheses after the title, without italics.
  • If the book includes a DOI, include the DOI in the reference after the publisher name.

Rabinowitz, F. E. (2019). Deepening group psychotherapy with men: Stories and insights for the journey . American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000132-000

Sapolsky, R. M. (2017). Behave: The biology of humans at our best and worst . Penguin Books.

Edited Book Chapter

Aron, L., Botella, M., & Lubart, T. (2019). Culinary arts: Talent and their development. In R. F. Subotnik, P. Olszewski-Kubilius, & F. C. Worrell (Eds.), The psychology of high performance: Developing human potential into domain-specific talent (pp. 345–359). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000120-016

Torino, G. C., Rivera, D. P., Capodilupo, C. M., Nadal, K. L., & Sue, D. W. (Eds.). (2019). Microaggression theory: Influence and implications . John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119466642

  • Book/Ebook References: APA Style

Creator. (Year). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle [Type of work, e.g, Painting, Photograph, Sculpture, etc.]. Source name (usually the name of the website). URL.

Image with no attribution required

If the license associated with clip art or a stock image states “no attribution required,” then do not provide an APA Style reference, in-text citation, or copyright attribution. For example, an image from Pixabay might have a license that says the image is free to reproduce with no attribution required. To use the image as a figure in an APA Style paper, provide a figure number and title and then the image. If desired, describe the image in a figure note. In a presentation (such as a PowerPoint presentation), the figure number, title, and note are optional.

Beach

Note. The study took place on an island in the Pacific Ocean.

Image requiring attribution

Dog in the snow

Dog in snow

Note . From Lava [Photograph], by Denali National Park and Preserve, 2013, Flickr ( https://www.flickr.com/photos/denalinps/8639280606/ ). CC BY 2.0.

In reference section:

Denali National Park and Preserve. (2013). Lava [Photograph]. Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/photos/denalinps/8639280606/

van Gogh, V. (1889). The starry night [Painting]. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY, United States. https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/vincent-van-gogh-the-starry-night-1889/

  • Artwork References: APA Style
  • Stock Image References: APA Style

See the APA Style Guide website for details on how to cite using popular social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Reddit, TikTok, and Twitter.

  • Facebook References: APA Style
  • Instagram References: APA Style
  • LinkedIn References: APA Style
  • Online Forum (e.g., Reddit) References: APA Style
  • TikTok References: APA Style
  • Twitter References: APA Style

Director Last name, First initial. (Director).(Year). Film title [Film]. Production company or companies separated by a semicolon.

Fleming, V. (Director). (1939). Gone with the wind [Film]. Selznick International Pictures; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

TED Talk Video

Speaker Last name, First initial. (Year, Month Day). Talk title [Video]. TED Conferences. URL

Cuddy, A. (2012, June). Your body language may shape who you are [Video]. Ted Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_may_shape_who_you_are

Executive producer Last name, First initial. (Executive Producer).(Years aired). Series title [TV Series]. Production company or companies separated by a semicolon.

Serling, R. (Executive Producer). (1959–1964). The twilight zone [TV series]. Cayuga Productions; CBS Productions.

YouTube Video

Name of the account. (Upload date Year, Month Day). Video title [Video]. YouTube. URL

Harvard University. (2019, August 28). Soft robotic gripper for jellyfish [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guRoWTYfxMs

  • Film and Television References: APA Style
  • TED Talk References: APA Style
  • YouTube References: APA Style

Report by a Government Agency

Agency responsible for the report. (Year, Month Day). Report title . Parent agencies. URL

National Cancer Institute. (2019). Taking time: Support for people with cancer (NIH Publication No. 18-2059). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. https://www.cancer.gov/publications/patient-education/takingtime.pdf

  • Parenthetical citation: (National Cancer Institute, 2019)
  • Narrative citation: National Cancer Institute (2019)
  • Report by a Government Agency References: APA Style
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Research Method

Home » References in Research – Types, Examples and Writing Guide

References in Research – Types, Examples and Writing Guide

Table of Contents

References in Research

References in Research

Definition:

References in research are a list of sources that a researcher has consulted or cited while conducting their study. They are an essential component of any academic work, including research papers, theses, dissertations, and other scholarly publications.

Types of References

There are several types of references used in research, and the type of reference depends on the source of information being cited. The most common types of references include:

References to books typically include the author’s name, title of the book, publisher, publication date, and place of publication.

Example: Smith, J. (2018). The Art of Writing. Penguin Books.

Journal Articles

References to journal articles usually include the author’s name, title of the article, name of the journal, volume and issue number, page numbers, and publication date.

Example: Johnson, T. (2021). The Impact of Social Media on Mental Health. Journal of Psychology, 32(4), 87-94.

Web sources

References to web sources should include the author or organization responsible for the content, the title of the page, the URL, and the date accessed.

Example: World Health Organization. (2020). Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) advice for the public. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public

Conference Proceedings

References to conference proceedings should include the author’s name, title of the paper, name of the conference, location of the conference, date of the conference, and page numbers.

Example: Chen, S., & Li, J. (2019). The Future of AI in Education. Proceedings of the International Conference on Educational Technology, Beijing, China, July 15-17, pp. 67-78.

References to reports typically include the author or organization responsible for the report, title of the report, publication date, and publisher.

Example: United Nations. (2020). The Sustainable Development Goals Report. United Nations.

