When using APA format, follow the author-date method of in-text citation. This means that the author's last name and the year of publication for the source should appear in the text, like, for example, (Jones, 1998). One complete reference for each source should appear in the reference list at the end of the paper.
If you are referring to an idea from another work but NOT directly quoting the material (i.e. paraphrasing), or making reference to an entire book, article or other work, you only have to make reference to the author and year of publication and not the page number in your in-text reference. APA guidelines, however, do encourage including a page range for a summary or paraphrase when it will help the reader find the information in a longer work.
Regardless of how they are referenced, all sources that are cited in the text must appear in the reference list at the end of the paper.
Source: Purdue OWL
When you write information from a source in your own words, cite the source by adding an in-text citation at the end of the paraphrased portion as follows:
Mother-infant attachment became a leading topic of developmental research following the publication of John Bowlby's studies (Hunt, 1993).
If you refer to the author's name in a sentence you do not have to include the name again as part of your in-text citation, instead include the year of publication following his/her name:
Hunt (1993) noted that mother-infant attachment became a leading topic of developmental research after the publication of John Bowlby's studies.
Original Source
Homeless individuals commonly come from families who are riddled with problems and marital disharmony, and are alienated from their parents. They have often been physically and even sexually abused, have relocated frequently, and many of them may be asked to leave home or are actually thrown out, or alternatively are placed in group homes or in foster care. They often have no one to care for them and no one knows them intimately.
Source from:
Rokach, A. (2005). The causes of loneliness in homeless youth. The Journal of Psychology, 139, 469-480. Retrieved from Academic Search Premier database.
Example: Incorrect Paraphrasing
The homeless come from families with problems. Frequently, they have been physically or sexually abused, or have lived in group homes. Usually no one cares for them or knows them intimately (Rokach, 2005).
Note: In this incorrect example the writing is too similar to the original source. The student only changed or removed a few words and has not phrased the ideas in a new way.
Example: Correct Paraphrasing
Many homeless experience isolation in part due to suffering from abuse or neglect during their childhood (Rokach, 2005).
Note: The example keeps the idea of the original writing but phrases it in a new way.
| Paraphrasing | Quoting |
|
(First Author's Last Name et al., Year of Publication) Example: (FitzGerald et al., 2020) |
(First Author's Last Name et al., Year of Publication, p. Page number of quotation) Example (FitzGerald et al., 2020, p. 405) |
No Known Author:
Where you'd normally put the author's last name, instead use the first one, two, or three words from the title. Don't count initial articles like "A", "An" or "The". You should provide enough words to make it clear which work you're referring to from your References List.
If the title in the References list is in italics, italicize the words from the title in the in-text citation.
If you are citing an article, a chapter of a book or a page from a website, put the words in double quotation marks.
Examples:
(Cell Biology, 2012)
("Nursing," 2011)
No Known Date of Publication:
Where you'd normally put the year of publication, instead use the letters "n.d.".
Example:
(Smith, n.d.)
Two Authors or Editors
Provide each author's last name and the year of publication each time you cite the work in-text.
Three or More Authors or Editors
Provide the first author's last name followed by "et al.," and the year of publication every time you cite the work in-text.
Have a question about paraphrasing or in-text citations that isn't answered on this page? Check out these sites for more detailed information:
