Table of Contents: Electronic References
Click on the links to see formatting of electronic references based on APA's updated guidelines (2012):
- Journal article with DOI
- Journal article with DOI, eight or more authors
- Electronic version of print book
- Electronic-only book
- Entire book from an online library
- Republished book
- Chapter in an edited book
- Reference work
- Entry in a reference work
- Entry in a reference work, no author or editor
- Entry in Wikipedia
- Corporate author, government report
- Corporate author, task force report filed online
- Authored report, from nongovernmental organization
- Report from institutional archive
- Proceedings published regularly
- Proceedings published in book form
- Master's theses and doctoral dissertations, from a commercial database
- Doctoral dissertation, from an institutional database
- Doctoral dissertation, from the web
- Review of a video
- Review of a video game, no author
- Peer commentary on an article
- Video
- Video podcast
- Speech recording
- Interview recording
- Transcription of an audio or a video file (podcast, interview, speech, etc.)
- Streaming video (e.g., YouTube, Vimeo)
- Data set
- Measurement instrument
- Software
- Mobile application software (app), group or corporate author
- Mobile application software (app.), game
- Test or inventory from the web
- Test or inventory record retrieved from PsycTESTS database
- Informally published or self-archived work
- Informally published or self-archived work, from ERIC
- Lecture notes or PowerPoint slides
- Message posted to a newsgroup, online forum, or discussion group
- Message posted to an electronic mailing list
- Blog post
- Blog comment
- Twitter update or tweet
- Facebook page
- Mobile apps
Quick Examples of Resources Retrieved Electronically:
Using APA Style Guide to Electronic References (2012)
Link to: APA Style Guide for Electronic References (PDF)
(Need NSU sharklink user name and password)
1. Journal article with DOI assigned, one author.
**** Preferred format for DOI number if using the
APA Style Guide to Electronic References (2012):
- The DOI format with a hyperlink is preferred in the APA Style Guide to Electronic Reference (2012). The APA guide says that the old format is also accepted. However, it no longer is preferred.
2. Journal article without DOI (When DOI is not available) -- eight authors or more
If there is no DOI number, then include a retrieval statement with the journal home URL. NOTE: For students in FSE, it is OK to use a standard journal citation with no URL.
- When there are more than seven authors, list the first six, use ellipses, and the last author.
- The URL is for the journal home publication.
3. Electronic version of print book
| Rosellini, | G., & Worden, M. (2010). Of course you're angry: A guide to dealing with the emotions of substance abuse (Rev. ed.) [Kindle DX version]. Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com |
- When the book is retrieved online, the location and publisher are not provided.
- Provide information about the e-book version in brackets.
- The URL in the retrieval statement should not have a hyperlink, and do not include a period after the URL because it will interfere with navigation of the web
- The URL at the top of the page is not the publisher URL. Instead, you will see http://novacat.nova.edu/search~S13?/X(netlibrary)&SORT=D&engine=0&criteria=netlibrary&m=n/X(netlibrary)&SORT=D&engine=n&2%2C2%2C for this book. If you know what you are looking for, you can see Netlibrary mentioned. Otherwise, you will need to do a quick Google search to identify the publisher's home URL or contact the reference desk for help.
4. Electronic-only book
| Mackay, | C. (n.d.). Jacob's ladder. Retrieved from http://www .onlineoriginals.com/showitem.asp?itemID=304 |
| Ferdig, | R. E. (2009). Handbook of research on effective gaming in education (Rev. ed.). Retrieved from http://www.netlibrary.com |
- Provide the home page of the online library used. In this example, NetLibrary was used, but you can also use Google Books, ebrary, MyiLibrary, Safari, and more. Do not use the full URL for the book since the books can be easily located with a search. Most e-book collections provided by the NSU Libraries require the SharkLink user name and password.
6. Republished book and other works
| Blount, |
T. (2008). Tenures of land and customs of manors. Retrieved from http://books.google.com/books (Original work published in 1679 |
| Jung, |
C. G. (1961). The fantasies of the unconscious. In Collected works of |
7. Chapter in an edited book
| Borzi, |
A. (2011). Chapter 2: Optimality conditions. In V. Schulz (Ed.), Computational |
- This book chapter has a DOI number assigned for the book chapter.
- If there is no DOI number, use the location and publisher OR a retrieval statement with the publisher home URL.
8. Reference work
| Wilson, | D., & Hackenberry, M. J. (2011). Wong's clinical manual (8th ed.). http://dx .doi.org/10.24511/mosby/3949955691 (If using the 6th ed., use doi:/10.1137/1.9781611972054.ch2) |
9. Entry in a reference work
| Azar, | D. T. (2008). Refractive surgery. In D. Pavan-Langston (Ed.), Manual of ocular diagnosis and therapy (6th ed.). Retrieved from http://www.lww.com |
- No page numbers are available for this e-book chapter so nothing is included in parentheses after the book title.