Formats of References

Some common Formates of References with their examples are as follows:

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

The APA (American Psychological Association) Style has specific guidelines for formatting references used in academic papers, articles, and books. Here are the different reference formats in APA style with examples:

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of book. Publisher.

Example : Smith, J. K. (2005). The psychology of social interaction. Wiley-Blackwell.

Journal Article

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year of publication). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume number(issue number), page numbers.

Example : Brown, L. M., Keating, J. G., & Jones, S. M. (2012). The role of social support in coping with stress among African American adolescents. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 22(1), 218-233.

Author, A. A. (Year of publication or last update). Title of page. Website name. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, December 11). COVID-19: How to protect yourself and others. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html

Magazine article

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Title of Magazine, volume number(issue number), page numbers.

Example : Smith, M. (2019, March 11). The power of positive thinking. Psychology Today, 52(3), 60-65.

Newspaper article:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Title of Newspaper, page numbers.

Example: Johnson, B. (2021, February 15). New study shows benefits of exercise on mental health. The New York Times, A8.

Edited book

Editor, E. E. (Ed.). (Year of publication). Title of book. Publisher.

Example : Thompson, J. P. (Ed.). (2014). Social work in the 21st century. Sage Publications.

Chapter in an edited book:

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Title of book (pp. page numbers). Publisher.

Example : Johnson, K. S. (2018). The future of social work: Challenges and opportunities. In J. P. Thompson (Ed.), Social work in the 21st century (pp. 105-118). Sage Publications.

MLA (Modern Language Association) Style

The MLA (Modern Language Association) Style is a widely used style for writing academic papers and essays in the humanities. Here are the different reference formats in MLA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Smith, John. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Journal article

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal, volume number, issue number, Publication year, page numbers.

Example : Brown, Laura M., et al. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence, vol. 22, no. 1, 2012, pp. 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name, Publication date, URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC, 11 Dec. 2020, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Publication date, page numbers.

Example : Smith, Mary. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, Mar. 2019, pp. 60-65.

Newspaper article

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Publication date, page numbers.

Example : Johnson, Bob. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, 15 Feb. 2021, p. A8.

Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Thompson, John P., editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. Sage Publications, 2014.

Chapter in an edited book

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last name, Publisher, Publication year, page numbers.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, Sage Publications, 2014, pp. 105-118.

Chicago Manual of Style

The Chicago Manual of Style is a widely used style for writing academic papers, dissertations, and books in the humanities and social sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Chicago style:

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number, no. issue number (Publication year): page numbers.

Example : Brown, Laura M., John G. Keating, and Sarah M. Jones. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 22, no. 1 (2012): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name. Publication date. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. December 11, 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Publication date.

Example : Smith, Mary. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 2019.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Publication date.

Example : Johnson, Bob. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Example : Thompson, John P., ed. Social Work in the 21st Century. Sage Publications, 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last Name, page numbers. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, 105-118. Sage Publications, 2014.

Harvard Style

The Harvard Style, also known as the Author-Date System, is a widely used style for writing academic papers and essays in the social sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Harvard Style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Smith, John. 2005. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number (issue number): page numbers.

Example: Brown, Laura M., John G. Keating, and Sarah M. Jones. 2012. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 22 (1): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name. URL. Accessed date.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2020. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html. Accessed April 1, 2023.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, month and date of publication.

Example : Smith, Mary. 2019. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 2019.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, month and date of publication.

Example : Johnson, Bob. 2021. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Year of publication. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Thompson, John P., ed. 2014. Social Work in the 21st Century. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last Name, page numbers. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. 2014. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, 105-118. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Vancouver Style

The Vancouver Style, also known as the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals, is a widely used style for writing academic papers in the biomedical sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Vancouver Style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. 2nd ed. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell; 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title. Year of publication; volume number(issue number):page numbers.

Example : Brown LM, Keating JG, Jones SM. The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents. J Res Adolesc. 2012;22(1):218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Webpage. Website Name [Internet]. Publication date. [cited date]. Available from: URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others [Internet]. 2020 Dec 11. [cited 2023 Apr 1]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Title of Magazine. Year of publication; month and day of publication:page numbers.

Example : Smith M. The Power of Positive Thinking. Psychology Today. 2019 Mar 1:32-35.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Title of Newspaper. Year of publication; month and day of publication:page numbers.

Example : Johnson B. New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health. The New York Times. 2021 Feb 15:A4.

Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example: Thompson JP, editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. 1st ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Chapter. In: Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication. page numbers.

Example : Johnson KS. The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities. In: Thompson JP, editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. 1st ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2014. p. 105-118.

Turabian Style

Turabian style is a variation of the Chicago style used in academic writing, particularly in the fields of history and humanities. Here are the different reference formats in Turabian style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number, no. issue number (Year of publication): page numbers.

Example : Brown, LM, Keating, JG, Jones, SM. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” J Res Adolesc 22, no. 1 (2012): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Name of Website. Publication date. Accessed date. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. December 11, 2020. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Month Day, Year of publication, page numbers.

Example : Smith, M. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 1, 2019, 32-35.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Month Day, Year of publication.

Example : Johnson, B. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Thompson, JP, ed. Social Work in the 21st Century. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s Last name, First name, page numbers. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Johnson, KS. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by Thompson, JP, 105-118. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2014.

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Style

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) style is commonly used in engineering, computer science, and other technical fields. Here are the different reference formats in IEEE style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Oppenheim, A. V., & Schafer, R. W. Discrete-Time Signal Processing. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2010.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Abbreviated Journal Title, vol. number, no. issue number, pp. page numbers, Month year of publication.

