Psychology: Citing Sources

The primary point of a citation is to enable your reader to easily find your source. Every source cited in the text of your paper should appear in the reference list. 

Journal Article

Author, A.A. & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article: The subtitle. Title of Journal, volume number(issue number), x-xx.

Journal Article with DOI*

Author, A.A., Author, B.B., & Author, C.C. (Year). Title of article: The subtitle. Title of Journal, volume number(issue number), x-xx. http://dx.doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyyy

Book

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of book: The subtitle. Publisher. DOI (if available)

Book Chapter

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In A. Editor & B. Editor (Eds.), Title of book (pp. x-xx). Publisher. DOI (if available)

*A DOI, or digital object identifier, is a unique number assigned to an individual electronic item, such as an online journal article. APA 7 requires a DOI for all works that have one.

Many databases include automatic citation generators. For example, both PsycINFO and Google Scholar provide APA formatted citations.

• In PsycINFO, select one or more of the results, and then click "cite" on the tool bar located at the top of the list
• In Google Scholar, click the "cite" link available under each result in Google Scholar
• ALWAYS double-check the citations as there are often small mistakes
• Watch the video, Using Automatic Citation Generators, to learn more

Complete instructions on citing and useful information on writing style and content can be found in the latest edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Society. We have multiple copies in the Library in reference and on reserve; it's also worth considering buying your own if you are in the social sciences.