Skip to Main Content

Lemieux Library and McGoldrick Learning Commons

Guides

Catalog Search

Site Search

FAQ Search

Citing Your Sources Guide

Get Research Help

chat loading...

Library

Profile Photo
Research Services
Contact:
206-296-6230
Website

APA Reference List by Type

You have a few options for getting more support:

  • Check out the Purdue's Writing Lab guides for more detailed information and more examples.
  • Review the print copy of the APA Manual of Style in the library's stacks.
  • Check out this APA Blog post about special cases and helpful tips.

Edited book, only editors listed

  • Editor last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Ed.). (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Publisher. DOI (if available)
  • Example: Leitch, M. G., & Rushton, C. J. (Eds.). (2019). A new companion to Malory. D. S. Brewer.

Edited volume with authors 

  • Format: Author last name, First initial. Middle Initial. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle (First initial of first name, editor's last name, Ed.). Publisher. DOI (if available)
  • Example: Malory, T. (2017). Le morte darthur (P. J. C. Field, Ed.). D. S. Brewer. (Original work published 1469-70)

Works in Translation

  • Format: Author last name, First initial of first name. First initial of middle name. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle (First initial of First name. Translator last name, Trans.). Publisher. (Original work published YEAR) DOI (if available)
  • Example: Plato (1989). Symposium (A. Nehamas & P. Woodruff, Trans.). Hackett Publishing Company. (Original work published ca. 385-378 BCE)

Note: When you cite a republished work, like the one above, in your text, it should appear with both dates: Plato (385-378/1989)

Edition Other than the First Edition

  • Format: Author last name, First initial of first name. First initial of middle name. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle (# edition). Publisher. DOI (if available)
  • Example: Belcher, W. (2019). Writing your journal article in twelve weeks: A guide to academic publishing success (2nd ed.). University of Chicago Press.

Article, essay, or chapter in an edited work

Author last name, First initial of first name. First initial of middle name., & Author last name, First initial of first name. First initial of middle name. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In First initial of Editor's first name. First initial of middle name. Editor's last name & First initial of Editor's first name. First initial of middle name. Editor's last name (Eds.), Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle (pp. pages of chapter). Publisher. DOI (if available)

Note: When you list the pages of the chapter or essay in parentheses after the book title, use "pp." before the numbers: (pp. 1-21). This abbreviation, however, does not appear before the page numbers in periodical references. List any edition number in the same set of parentheses as the page numbers, separated by a comma: (2nd ed., pp. 66-72).

  • Format: Last name, first initial. (year). Title of chapter. In First initial of first name, last name (Eds.), Title of Work (pp. page range). Publisher name. DOI if available. 
  • Example: Armstrong, D. (2019). Malory and character. In M. G. Leitch & C. J. Rushton (Eds.), A new companion to Malory (pp. 144-163). D. S. Brewer.

Multivolume Work

  • Format: Author's last name, First initial of first name. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle (Vol. #)Publisher. DOI (if available)
  • Example: David, A., & Simpson, J. (Eds.). (2006). The Norton anthology of English literature: The Middle Ages (8th ed.,Vol. A). W. W. Norton and Company.

Single Author in Print

  • Format: Last name, first initial of first name. (year published). Title of book. Publisher.
  • Example: Ahmed, S. (2012). On being included: Racism and diversity in institutional life. Duke University Press.

Single Author in Journal article

If a DOI is included:

  • Format: Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Vol.(Issue), page numbers. DOI
  • Example: Drollinger, T. (2006). Development and validation of the active empathetic listening scale. Psychology & Marketing, 23(2), 161-180. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20105

If no DOI is included:

  • Format: Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Vol.(Issue), page numbers. 
  • Example: Drollinger, T. (2006). Development and validation of the active empathetic listening scale. Psychology & Marketing, 23(2), 161-180. 

Two Authors in a Book

Be sure to separate the author names with a comma, and use the ampersand (&) instead of "and."

  • Format: Last name, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name, & Last name, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name (year published).Title of book: Capital letter for subtitle. Publisher name. DOI (if available)
  • Example: Stoneman, R. (2008). Alexander the Great: A life in legend. Yale University Press.

Two Authors in a Journal Article

If a DOI is included:

  • Format: Last name, F. M., & Last name, F. M. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Vol.(Issue), page numbers. DOI
  • Example: Drollinger, T., & Thomas, B. (2006). Development and validation of the active empathetic listening scale. Psychology & Marketing, 23(2), 161-180. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20105

If no DOI is included:

  • Format: Last name, F. M., & Last name, F. M. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Vol.(Issue), page numbers. 
  • Example: Drollinger, T., & Thomas, B. (2006). Development and validation of the active empathetic listening scale. Psychology & Marketing, 23(2), 161-180. 

