APA Style - Sample Bibliographic Entries (5th edition)

The American Psychological Association (APA) documentation format uses in-text citations that briefly identify the source, enabling the reader to locate full bibliographic information on each source in the list of "References" at the end of the essay, article, or book. Numbers in brackets and page numbers refer to sections or pages of the Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5th edition), available at the Circulation Desk.

APA In-Text Citations: The APA style uses the author-date method of citation. Note: For direct quotations, a page number is also given within the parentheses.

Type of entry		Example, In-Text Citation Format
One author (or editor) [3.94]		Dorothea Brooks' complex character is a mixture of Feuerbachian generosity, Freudian repressed rage and the Horneyan partial fulfillment of her marriage (Green, 1987).
Two authors (or editors) If the authors' names are mentioned in a signal phrase, only the date is included in parenthesis [3.94, 3.95]		Pellegrini and Bjorklund (1998) believe the study of children more complex than previously recognized.
Three, four, or five authors (or editors) Identify each author the first time you use the source. In subsequent references, include only the surname of the first author followed by et al. [3.95]		It is imperative that teachers be precise in observing and recording the behavior of young children (Cohen, Stern, & Balaban, 1997).
Six or more authors (or editors) Cite only the surname of the first author followed by et al. Note: since this example is a direct quote, the page number is also included in the parenthesis. [3.95]		"Segregation impairs school and test performance in ways that are not revealed by analyses of individual traits" (Fischer et al. 1996, p. 196).
Corporate author If the author is a government agency or other corporate organization with a long name, spell out the name the first time it is used, followed by an abbreviation in brackets and the year. In subsequent references, just use the abbreviation and the year. [3.96]		First Citation: (American Psychological Association [APA], 2001). Subsequent Citations: (APA, 2001).
No author or editor Cite by title of the book or article either in a signal phrase (see example) or in the parenthetical citations and include year of publication. [3.97]		According to Joint investigations of child abuse (1993), effective intervention requires trained personnel.
Electronic Source To cite a specific part of a source, or when quoting directly, if page numbers are not provided, use paragraph number, preceded by paragraph symbol or abbreviation. If neither are visible, cite the heading and number of paragraph following. [3.101]		"Researchers have not yet adequately examined the degree to which parents' self-feelings may play a moderating role in the network of relationships . . . " (Kaplan, Xiaoru, & Kaplan, 2001, Theoretical framework, para. 2).

APA "References" List. The APA format calls the list of books, periodicals, print and non-print materials "References." Some Guidelines for preparing the "References" list:

Use a separate page and type References, centered, at the top. Double-space all entries.
Include only sources cited in the text. [4.01]
For second and subsequent lines, use the Hanging Indent style. [4.03]
Alphabetize by author's (or editor's) last name, or by the first significant word in the title if there is no author or editor. [4.04]
Invert all authors' (or editors') names, using surnames and initials only, for up to and including six authors. For more than six authors, name the first and use et al. for the rest. [4.08]
Use the ampersand (&) rather than "and" in the author (or editor) entry. [4.08]
The date of publication (in parenthesis) follows the author's (or editor's) name or title if there is no author (or editor). [4.09]
Titles of books are in italics. The first word of the title or subtitle (if any) and any proper nouns are capitalized. [4.12]
Titles of journals and magazines are italicized, and the above rules for capitalization are used. [4.11]
After the title of the journal or magazine, give the volume number in italics. [4.11]
For page number in periodicals, only use "pp" before page numbers in reference to newspapers but not in references to magazine or journal articles. [4.11]
Additional information for a book, such as editions or volumes, is in parenthesis immediately after the title of the book. [4.12]

APA "References" Examples [4.16]

Type of entry		Example for References List
Book, one author (or editor) (p.248)		Byrnes, J. P. (1996). Cognitive development and learning in instructional contexts. Boston: Allyn and Bacon
Book, two authors (or editors) Note: the example also shows an edition other than the first. (p.248)		Pellegrini, A. D., & Bjorklund, D. F. (1998). Applied Child Study: A developmental approach (3rd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Book, three to five authors (or editors) (p.248)		Cohen, D. H., Stern, V., & Balaban, N. (1997). Observing and recording the behavior of young children (4th ed.). New York: Teachers College, Columbia University.
Book, six or more authors (or editors) Name first six and shorten any remaining to et al. (p.248)		Fischer, C. S., Hout, M., Jankowsi, M. S., Lucas, S. R., Swidler, A., & Voss, K. (1996). Inequality by design: Cracking the bell curve myth. Princeton, NJ: University Press.
Essay or chapter in collection or anthology. (p.252)		Baker, S. L., Patterson, M. D., & Barlow, D. H. (2002). Panic disorder and agoraphobia. In A. M. Martin & D. H. Barlow (Eds.), Handbook of assessment and treatment planning for psychological disorders (pp. 67-112). New York: Guilford.
Book with no author or editor Note: This is also a government document. (p. 249)		Joint investigations of child abuse: Report of a symposium (1993). Washington: National Institute of Justice.
Journal articles, pagination by issue. (p. 240)		Greene, M. S. (1987). Another look at Dorothea's marriage. Literature and Psychology, 33(1), 30- 42.
Journal articles, continuous pagination. (p. 239)		Gilewski, M. J., Zelinski, E. M., & Schaie, K. W. (1990). The memory functioning questionnaire for assessment of memory complaints in adulthood and old age. Psychology and Aging, 5, 482-490.
Article in a magazine. (p. 241)		Toufexis, A. (1990, October 8). Struggling for sanity. Time, 136, 47-48.
Daily newspaper article. (p. 243)		Foreman, J. (2001, December 4). Rethinking the causes of depression. Boston Globe, p. B6.

ELECTRONIC SOURCES

Type of entry		Examples
Aggregated database, full text document. (p. 279)		Kaplan, D. S., Xiaoru, L., & Kaplan, H. B. (2001). Influence of parents' self-feelings and expectations on children's academic performance. Journal of Education Research, 94(6), 360-370. Retrieved March 18, 2002, from Education Full Text database.
Secondary database, copy of Abstract. (p. 279)		Fehm, L, & Juergen, M. (2002). Thought suppression: Specificity in agoraphobia versus broad impairment in social phobia? Behaviour Research & Therapy, 40(1), 57-66. Abstract retrieved March 20, 2002 from PsycINFO database.
Web Site Multipage document created by a private organization. When the document has no date, signify by using n.d. (p. 273)		American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (n.d.). Glossary of symptoms and mental illness affecting teenagers. Retrieved February 27, 2002, from http://www.aacap.org/about/ glossary/AACAP_Glossary.pdf.

Updated May 19, 2008.