- Since there was no assigned DOI number, the publisher's home URL was provided instead.
10. Entry in a reference work, no author or editor
| Existentialism. | (n.d.). Merriam-Webster dictionary. Retrieved June 19, 2012, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/existentialism |
- When there is no author, move the entry title to the first position and keep the date in the second position.
- If there is no year, use (n.d.) for no date.
- If there is no edition number, use a retrieval statement since the definition could be updated an any time.
11. Entry in Wikipedia
| Gertrude | Bell (n.d.). Wikipedia. Retrieved June 18, 2012, from http://en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Gertrude_Bell |
- When there is no publication date that can be determined, use (n.d.)
- APA says to italicize Wikipedia since it is considered the title of a reference source.
- Since Wikipedia is a wiki that will change over time, include the retrieval date.
12. Corporate author, government report
| U.S. | Department of Education, National Center for Educational Statistics. (2011). The condition of education (NCES Publication No. 2011-033). Retrieved from http://www.edpubs.gov/document/ed005214p.pdf?ck=881 |
13. Corporate author, task force report filed online
| American | Psychological Association, Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls. (2010). Report on the APA Task Force for the Sexualization of Girls: Full report. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/pi/women/programs/girls /report-full.pdf |
- The Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls is a proper name so it should be capitalize in the title of the report.
14. Authored report from a nongovernmental organization.
| Svozil, | K. (2009). Three criteria for random number generators based on beam splitters (CDMCTS 362). Retrieved from the Centre for Discrete Mathematics and Theoretical Computer Science website: http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz /CDMTCS/researchreports/362karl.pdf |
- Include the name of the publishing organization in the retrieval statement when the publisher is not identified as the author.
15. Report from institutional archive
16. Proceedings published regularly
| Boyce, |
C. K., Brodribb, T. J., Field, T. S., & Zwieniecki, M. A. (2009, February 25). |
- The proceedings are published regularly online as a series so the paper gets formatted like a journal article with the volume and page numbers.
17. Proceedings published in a book form
| Tunon, | J., & Pival, P. (2000). Reaccreditation at Nova Southeastern University: How reaccreditation can create opportunities for improving library services to distance students. In P. S. Thomas (Ed.), The Ninth Off-Campus Services Conference proceedings: Portland, Oregon, April 26-28, 2000 (pp. 273-282). Retrieved from http://ocls.cmich.edu/conference/past_proceedings /9thOCLSCP.pdf |
- The Ninth Off-Campus Services Conference is a proper name so it gets capitalized. However, the word proceedings is not a proper name so it would not get capitalized.
18. Master's theses and doctoral dissertations from a commercial database
| Espinoza, |
F. (2012). Self-image and relationship issues among women who have
|
| Long, | M. F. M. (2007). Professional school librarians as transformational leaders (Doctoral dissertation). Available from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database. (UMI No. 329291) |
- The title of the master's thesis or doctoral dissertation needs to be italicized.
- Include the information about the type of thesis or dissertation in parentheses after the title. Do not italicize the parenthetical information.
- Use the phrase "Available from" instead of "Retrieved from" since ProQuest Dissertations and Theses is not an open access database.
- The UMI No. is located in the front of the actual document. You will see the number listed without the UMI No. in the short record with the citation and abstract as well.
19. Doctoral dissertation, from an institutional database.
| Boldin, |
A. J. (2009). Examination of teacher bias in special education referrals based |
20. Doctoral dissertation, from the web
21. Review of a video
| Rich, | G., & Belic, R. (2012). A superbowl-level commercial for positive psychology: Reflections on Roko Belic’s Happy. PsycCRITIQUES, 57(9). http://dx.doi.org /10.1037/a0027465 |
| Taylor, | E., & Cronenberg, D. (2012). Did Jung really sleep with Sabina? [Review of the film A Dangerous Method by D. Cronenberg, 2011]. PsycCRITIQUES, 57(16). http://dx.doi.org/10.245656.w345663 (If using 6th ed., use doi:10.245756.1345663) |
- If the name of the video is not included in the review title, then include the pertinent information in brackets.
- The name of the video or film is italicized.
22. Review of a video game, no author
| [Review | of Pokemon Conquest, produced by Nintendo, 2012]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ign.com/games/pokemon-conquest/nds-125156 |
- Since there is no title for the review, the information is provided in brackets.
- The title of the video game is italicized.
23. Peer commentary on an article
24. Video
| American | Psychological Association (Producer). (2009). Helping skills in practice [DVD]. Available from http://www.apa.org/pubs/videos/4310868.aspx |
- Use Available from because the video can be ordered from the URL.
