types of referencing for essay

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Citation styles: apa, mla, chicago, turabian, ieee.

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Listed below are a few quick links to resources that will aid you in citing sources.

• Sign up for a Mendeley, EndNote, or Zotero training class.
• APA 7th Edition Published in October 2019. Visit this page for links to resources and examples.
• MLA Need help with citing MLA style? Find information here along with links to books in PittCat and free online resources.
• Chicago/Turabian Need help with citing Chicago/Turabian style? Find examples here along with links to the online style manual and free online resources.

Getting Started: How to use this guide

This LibGuide was designed to provide you with assistance in citing your sources when writing an academic paper.

There are different styles which format the information differently. In each tab, you will find descriptions of each citation style featured in this guide along with links to online resources for citing and a few examples.

What is a citation and citation style?

A citation is a way of giving credit to individuals for their creative and intellectual works that you utilized to support your research. It can also be used to locate particular sources and combat plagiarism. Typically, a citation can include the author's name, date, location of the publishing company, journal title, or DOI (Digital Object Identifier).

A citation style dictates the information necessary for a citation and how the information is ordered, as well as punctuation and other formatting.

How to do I choose a citation style?

There are many different ways of citing resources from your research. The citation style sometimes depends on the academic discipline involved. For example:

• APA (American Psychological Association) is used by Education, Psychology, and Sciences
• MLA (Modern Language Association) style is used by the Humanities
• Chicago/Turabian style is generally used by Business, History, and the Fine Arts

*You will need to consult with your professor to determine what is required in your specific course.

Click the links below to find descriptions of each style along with a sample of major in-text and bibliographic citations, links to books in PittCat, online citation manuals, and other free online resources.

• APA Citation Style
• MLA Citation Style
• Chicago/Turabian Citation Style
• Tools for creating bibliographies (CItation Managers)

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How to Reference Essays

Last Updated: January 8, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Alexander Peterman, MA . Alexander Peterman is a Private Tutor in Florida. He received his MA in Education from the University of Florida in 2017. There are 14 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 366,374 times.

When you begin writing a research essay, you must take into account the format of your writing and reference pages. There are several reference styles that may be assigned to you, including MLA (Modern Language Association), APA (American Psychological Association), and Chicago. Each one has its own set of rules. There's no need to familiarize yourself with all 3 unless you have to, but you do need to learn at least one if you’re in any field involving academic writing. Here are summaries of each style to help you start your essay on the right track.

Referencing Essays Templates

• You will need a citation directly after every sentence (or group of sentences if you're citing the same source in multiple consecutive sentences) containing information you didn't think of yourself. These include: paraphrases, facts, statistics, quotes, and examples.
• An in-text citation using MLA will simply have the author last name (or title if no author) followed by the page number. No comma between author and page number. For example: (Richards 456) Richards is the author last name, and 456 is the page number.
• If you have an author name (or title, if no author) but no page number, simply use author last name (or title).

• The easiest way to keep track of MLA citations while doing research is to copy and paste copyright information into a word processing document as you go, or to write it down in a notebook.
• Things to include for any source are author(s), date published, publisher, page number, volume and issue number, website, date accessed, anything that appears on the copyright page or indicates how to find it again. [2] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source

• As an example, the format for a standard book citation using MLA style is as follows: Last name of author, First name. Title of Book. City published: Publisher Name, Year published. Source Medium.
• An MLA website citation looks like the following. If there's no author listed, begin citation with the name of the page: Last name, first name. "Page Title." Website Title. Publisher. Date published. Source Medium. Date accessed.
• An MLA scholarly article citation looks like the following: Last name, First name. "Title of Article." Title of Journal . Volume.Issue (Year): page numbers. Source Medium.
• Write the title of the main work (book, magazine, journal, website, etc.) in italics, or underline if you’re writing references by hand.
• Chapter or article titles should be in quotation marks.

• If there is no author listed, as is common on websites, simply skip the author’s name and begin the entry with the title of the work.
• Alphabetize by the first letter that appears in the entry, whether it has an author name or not.

• The formatting should be in Times New Roman font, size 12, with “Works Cited” centered at the top of a new page.
• Each entry should have hanging indent, meaning all lines below the first line are indented by half an inch.
• Make sure there is a period after each section of the citations. A period should always end the citation.

• Place a parenthetical citation at the end of every sentence (or group of sentences if you're using the same source for multiple consecutive sentences) containing information you didn't know before doing research.
• An in-text citation using APA will simply have the author last name (or title if no author) followed by the year it was published. No comma between name and year. For example: (Richards 2005) Richards is the author last name, and 2005 is the year.
• If you have an author name (or title if no author) but no page number, simply use author last name (or title). This is common when citing websites.
• APA document formatting is very important. APA papers are divided up into 4 sections: the title page, the abstract, the main body, and the references page. The citations of a research paper using APA appear in the References section, the last portion of an APA document. [7] X Research source

• To form APA reference page citations, you will need such information as author name(s), date published, website URL, date you accessed the website, title of work, and so on. [8] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source

• For example, the format for an APA reference of a scholarly journal article is as follows: Author last name, First initial. (Year published). Article or chapter title. Journal or book title, Issue number , page number range. [10] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source
• The format for an APA book reference looks like: Last name, First name. (Year.) Title of Book: Capital letter also for subtitle . Location: Publisher.
• The format for an APA website reference looks like: Author, A.A. First name, & Author, B.B. (Date published.) Title of article. In Title of webpage or larger document or book (chapter or section number). Retrieved from URL address

• Capitalize the author's last name and first initial, followed by a period.
• Only capitalize the first word of a journal article title, unless the title contains a proper noun (called sentence case). Titles of books should preserve the published capitalization.
• Capitalize the city of publication, and use correct state abbreviations for states. Also capitalize the name of the publisher and end the reference with a period.
• The title of larger works, whether a book, journal, website, or magazine, is in italics (or underlined if handwriting), as is the issue number that appears right after the title. Titles for shorter works like articles and chapters should not have any indicative punctuation in an APA entry. [12] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source
• A period should end all citations.

Using Chicago Manual of Style

• For Notes and Bibliography, you will use a superscript at the instance of each quote in the text with a corresponding footnote at the end of the page. All footnotes are compiled into endnotes at the end of the work, on the bibliography page. [14] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source
• For Author Date, you will use parenthetical in-text citations that include author last name and year published, using no punctuation between name and year. The full version of each parenthetical citation is listed alphabetically on the references page. For example: (Simon 2011) Simon is the author last name, and 2011 is the year.
• You will need a citation directly after every sentence (or group of sentences if you're using the same source for multiple consecutive sentences) containing information you didn't think of yourself. These include: paraphrases, facts, statistics, quotes, and examples.

• If using a book, write down all pertinent information found on the copyright page, including the name of the publisher and the city and year of publication.
• For other sources, look for this information near the title of the piece you’re looking at. Publication date is often at the bottom of webpages.

• Title your references page “Bibliography” centered at the top of the page. Leave 2 blank lines between this title and the first entry, and one blank line between entries.
• Notes and Bibliography style uses footnotes for page endings and endnotes for chapter endings. The bibliography page will be an alphabetized list of all sources in hanging indent.
• An example format for a book is as follows: Last name, First name. Book Title . City: Publisher, Year.
• An example format for a chapter in a print scholarly journal is as follows: Author last name, first name. "Title of Chapter or Article." Book or journal Title Issue Number (Year): Page number range. (For an online scholarly journal article, tack on the following at the end: Date accessed. URL address.)
• When there is no known author, the entry should begin with the title of the document, whether it's a webpage, chapter, article, and so on.
• When there are multiple authors, the first listed author appears last name, first name, so that the citation is alphabetized by this author's last name. Subsequent authors are listed by first name, like this: Alcott, Louisa May, Charles Dickens, and Elizabeth Gaskell.
• Always end a citation with a period.

• When using Author Date style, title your references page “References” centered at the top of the page. Leave 2 blank lines between this title and the first entry, and 1 blank line between entries.
• Author Date style bibliographies should be organized alphabetically by last name (or by title if no author) in hanging indent.
• An example format for a book is as follows: Last name, first name. Year. Book Title . City Published: Publisher.
• An example format for a chapter in a print scholarly journal is as follows: Author last name, first name. Year. "Title of Chapter or Article." Book or journal title issue number: page numbers. (for an online scholarly journal article tack this onto the end: Date accessed. URL address.)
• An example format for a website is as follows: Name of Website. Year. "Page Title." Date last modified. Date accessed. URL address.

