|
APA is traditionally used in scientific, social science, and psychology papers. MLA is used in humanities papers. Both lists are double spaced, organized alphabetically, and have the second and additional lines indented (hanging indent). The main differences are listed below, but for specifics see each individual listing in the APA Publication Manual, 5th edition:
| |
MLA |
APA |
| Title |
Works Cited Reference |
List or References |
| Author(s) |
Full names of authors. |
Full last name is used and the first and middle initials. |
| |
For multiple authors, first author name is inverted. |
For multiple authors, all author names are inverted. |
| Dates |
Publication date follows publisher. |
Publication date in ( ) is always listed second, year, then day & month. |
| |
Abbreviate all months but May, June, July |
Spell out all months |
| Titles |
All words in a title are capitalized. |
Only proper nouns and the first words of title are capitalized. |
| |
Article titles are enclosed in quotation marks. |
Article titles are not underlined, italicized, or put in quotation marks. |
| |
Book and periodical titles are underlined. |
Book and periodical titles are italicized. |
| Punctuation |
No periods are put after the name of a periodical |
Periods are used after periodical titles |
| URL |
Enclosed in <> and citation ends with a period |
Not enclosed and are not completed with a period |
Be sure to note the particulars for citing encyclopedias and subscription databases.
Text Sources
Book: One or Two Authors
Author’s Last Name, First Initial., & Second Author’s Last Name, First Initial. (Publication Date). Title of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher.
(If there are more than six authors use “et al.” after the sixth.) |
| Lee, H. (1982). To kill a mockingbird. New York: Warner Books.
Hopper, H., & Gwunn, P. (2006). Fun with physics. New York: Harper & Row. |
Book: Corporate or Government Authorship
Name of Corporation, Organization, Government Author. (Publication date). Title of book. (Document #). Place of Publication: Publisher. |
| American Psychiatric Association. (2006). Reports on selected topics. New York: Author.
National Institute of Mental Health. (2005). Training programs for treating seriously ill mental patients. (CHHS Publication No. ADM88-1523). Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office. |
Book: Author and Editor
For books with editors and no authors, follow the author example using (Ed.) or (Eds.) after the name.
Author’s Last Name, Initials. (Publication Date). Title of book. (Editor’s initials. Editor’s Last Name, Ed.). Place of Publication: Publisher. |
| Gibbs, J.T. (2007). Books for children of all ages (F.W. Hudson, Ed.). New York: Dover.
Bevinton, D. (Ed.). (2004). The complete works of Shakespeare. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman. |
Encyclopedia Article
If there is no author, begin with the article title followed by the date.
Author's Last Name, Initials. (Publication Date). Title of article. In Encyclopedia title (Volume #, page #). City of Publication: Publisher. |
| Gillingham , J. (2001). Norman conquest. In The world book encyclopedia (Vol. 14, pp. 455-6). Chicago: World Book, Inc. |
Magazine, Scholarly Journal or Newspaper Article
Magazine or journal titles are capitalized.
Author's Last Name, Initials. (Publication Date). Title of article. Magazine Title, Volume #, Pages. |
| Crickmer, B. (2006, April). Can we control spending? Nation's Business, 43, 22-24. A long smoldering summer? (2006, June 21). Science News, 28-31.
Schwartz, J. (2005, September 30). Obesity affects economic, social status. The Washington Post, pp. A1, A4. |
Electronic/Internet
See notations regarding the use of DOI (Digital Object Indentifier) when citing online journal articles. When a DOI is used, or if the content will not be updated, you do not need to include the retrieval date.
Subscription Database: Online Encyclopedia or other reference book article
The publication or update date is reversed: year, month date, but the access date or date the information is retrieved from the Internet is month day, year.
Author's Last Name, Initials. (Publication Date). Title of article. In Title of encyclopedia. Retrieved date Month Day, Year, from Database name. |
| Chiru. (2006). In Funk and Wagnall’s new world encyclopedia. Retrieved April 15, 2003, from EBSCOHost.
Rogers , F. (2005). Southern flying squirrel. In Encyclopedia of animals. Retrieved February 15, 2005, from EBSCO Animals database. |
Subscription Database: Magazine, Scholarly Journal or Newspaper
Author's Last Name, Initial. (Publication Date). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Volume, Issue Number, pages. Retrieved from Database name. |
| Schaller, G. B. (2005, May). Realm of the snow antelope. Natural History, 48. Retrieved from EBSCOHost.
Stein, H. (2003, April 9). Pre-emptive blitz set to meet threat of West Nile. The Oregonian. Retrieved from Newsbank database. |
Magazine, Scholarly Journal or Newspaper Article on the Web
Author’s Last Name, Initials (if provided). (Publication date). Title of article. Magazine Title, volume #, if given, page # if given. Retrieved date, from URL
(If you believe that the online article is an exact duplicate of the print version, you do not need to include the retrieval date. If the article indicates the DOI use it and you do not need to give either the retrieval date or the URL.) |
| Rivlin G. (2006, November 11). Leader of the free world. Wired Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.11/
Bohannon, J. (2006, October). The human genome in 3D. Science Magazine, 737. doi:10.1037/9432
Winik, J. (2007, March 3). A brief history of the resistance. New York Times on the Web. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/3/3/opinion/16WINI.htm |
Professional or Organizational Web Page
If citing an online dictionary or encyclopedia, give the home or menu page URL.
Creator/Author's Last Name, Initials (if provided). (Publication or Revision Date). Title or description of page. Retrieved from Name of Institution or Sponsoring Organization: URL |
| Reid-Walsh, J. (2006, March 30). The Jane Austen home page. Retrieved from University of Wisconsin Web site: http://polyglot.lss.wisc.edu/lss/jane/
janeausten.htm |
Personal Web Page
You would include the retrieval date because the information may be updated at any time.
Author's Last Name, Initials. (Publication or Revision Date). Title of page. Retrieved Date, from URL |
| Lowe, W. (2006, November). Pro death penalty web page. Retrieved March 22, 2007, from http://www.wesleylowe.com/cp.html |
Video/DVD
Citation formats for video vary. Your goal is to provide enough information to identify your source. The information in square brackets shows some of the additional information you might supply. Describe their role in parentheses.
[Author/Narrator's Last Name, First Name (Title), Writer’s Name (Title), Director (Title), Producer (Title)] (Release Date). Title of Video [Media Description/Format]. Location of Distribution: Distributor. |
| Amazon rainforest [Videocassette]. (2005). N.p.: National Geographic, Inc.
Discovering Spain [DVD]. (2006). N.p.: Questar Video Communications. |
Links to other sites with APA citation information: Landmarks Citation Machine and Citation Style for Research Papers.
Links to sites giving information on in text citation Citing References in text: Citing References in Your Paper and Citing Sources Within Your Paper.
Reference: American Psychological Associtation. (2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association. (5th ed). Washington, D.C.: Author.
|