Example: Shannon, C. E. “A Mathematical Theory of Communication.” Bell System Technical Journal, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 379-423, July 1948.

Conference paper

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Paper.” In Title of Conference Proceedings, Place of Conference, Date of Conference, pp. page numbers, Year of publication.

Example: Gupta, S., & Kumar, P. “An Improved System of Linear Discriminant Analysis for Face Recognition.” In Proceedings of the 2011 International Conference on Computer Science and Network Technology, Harbin, China, Dec. 2011, pp. 144-147.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Name of Website. Date of publication or last update. Accessed date. URL.

Example : National Aeronautics and Space Administration. “Apollo 11.” NASA. July 20, 1969. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/apollo11.html.

Technical report

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Report.” Name of Institution or Organization, Report number, Year of publication.

Example : Smith, J. R. “Development of a New Solar Panel Technology.” National Renewable Energy Laboratory, NREL/TP-6A20-51645, 2011.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Patent.” Patent number, Issue date.

Example : Suzuki, H. “Method of Producing Carbon Nanotubes.” US Patent 7,151,019, December 19, 2006.

Standard Title. Standard number, Publication date.

Example : IEEE Standard for Floating-Point Arithmetic. IEEE Std 754-2008, August 29, 2008

ACS (American Chemical Society) Style

ACS (American Chemical Society) style is commonly used in chemistry and related fields. Here are the different reference formats in ACS style:

Author’s Last name, First name; Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title Year, Volume, Page Numbers.

Example : Wang, Y.; Zhao, X.; Cui, Y.; Ma, Y. Facile Preparation of Fe3O4/graphene Composites Using a Hydrothermal Method for High-Performance Lithium Ion Batteries. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2012, 4, 2715-2721.

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title; Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication.

Example : Carey, F. A. Organic Chemistry; McGraw-Hill: New York, 2008.

Author’s Last name, First name. Chapter Title. In Book Title; Editor’s Last name, First name, Ed.; Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication; Volume number, Chapter number, Page Numbers.

Example : Grossman, R. B. Analytical Chemistry of Aerosols. In Aerosol Measurement: Principles, Techniques, and Applications; Baron, P. A.; Willeke, K., Eds.; Wiley-Interscience: New York, 2001; Chapter 10, pp 395-424.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Webpage. Website Name, URL (accessed date).

Example : National Institute of Standards and Technology. Atomic Spectra Database. https://www.nist.gov/pml/atomic-spectra-database (accessed April 1, 2023).

Author’s Last name, First name. Patent Number. Patent Date.

Example : Liu, Y.; Huang, H.; Chen, H.; Zhang, W. US Patent 9,999,999, December 31, 2022.

Author’s Last name, First name; Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. In Title of Conference Proceedings, Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication; Volume Number, Page Numbers.

Example : Jia, H.; Xu, S.; Wu, Y.; Wu, Z.; Tang, Y.; Huang, X. Fast Adsorption of Organic Pollutants by Graphene Oxide. In Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology, American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2017; Volume 1, pp 223-228.

AMA (American Medical Association) Style

AMA (American Medical Association) style is commonly used in medical and scientific fields. Here are the different reference formats in AMA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Article Title. Journal Abbreviation. Year; Volume(Issue):Page Numbers.

Example : Jones, R. A.; Smith, B. C. The Role of Vitamin D in Maintaining Bone Health. JAMA. 2019;321(17):1765-1773.

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : Guyton, A. C.; Hall, J. E. Textbook of Medical Physiology. 13th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Saunders; 2015.

Author’s Last name, First name. Chapter Title. In: Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: Page Numbers.

Example: Rajakumar, K. Vitamin D and Bone Health. In: Holick, M. F., ed. Vitamin D: Physiology, Molecular Biology, and Clinical Applications. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Springer; 2010:211-222.

Author’s Last name, First name. Webpage Title. Website Name. URL. Published date. Updated date. Accessed date.

Example : National Cancer Institute. Breast Cancer Prevention (PDQ®)–Patient Version. National Cancer Institute. https://www.cancer.gov/types/breast/patient/breast-prevention-pdq. Published October 11, 2022. Accessed April 1, 2023.

Author’s Last name, First name. Conference presentation title. In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Place of Conference.

Example : Smith, J. R. Vitamin D and Bone Health: A Meta-Analysis. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research; September 20-23, 2022; San Diego, CA.

Thesis or dissertation

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Thesis or Dissertation. Degree level [Doctoral dissertation or Master’s thesis]. University Name; Year.

Example : Wilson, S. A. The Effects of Vitamin D Supplementation on Bone Health in Postmenopausal Women [Doctoral dissertation]. University of California, Los Angeles; 2018.

ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) Style

The ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) style is commonly used in civil engineering fields. Here are the different reference formats in ASCE style:

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title, volume number, issue number (year): page numbers. DOI or URL (if available).

Example : Smith, J. R. “Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Sustainable Drainage Systems in Urban Areas.” Journal of Environmental Engineering, vol. 146, no. 3 (2020): 04020010. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EE.1943-7870.0001668.

Example : McCuen, R. H. Hydrologic Analysis and Design. 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education; 2013.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” In: Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: page numbers.