Expert Q&A

• You don't have to write each bibliography or reference entry on your own. You can download citation management software like Endnote [17] X Research source (purchase required on this one), Zotero [18] X Research source (it's free), or use websites like http://www.bibme.org/ and http://www.easybib.com/ . Select the name of your style manual before you begin creating citations. Copy and paste the citation into your bibliography or references list. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• If you are assigned to write a paper or other written document in one of these styles, you need to purchase the style manual. It will contain nearly every instance not only of source citation, but paper formatting as well as grammar and punctuation that is unique to that style. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

• This article only lists how to cite research for each style manual. Each style has its own instructions for setting up the format of the essay, including heading, spacing, margins, font, and so on. Thanks Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_in_text_citations_the_basics.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_formatting_and_style_guide.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_page_books.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_author_authors.html
• ↑ https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_electronic_sources.html
• ↑ https://libguides.jcu.edu.au/apa/reference-list
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_author_authors.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_basic_rules.html
• ↑ https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/chicago_manual_17th_edition/cmos_formatting_and_style_guide/chicago_manual_of_style_17th_edition.html
• ↑ http://guides.nyu.edu/c.php?g=276562&p=1844734
• ↑ http://endnote.com
• ↑ https://www.zotero.org

About This Article

To reference an essay using MLA style, add a citation after any information you found through a source, like facts or quotes. When citing the reference, include the author’s name and the page number you pulled the information from in parenthesis, like “(Richards 456).” Once you’ve finished your essay, add a Words Cited page with all of the information you used to research your essay, like books or articles. To create a Works Cited page, list the sources in alphabetical order using the author’s last name, and include additional information, like year published and the medium. For more tips from our Writing reviewer, like how to reference an essay using APA style, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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• APA Referencing (7th Ed.) Quick Guide | In-text Citations & References

APA Referencing (7th Ed.) Quick Guide | In-text Citations & References

Published on 18 January 2021 by Raimo Streefkerk . Revised on 17 January 2024.

This citation guide outlines the most important citation guidelines from the 7th edition APA Publication Manual (2020). Scribbr also offers free guides for the older APA 6th edition , MLA Style , and Chicago Style .

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Table of contents

Apa in-text citations, apa references, formatting the apa reference page, free lecture slides.

In-text citations are brief references in the running text that direct readers to the reference entry at the end of the paper. You include them every time you quote or paraphrase someone else’s ideas or words.

An APA in-text citation consists of the author’s last name and the year of publication (also known as the author-date system). If you’re citing a specific part of a source, you should also include a locator such as a page number or timestamp. For example: (Smith, 2020, p. 170) .

Parenthetical vs. narrative citation

The in-text citation can take two forms: parenthetical and narrative. Both types are generated automatically when citing a source with Scribbr’s APA Citation Generator.

• Parenthetical citation: According to new research … (Smith, 2020) .
• Narrative citation: Smith (2020) notes that …

Multiple authors and corporate authors

The in-text citation changes slightly when a source has multiple authors or an organization as an author. Pay attention to punctuation and the use of the ampersand (&) symbol.

Missing information

When the author, publication date or locator is unknown, take the steps outlined below.

Prevent plagiarism, run a free check.

APA references generally include information about the author , publication date , title , and source . Depending on the type of source, you may have to include extra information that helps your reader locate the source.

Reference examples

Citing a source starts with choosing the correct reference format. Use Scribbr’s Citation Example Generator to learn more about the format for the most common source types. Pay close attention to punctuation, capitalization, and italicization.

Generate APA citations for free

It is not uncommon for certain information to be unknown or missing, especially with sources found online. In these cases, the reference is slightly adjusted.

On the first line of the page, write the section label “References” (in bold and centred). On the second line, start listing your references in alphabetical order .

Apply these formatting guidelines to the APA reference page:

• Double spacing (within and between references)
• Hanging indent of ½ inch
• Legible font (e.g. Times New Roman 12 or Arial 11)
• Page number in the top-right header

Which sources to include

On the reference page, you only include sources that you have cited in the text (with an in-text citation ). You should not include references to personal communications that your reader can’t access (e.g. emails, phone conversations or private online material).

Are you a teacher or professor looking to introduce your students to APA Style? Download our free introductory lecture slides, available for Google Slides and Microsoft PowerPoint.

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Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

Streefkerk, R. (2024, January 17). APA Referencing (7th Ed.) Quick Guide | In-text Citations & References. Scribbr. Retrieved 8 April 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/referencing/apa-style/

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Reference List: Common Reference List Examples

Article (with doi).

Alvarez, E., & Tippins, S. (2019). Socialization agents that Puerto Rican college students use to make financial decisions. Journal of Social Change , 11 (1), 75–85. https://doi.org/10.5590/JOSC.2019.11.1.07

Laplante, J. P., & Nolin, C. (2014). Consultas and socially responsible investing in Guatemala: A case study examining Maya perspectives on the Indigenous right to free, prior, and informed consent. Society & Natural Resources , 27 , 231–248. https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2013.861554

Use the DOI number for the source whenever one is available. DOI stands for "digital object identifier," a number specific to the article that can help others locate the source. In APA 7, format the DOI as a web address. Active hyperlinks for DOIs and URLs should be used for documents meant for screen reading. Present these hyperlinks in blue and underlined text (the default formatting in Microsoft Word), although plain black text is also acceptable. Be consistent in your formatting choice for DOIs and URLs throughout your reference list. Also see our Quick Answer FAQ, "Can I use the DOI format provided by library databases?"

Jerrentrup, A., Mueller, T., Glowalla, U., Herder, M., Henrichs, N., Neubauer, A., & Schaefer, J. R. (2018). Teaching medicine with the help of “Dr. House.” PLoS ONE , 13 (3), Article e0193972. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0193972

For journal articles that are assigned article numbers rather than page ranges, include the article number in place of the page range.

For more on citing electronic resources, see  Electronic Sources References .

Article (Without DOI)

Found in a common academic research database or in print.

Casler , T. (2020). Improving the graduate nursing experience through support on a social media platform. MEDSURG Nursing , 29 (2), 83–87.

If an article does not have a DOI and you retrieved it from a common academic research database through the university library, there is no need to include any additional electronic retrieval information. The reference list entry looks like the entry for a print copy of the article. (This format differs from APA 6 guidelines that recommended including the URL of a journal's homepage when the DOI was not available.) Note that APA 7 has additional guidance on reference list entries for articles found only in specific databases or archives such as Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, UpToDate, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global, and university archives. See APA 7, Section 9.30 for more information.

Found on an Open Access Website

Eaton, T. V., & Akers, M. D. (2007). Whistleblowing and good governance. CPA Journal , 77 (6), 66–71. http://archives.cpajournal.com/2007/607/essentials/p58.htm

Provide the direct web address/URL to a journal article found on the open web, often on an open access journal's website. In APA 7, active hyperlinks for DOIs and URLs should be used for documents meant for screen reading. Present these hyperlinks in blue and underlined text (the default formatting in Microsoft Word), although plain black text is also acceptable. Be consistent in your formatting choice for DOIs and URLs throughout your reference list.

Weinstein, J. A. (2010).  Social change  (3rd ed.). Rowman & Littlefield.

If the book has an edition number, include it in parentheses after the title of the book. If the book does not list any edition information, do not include an edition number. The edition number is not italicized.

American Nurses Association. (2015). Nursing: Scope and standards of practice (3rd ed.).

If the author and publisher are the same, only include the author in its regular place and omit the publisher.

Lencioni, P. (2012). The advantage: Why organizational health trumps everything else in business . Jossey-Bass. https://amzn.to/343XPSJ

As a change from APA 6 to APA 7, it is no longer necessary to include the ebook format in the title. However, if you listened to an audiobook and the content differs from the text version (e.g., abridged content) or your discussion highlights elements of the audiobook (e.g., narrator's performance), then note that it is an audiobook in the title element in brackets. For ebooks and online audiobooks, also include the DOI number (if available) or nondatabase URL but leave out the electronic retrieval element if the ebook was found in a common academic research database, as with journal articles. APA 7 allows for the shortening of long DOIs and URLs, as shown in this example. See APA 7, Section 9.36 for more information.

Chapter in an Edited Book

Poe, M. (2017). Reframing race in teaching writing across the curriculum. In F. Condon & V. A. Young (Eds.), Performing antiracist pedagogy in rhetoric, writing, and communication (pp. 87–105). University Press of Colorado.

Include the page numbers of the chapter in parentheses after the book title.

Christensen, L. (2001). For my people: Celebrating community through poetry. In B. Bigelow, B. Harvey, S. Karp, & L. Miller (Eds.), Rethinking our classrooms: Teaching for equity and justice (Vol. 2, pp. 16–17). Rethinking Schools.

Also include the volume number or edition number in the parenthetical information after the book title when relevant.

Freud, S. (1961). The ego and the id. In J. Strachey (Ed.),  The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud  (Vol. 19, pp. 3-66). Hogarth Press. (Original work published 1923)

When a text has been republished as part of an anthology collection, after the author’s name include the date of the version that was read. At the end of the entry, place the date of the original publication inside parenthesis along with the note “original work published.” For in-text citations of republished work, use both dates in the parenthetical citation, original date first with a slash separating the years, as in this example: Freud (1923/1961). For more information on reprinted or republished works, see APA 7, Sections 9.40-9.41.

Classroom Resources

Citing classroom resources.