Three to Twenty Authors

List the authors by last names and initials. Commas separate author names, while using an ampersand (&) before the last name. **This is different from APA 6, which only required listing the first six authors before an ellipsis and the final author's name.

  • Format: Last name of author 1, first initial., Last name of author 2, first initial., Last name of author 3, first initial., & Last name of author 4, first initial. (Year published). Title of article. Journal Title, volume number (issue number), page numbers. DOI or URL.
  • Example: Nguyen, T., Carnevale, J. J., Scholer, A. A., Miele, D. B., & Fujita, K. (2019). Meta motivational knowledge of the role of high-level and low-level construal in goal-relevant task performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 117(5), 879-899. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pspa0000166

More than Twenty Authors

While this is a lot of authors, this is not uncommon, especially in the sciences. Start by listing by last names and initials in the order they appear; commas separate author names. After the first 19 authors’ names, use an ellipsis in place of the remaining author names. Then, end with the final author's name (do not place an ampersand before it). There should be no more than twenty names in the citation in total.

  • Format: Last name of author 2, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name., Last name of author 2, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name., Last name of author 3, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name., Last name of author 4, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name., Last name of author 5, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name., Last name of author 6, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name., Last name of author 7, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name., Last name of author 8, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name., (you get the picture)., . . .  Last name of final author, first initial of first name, first initial of middle name. (Year published). Title of article. Journal titlevolume number(issue number), page numbers. DOI if available.
  • Example: Pegion, K., Kirtman, B. P., Becker, E., Collins, D. C., LaJoie, E., Burgman, R., Bell, R., DelSole, R., Min, D., Zhu, Y., Li, W., Sinsky, E., Guan, H., Gottschalck, J., Metzger, E. J., Barton, N. P., Achuthavarier, D., Marshak, J., Koster, R., . . .  Kim, H. (2019). The subseasonal experiment (SubX): A multimodel subseasonal prediction experiment. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society100(10), 2043-2061. https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-18-0270.1

Group Author

Group authors can include corporations, government agencies, organizations, etc; and a group may publish in coordination with individuals. Here, you simply treat the publishing organization the same way you'd treat the author's name and format the rest of the citation as normal. Be sure to give the full name of the group author in your reference list, although abbreviations may be used in your text.

Entries in reference works (e.g. dictionaries, thesauruses, and encyclopedias) without credited authors are also considered works with group authors.

  • Format: Group author name. (Year published). Name of article or entry. In name of reference work or paper. Publisher name.
  • Example: Merriam-Webster. (2008). Braggadocio. In Merriam-Webster’s Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary. Merriam-Webster.

Government-related Group Authors

When a work has multiple layers of group authorship (When The Office of the Historian, which is a part of the Department of State, publishes something), list the most specific agency as the author and the parent agency as the publisher.

Electronic Source - Group Author

If the resource was written by a group or organization, use the name of the group/organization as the author. Additionally, if the author and site name are the same, omit the site name from the citation.

Unknown Author

When the work does not have an author, or it is unknown, move the title of the work to the beginning of the reference entry and follow with the date of publication. Only use “Anonymous ” if the author is the work is signed “Anonymous.” (**This is a new addition to APA 7).

  • Format: Title of work (edition if applicable). (year). Publisher. 
  • Example: Merriam-Webster's collegiate dictionary (11th ed.). (2003). Merriam-Webster.

NOTE: When your essay includes citations in parentheses of sources with no author named, use a shortened version of the source's title instead of an author's name. Use quotation marks and italics as appropriate. For example, a parenthetical citation of the source above would appear as follows: (Merriam-Webster's, 2003).

Blog or Website without an Author Listed

For a blog or website without an author listed, begin the reference entry with the title instead. Additionally, include a retrieval date when the page's content is likely to change over time (like, for instance, if you're citing a wiki or blog that is publicly edited).

No date provided

If the date of publication is not listed, use the abbreviation (n.d.). 

Citing a Wikipedia Article in APA

APA 7 treats Wikipedia articles in a special way. There are a few differences between reference entries for pages on Wikipedia and those for generic webpages.

Wikipedia articles often update frequently. For this reason, the date refers to the date that the cited version of the page was published. Note also that the manual recommends linking to the archived version of the page, rather than the current version of the page on the site, since the latter can change over time. Access the archived version by clicking "View History," then clicking the date/timestamp of the version you'd like to cite.