Example : Maidment, D. R. “Floodplain Management in the United States.” In: Shroder, J. F., ed. Treatise on Geomorphology. San Diego, CA: Academic Press; 2013: 447-460.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Paper Title.” In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Location. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: page numbers.

Example: Smith, J. R. “Sustainable Drainage Systems for Urban Areas.” In: Proceedings of the ASCE International Conference on Sustainable Infrastructure; November 6-9, 2019; Los Angeles, CA. Reston, VA: American Society of Civil Engineers; 2019: 156-163.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Report Title.” Report number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. “Hurricane Sandy Coastal Risk Reduction Program, New York and New Jersey.” Report No. P-15-001. Washington, DC: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; 2015.

CSE (Council of Science Editors) Style

The CSE (Council of Science Editors) style is commonly used in the scientific and medical fields. Here are the different reference formats in CSE style:

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Article Title.” Journal Title. Year;Volume(Issue):Page numbers.

Example : Smith, J.R. “Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Sustainable Drainage Systems in Urban Areas.” Journal of Environmental Engineering. 2020;146(3):04020010.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Chapter Title.” In: Editor’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial., ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year:Page numbers.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Paper Title.” In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Location. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : Smith, J.R. “Sustainable Drainage Systems for Urban Areas.” In: Proceedings of the ASCE International Conference on Sustainable Infrastructure; November 6-9, 2019; Los Angeles, CA. Reston, VA: American Society of Civil Engineers; 2019.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Report Title.” Report number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Bluebook Style

The Bluebook style is commonly used in the legal field for citing legal documents and sources. Here are the different reference formats in Bluebook style:

Case citation

Case name, volume source page (Court year).

Example : Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954).

Statute citation

Name of Act, volume source § section number (year).

Example : Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7401 (1963).

Regulation citation

Name of regulation, volume source § section number (year).

Example: Clean Air Act, 40 C.F.R. § 52.01 (2019).

Book citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. Book Title. Edition number (if applicable). Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example: Smith, J.R. Legal Writing and Analysis. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Aspen Publishers; 2015.

Journal article citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Article Title.” Journal Title. Volume number (year): first page-last page.

Example: Garcia, C. “The Right to Counsel: An International Comparison.” International Journal of Legal Information. 43 (2015): 63-94.

Website citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed month day, year).

Example : United Nations. “Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Oxford Style

The Oxford style, also known as the Oxford referencing system or the documentary-note citation system, is commonly used in the humanities, including literature, history, and philosophy. Here are the different reference formats in Oxford style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.

Example : Smith, John. The Art of Writing. New York: Penguin, 2020.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume, no. issue (year): page range.

Example: Garcia, Carlos. “The Role of Ethics in Philosophy.” Philosophy Today 67, no. 3 (2019): 53-68.

Chapter in an edited book citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title, edited by Editor’s Name, page range. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.

Example : Lee, Mary. “Feminism in the 21st Century.” In The Oxford Handbook of Feminism, edited by Jane Smith, 51-69. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed day month year).

Example : Jones, David. “The Importance of Learning Languages.” Oxford Language Center. https://www.oxfordlanguagecenter.com/importance-of-learning-languages/ (accessed 3 January 2023).

Dissertation or thesis citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Dissertation/Thesis.” PhD diss., University Name, Year of Publication.

Example : Brown, Susan. “The Art of Storytelling in American Literature.” PhD diss., University of Oxford, 2020.

Newspaper article citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Newspaper Title, Month Day, Year.

Example : Robinson, Andrew. “New Developments in Climate Change Research.” The Guardian, September 15, 2022.

AAA (American Anthropological Association) Style

The American Anthropological Association (AAA) style is commonly used in anthropology research papers and journals. Here are the different reference formats in AAA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example : Smith, John. 2019. The Anthropology of Food. New York: Routledge.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume, no. issue: page range.

Example : Garcia, Carlos. 2021. “The Role of Ethics in Anthropology.” American Anthropologist 123, no. 2: 237-251.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title, edited by Editor’s Name, page range. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example: Lee, Mary. 2018. “Feminism in Anthropology.” In The Oxford Handbook of Feminism, edited by Jane Smith, 51-69. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed day month year).

Example : Jones, David. 2020. “The Importance of Learning Languages.” Oxford Language Center. https://www.oxfordlanguagecenter.com/importance-of-learning-languages/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Title of Dissertation/Thesis.” PhD diss., University Name.

Example : Brown, Susan. 2022. “The Art of Storytelling in Anthropology.” PhD diss., University of California, Berkeley.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Article Title.” Newspaper Title, Month Day.

Example : Robinson, Andrew. 2021. “New Developments in Anthropology Research.” The Guardian, September 15.

AIP (American Institute of Physics) Style

The American Institute of Physics (AIP) style is commonly used in physics research papers and journals. Here are the different reference formats in AIP style:

Example : Johnson, S. D. 2021. “Quantum Computing and Information.” Journal of Applied Physics 129, no. 4: 043102.

Example : Feynman, Richard. 2018. The Feynman Lectures on Physics. New York: Basic Books.

Example : Jones, David. 2020. “The Future of Quantum Computing.” In The Handbook of Physics, edited by John Smith, 125-136. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Conference proceedings citation

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Title of Paper.” Proceedings of Conference Name, date and location: page range. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example : Chen, Wei. 2019. “The Applications of Nanotechnology in Solar Cells.” Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Nanotechnology, July 15-17, Tokyo, Japan: 224-229. New York: AIP Publishing.