If you need to cite content found in your online classroom, use the author (if there is one listed), the year of publication (if available), the title of the document, and the main URL of Walden classrooms. For example, you are citing study notes titled "Health Effects of Exposure to Forest Fires," but you do not know the author's name, your reference entry will look like this:

Health effects of exposure to forest fires [Lecture notes]. (2005). Walden University Canvas. https://waldenu.instructure.com

If you do know the author of the document, your reference will look like this:

Smith, A. (2005). Health effects of exposure to forest fires [PowerPoint slides]. Walden University Canvas. https://waldenu.instructure.com  

A few notes on citing course materials:

• [Lecture notes]
• [Course handout]
• [Study notes]
• It can be difficult to determine authorship of classroom documents. If an author is listed on the document, use that. If the resource is clearly a product of Walden (such as the course-based videos), use Walden University as the author. If you are unsure or if no author is indicated, place the title in the author spot, as above.
• If you cannot determine a date of publication, you can use n.d. (for "no date") in place of the year.

Note:  The web location for Walden course materials is not directly retrievable without a password, and therefore, following APA guidelines, use the main URL for the class sites: https://class.waldenu.edu.

Citing Tempo Classroom Resources

Clear author: 

Smith, A. (2005). Health effects of exposure to forest fires [PowerPoint slides]. Walden University Brightspace. https://mytempo.waldenu.edu

Unclear author:

Health effects of exposure to forest fires [Lecture notes]. (2005). Walden University Brightspace. https://mytempo.waldenu.edu

Conference Sessions and Presentations

Feinman, Y. (2018, July 27). Alternative to proctoring in introductory statistics community college courses [Poster presentation]. Walden University Research Symposium, Minneapolis, MN, United States. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/symposium2018/23/

Torgerson, K., Parrill, J., & Haas, A. (2019, April 5-9). Tutoring strategies for online students [Conference session]. The Higher Learning Commission Annual Conference, Chicago, IL, United States. http://onlinewritingcenters.org/scholarship/torgerson-parrill-haas-2019/

Dictionary Entry

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Leadership. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary . Retrieved May 28, 2020, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leadership

When constructing a reference for an entry in a dictionary or other reference work that has no byline (i.e., no named individual authors), use the name of the group—the institution, company, or organization—as author (e.g., Merriam Webster, American Psychological Association, etc.). The name of the entry goes in the title position, followed by "In" and the italicized name of the reference work (e.g., Merriam-Webster.com dictionary , APA dictionary of psychology ). In this instance, APA 7 recommends including a retrieval date as well for this online source since the contents of the page change over time. End the reference entry with the specific URL for the defined word.

Discussion Board Post

Osborne, C. S. (2010, June 29). Re: Environmental responsibility [Discussion post]. Walden University Canvas.  https://waldenu.instructure.com  

Dissertations or Theses

Retrieved From a Database

Nalumango, K. (2019). Perceptions about the asylum-seeking process in the United States after 9/11 (Publication No. 13879844) [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses.

Retrieved From an Institutional or Personal Website

Evener. J. (2018). Organizational learning in libraries at for-profit colleges and universities [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University]. ScholarWorks. https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6606&context=dissertations

Unpublished Dissertation or Thesis

Kirwan, J. G. (2005). An experimental study of the effects of small-group, face-to-face facilitated dialogues on the development of self-actualization levels: A movement towards fully functional persons [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Saybrook Graduate School and Research Center.

For further examples and information, see APA 7, Section 10.6.

Legal Material

For legal references, APA follows the recommendations of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation , so if you have any questions beyond the examples provided in APA, seek out that resource as well.

Court Decisions

Reference format:

Name v. Name, Volume Reporter Page (Court Date). URL

Sample reference entry:

Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954). https://www.oyez.org/cases/1940-1955/347us483

Sample citation:

In Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Supreme Court ruled racial segregation in schools unconstitutional.

Note: Italicize the case name when it appears in the text of your paper.

Name of Act, Title Source § Section Number (Year). URL

Sample reference entry for a federal statute:

Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq. (2004). https://www.congress.gov/108/plaws/publ446/PLAW-108publ446.pdf

Sample reference entry for a state statute:

Minnesota Nurse Practice Act, Minn. Stat. §§ 148.171 et seq. (2019). https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/148.171

Sample citation: Minnesota nurses must maintain current registration in order to practice (Minnesota Nurse Practice Act, 2010).

Note: The § symbol stands for "section." Use §§ for sections (plural). To find this symbol in Microsoft Word, go to "Insert" and click on Symbol." Look in the Latin 1-Supplement subset. Note: U.S.C. stands for "United States Code." Note: The Latin abbreviation " et seq. " means "and what follows" and is used when the act includes the cited section and ones that follow. Note: List the chapter first followed by the section or range of sections.

Unenacted Bills and Resolutions

(Those that did not pass and become law)

Title [if there is one], bill or resolution number, xxx Cong. (year). URL

Sample reference entry for Senate bill:

Anti-Phishing Act, S. 472, 109th Cong. (2005). https://www.congress.gov/bill/109th-congress/senate-bill/472

Sample reference entry for House of Representatives resolution:

Anti-Phishing Act, H.R. 1099, 109th Cong. (2005). https://www.congress.gov/bill/109th-congress/house-bill/1099

The Anti-Phishing Act (2005) proposed up to 5 years prison time for people running Internet scams.

These are the three legal areas you may be most apt to cite in your scholarly work. For more examples and explanation, see APA 7, Chapter 11.

Magazine Article

Clay, R. (2008, June). Science vs. ideology: Psychologists fight back about the misuse of research. Monitor on Psychology , 39 (6). https://www.apa.org/monitor/2008/06/ideology

Note that for citations, include only the year: Clay (2008). For magazine articles retrieved from a common academic research database, leave out the URL. For magazine articles from an online news website that is not an online version of a print magazine, follow the format for a webpage reference list entry.

Newspaper Article (Retrieved Online)

Baker, A. (2014, May 7). Connecticut students show gains in national tests. New York Times . http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/08/nyregion/national-assessment-of-educational-progress-results-in-Connecticut-and-New-Jersey.html

Include the full date in the format Year, Month Day. Do not include a retrieval date for periodical sources found on websites. Note that for citations, include only the year: Baker (2014). For newspaper articles retrieved from a common academic research database, leave out the URL. For newspaper articles from an online news website that is not an online version of a print newspaper, follow the format for a webpage reference list entry.

Online Video/Webcast

Walden University. (2013).  An overview of learning  [Video]. Walden University Canvas.  https://waldenu.instructure.com  

Use this format for online videos such as Walden videos in classrooms. Most of our classroom videos are produced by Walden University, which will be listed as the author in your reference and citation. Note: Some examples of audiovisual materials in the APA manual show the word “Producer” in parentheses after the producer/author area. In consultation with the editors of the APA manual, we have determined that parenthetical is not necessary for the videos in our courses. The manual itself is unclear on the matter, however, so either approach should be accepted. Note that the speaker in the video does not appear in the reference list entry, but you may want to mention that person in your text. For instance, if you are viewing a video where Tobias Ball is the speaker, you might write the following: Tobias Ball stated that APA guidelines ensure a consistent presentation of information in student papers (Walden University, 2013). For more information on citing the speaker in a video, see our page on Common Citation Errors .

Taylor, R. [taylorphd07]. (2014, February 27). Scales of measurement [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDsMUlexaMY

Walden University Academic Skills Center. (2020, April 15). One-way ANCOVA: Introduction [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/_XnNDQ5CNW8

For videos from streaming sites, use the person or organization who uploaded the video in the author space to ensure retrievability, whether or not that person is the speaker in the video. A username can be provided in square brackets. As a change from APA 6 to APA 7, include the publisher after the title, and do not use "Retrieved from" before the URL. See APA 7, Section 10.12 for more information and examples.

See also reference list entry formats for TED Talks .

Technical and Research Reports

Edwards, C. (2015). Lighting levels for isolated intersections: Leading to safety improvements (Report No. MnDOT 2015-05). Center for Transportation Studies. http://www.cts.umn.edu/Publications/ResearchReports/reportdetail.html?id=2402

Technical and research reports by governmental agencies and other research institutions usually follow a different publication process than scholarly, peer-reviewed journals. However, they present original research and are often useful for research papers. Sometimes, researchers refer to these types of reports as gray literature , and white papers are a type of this literature. See APA 7, Section 10.4 for more information.

Reference list entires for TED Talks follow the usual guidelines for multimedia content found online. There are two common places to find TED talks online, with slightly different reference list entry formats for each.

TED Talk on the TED website

If you find the TED Talk on the TED website, follow the format for an online video on an organizational website:

Owusu-Kesse, K. (2020, June). 5 needs that any COVID-19 response should meet [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/kwame_owusu_kesse_5_needs_that_any_covid_19_response_should_meet

The speaker is the author in the reference list entry if the video is posted on the TED website. For citations, use the speaker's surname.

TED Talk on YouTube

If you find the TED Talk on YouTube or another streaming video website, follow the usual format for streaming video sites:

TED. (2021, February 5). The shadow pandemic of domestic violence during COVID-19 | Kemi DaSilvalbru [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGdID_ICFII

TED is the author in the reference list entry if the video is posted on YouTube since it is the channel on which the video is posted. For citations, use TED as the author.

