After you gather information from outside resources to add to your own ideas about a topic, you will quote, paraphrase, or summarize those sources within the body of your paper.
Citing allows you to share with your readers where you got your information so that they can verify what you've written or follow up on an interesting idea, and it protects you from any charges of plagiarism.
There are two parts to a proper APA citation:
Your instructor/s may ask you to write your papers and presentations in APA format. But, what is APA?!
All citations are meant in part to serve as a kind of 'address' to help your readers find the sources that you use in your papers. The ordering of the citation is deliberate and precise. Several journal article citations ends with a "DOI" number.
Gordon, M., & Cui, M. (2015). Positive parenting during adolescence and career success in young adulthood. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(3), 762-771. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-013-9887-y
Gordon, M., & Cui, M. (2015). Positive parenting during adolescence and career success in young adulthood. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(3), 762-771.
Gordon, M., & Cui, M. (2015). Positive parenting during adolescence and career success in young adulthood. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(3), 762-771. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Mellissa_Gordon/publication/259634832_650e9.pdf
The following are examples of how to do an APA style in-text citation and corresponding References list citation for a journal article from a library database.
The first time you introduce a source within the body your paper, it is generally preferred that you use a signal phrase (and many instructors require that you do so). A signal phrase introduces a source and "signals" to your reader that the material to follow comes from someone other than yourself. The signal phrase in the example below is "According to Jones." After the signal phrase list the year of publication in parentheses. Finally, after the quote, list the page number or numbers in parentheses preceded by a "p." for a single page or a "pp." for multiple pages.
According to Jones (1998), "Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time" (p. 199).
If you do not use a signal phrase, then you would put the author’s last name along with the year of publication and page number preceded by a "p." or a "pp." in parentheses after the quote. For example:
"Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time" (Jones, 1998, p. 199).
List the complete citation information for the source listed in your in-text citation in the References list at the end of your paper. Please note that the examples below do NOT include hanging indent formatting, which is the standard for references list entries.
Author's last name, First initial. (Publication year). Article title in sentence case: Subtitles are also in sentence case. Journal Title in Title Case, Volume#(Issue#), page range. DOI.
Jones, H. (1998). Why citation styles are challenging for students: A review of the literature. Journal of Education, 88(2), 199-201. https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/77.1.123
Jones, H. (1998). Why citation styles are challenging for students: A review of the literature. Journal of Education, 88(2), 199-201.
NOTE: Library databases will provide you with the DOI for an article if there is one (and not all articles have a DOI). These are also generally provided on the first page of the article itself. When there isn't a DOI, simply end your citation with the page range, unless your instructor asks you to provide the URL. Detailed information about DOIs can be found in the box below.
Watch the video below for an introduction to using APA style, 7th edition. To see it in a larger window, click on the link below. This video tutorial was created by TCC librarians.
Here are some handouts (in both .docx and .pdf formats) featuring example citations for sources you might find through TCC's Library and the Web.
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