APA Citation Cheat-Sheet
Information from:
American Psychological Association. (2005). Publication manual of the American Psychological
Association. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
What You Will Need
Here is a table of what you will need for every source consulted:
Books Articles Electronic Resources
Author(s) or Editor(s) Author(s) Same information as for
Articles, plus Web Site
Address (URL)
Title
Publication Date
Title of Article
Title of Journal / Magazine /
Newspaper
City of Publication
Publisher Volume & Issue Number
Publication Date Name of Database
Name of Database Publisher
Page Numbers Date of Access
Write down this information for each source as you take notes during your research. This will help
immensely when you are ready to write the paper.
In-Text Citation Format
When you are including a citation in the body of your paper, use the following format. Do not use this
format for the citation list at the end of your paper.
●Short Quotations – Include the Author's last name, the year of publication, and the
page number you are quoting from. Introduce the quotation with a phrase like
“According to...” or “Smith says that...” and follow it with the year of publication in
parentheses. Include the page number in parentheses after the quote.
●Long Quotations – For quotes longer than 40 words, start the quote on a new line
and indent five spaces from the left margin for the duration of the quote. For this
kind of quotation, you do not need quote marks as the indention serves as indication
that this is a quote. Include the page number in parentheses after the quote.
●Summaries and Paraphrases – Introduce the paraphrase with “According to...” or
“Smith says that...”. It is not necessary to include a page number, though you still
can if you want to.
Examples:
According to Baker (2008), plagiarism “could result in a lower or failing grade and even in your
expulsion from university.” (p. 3)
In his 2008 presentation, Baker states:
In essence, when you quote or paraphrase from somebody else's work without citing it, you are
plagiarizing their work. Plagiarism is a serious matter, and could result in a lower or failing grade
and even in your expulsion from university. Just rewording your work isn't enough to avoid
plagiarism. Since you are still borrowing information heavily from another writer, you still need to
include a citation. (p. 3)
Plagiarism could get you kicked out of school or make you fail your class. (Baker, 2008)