Walden University Course Catalog

To include the Walden course catalog in your reference list, use this format:

Walden University. (2020). 2019-2020 Walden University catalog . https://catalog.waldenu.edu/index.php

If you cite from a specific portion of the catalog in your paper, indicate the appropriate section and paragraph number in your text:

...which reflects the commitment to social change expressed in Walden University's mission statement (Walden University, 2020, Vision, Mission, and Goals section, para. 2).

And in the reference list:

Walden University. (2020). Vision, mission, and goals. In 2019-2020 Walden University catalog. https://catalog.waldenu.edu/content.php?catoid=172&navoid=59420&hl=vision&returnto=search

Vartan, S. (2018, January 30). Why vacations matter for your health . CNN. https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/why-vacations-matter/index.html

For webpages on the open web, include the author, date, webpage title, organization/site name, and URL. (There is a slight variation for online versions of print newspapers or magazines. For those sources, follow the models in the previous sections of this page.)

American Federation of Teachers. (n.d.). Community schools . http://www.aft.org/issues/schoolreform/commschools/index.cfm

If there is no specified author, then use the organization’s name as the author. In such a case, there is no need to repeat the organization's name after the title.

In APA 7, active hyperlinks for DOIs and URLs should be used for documents meant for screen reading. Present these hyperlinks in blue and underlined text (the default formatting in Microsoft Word), although plain black text is also acceptable. Be consistent in your formatting choice for DOIs and URLs throughout your reference list.

Related Resources

Knowledge Check: Common Reference List Examples

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How to Write an Academic Essay with References and Citations

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Written by  Scribendi

If you're wondering how to write an academic essay with references, look no further. In this article, we'll discuss how to use in-text citations and references, including how to cite a website, how to cite a book, and how to cite a Tweet, according to various style guides.

You might need to cite sources when writing a paper that references other sources. For example, when writing an essay, you may use information from other works, such as books, articles, or websites. You must then inform readers where this information came from. Failure to do so, even accidentally, is plagiarism—passing off another person's work as your own.

You can avoid plagiarism and show readers where to find information by using citations and references. 

Citations tell readers where a piece of information came from. They take the form of footnotes, endnotes, or parenthetical elements, depending on your style guide. In-text citations are usually placed at the end of a sentence containing the relevant information. 

A reference list , bibliography, or works cited list at the end of a text provides additional details about these cited sources. This list includes enough publication information allowing readers to look up these sources themselves.

Referencing is important for more than simply avoiding plagiarism. Referring to a trustworthy source shows that the information is reliable. Referring to reliable information can also support your major points and back up your argument. 

Learning how to write an academic essay with references and how to use in-text citations will allow you to cite authors who have made similar arguments. This helps show that your argument is objective and not entirely based on personal biases.

How Do You Determine Which Style Guide to Use?

Often, a professor will assign a style guide. The purpose of a style guide is to provide writers with formatting instructions. If your professor has not assigned a style guide, they should still be able to recommend one. 

If you are entirely free to choose, pick one that aligns with your field (for example, APA is frequently used for scientific writing). 

Some of the most common style guides are as follows:

AP style for journalism

Chicago style for publishing

APA style for scholarly writing (commonly used in scientific fields)

MLA style for scholarly citations (commonly used in English literature fields)

Some journals have their own style guides, so if you plan to publish, check which guide your target journal uses. You can do this by locating your target journal's website and searching for author guidelines.

How Do You Pick Your Sources?

When learning how to write an academic essay with references, you must identify reliable sources that support your argument. 

As you read, think critically and evaluate sources for:

Objectivity

Keep detailed notes on the sources so that you can easily find them again, if needed.

Tip: Record these notes in the format of your style guide—your reference list will then be ready to go.

How to Use In-Text Citations in MLA

An in-text citation in MLA includes the author's last name and the relevant page number: 

(Author 123)

How to Cite a Website in MLA

Here's how to cite a website in MLA:

Author's last name, First name. "Title of page."

Website. Website Publisher, date. Web. Date

retrieved. <URL>

With information from a real website, this looks like:

Morris, Nancy. "How to Cite a Tweet in APA,

Chicago, and MLA." Scribendi. Scribendi

Inc., n.d. Web. 22 Dec. 2021.

<https://www.scribendi.com/academy/articles/how_to_cite_a_website.en.html>

How Do You Cite a Tweet in MLA ?

MLA uses the full text of a short Tweet (under 140 characters) as its title. Longer Tweets can be shortened using ellipses. 

MLA Tweet references should be formatted as follows:

@twitterhandle (Author Name). "Text of Tweet." Twitter, Date Month, Year, time of

publication, URL.

With information from an actual Tweet, this looks like:

@neiltyson (Neil deGrasse Tyson). "You can't use reason to convince anyone out of an

argument that they didn't use reason to get into." Twitter, 29 Sept. 2020, 10:15 p.m.,

https://twitter.com/neiltyson/status/1311127369785192449 .

How to Cite a Book in MLA

Here's how to cite a book in MLA:

Author's last name, First name. Book Title. Publisher, Year.

With publication information from a real book, this looks like:

Montgomery, L.M. Rainbow Valley. Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1919.

How to Cite a Chapter in a Book in MLA

Author's last name, First name. "Title of Chapter." Book Title , edited by Editor Name,

Publisher, Year, pp. page range.

With publication information from an actual book, this looks like:

Ezell, Margaret J.M. "The Social Author: Manuscript Culture, Writers, and Readers." The

Broadview Reader in Book History , edited by Michelle Levy and Tom Mole, Broadview

Press, 2015,pp. 375–394.

How to  Cite a Paraphrase in MLA

You can cite a paraphrase in MLA exactly the same way as you would cite a direct quotation. 

Make sure to include the author's name (either in the text or in the parenthetical citation) and the relevant page number.

How to Use In-Text Citations in APA

In APA, in-text citations include the author's last name and the year of publication; a page number is included only if a direct quotation is used: 

(Author, 2021, p. 123)

How to Cite a Website in APA

Here's how to cite a website in APA:

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year, Month. date of publication). Title of page. https://URL

Morris, N. (n.d.). How to cite a Tweet in APA, Chicago, and MLA. 

https://www.scribendi.com/academy/articles/how_to_cite_a_website.en.html       

Tip: Learn more about how to write an academic essay with  references to websites .

How Do You  Cite a Tweet in APA ?

APA refers to Tweets using their first 20 words. 

Tweet references should be formatted as follows:

Author, A. A. [@twitterhandle). (Year, Month. date of publication). First 20 words of the

Tweet. [Tweet] Twitter. URL

When we input information from a real Tweet, this looks like:

deGrasse Tyson, N. [@neiltyson]. (2020, Sept. 29). You can't use reason to convince anyone

out of an argument that they didn't use reason to get into. [Tweet] Twitter.

https://twitter.com/neiltyson/status/1311127369785192449

How to Cite a Book in APA

Here's how to cite a book in APA:   

Author, A. A. (Year). Book title. Publisher.

For a real book, this looks like:

Montgomery, L. M. (1919). Rainbow valley.

Frederick A. Stokes Company.

How to Cite a Chapter in a Book in APA

Author, A. A. (Year). Chapter title. In Editor Name (Ed.), Book Title (pp. page range).

With information from a real book, this looks like:

Ezell, M. J. M. (2014). The social author: Manuscript culture, writers, and readers. In

Michelle Levy and Tom Mole (Eds.), The Broadview Reader in Book History (pp. 375–

394). Broadview Press.

Knowing how to cite a book and how to cite a chapter in a book correctly will take you a long way in creating an effective reference list.

How to Cite a Paraphrase in APA

You can cite a paraphrase in APA the same way as you would cite a direct quotation, including the author's name and year of publication. 

In APA, you may also choose to pinpoint the page from which the information is taken.

Referencing is an essential part of academic integrity. Learning how to write an academic essay with references and how to use in-text citations shows readers that you did your research and helps them locate your sources.

Learning how to cite a website, how to cite a book, and how to cite a paraphrase can also help you avoid plagiarism —an academic offense with serious consequences for your education or professional reputation.

Scribendi can help format your citations or review your whole paper with our Academic Editing services .

Take Your Essay from Good to Great

Hire an expert academic editor , or get a free sample, about the author.

Scribendi's in-house editors work with writers from all over the globe to perfect their writing. They know that no piece of writing is complete without a professional edit, and they love to see a good piece of writing transformed into a great one. Scribendi's in-house editors are unrivaled in both experience and education, having collectively edited millions of words and obtained numerous degrees. They love consuming caffeinated beverages, reading books of various genres, and relaxing in quiet, dimly lit spaces.

Have You Read?