Example : American Institute of Physics. 2022. “About AIP Publishing.” AIP Publishing. https://publishing.aip.org/about-aip-publishing/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Patent citation

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. Patent Number.

Example : Smith, John. 2018. US Patent 9,873,644.

References Writing Guide

Here are some general guidelines for writing references:

  • Follow the citation style guidelines: Different disciplines and journals may require different citation styles (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago). It is important to follow the specific guidelines for the citation style required.
  • Include all necessary information : Each citation should include enough information for readers to locate the source. For example, a journal article citation should include the author(s), title of the article, journal title, volume number, issue number, page numbers, and publication year.
  • Use proper formatting: Citation styles typically have specific formatting requirements for different types of sources. Make sure to follow the proper formatting for each citation.
  • Order citations alphabetically: If listing multiple sources, they should be listed alphabetically by the author’s last name.
  • Be consistent: Use the same citation style throughout the entire paper or project.
  • Check for accuracy: Double-check all citations to ensure accuracy, including correct spelling of author names and publication information.
  • Use reputable sources: When selecting sources to cite, choose reputable and authoritative sources. Avoid sources that are biased or unreliable.
  • Include all sources: Make sure to include all sources used in the research, including those that were not directly quoted but still informed the work.
  • Use online tools : There are online tools available (e.g., citation generators) that can help with formatting and organizing references.

Purpose of References in Research

References in research serve several purposes:

  • To give credit to the original authors or sources of information used in the research. It is important to acknowledge the work of others and avoid plagiarism.
  • To provide evidence for the claims made in the research. References can support the arguments, hypotheses, or conclusions presented in the research by citing relevant studies, data, or theories.
  • To allow readers to find and verify the sources used in the research. References provide the necessary information for readers to locate and access the sources cited in the research, which allows them to evaluate the quality and reliability of the information presented.
  • To situate the research within the broader context of the field. References can show how the research builds on or contributes to the existing body of knowledge, and can help readers to identify gaps in the literature that the research seeks to address.

Importance of References in Research

References play an important role in research for several reasons:

  • Credibility : By citing authoritative sources, references lend credibility to the research and its claims. They provide evidence that the research is based on a sound foundation of knowledge and has been carefully researched.
  • Avoidance of Plagiarism : References help researchers avoid plagiarism by giving credit to the original authors or sources of information. This is important for ethical reasons and also to avoid legal repercussions.
  • Reproducibility : References allow others to reproduce the research by providing detailed information on the sources used. This is important for verification of the research and for others to build on the work.
  • Context : References provide context for the research by situating it within the broader body of knowledge in the field. They help researchers to understand where their work fits in and how it builds on or contributes to existing knowledge.
  • Evaluation : References provide a means for others to evaluate the research by allowing them to assess the quality and reliability of the sources used.

Advantages of References in Research

There are several advantages of including references in research:

  • Acknowledgment of Sources: Including references gives credit to the authors or sources of information used in the research. This is important to acknowledge the original work and avoid plagiarism.
  • Evidence and Support : References can provide evidence to support the arguments, hypotheses, or conclusions presented in the research. This can add credibility and strength to the research.
  • Reproducibility : References provide the necessary information for others to reproduce the research. This is important for the verification of the research and for others to build on the work.
  • Context : References can help to situate the research within the broader body of knowledge in the field. This helps researchers to understand where their work fits in and how it builds on or contributes to existing knowledge.
  • Evaluation : Including references allows others to evaluate the research by providing a means to assess the quality and reliability of the sources used.
  • Ongoing Conversation: References allow researchers to engage in ongoing conversations and debates within their fields. They can show how the research builds on or contributes to the existing body of knowledge.

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Google helped make an exquisitely detailed map of a tiny piece of the human brain

A small brain sample was sliced into 5,000 pieces, and machine learning helped stitch it back together.

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A team led by scientists from Harvard and Google has created a 3D, nanoscale-resolution map of a single cubic millimeter of the human brain. Although the map covers just a fraction of the organ—a whole brain is a million times larger—that piece contains roughly 57,000 cells, about 230 millimeters of blood vessels, and nearly 150 million synapses. It is currently the highest-resolution picture of the human brain ever created.

To make a map this finely detailed, the team had to cut the tissue sample into 5,000 slices and scan them with a high-speed electron microscope. Then they used a machine-learning model to help electronically stitch the slices back together and label the features. The raw data set alone took up 1.4 petabytes. “It’s probably the most computer-intensive work in all of neuroscience,” says Michael Hawrylycz, a computational neuroscientist at the Allen Institute for Brain Science, who was not involved in the research. “There is a Herculean amount of work involved.”

Many other brain atlases exist, but most provide much lower-resolution data. At the nanoscale, researchers can trace the brain’s wiring one neuron at a time to the synapses, the places where they connect. “To really understand how the human brain works, how it processes information, how it stores memories, we will ultimately need a map that’s at that resolution,” says Viren Jain, a senior research scientist at Google and coauthor on the paper, published in Science on May 9 . The data set itself and a preprint version of this paper were released in 2021 .

Brain atlases come in many forms. Some reveal how the cells are organized. Others cover gene expression. This one focuses on connections between cells, a field called “connectomics.” The outermost layer of the brain contains roughly 16 billion neurons that link up with each other to form trillions of connections. A single neuron might receive information from hundreds or even thousands of other neurons and send information to a similar number. That makes tracing these connections an exceedingly complex task, even in just a small piece of the brain..  

