The APA Style uses in-text citations to indicate that text has been quoted or paraphrased. The in-text note acknowledge when you are quoting, paraphrasing, or otherwise referring to information found in another source. A sample from an article using in-text citations is shown below:

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In the APA Style, the note takes the form of brief acknowledgement in parentheses immediately following each direct quote in quotation marks or paraphrased statement within the body of the work. (Other styles you may find in academic works may use footnotes, or endnotes.) The APA in-text citation includes:

• text that is directly quoted exactly as it appears in the original source is enclosed in quotation marks or a paraphrased statement
• the author/s last name(s)
• the year of publication
• the page or paragraph number on which the borrowed text appears.

There are a few ways in which the in-text citation can be presented. (All samples are adapted from quotes in: Manprisio, et.al. (2024). Redefining learning paradigms: Integrating artificial intelligence into modern classrooms. Ubiquitous Learning: An International Journal, 17(2), 157-177, //doi.org/10.18848/1835-9795/CGP/v17i02/157-177).

All required information in parentheses: 

It is this approach that more education needs to embrace, looking beyond the primary use of AI for merely writing an article and exploring its broader applications. AI can help when looking for new ways to teach a subject or problematic area (Dietz & Keys, 2023, p. 156). Educators know how challenging some of the material can be.

Author introduced ("signaled") in sentence, other required information in parentheses:

It is this approach that more education needs to embrace, looking beyond the primary use of AI for merely writing an article and exploring its broader applications. Dietz and Keys (2023, p. 156) discuss how using AI can help when looking for new ways to teach a subject or problematic area. Educators know how challenging some of the material can be.

Page number only in parentheses:

It is this approach that more education needs to embrace, looking beyond the primary use of AI for merely writing an article and exploring its broader applications. In a landmark article published in 2023, Dietz and Keys (p. 156) discuss how using AI can help when looking for new ways to teach a subject or problematic area. Educators know how challenging some of the material can be.

Page versus Paragraph

When citing a book, journal article, or other paged source, use the page number of the borrowed material.

• For one page, use p. 
• For more than one page, use pp. 

When citing a source without page numbers (such as websites), use the paragraph number.

• Regardless of how many paragraphs you are citing, use para.

Quoting vs. Paraphrasing

In-text Citation with Direct Quotes

Spencer (2006) notes that it is acceptable "to state the author's name at the beginning of the sentence, rather than always putting it in the parenthetical citation" (pp. 5-6). 

OR

Many students still refuse to "separate the author from the citation at the end of the quoted material" (Spencer, 2006, pp. 5-6).

In-text Citation with Summaries or Paraphrased Text
NOTE: Page numbers are not necessary when the summary of an entire work or large section of text over multiple pages is cited.

Jones and Senoj (2007) explain that citing sources does not have to be as difficult as students seem to believe (p. 54).

OR

Citing sources becomes easier the more frequently one tries to do it (Jones & Senoj, 2007).

Unknown Elements

No Publication Date
Check the source thoroughly for a publication date. It may be at the end of an item, appear on a special publication page or in a URL, or be buried within introductory text. If a date cannot be found, se the abbreviation n.d. for "no date" as shown:

"Not every source, especially web sources, provide a concrete publication date (Smith, n.d., p. 3)."

No Author
If no individual or corporate author is listed, use the first word or two of the work's title for the in-text citation, for example:

Acquiring effective study habits is the most important indicator of first-year college student success ("Students," 2002, para. 3).

If Anonymous is ever listed as author, treat that the same as if a name was given. 

Organization as the Author

Name the organization in text or include the whole name in parentheses at the end.

• Example: According to the World Health Organization (2016), 5-10% of all cancer-related deaths in Bangladesh stem from arsenic poisoning that pollutes the region (para. 9-10).
• Example: "In Bangladesh, 5–10% of all cancer deaths in an arsenic-contaminated region were attributable to arsenic exposure" (as cited in World Health Organization, 2016, para. 9-10).

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Below you will find different ways to introduce a citation. You can read more about using in-text citations, quotations, and paraphrasing from APA.

*Note: Date can only be excluded if there are no other works by the same author(s) cited in the paper.

The bibliography, or reference page, is a list of all the resources you consulted for your project. It normally appears at the end of your project, allowing your readers to locate and independently consult sources that were cited as part of a work. Each source you use in your project must be included in your reference list, whether you directly quote from it, paraphrase it, or are merely informed by it.

Below is a sample of a professional bibliography from the journal The Reference Librarian:

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Bibliography Rules:

• Entries are alphabetized by the last name of the first author of each work 
• Include up to 20 authors in the citation. If more are named, include up to 19 names followed by an ellipsis (...) and the final author's name.
• Second and all subsequent lines of each entry are always indented using a half-inch hanging indent. This means that the first line of each reference entry is flush with the left margins and subsequent lines are indented by 0.5 inch. Consult the help in your word processor (Word or Google Docs) to learn how to create hanging indents.
• Capitalize the first letter of the first word of the title and any subtitles (indicated by a colon) and all proper nouns.
• Do not number or bullet bibliographies, and do not use headings or separate the entries by source type. 