"The Complete Beginner's Guide to Academic Writing"

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Extended Essay: Step 8. Decide on a Citation Style

• Extended Essay- The Basics
• Step 1. Choose a Subject
• Step 2. Educate yourself!
• Using Brainstorming and Mind Maps
• Identify Keywords
• Do Background Reading
• Define Your Topic
• Conduct Research in a Specific Discipline
• Step 5. Draft a Research Question
• Step 6. Create a Timeline
• Find Articles
• Find Primary Sources
• Get Help from Experts
• Search Engines, Repositories, & Directories
• Databases and Websites by Subject Area
• Create an Annotated Bibliography
• Advice (and Warnings) from the IB
• Chicago Citation Syle
• MLA Works Cited & In-Text Citations
• Step 9. Set Deadlines for Yourself
• Step 10. Plan a structure for your essay
• Evaluate & Select: the CRAAP Test
• Conducting Secondary Research
• Conducting Primary Research
• Formal vs. Informal Writing
• Presentation Requirements
• Evaluating Your Work

Why do I need to reference everything?

Where did you find your information?

What kind of source is it?

Where can I find the source myself?

What range of sources did you use?

On this page:

Definitions: Bibliography, Citations, Referencing Referencing Online Materials Get help from NoodleTools! Demystifying Citing and Referencing tutorial

See other pages in this section for help with:

Create an Annotated Bibliography Advice (and Warnings) from the IB Chicago Citation Style MLA Works Cited and In-Text Citations

Definitions: Bibliography, Citations, Referencing

Bibliography

A bibliography is an alphabetical list of every source used to research and write the essay. Sources that are not cited in the body of the essay but were important in informing the approach taken should be cited in the introduction or in an acknowledgment. The bibliography  must  list only those sources cited.

A citation is a shorthand method of making a reference in the body of an essay, either as an in-text citation or footnote/endnote. This must then be linked to the full reference at the end of the essay in the bibliography. A citation provides the reader with accurate references so that he or she can locate the source easily. How sources are cited varies with the particular referencing style that has been chosen. It is important to emphasize that there must be consistency of method when citing sources.

Referencing

• they acknowledge the sources used
• they enable the reader to consult the work and verify the data that has been presented. 

References must be given whenever someone else’s work is quoted or summarized. References can come from many different sources, including books, magazines, journals, newspapers, emails, internet sites and interviews. 

There are a number of different styles available for use when writing research papers; whatever style is chosen, it must be applied consistently and in line with the IB’s minimum requirements.  The style should be applied in both the final draft of the essay and in the initial research stages of taking notes. This is good practice, not only for producing a high-quality final product, but also for reducing the opportunities and temptation to plagiarize. 

The IB’s minimum requirements include:

• name of author
• date of publication
• title of source
• page numbers (print sources only)
• date of access (electronic sources only)

Any references to interviews should state the name of the interviewer, the name of the interviewee, the date and the place of the interview. 

For more detailed information on styles for citations and referencing please refer to:

Twelve-step Plan for Researching the Extended Essay - Step 8

8.  Identify which system of academic referencing you will use, ensuring that it meets the minimum requirements for the IB.

Referencing Online Materials

References to online materials should include the title of the extract used as well as the website address, the date it was accessed and, if possible, the author.

In other words, all electronic sources must be date stamped by including the date the student accessed the resource (for example, accessed 12 March 2016). Caution should be exercised with information found on websites that do not give references or that cannot be cross-checked against other sources. The more important a particular point is to the essay, the more the quality of its source needs to be evaluated.

NoodleTools Links

Use NoodleTools for your citations!

• NoodleTools Help Desk Find tutorials to help with all aspects of using NoodleTools, or submit a help request ticket.

Demystifying Citing and Referencing

This tutorial from Monash University Library, in Melbourne, Australia, can help you learn the principles of citing and referencing, and understand how to avoid plagiarizing when integrating source material into your research paper.

The tutorial takes approximately 20 minutes to complete.

• << Previous: Databases and Websites by Subject Area
• Next: Create an Annotated Bibliography >>
• Last Updated: Feb 2, 2024 1:39 PM
• URL: https://libguides.westsoundacademy.org/ee

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Referencing styles

Author-date citations (Harvard) Numbered notes Numbered reference citations (Vancouver) OSCOLA

Introduction

Source references are vital to academic works (both print and digital) and so it is essential that they are clear, complete, and consistently formatted. Online bibliographical material is hyperlinked to provide readers with instant access to relevant sources or additional information.

Reference styles vary greatly across disciplines. This section details the main reference styles supported by OUP (Harvard, Vancouver, and OSCOLA) and provides examples that you can follow. If you are in doubt, your OUP editorial contact will be able to advise you on the best citation system for your text.

Author-date citations (Harvard)

The author-date style is an efficient and clear method of providing citations to published sources, which appear in a reference list at the end of the chapter or book. No superscripts are used, which means that reordering of the text does not require renumbering of notes. Instead of superscript numbers, a parenthetical citation (consisting of author name and date of publication) appears in the text and leads the reader to a full entry in a reference list that appears at the end of the chapter or book.

The method works particularly well when most of your citations are to published books or journal articles. It works less well if you are citing a lot of unauthored material or untraditional sources. Unlike numbered notes, author-date citations cannot accommodate translations or commentary outside the main text, although it is possible to combine author-date citations (for bibliographic citations) with numbered notes (for explanatory text).

In-text citation

References are cited within the text by including the author’s last name and a date parenthetically. A page number can be added if needed. If the author’s name appears in the sentence containing the citation, you need only use the date. Complete bibliographical reference information is listed at the end of the chapter or text.

Up to two author names can be used in the in-text citation. When citing a work with three or more authors, use the first author’s last name plus ‘et al.’

If you cite multiple references by the same author that were published in the same year, distinguish between them by adding labels (e.g. ‘a’ and ‘b’) to the year, in both the citation and the reference list.

Structure of the reference list

The reference list appears at the end of the chapter or text in alphabetical order. The name of the first author is inverted. In science literature, initials are often used in place of author first names.

The bibliographic elements listed below are required for the most common types of reference citations. Additional elements are mentioned that may be optional or to be used in only certain instances (e.g. a page number or other locator that is required if you are quoting a precise part of a large work, but not if the reference is to the work as a whole). Consistency in application is important.

Do not use long dashes (“—") to substitute for the name of an author who is identified in the bibliography due to how that entry will be linked in digital versions. Because the entry may not appear immediately following the entry with the full name, repeat the name in full.

Examples of author-date references in British style

Authored book.

Required elements

Lastname, Firstname/initials. Year of Publication. Title of Work .

With optional elements

Lastname, Firstname/initials, and Firstname/initials Lastname. Year of Publication. Title of Work , 2nd ed. City of Publication: Publisher.

Chapter in an edited book

Lastname, Firstname/initials, Year of Publication. ‘Title of Chapter in an Edited Book’. In Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname.

Lastname, Firstname/initials, and Firstname/initials Lastname. Year of Publication. ‘Title of Chapter in an Edited Book’. In Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname, page number(s) [or alternative locator info]. 2nd ed. City of Publication: Publisher.

Journal article

Lastname, Firstname/initials,Year of Publication. ‘Title of Article’. Name of Journal vol. number: start page.

Lastname, Firstname/initials, and Firstname/initials Lastname. Year of Publication. ‘Title of Article’. Name of Journal vol. number (issue number) (Month or Season): start page–end page. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Magazine article

Lastname, Firstname/initials, Year of Publication. ‘Title of Article’. Day and Month of Pub. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Lastname, Firstname/initials, and Firstname/initials Lastname. Year of Publication. ‘Title of Article’. Name of Magazine , Day and Month of Pub. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Required elements if a magazine article has no stated author

‘Title of Article’. Year of Publication. Name of Magazine , Month of Pub. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Website or other source

Include as much of the following as possible in your bibliographic entry: author; title or description of the content; owner/publisher; month and/or day of publication, most recent revision (or, failing that, date accessed); and URL. The year of publication should be the second element in the entry.

Some flexibility is acceptable to accommodate the wide variety of content available, particularly online.

Website names are usually set in roman type, but the names of online magazines and books are italicized (like their print counterparts).

As you write ...

Example: author–date citation with a reference list and further reading —british style.

Psychoanalytic studies, along with other literary and cultural texts, not only contribute to the new discourse of the jungle but also reflect the imperialist history that brings West Europeans and Americans into contact with the geographic jungles of India, Africa, and other parts of the world (Rogers et al. 2010, 1). This colonial context needs to be sketched here as well in order to reveal how the birth of the jungle eventually produces new constructions of sexuality in the United States. Billops (1999a) notes that the word ‘jungle’ comes from the Hindi and Marathi word jangal, meaning ‘desert’, ‘waste’, ‘forest’; as well as from the Sanskrit jangala, meaning ‘dry’, ‘dry ground’, or ‘desert’. Its first appearance in English is in 1776, with its meaning already shifted towards what might be more recognizable today: ‘Land overgrown with underwood, long grass, or tangled vegetation; also, the luxuriant and often almost impenetrable growth of vegetation covering such a tract’ (Dreft and Smithers 1978, 87). Brought into English as a result of an imperialist presence in India, ‘jungle’ is intimately related to the larger rise of Western imperialism around the world, particularly in the nineteenth century (Billops 1999b). Western powers such as Britain and France went from controlling 35 per cent of the earth’s surface in 1800 to, by 1914, ‘a grand total of roughly 85 per cent of the earth as colonies, protectorates, dependencies, dominions, and commonwealths’ (Said 1993, ch.2, ‘Colonial impacts’).