To create this map, the team faced a number of hurdles. The first problem was finding a sample of brain tissue. The brain deteriorates quickly after death, so cadaver tissue doesn’t work. Instead, the team used a piece of tissue removed from a woman with epilepsy during brain surgery that was meant to help control her seizures.

Once the researchers had the sample, they had to carefully preserve it in resin so that it could be cut into slices, each about a thousandth the thickness of a human hair. Then they imaged the sections using a high-speed electron microscope designed specifically for this project. 

Next came the computational challenge. “You have all of these wires traversing everywhere in three dimensions, making all kinds of different connections,” Jain says. The team at Google used a machine-learning model to stitch the slices back together, align each one with the next, color-code the wiring, and find the connections. This is harder than it might seem. “If you make a single mistake, then all of the connections attached to that wire are now incorrect,” Jain says. 

“The ability to get this deep a reconstruction of any human brain sample is an important advance,” says Seth Ament, a neuroscientist at the University of Maryland. The map is “the closest to the  ground truth that we can get right now.” But he also cautions that it’s a single brain specimen taken from a single individual. 

The map, which is freely available at a web platform called Neuroglancer , is meant to be a resource other researchers can use to make their own discoveries. “Now anybody who’s interested in studying the human cortex in this level of detail can go into the data themselves. They can proofread certain structures to make sure everything is correct, and then publish their own findings,” Jain says. (The preprint has already been cited at least 136 times .) 

The team has already identified some surprises. For example, some of the long tendrils that carry signals from one neuron to the next formed “whorls,” spots where they twirled around themselves. Axons typically form a single synapse to transmit information to the next cell. The team identified single axons that formed repeated connections—in some cases, 50 separate synapses. Why that might be isn’t yet clear, but the strong bonds could help facilitate very quick or strong reactions to certain stimuli, Jain says. “It’s a very simple finding about the organization of the human cortex,” he says. But “we didn’t know this before because we didn’t have maps at this resolution.”

The data set was full of surprises, says Jeff Lichtman, a neuroscientist at Harvard University who helped lead the research. “There were just so many things in it that were incompatible with what you would read in a textbook.” The researchers may not have explanations for what they’re seeing, but they have plenty of new questions: “That’s the way science moves forward.” 

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Editorial article, editorial: capturing talk: the institutional practices surrounding the transcription of spoken language.

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  • 1 Research Hub for Language in Forensic Evidence, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia
  • 2 Aston Institute for Forensic Linguistics, Aston University, Birmingham, United Kingdom
  • 3 Department of Communication and Media, School of Social Science and Humanities, Loughborough University, Loughborough, United Kingdom
  • 4 Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR), Amsterdam, Netherlands

Editorial on the Research Topic Capturing talk: the institutional practices surrounding the transcription of spoken language

Transcripts are a ubiquitous feature of virtually all modern institutions, many of which would be unable to function without them. Nevertheless, transcription remains an under-researched subject—a situation that Capturing talk: the institutional practices surrounding the transcription of spoken language seeks to remedy.

The initial aim of this Research Topic was to expose and examine under-appreciated features of “entextualization” (the process of representing spoken language as written text). One of these features is the fact that a transcript can only ever be a representation of speech, not a copy—and thus can never represent speech exactly. Another feature, well-articulated by Sarangi (1998) , is the unequal power over the process of transcription exercised by, on the one hand, the speakers whose voices are represented, and, on the other, by those controlling the transcription process.

Where Sarangi's interest was mainly in health and social services institutions, the present Research Topic has a leaning toward legal institutions, where, arguably, these power inequalities are even more starkly contrasted—as demonstrated by the territory-defining volume ( Heffer et al., 2013 ).

Four of the papers in this Research Topic deal with police interviews, providing insight into differing practices across jurisdictions and type of interview (e.g., whether with witnesses or suspects). Several papers examine the practice of converting an interview into a “statement,” written up by the officers who conduct the interviews. Beginning with interviews with witnesses in England and Wales (E&W), Milne et al. analyze a sample of such statements against transcripts produced by the researchers from an audio recording. The omissions, additions, distortions, and other errors in the police versions give cause for deep concern.

An extended study analyzing the creation of records of interviews with suspects in the Netherlands is recounted by Komter , which, again, contrasts transcripts prepared by police interviewers, with the author's transcripts prepared from audio recordings. Again, many concerning limitations on the police transcripts are observed and analyzed. However, while her own transcripts are far more detailed, Komter acknowledges that she too is necessarily selective in what she chooses to represent, guided by the evolving research questions she seeks to investigate.

One practice Komter discusses is that of police records presenting an interview as a monolog, in the voice of the interviewee, rather than as the question-and-answer dialogue it actually was. This practice is also investigated by Eerland and van Charldorp , again focusing on the Dutch context. These authors study how readers of the statements were influenced by three different styles of reporting (monolog, dialogue and narrative), with the troubling finding that the style of reporting affected perceptions of the statements' accuracy and comprehensibility.

In many jurisdictions, police interviews with suspects are routinely audio- or video-recorded. However, this does not signal the end of problems with the representation of these high-stakes interactions. The last of our interview papers is Haworth et al. , which summarizes the key findings to date of an ongoing study of the transcription of electronic records of interviews with suspects in E&W. It demonstrates a range of problems with official police transcripts even when these ostensibly capture the dialogue “verbatim,” and proposes that consistency, accuracy, and neutrality are the foundational features that should underpin any police interview transcript.