The following elements are typical parts of a citation in any style, though not all elements are always used.: 

• Author/creator and/or editor(s) of the work. May be an organization or a platform instead of a person.
• Title of the source. May be a single book chapter; an article from a journal, magazine, newspaper, or website; the chat title of material generated with artificial intelligence; or the entire first line of a social media post.
• Title of container. The work is included within, such as a book (containing book chapters), or journals, magazines, and newspapers (containing articles).
• Date of publication or creation. May show as the year only, or may include months and days, or seasons..
• Volume and issue numbers for journal or magazine articles
• Page numbers for journal articles and book chapters.
• Location such as a DOI or URL (only for online sources that do not have a DOI).

Book Rules: 

• A book citation must always include author(s), title (and subtitle), publisher, and date of publication. Other necessary elements, if applicable, include editor, translator, edition, revision, and volume number.
• Titles of books are always italicized.
• Publisher is included following the book's title

Article Rules:

• An article citation must always include author, title (and subtitle), title of journal/magazine, date of publication, volume/issue number, and page numbers.
• Titles of journals and the volume number are always italicized.

This sample citation shows a journal article published in a nursing journal.

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For more information about formatting and citing sources in APA format, see:

• APA Style Page
• APA Guide at Purdue OWL

The APA Style Manual has extensive rules for formatting a project in order to maintain consistency among scientific and technical works. This page will help you get started formatting your project. All rules are based on the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association but always check with your instructor for any specific formatting instructions required for your course!

Page Contents:

• General Formatting
• Title Page
• Abstract and Keywords
• Bibliography/References
• Samples

General Formatting

• Margins: 1 inch on every side
• Font style and size: 12-point Times New Roman or 11-point Calibri are two fonts recommended by APA. 
• Line spacing: Double (2.0)
• Page numbers (top right corner of the page)

Title Page
APA Style includes a title page with the following elements:

• The project title centered horizontally and vertically
• Your full name
• Your institution: Harrisburg University of Science and Technology
• Your course name
• Your instructor's name
• Due date or date of submission

Abstract and Keywords Page
An abstract is a short summary of your work, not more than 250 words long. An abstract receives its own page and should be page 2 of your paper.  Also include 5 - 10 keywords that capture the main ideas of your work and that would help someone find your work using a database such as Harrisburg University's Digital Commons.

Bibliography/References Formatting

The references page should begin at the top of a new page immediately after the body of the work essay has ended.

• Citations should be listed in alphabetical order by first author's last name (NOT the order that you referenced them in your paper.
• Citations should use a hanging indent (the second and subsequent lines are positioned a half inch from the top line's margin) as shown in the sample of an APA-style bibliography below.

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The American Psychological Association (APA) provides comprehensive guidance on the use of AI in both scholarly writing and clinical practice. Here's a summary of the key points:

Use of AI in Scholarly Publications and Writing

• Disclosure and Transparency: When using generative AI models to draft a manuscript, authors must disclose this use in the methods section and cite the tool. This includes using AI for generating content, ideas, or even for editing purposes. Transparency is a core principle.

• Authorship: An AI tool cannot be listed as an author of a scholarly publication. Authorship implies responsibility for the work, and APA policy states that human authors are responsible for the accuracy of all information, including any content provided by an AI.

• Verification: Authors are required to verify any information and citations provided by an AI tool by checking the original sources. AI models can hallucinate or produce biased, inaccurate information.

• Attribution and Citation: APA provides specific guidelines for citing AI-generated content. The citation should include the name of the organization that created the tool, the year, the tool name and version, and a URL. If the output is not publicly retrievable, the user should include the text of the AI-generated content in an appendix and reference it in the citation.

• Confidentiality: Journal editors and reviewers are prohibited from entering materials from submitted manuscripts into generative AI tools, as this would violate the confidentiality of the peer-review process. Similarly, authors should not enter confidential research data or other identifiable information into open AI tools.

• Documentation: Authors are encouraged to document their interactions with AI tools, including the prompts they used, and to save the AI's output in their private records in case it is requested during peer review or after publication.

For more information, see APA Journals policy on generative AI

• APA Academic Writer Tutorial

  Published by the APA, this tutorial is designed for writers new to APA Style. Learn the basics of seventh edition APA Style, including paper elements, format, and organization; academic writing style; grammar and usage; bias-free language; mechanics of style; tables and figures; in-text citations, paraphrasing, and quotations; and reference list format and order.

• APA Citations Tutorial, 7th ed. (Credo Plagiarism Module)

  Use this to complete the APA 7th edition style tutorial. It will open in a new browser window.

• Why Citations Matter Tutorial (Credo Plagiarism Module)

  Use this link to complete the Why Citations Matter tutorial segment. It will open in a new browser window.