Reference list

Billops, Camille. 1999a. ‘Indo-European Loan Words’. Annals of Linguistics 21 (4): pp. 38–44.

Billops, Camille. 1999b. ‘Indo-European Vowel Shift: Evidence and Interpretation’. Annals of Linguistics 21 (4): p. 45.

Dreft, Edward, and Susan Smithers. 1978. ‘Words Working’. International Journal of American Linguistics 62 (3): pp. 227–263. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1978.tb25475.x.

Rogers, Jason, Millicent Eng, and Rene Woo. 2010. ‘English-Based African Creoles’. In Spreading the People: Colonizing Languages in the Raj , edited by Jason Rogers, pp. 310–330. 2nd ed. London: Verso.

Said, Eleanor. 1993. The European Dream of Africa . New York: Random House.

Further reading

Bickerton, Derek. 2008. Bastard Tongues: A Trail-Blazing Linguist Finds Clues to Our Common Humanity in the World’s Lowliest Languages . New York: Hill and Wang.

‘Evolutionary Linguistics’. 2012. Wikipedia. Updated 4 November. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolutionary_linguistics.

Mfuti, Miriam. 2001. ‘Pidgin Town’. In The Oxford Handbook of Pidgins and Creoles , edited by Alain Smet, pp. 107–112. New York: Oxford University Press.

Rambow, John. 2007. ‘Will This Demon Fit in My Carry-On?’ Bangalore Monkey blog. 21 December. http://www.bangaloremonkey. com/2007/12/will-this-demon-fit-in-my-carry-on.html.

Examples of author-date references in US style

Lastname, Firstname/initials, Year of Publication.  Title of Work .

Lastname, Firstname/initials, and Firstname Lastname/initials. Year of Publication.  Title of Work , 2nd ed. City of Publication: Publisher.

Lastname, Firstname/initials, Year of Publication. “Title of Chapter in an Edited Book.” In  Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname.

Lastname, Firstname/initials, and Firstname Lastname/initials. Year of Publication. “Title of Chapter in an Edited Book.” In  Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname, page number(s) [or alternative locator info]. 2nd ed. City of Publication: Publisher.

Lastname, Firstname/initials,Year of Publication. “Title of Article.”  Name of Journal  vol. number, start page.

Lastname, Firstname/initials, and Firstname Lastname/initials. Year of Publication. “Title of Article.”  Name of Journal  vol. number (issue number) (Month or Season Year): start page–end page. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Lastname, Firstname/initials, Year of Publication. “Title of Article.”  Name of Magazine , Month of Pub.

Lastname, Firstname/initials, and Firstname Lastname/initials. Year of Publication. “Title of Article.”  Name of Magazine , Month and Day of Pub. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Required elements If a magazine article has no stated author:

“Title of Article.” Year of Publication.  Name of Magazine , Month of Pub.

 “Title of Article.” Year of Publication.  Name of Magazine , Month and Day of Pub, doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Include as much of the following as possible in your bibliographic entry: author; title or description of the content; owner/publisher; month and/or day of publication, most recent revision (or, failing that, date accessed); and URL. The year of publication should be the second element in the entry. Some flexibility is acceptable to accommodate the wide variety of content available, particularly online.

The names of websites are usually set in roman type, but the names of online magazines and books are italicized (like their print counterparts).

Reference list vs. bibliography

Note that a reference list in the author-date system can contain only items that are actually cited in the work. The reference list must contain all of those items. This differs from a bibliography in the numbered-note system, which can contain both cited items and items of interest that have not been specifically cited. If there are uncited works that you would like to draw to the reader’s attention, these can be placed after the references in a separate listed titled ‘Further reading’.

Example: author–date citation with a reference list and further reading—US style

Psychoanalytic studies, along with other literary and cultural texts, not only contribute to the new discourse of the jungle but also reflect the imperialist history that brings West Europeans and Americans into contact with the geographic jungles of India, Africa, and other parts of the world (Rogers et al. 2010, 1). This colonial context needs to be sketched here as well in order to reveal how the birth of the jungle eventually produces new constructions of sexuality in the United States. Billops (1999a) notes that the word “jungle” comes from the Hindi and Marathi word jangal, meaning “desert,” “waste,” “forest”; as well as from the Sanskrit jangala, meaning “dry,” “dry ground,” or “desert.” Its first appearance in English is in 1776, with its meaning already shifted toward what might be more recognizable today: “Land overgrown with underwood, long grass, or tangled vegetation; also, the luxuriant and often almost impenetrable growth of vegetation covering such a tract” (Dreft and Smithers 1978, 87). Brought into English as a result of an imperialist presence in India, “jungle” is intimately related to the larger rise of Western imperialism around the world, particularly in the nineteenth century (Billops 1999b). Western powers such as Britain and France went from controlling 35 percent of the earth’s surface in 1800 to, by 1914, “a grand total of roughly 85 percent of the earth as colonies, protectorates, dependencies, dominions, and commonwealths” (Said 1993, ch.2, “Colonial impacts”).

Billops, Camille. 1999a. “Indo-European Loan Words.” Annals of Linguistics 21 (4): pp. 38–44.

Billops, Camille. 1999b. “Indo-European Vowel Shift: Evidence and Interpretation.” Annals of Linguistics 21 (4): p. 45.

Dreft, Edward, and Susan Smithers. 1978. “Words Working.” International Journal of American Linguistics 62 (3): pp. 227–263. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1978.tb25475.x.

Rogers, Jason, Millicent Eng, and Rene Woo. 2010. “English-Based African Creoles.” In Spreading the People: Colonizing Languages in the Raj , edited by Jason Rogers, pp. 310–330. 2nd ed. London: Verso.

“Evolutionary Linguistics.” 2012. Wikipedia. Updated November 4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolutionary_linguistics.

Mfuti, Miriam. 2001. “Pidgin Town.” In The Oxford Handbook of Pidgins and Creoles , edited by Alain Smet, pp. 107–112. New York: Oxford University Press.

Rambow, John. 2007. “Will This Demon Fit in My Carry-On?” Bangalore Monkey blog. December 21. http://www.bangaloremonkey. com/2007/12/will-this-demon-fit-in-my-carry-on.html.

Numbered notes

Using numbered notes is a common method of citing sources, particularly in the humanities. Sequential superscript numbers appear in the text to direct the reader to bibliographic or explanatory information that appears in a note.

This is a flexible style that allows authors to combine bibliographic information with annotation, translation, or other commentary. Scholars who frequently cite unpublished material will find numbered notes more useful than author-date citations.

Endnotes or footnotes?

In print publishing, notes can be placed at the bottom of the page as footnotes or at the end of a chapter or book in a separate section as endnotes.

Footnotes are preferred in cases where the information in the note is important enough that readers need it to fully engage with the material. Please note that in a digital context, footnotes in the traditional sense are not possible. Depending on the format, footnotes can appear at the end of a section or chapter, or they may be viewed by clicking or hovering over the superscript numbers in the text to display individual footnotes.

Endnotes are a better choice in print if the material in the notes does not need immediate engagement by the reader. For digital publications where individual chapters may be made available to readers, the notes should appear with the chapter, rather than separately at the end of the work. This varies according to discipline, so please consult your OUP editorial contact if you are unsure.

The formatting of bibliographic information is identical for footnotes and endnotes.

Please use the following guidance:

• Numbered notes appear sequentially in the text as superscripts, ideally at the end of a sentence, following the closing punctuation.
• Use Arabic numerals.
• Numbers should restart at 1 at the beginning of each chapter and run consecutively to the end of each chapter. Do not start renumbering within a chapter (e.g. per page or per double-page spread) or use asterisks, as this will cause confusion in a digital environment.
• Do not number the notes continuously throughout a book, because a later change would necessitate extensive renumbering.

Note structure and format

Required bibliographic elements are given below for the most common types of reference citations, along with optional elements that if used, must be consistent.

• Page numbers are useful locators when referencing in print publications.
• Give page ranges using the fewest number of figures as possible (e.g. pp. 126–27, not pp. 126–127).
• When referencing a digital publication, you may not have access to a print page number. Cite a specific locator (e.g. chapter titles and sub-headings). Do not use location numbers from a proprietary e-reader (e.g. Kindle location numbers).
• Edition numbers are not required when citing a first edition but are necessary for subsequent editions.

Numbered notes in British style

Firstname Lastname, Title of Work (Year of Publication).

Firstname Lastname, Title of Work , 2nd ed. (City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication), page number(s) [or alternative locator info].

• Michael Murray, Climate Change at the Poles (New York: Scribner, 2007), p. 9.
• Darian Ibrahim and Carol Marche, Financing the Next Silicon Valley , 3rd ed. (San Francisco: Upbeat Press, 2010).