A second group of papers studies transcription in non-legal institutional settings. Holder et al. delves into two very large and highly structured organizations with serious security needs: NASA and the US Military. Both make extensive use of audio and video recordings capturing employees as they work—with transcripts produced either routinely, or on demand. The authors look into the two organizations' use of these transcripts, again comparing the official transcripts with their own transcripts of selected sections, using conversation analysis (CA) conventions.

Park and Hepburn also examine CA-style transcripts. Taking as an example Rachel Mitchell's interview of US Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh about his alleged historical sexual misconduct, these authors compare the information retrievable from a richly detailed Jeffersonian transcript with an orthographic transcript that “wipes out” or “skates over” crucial aspects of speech used by speakers and listeners in constructing the message expressed by the speech.

Another institutional use of transcripts covered in Capturing Talk concerns workers on the assembly line of a small factory in Sweden. Carlsson and Harari report an observation-and-interview study of the instruction manuals created by the workers. While they find much to commend in the retention of power by the creators and users of the manuals, the authors observe room for improvement in the “information design” of the texts, recommending that consultation of linguistics experts could offer benefits.

Voutilainen showcases the high quality of transcripts produced as an official record of the complex and challenging multicultural discussions of wide-ranging Research Topics covered by the parliament in Finland. His account demonstrates how much thought, research and work goes into managing all the factors that need to be considered to create transcripts of this standard.

In a return to the legal setting, a further group of papers examines transcripts of forensic audio, i.e., recordings of speech used as evidence in criminal trials. These are often of very poor quality, meaning that the transcript is intended not as a record of what was said, but as assistance to the court in determining what was said. Internationally, it is common for such transcripts to be provided by police investigating the case. While the courts recognize that police transcripts might contain errors, they rely on judges and/or juries being able to check the transcript against the audio. This ignores well-established research findings that the very act of checking a transcript can cause the listener to hear in line with the transcript, even if it is demonstrably false. For this reason, linguists sometimes recommend that, to ensure accuracy, transcripts should be produced by independent experts in transcription.

However, mere independence may not be enough, and Love and Wright point out some important caveats around this recommendation. They had eight trained transcribers produce transcripts of poor-quality forensic-like audio—finding huge divergences in the content of the transcripts (< 3% of conversational turns were transcribed consistently by all eight participants). This demonstrates that transcribing poor-quality forensic audio needs not just expertise in linguistics, but a managed, evidence-based method.

Recently, a common response to any discussion of the difficulty of transcribing poor-quality audio has been: “Why not let AI do it?” Loakes investigates this suggestion, finding that, while modern automatic speech recognition (ASR) systems are extremely efficient at transcribing good-quality audio, their performance on poor-quality forensic-like audio is low. Even the best-performing system, Whisper, scored only around 50% accuracy, with others far lower.

Harrington also observed low scores for ASR transcripts of poor-quality forensic-like audio. Bridging two of the main areas considered in this Research Topic, she also trialed ASR on recordings of police interviews. The resulting transcripts, though not problem-free, score far higher than those of covert recordings, with errors easier to identify. Harrington makes innovative recommendations for how ASR could be used as a “first draft” interview transcript, to be refined via human transcribers.

Two papers consider the transcription and translation of forensic audio featuring languages other than English. Gilbert and Heydon look at translated transcripts of Vietnamese recordings used as evidence in a drug-related trial. They point out significant errors in the translations, but note that, unless the defense goes to the expense of hiring their own translator/interpreter, such errors are unlikely to be detected—and suggest that audio in languages other than English is often admitted with inadequately tested translations.

Lai presents results of a large national survey of the practices and concerns of translators and interpreters who undertake forensic casework across a wide range of languages. Here, too, results indicate a number of important deficiencies in current practice for translating forensic audio featuring languages other than English—and Lai makes valuable recommendations for improvement.

Finally, taking an authoritative overview of the key issues relevant to this Research Topic, Fraser provides a systematic review of interdisciplinary research on transcripts and transcription, and sets out a series of interacting factors that are known to affect a transcript's reliability. Using examples from a range of legal and academic situations, Fraser argues that, to ensure a transcript is suitable for its intended purpose, it is essential that all the factors be appropriately managed.

Taken as a whole, Capturing Talk amplifies two observations made in both Sarangi (1998) and Heffer et al. (2013) , which, though not the exclusive focus of any individual paper, are highlighted throughout the Research Topic. First, the strong role that context inevitably plays in the interpretation of a transcript implies that “recontextualization” (using a transcript in a context other than the one it was created in) is likely to change its interpretation. Second, even the most expert linguistic analysis of transcripts produced by others is not itself a neutral or “objective” activity. However, this does not mean that such analysis must be “subjective” in any limiting sense. Rather it indicates a need for transcripts to be produced and analyzed by independent, context-aware experts able to devote appropriate attention to all relevant factors.

Most importantly, all contributions to Capturing Talk emphasize that transcription is far from the simple transduction of “sounds” into letters that it is often assumed to be by those who have not studied its intricacies. It is a highly complex and fascinating Research Topic worthy of taking its place as a dedicated field of research in its own right, particularly in view of the widespread misconceptions and unhelpful language ideologies that still beset the institutional practices surrounding the transcription of spoken language.