The term "audiovisual media" refers to media that contain both audio components, visual components, or a combination of both. In general, the citation style for audiovisual media varies depending on whether the piece stands alone or is part of a larger work. The following examples provide sample references for some of the most common audiovisual sources.

Please note: the following contains a list of the most commonly cited audiovisual sources. For a complete list of how to cite audiovisual sources, please refer to the 7th edition of the APA Publication Manual.

Film or video

  • Format: Director last name, First letter of first name. (Director). (Date of publication). Title of motion picture [Film]. Production company.
  • Example: Villanueve, D. (Director). (2021). Dune [Film]. Universal Pictures. 

Film or Video in another language

  • Format: Director last name, First initial of first name. (Director). (Date of publication). Title of motion picture in original language [Translated title] [Film]. Production company.
  • Example: Del Toro, G. (Director). (2006). El laberinto del fauno [Pan’s labyrinth] [Film]. Warner Bros. Pictures.

TV Series

  • Format: Executive Producer last name, First initial of first name. (Executive Producer). (Date range of release). Title of series [TV series]. Production company(s).
  • Example: Sherman-Palladino, A., Palladino, D. (Executive Producers). (2017-present). The marvelous Mrs. Maisel [TV series]Dorothy Parker Drank Here Productions; Picrow, Amazon Studios.

Single episode from TV Series

  • Format: Writer last name, First initial of first name. (Writer), & Director, D. D. (Director). (Original air date). Title of episode (Season number, Episode number) [TV series episode]. In P. Executive Producer (Executive Producer), Series title. Production company(s). 
  • Example: Korsh, A. (Writer & Director). (2019, September 25). One last con (Season 9, Episode 10) [TV series episode]. In D. Liman & D. Bartis (Executive Producers), Suits. Untitled Korsh Company; Universal Content Productions; Open 4 Business Productions. 

Album

  • Format: Recording artist. (Year of release). Title of album [Album]. Record label.
  • Example: The National. (2019). I am easy to find [Album]. 4AD.

Note: if you are referencing a re-recorded version of a classical work, list that album title in brackets following the name of the album.

For more examples, such as a podcast, podcast episode or other media, refer to the OWL Purdue guide or the APA Manual of Style held in Lemieux Library in print.

APA Citations for Digital & Social media

@handle. (Year, month day posted). Full text of tweet. [Twitter post]. Retrieved from URL

Example: @SketchesbyBoze. (2022, March 19). Why are you reading books when the world is burning?” Because you weren’t made to binge the world’s destruction and there’s good in pursuing joy where you can find it. Fiction arms us with precisely the tools we need to overcome the crisis into which our world has fallen. [Twitter post]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/SketchesbyBoze/status/1505271621820596227

Title of Tumblr blog. (Year, month day posted). First several words of Tumblr post (if any, otherwise omit)… [Tumblr post]. Retrieved from URL

Example: Cheshirelibrary. (2022, March 19). I hang out at the library with all the other cool cats… [Tumblr post]. Retrieved from https://cheshirelibrary.tumblr.com/post/189230463800

Lastname, Firstname. (Year, month day posted). First several words of Facebook post... [Facebook update]. Retrieved from URL

Example: Alfie Scholars. (2022, March 7). ScholarWorks at Seattle University Features Alfie Scholars’ Conference Papers...  [Facebook post]. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/alfiescholars/posts/4748284058554312

handle. (Year, month day posted). First several words of Instagram post (if any)... [Instagram post]. Retrieved from URL

Example: Cincylibrary. (2022, Mar 5). Libraries (and coffee) rule the world… [Instagram post]. Retrieved from https://www.instagram.com/p/CauitTKMLph/

Lastname, Firstname [or single username]. (Year, month day posted). Title of YouTube Video. [Video file]. Retrieved from URL

Example: Seattle University. (2010, Sep 13). Seattle University - Lemieux Library and McGoldrick Learning Commons Time-lapse. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aY2aemMVuJI

Last name, first name [or username]. (Year, Month day). Caption of tiktok [video]. TikTok. URL.

Example: Cook, P. [@chemteacherphil]. (2021, September 17). Fighting fire with fire#sciencetok #learnontiktok [Video]. TikTok. https://www.tiktok.com/@chemteacherphil/video/7008953610872605957

Example: Washington Post [@washingtonpost]. (2019, December 3). News is all around us #frozen #newsroom #newspaper [Video]. TikTok. https://www.tiktok.com/@washingtonpost/video/6765886712896818437