Edited book

Firstname Lastname, ed., Title of Work (Year of Publication).

Firstname Lastname, eds., Title of Work , 2nd ed. (City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication), page number(s) [or alternative locator info].

• Anton Smirov, ed., Eastern Europe After the Iron Curtain (London: Chatto and Windus, 2012).

Firstname Lastname, ‘Title of Chapter in an Edited Volume’, in Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname (Year of Publication).

Firstname Lastname, ‘Title of Chapter in an Edited Volume’, in Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname (City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication), page number(s) [or alternative locator info].

Hanna Growiszc, ‘Far Right Ideologies in Czech Literature’, in Eastern Europe After the Iron Curtain , edited by Anton Smirov (London: Chatto and Windus, 2012), ch. 7.

Authored book with an editor or translator

Firstname Lastname, Title of Work , ed./trans. Firstname Lastname, (Year of Publication).

Firstname Lastname, Title of Work , ed./trans. Firstname Lastname, 2nd ed. (City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication), page number(s) [or alternative locator info].

• Günter Grass, The Tin Drum , trans. Breon Mitchell (New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2009).

 Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics , ed. and trans. Terence Irwin (Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing, 1999).

Multi-volume work

References to multi-volume book citations can take a variety of forms, depending on whether an individual volume or the entire work is being cited, and the authorship of the work.  

Citing one volume of a multi-volume work

• Robert Caro, The Path to Power , vol. 1, The Years of Lyndon Johnson (New York: Knopf, 1982), p. 267.

Citing a multi-volume work as a whole

Robert Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson , 4 vols (New York: Knopf, 1982–2012).

Allison Wyste, ed. Indian and Tibetan Cooking , vol. 6, Cuisines of Asia, ed. Robert Trautmann (London: Brill Books, 2007).

Multi-volume work with series editor and individual author/editors

Whenever possible, include a DOI (preferred) or a stable URL for citations to journal articles. However, a URL or DOI is not sufficient to stand alone as a reference.

Firstname Lastname, ‘Title of Article’, Name of Journal vol. number, (Year): start page.

Firstname Lastname, ‘Title of Article’, Name of Journal vol. number, issue number (Month or Season Year): start page–end page, doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Barbara Eckstein, ‘The Body, the Word, and the State: J. M. Coetzee’s “Waiting for the Barbarians”’, Novel: A Forum on Fiction 22, no. 2 (Winter 1989): pp. 175–198, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1345802.

David Hyun-Su Kim, ‘The Brahmsian Hairpin’, 19th Century Music 36, no. 1 (Summer 2012): pp. 46–47, doi:10.1525/ncm.2012.36.1.046. 

A DOI or URL can be included for articles that you consulted online. The citations for online-only magazines follow the same pattern as print-based magazines, with the addition of URLs. If an online journal or magazine has a stable home page that allows a user to search for articles by title or author, it is acceptable to include the URL for that page (rather than the longer, more specific URL).

‘Title of Article’, Name of Magazine , Month of Pub, Year.

Firstname Lastname, ‘Title of Article’, Name of Magazine , Month and Day of Pub, Year, doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Mary Rose Himler, ‘Religious Books as Best Sellers’, Publishers Weekly , 19 February 1927.

‘Amazon Best Books 2012 Revealed’, Publishers Weekly , 13 November 2012, http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/54738-amazon-best-books-2012-revealed.html.

Fritz Allhoff, ‘The Paradox of Nonlethal Weapons’, Slate , 13 November 2012, http://www.slate.com.

Law citation styles vary widely depending on jurisdiction. The following examples are for citing law cases in a non-specialist academic context. If you are writing specialist legal content, see ‘Citing of Legal Materials’ for detailed citation information.

Case Number Name of Case [Year] Report VolNo-FirstPageNo

Case C-34/89 P Smith v EC Commission [1993] ECR I-454

Name of Case [Year] VolNo Report, PageNo

Ridge v Baldwin [1964] AC 40, 78

Name of Case , VolNo Reporter SeriesNo (Year)

Name of Case , VolNo Reporter SeriesNo (Name of Court Year)

Bowers v Hardwick 478 US 186 (1986).

Unpublished or informally published content

The titles of unpublished works are set in quotation marks rather than italics. In place of a publisher, location or institutional information can be given.

Troy Thibodeaux, ‘Modernism in Greenwich Village, 1908–1929’ (PhD dissertation, New York University, 1999), p. 59.

Mary Koo, ‘Prakriti and Purusha: Dualism in the Yoga of Patanjali’ (lecture, Theosophical Society, Chennai, India, 17 May 2008).

To cite a website or other source that does not fall within those covered here, include as much of the following as possible (in this order) in your citation: author; title or description of the content; owner/publisher; date of publication or most recent revision (or, failing that, date accessed); and URL. Some flexibility is acceptable to accommodate the wide variety of content available, especially online.

The names of websites are usually set in roman type but the names of online magazines and books are italicized (like their print counterparts).

• ‘The Board of Directors of the Coca-Cola Company Authorizes New Share Repurchase Program’, Coca- Cola Company, 18 October 2012, http://www.coca-colacompany.com/media-center/press-releases/the-board-of-directors-of-the-coca-cola-company-authorizes-new-share-repurchase-program.
• John Rambow, ‘Will This Demon Fit in My Carry-On?’, Bangalore Monkey blog, 21 December 2007, http://www.bangaloremonkey.com/2007/12/will-this-demon-fit-in-my-carry-on.html.
• Wikimedia privacy policy, Wikimedia Foundation, accessed 26 November 2010, http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/ Privacy policy.

Numbered notes in US style

Firstname Lastname, Title of Work , (Year of Publication).

Firstname Lastname, eds., Title of Work , (Year of Publication).

• Hanna Growiszc, “Far Right Ideologies in Czech Literature,” in Eastern Europe After the Iron Curtain , edited by Anton Smirov (London: Chatto and Windus, 2012), ch. 7.
• Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics , ed. and trans. Terence Irwin (Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing, 1999).

Multi-volume book citations can take a variety of forms, depending on whether an individual volume or the work as a whole is being cited, and on how the multi-volume work was authored or edited.

• Robert Caro, The Years of Lyndon Johnson , 4 vols. (New York: Knopf, 1982–2012).
• Allison Wyste, Indian and Tibetan Cooking , vol. 6, Cuisines of Asia, ed. Robert Trautmann (London: Brill Books, 2007).

Firstname Lastname, “Title of Chapter in an Edited Volume,” in Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname (Year of Publication).

Firstname Lastname, “Title of Chapter in an Edited Volume,” in Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname (City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication), page number(s) [or alternative locator info].

Firstname Lastname, “Title of Article,” Name of Journal vol. number, (Year): start page.

Firstname Lastname, “Title of Article,” Name of Journal vol. number, issue number (Month or Season Year): start page–end page, doi: DOI [or stable URL].

• Barbara Eckstein, “The Body, the Word, and the State: J. M. Coetzee’s ‘Waiting for the Barbarians,’” Novel: A Forum on Fiction 22, no. 2 (Winter 1989): pp. 175–198, http://www.jstor.org/stable/1345802.
• David Hyun-Su Kim, “The Brahmsian Hairpin,” 19th Century Music 36, no. 1 (Summer 2012): pp. 46–47, doi:10.1525/ncm.2012.36.1.046.

A DOI or URL can be included for articles that you consulted online. Online-only magazines follow the same pattern as print-based magazines, with the addition of URLs. If an online journal or magazine has a stable home page that allows a user to search for articles by title or author, it is acceptable to cite that page rather than a longer, more specific URL.

“Title of Article,” Name of Magazine , Month of Pub, Year.

Firstname Lastname, “Title of Article,” Name of Magazine, Month and Day of Pub, Year, doi: DOI [or stable URL].

• Mary Rose Himler, “Religious Books as Best Sellers,” Publishers Weekly , February 19, 1927.
• “Amazon Best Books 2012 Revealed,” Publishers Weekly , November 13, 2012, http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/54738-amazon-best-books-2012-revealed.html.
• Fritz Allhoff, “The Paradox of Nonlethal Weapons,” Slate , November 13, 2012, http://www.slate.com.

Law - case law

Law citation styles can vary widely depending on jurisdiction. These examples are for citing legal case law in a non-specialist academic context. If you are writing specialist legal content, see ‘Citing of legal materials’ for detailed information on law citation.

Name of Case [Year] VolNo Report PageNo

Ridge v. Baldwin [1964] AC 40, 78

Name of Case , Vol No. Reporter Series No. (Year)

Bowers v Hardwick , 478 U.S. 186 (1986)

Name of Case , Vol No. Reporter Series No. (Name of Court Year)

Bowers v. Hardwick 478 U.S. 186 (1986)

The titles of unpublished works are set in quotation marks rather than italics. Since there is no publisher, location or institutional information can be cited.