Author contributions

HF: Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing. KH: Writing – review & editing. FD: Writing – review & editing. DL: Writing – review & editing. ER: Writing – review & editing. MK: Writing – review & editing.

The author(s) declare that no financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher's note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Heffer, C., Rock, F., and Conley, J. (2013). Legal-Lay Communication: Textual Travels in the Law . Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Google Scholar

Sarangi, S. (1998). Rethinking recontextualization in professional discourse studies: an epilogue. Text Talk 18, 301–318. doi: 10.1515/text.1.1998.18.2.301

Crossref Full Text | Google Scholar

Keywords: transcription, misconceptions about language and linguistics, language ideologies, forensic linguistics, forensic transcription, police interviews and interrogations, entextualization

Citation: Fraser H, Haworth K, Deamer F, Loakes D, Richardson E and Komter M (2024) Editorial: Capturing talk: the institutional practices surrounding the transcription of spoken language. Front. Commun. 9:1417465. doi: 10.3389/fcomm.2024.1417465

Received: 15 April 2024; Accepted: 22 April 2024; Published: 08 May 2024.

Edited and reviewed by: Mila Vulchanova , NTNU, Norway

Copyright © 2024 Fraser, Haworth, Deamer, Loakes, Richardson and Komter. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Helen Fraser, helen.fraser@unimelb.edu.au

This article is part of the Research Topic

Capturing Talk: The Institutional Practices Surrounding the Transcription of Spoken Language

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    The APA 6th Style manual specifies the following for the reference list. The word References should appear in bold in upper and lower case and be centred at the top of the page. All reference entries should be double-spaced. All references should be in a " hanging indent " format. (This means that the first line of each reference is flush ...

  14. Reference List & Sample Paper

    Center the title, References, at the top of the page. Double-space the list. Start the first line of each reference at the left margin; indent each subsequent line five spaces (a hanging indent). Put your list in alphabetical order. Alphabetize the list by the first word in the reference. In most cases, the first word will be the author's ...

  15. Reference List

    To format the reference page of the paper: Center the word References at the top of the page. Place your references in alphabetical order. Select all of the references and set them to be double spaced and have a hanging indent. APA Style Reference Examples. More than 100 reference examples and their corresponding in-text citations.

  16. Setting Up the APA Reference Page

    On the APA reference page, you list all the sources that you've cited in your paper. The list starts on a new page right after the body text. Follow these instructions to set up your APA reference page: Place the section label "References" in bold at the top of the page (centered). Order the references alphabetically. Double-space all text.

  17. References in Research

    Journal Articles. References to journal articles usually include the author's name, title of the article, name of the journal, volume and issue number, page numbers, and publication date. Example: Johnson, T. (2021). The Impact of Social Media on Mental Health. Journal of Psychology, 32 (4), 87-94.

  18. APA Sample Paper

    Media Files: APA Sample Student Paper , APA Sample Professional Paper This resource is enhanced by Acrobat PDF files. Download the free Acrobat Reader. Note: The APA Publication Manual, 7 th Edition specifies different formatting conventions for student and professional papers (i.e., papers written for credit in a course and papers intended for scholarly publication).

  19. Reference List Information, Sample Papers, and Templates

    Your research paper ends with a list of all the sources cited in the text of the paper. Here are nine quick rules for this Reference list. Start a new page for your Reference list. Center and bold the title, References, at the top of the page. Double-space the list.

  20. PDF APA 7 Student Sample Paper

    In this sample paper, we've put four blank lines above the title. Commented [AF3]: Authors' names are written below the title, with one double-spaced blank line between them. Names should be written as follows: First name, middle initial(s), last name. Commented [AF4]: Authors' affiliations follow immediately after their names.

  21. References

    References provide the information necessary for readers to identify and retrieve each work cited in the text. Check each reference carefully against the original publication to ensure information is accurate and complete. Accurately prepared references help establish your credibility as a careful researcher and writer. Consistency in reference ...

  22. Google helped make an exquisitely detailed map of a tiny piece of the

    To create this map, the team faced a number of hurdles. The first problem was finding a sample of brain tissue. The brain deteriorates quickly after death, so cadaver tissue doesn't work.

  23. Welcome to the Purdue Online Writing Lab

    The Purdue OWL offers global support through online reference materials and services. A Message From the Assistant Director of Content Development The Purdue OWL® is committed to supporting students, instructors, and writers by offering a wide range of resources that are developed and revised with them in mind.

  24. Formatting

    Your research paper ends with a list of all the sources cited in the text of the paper. Here are nine quick rules for this Reference list. Start a new page for your Reference list. Centre the title, References, at the top of the page. Double-space the list.

  25. Basic principles of citation

    APA Style uses the author-date citation system, in which a brief in-text citation directs readers to a full reference list entry.The in-text citation appears within the body of the paper (or in a table, figure, footnote, or appendix) and briefly identifies the cited work by its author and date of publication.

  26. Frontiers

    The initial aim of this Research Topic was to expose and examine under-appreciated features of 'entextualisation' (the process of representing spoken language as written text). One of these features is the fact that a transcript can only ever be a representation of speech, not a copy -and thus can never represent speech exactly. Another feature, well articulated by Sarangi (1998), is the ...

  27. Sample papers

    These sample papers demonstrate APA Style formatting standards for different student paper types. Students may write the same types of papers as professional authors (e.g., quantitative studies, literature reviews) or other types of papers for course assignments (e.g., reaction or response papers, discussion posts), dissertations, and theses.