25. Video podcast
| Walt | Disney Pictures, Pixar Animation Studios. (2006). Cars [Video podcast]. Retrieved from http://itunes.apple.com |
- Provide the home page URL because the video podcast is easy to locate at the iTunes site.
26. Speech recording
| Reagan, | R. (1986, January 28). The Space Shuttle "Challenger" tragedy address [Audio file]. Retrieved from http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches /ronaldreaganchallenger.htm |
27. Interview recording
| Quan, | E. (2010, June 3). Esther Quan oral history recordings and transcript -- Part 1 (P.-F. Wang & C. Cox, Interviewers) [Audio file]. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle .net/1911/36137 |
- When the interview is retrievable in some format (transcript, audio file, video), then include a citation in the reference list. (Quan, 2010).
- Interviews that are not recoverable are only included as a text citation and formatted as a personal communication. (E. Quan, personal communication, June 3, 2010)
28. Transcription of an audio or video file (podcast, interview, speech, etc.)
| BBC | Cassettes. (1980). 1971 BBC radio interview with J. R. R. Tolkien (D. Gerrolt, Interviewer) [Interveiw transcript]. Retrieved from http://www.tolkienlibrary .com/press/894-Tolkien_1971_BBC_Interview.php |
| National | Public Radio (Producer). (2011, April 22). Science diction: The origin of the word 'robot' [Podcast transcript]. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/2011 /04/22/135634400/science-diction-the-origin-of-the-word-robot |
- If the title does not make it clear to the reader what is being cited, provide a description of the form in brackets.
- Provide the exact date when available since radio interviews and podcasts can occur frequently.
- in the text, use (BBC, 1980) and (National Public Radio, 2011).
29. Streaming video (e.g., YouTube, Vimeo)
| PsycINFO. | (2012, June 12). Finding the tests in PsycTESTS via OvidSP [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XL3UbQPn7J8 |
30. Data set
| U.S. | Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2011). IPEDS enrollment survey [Data file]. Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/forum /datamodel/eiebrowser/datasets.aspx |
| Pew | Hispanic Center. (2008). 2007 Hispanic healthcare survey [Data file and code book]. Retrieved from http://pewhispanic.org/datasets/ |
- List the author or rights holder of the data.
- Italicize the title of the data set.
- List the version if available.
- Provide information about the form of the data in brackets.
31. Measurement instrument
| Juniper, | E., & Styles, J. (n.d.). Asthma quality of life questionnaire. Unpublished instrument. Available from http://www.qoltech.co.uk/ |
32. Software
| QSR | International. (2012). NVivo 10 [Computer software]. Available from http://www.qsrinternational.com |
- Do not italicize the name of software.
- Provide information about the type of source in brackets. There should be no period between the version number and the bracketed information.
33. Mobile application software (app). group or corporate author
- Do not italicize the names of apps.
34. Mobile application software (app), game
| American | College of Physicians. (n.d.). Doctor's dilemma [Mobile application software]. Retrieved from http://ddm.acponline.org/ |
35. Test or inventory from the web
| Kincaid, | D., Childs, K., & George, H. (2010, March). School-wide benchmarks of quality (Revised). Unpublished instrument. Retrieved from http:// flpbs.fmhi.usf.edu/pdfs/EndYearEval20112012bundled.pdf |
| Bass, | B. M., & Avolio, B. J. (2005). Multifactor leadership questionnaire. Available from http://www.mindspring.com |
| Tunon, | J., & Brydges, B. (2008). Subjective rubric [Software and training videos]. Unpublished instrument. Retrieved from http://www.nova.edu/fsehs /arc/testlibrary/tunon |
- The title of a published instrument is italicized but not the title of an unpublished instrument.
- Use Available from for items that cannot retrieved online but can be ordered from that site.
36. Test or inventory record retrieved from PsycTESTS database
| Juniper, | E., & Styles, J. (n.d.). Asthma quality of life questionnaire. Unpublished instrument. Available from http://www.qoltech.co.uk/ |
37. Informally published or self-archived work
| Balduzzi, | D. (2011). Information,learning,and falsification. Advanced in Neural Information Processing Systems (NIPS). Retrieved from http://philsci -archive.pitt.edu/8989/ |
- This journal article was archived in an institutional archive as a preprint version. You will want to update the citation once the article has been formally published.
38. Informally published or self-archived work, from ERIC
- The title of the document is italicized. Use the following wording: Retrieved from ERIC database instead of the URL.
- Provide the ERIC Clearinghouse ID number in parentheses and do not provide a period after the parentheses.
39. Lecture notes or PowerPoint slides
| No |
Child Left Behind: A new era in education [PowerPoint slides]. (n.d.). |
- When the author or name of the website is not obvious, include the name of the website in the retrieval statement.
- No Child Left Behind is the proper name for a law so all of these words are capitalized in the PowerPoint title.
- When the PowerPoint slides are not retrievable because they are in a password-protected environment like Blackboard, do not include a reference citation in your reference list. Only cite the information as a personal communication in the body of the paper.
40. Message posted to a newsgroup, online forum, or discussion group
- When the location of the discussion forum is not clear from the web address, then include the name of the site in the retrieval statement.
41. Message posted to an electronic mailing list
| McLeod, | S. (2012, March 12). RE: CPS investigator caseloads Retrieved from the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect website: http://www.ndacan.cornell.edu/cmrlpostings/maillist.html |
42. Blog post
| Librarian | in Black. (2012). Seven lessons learned while being The Man [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://librarianinblack.net/librarianinblack/2012/06 /lessons.html |
- When an author has adopted a screen name, use that name. In text citations, use (Librarian in Black, 2012).
- APA does not start a title with a number so use Seven instead of 7.
43. Blog comment
| AMO. | (2012, June 14). RE: Seven lessons learned while being The Man: #2 [Blog comment]. Retrieved from http://librarianinblack.net/librarianinblack/2012/06 /lessons.html |
44. Twitter update or tweet
| Obama, | M. [MichelleObama]. (2012, June 18). Great teachers make the difference for our kids. Stand with Educators for Obama: http://ofa.bo/vKsR41 [Tweet]. Retrieved from http://twitter.com/#!/MichelleObama |
- The author's real name is provided first if known, followed by the screen name in brackets. Use (Obama, 2012) in the text. If you have reference to tweets by both Barack and Michelle Obama, then you will also need to include the two individuals' first initials to distinguish between the two.
45. Facebook page
| Alvin | Sherman Library at Nova Southeastern University. (n.d.). Timeline [Facebook page]. Retrieved June 19, 2012, from http://www.facebook.com/AlvinShermanLibrary |
- In the body, use (Alvin Sherman Library at Nova Southeastern University, n.d.) for a text citation.
- Include a retrieval date when you do not have a publication date. If the date can be reasonably be determined, then use ca. (circa) followed by the year in brackets instead of parentheses. For example, [ca. 2011]. When you use ca. in the reference citation, format the text citation -- (Alvin Sherman Library at Nova Southeastern University, [ca. 2011]).
46. Mobile apps
See APA blog posting.
| ArchTech | Publishing. (2013). Horton Hatches an Egg [Mobile application software]. Retrieved from http://itunes.apple.com |
- The rightsholder goes in the author position, and the name of the program or software is provided as the title. If there is a version number provide it in parentheses before the bracketed information -- [Mobile application software]..
- Include a retrieval date when you do not have a publication date.
Text Citations
See APA (6th ed.), pp. 175-179
Use the author-date method of citation by inserting the surname of the author and the year of publication at the appropriate point in the text. Citations used in the body of your publication identify the source of information. In-text parenthetical citations are used to give credit to the authors whose ideas or thoughts are used within the document. These internal citations allow the reader to identify the source and locate the information being addressed. APA uses a system that includes the author’s last name and the year of publication. For example: (Small, 2009). If there is a direct quote or a specific part of the work is being referred to, the page numbers are also included. For example, (Small, 2009, p. 23). Sources may include books and book chapters, journal or magazine articles, dissertations and theses, conference papers, government reports, films, websites, blogs and wikis, discussion boards, personal communications, and more.
Citations for Paraphrased Information See APA manual (6th ed.)
Beginning of sentence:
Krankenstein (2006) reported that empirical research was identified.
Middle of sentence
After looking into the issue, Lynch (2007) quit. ·
End of sentence
The report concluded were victims of cyberterrorism (Windhorst, 2004).
Citations with direct quotes
- Author and quote together
Students needed "parental permission” (Abbott, 2005, p. 25).
The research found that the training built "sequentially and developmentally" (Jones & Ifill, 2010, Conclusions section, para. 6).
- Author and quote separated
Yi (2004) stated that the “IL Model needed to be implemented” (p. 34).
Lee (2007) stated, “The data is unreliable” (Methods section, para. 4).
Jonasen (2010) coined the term "frankenreference" (p. 22) to refer to scary reference citations.
Bischoff (2009) used the concept of "fair use" (Encyclopedia Britannica, p. 3250) in the context of the new geopolitical order.
APA PPT Links
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Scope -- For Graduate Students
This APA Style guide is specifically designed for graduate students who need in-depth help with the ins and outs of APA formatting!
See below for quick examples for APA citations. For APA beginners, you may prefer to use APA Basics.
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