• Troy Thibodeaux, “Modernism in Greenwich Village, 1908–1929” (PhD dissertation, New York University, 1999), p. 59.
• Mary Koo, “Prakriti and Purusha: Dualism in the Yoga of Patanjali’ (lecture, Theosophical Society, Chennai, India, May 17, 2008).

If you need to cite a website or other source that does not fall within those covered here, include as much of the following as possible (in this order): author; title or description of the content; owner/publisher; date of publication or most recent revision (or, failing that, date accessed); and URL. Some flexibility is acceptable to accommodate the wide variety of content available, especially online.

• “The Board of Directors of the Coca-Cola Company Authorizes New Share Repurchase Program,” Coca-Cola Company, October 18, 2012, http://www.coca-colacompany.com/media-center/press-releases/the-board-of-directors-of-the-coca-cola-company-authorizes-new-share-repurchase-program.
• John Rambow, “Will This Demon Fit in My Carry-On?,” Bangalore Monkey blog, December 21, 2007, http://www.bangaloremonkey. com/2007/12/will-this-demon-fit-in-my-carry-on.html.
• Wikimedia privacy policy, Wikimedia Foundation, accessed November 26, 2010, http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/ Privacy_policy.

Short citations

When a work is cited for the first time in a chapter, full bibliographic information should be given (for an alternative, see ‘Numbered notes in combination with a bibliography’). Subsequent citations should be shortened as in the following examples.

Legal short citations

Give the first mention of legal cases in full. Subsequent mentions within the same article or chapter can be shortened to the case name alone, given in italics (even if italics are not used in the original citation)

• Case C–34/89 P Smith v EC Commission [1993] ECR I–454
• P Smith v EC Commission.

Example: short citations in US style

• See, for example, Alan Hess, Googie: Fifties Coffee Shop Architecture (San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1985) and Noah Sheldon, Ranch House (New York: Harry S. Abrams, 2004).
• Sheldon, Ranch House , p. 207.
• Ashraf Salama, “Evolutionary Paradigms in Mosque Architecture,” Faith & Form 40, no. 1 (2007): pp. 16–17.
• Salama, “Evolutionary Paradigms.”
• Hess, Googie , p. 21.
• Wikimedia privacy policy, para. 16.

Numbered notes in combination with a bibliography

It is possible to combine notes and bibliography so that all the notes, including the first reference, are short citations that lead the reader to a full citation in the bibliography. This system results in shorter notes and less work for the reader, since complete information is easily available in the alphabetical bibliography and need not be hunted for through all the chapter notes. This requires that all cited sources appear in a bibliography, which can also contain works that are not cited but are germane to the topic.

Structure of a bibliography entry

Bibliographies are structured similarly to notes, but there are some important differences. The first author name (and only the first) is inverted for alphabetization. Punctuation format also varies slightly between notes and bibliographic entries.

Do not use long dashes (e.g. “—") to substitute for an author’s name if it is repeated in the bibliography. Repeat the name in full because in a digital version, the shortened entry may not follow the complete one immediately.

Bibliography entries in British Style

Lastname, Firstname, Title of Work , (Year of Publication).

Lastname, Firstname, and Firstname Lastname. Title of Work , 2nd ed. (City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication).

Lastname, Firstname. ‘Title of Chapter in an Edited Book’. In Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname (Year of Publication).

Lastname, Firstname, and Firstname Lastname. ‘Title of Chapter in an Edited Book’. In Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname (City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication), page number(s) [or alternative locator info].

Lastname, Firstname,‘Title of Article’. Name of Journal vol. number, no. X (Year): start page.

Lastname, Firstname, and Firstname Lastname. ‘Title of Article’. Name of Journal vol. number, no. X (Month or Season Year): start page–end page. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

‘Title of Article’. Name of Magazine , Month Year of Pub.

Lastname, Firstname, and Firstname Lastname. ‘Title of Article’. Name of Magazine , Day Month Year of Pub, doi: DOI [or stable URL].

If you need to cite a website or other source that does not fall within those covered here, include as much of the following as possible (in this order): author; title or description of the content; owner/publisher; date of publication, most recent revision (or, failing that, date accessed); and URL. Some flexibility is acceptable to accommodate the wide variety of content available, especially online.

Sample bibliography

Growiszc, Hanna. ‘Far Right Ideologies in Czech Literature’. In Eastern Europe After the Iron Curtain , edited by Anton Smirov (London: Chatto and Windus, 2012), ch. 7.

Himler, Mary Rose. ‘Religious Books as Best Sellers’. Publishers Weekly , 19 February 1927.

Khan, Imran, and Richard Collins. ‘True Belief: Hindu Metanarratives in Bollywood’. Journal of Cinema Studies 7, no. 4 (2009): pp. 104–115. doi:10.1086/jcs113.3.752.

Murray, Michael. ‘The Antarctic Summer Lengthens’. Journal of Climate Studies 20, no. 9 (2011): p. 203.

Murray, Michael. Climate Change at the Poles (New York: Scribner, 2007).

Rambow, John. ‘Will This Demon Fit in My Carry-On?’ Bangalore Monkey blog. 21 December 2007. http://www.bangaloremonkey.com/2007/12/will-this-demon-fit-in-my-carry-on.html.

Bibliography entries in US style

Lastname, Firstname, “Title of Chapter in an Edited Book.” In Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname (Year of Publication).

Lastname, Firstname, and Firstname Lastname. “Title of Chapter in an Edited Book.” In Title of Edited Volume , edited by Firstname Lastname (City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication), page number(s) [or alternative locator info].

Lastname, Firstname,“Title of Article.” Name of Journal vol. number, no. X (Year): start page.

Lastname, Firstname, and Firstname Lastname. “Title of Article.” Name of Journal vol. number, no. X (Month or Season Year): start page–end page. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

“Title of Article.” Name of Magazine , Month of Pub, Year.

Lastname, Firstname, and Firstname Lastname. “Title of Article.” Name of Magazine , Month and Day of Pub, Year, doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Growiszc, Hanna. “Far Right Ideologies in Czech Literature.” In Eastern Europe After the Iron Curtain, edited by Anton Smirov (London: Chatto and Windus, 2012), ch. 7.

Himler, Mary Rose. “Religious Books as Best Sellers.” Publishers Weekly, February 19, 1927.

Khan, Imran, and Richard Collins. “True Belief: Hindu Metanarratives in Bollywood.” Journal of Cinema Studies 7, no. 4 (2009): pp. 104–115. doi:10.1086/jcs113.3.752.

Murray, Michael. “The Antarctic Summer Lengthens.” Journal of Climate Studies 20, no. 9 (2011): p. 203.

Rambow, John. “Will This Demon Fit in My Carry-On?” Bangalore Monkey blog. December 21, 2007. http://www.bangaloremonkey.com/2007/12/will-this-demon-fit-in-my-carry-on.html.

Numbered reference citations (Vancouver)

Numbered reference citations (also known as author–number or Vancouver references) are used in scientific and medical texts. In this system, each reference used is assigned a number. When that reference is cited in the text, its number appears, either in parentheses or brackets or as a superscript. All cited references appear in a numbered reference list at the end of the chapter or book.

An advantage of numbered references over the author–date style is that less space in the main text is required for in-text citations. The system also avoids ambiguity in the case of two works by the same author published the same year, an occasional issue in author–date citations. A disadvantage is that late addition or removal of references usually requires renumbering of both the reference list and the citations. Numbered reference citations cannot be used to provide commentary or other explanatory material to the text.

References are cited within the text by using a number in a superscript, in parentheses, or in square brackets. Although each of these variants is acceptable, only one can be used in a single text. The examples in this guide will enclose citation numbers in parentheses. Note that although citations are numbered in the order of their first appearance in the text, non-consecutive note numbers are possible, to allow references to be cited more than once. Citations can take the form of a range: for example (4–7) would cite references 4, 5, 6, and 7 simultaneously. If it is necessary to cite specific page numbers that are not present in the reference list, page numbers can be inserted into the citation: for example (4p6, 5pp1–11).

Please note the following:

• Author first names are usually given as initials only, with no full stops (e.g. “AN” not “A.N.”) between initials. In the case of multiple authors, you can list up to six full names; for more than six authors, list the first three plus ‘et al’. All author names are inverted (i.e. last name, first name).
• Names of journals can be abbreviated, as in the examples in this section, but must follow the standard abbreviations used by PubMed. Journal article titles are given without quotation marks and in sentence-style capitalization.
• Do not use long dashes (e.g. “—") to substitute for the name of an author whose name is repeated in the bibliography. Repeat the name in full because linking in a digital publication may not immediately follow the entry with the full name.
• Citations are numbered in the order in which they first appear in the text.

Required bibliographic elements are given below for the most common types of reference citations, along with optional elements (if used, be consistent). Other elements below are required if applicable (for example, you need a page number or other locator if you are quoting a precise part of a large work, but you can skip it if the reference is to the work as a whole).

Numbered reference citations in British style

Lastname FI, Title of Work , Year of Publication.

Lastname FI, Lastname FI, Lastname FI. Title of Work , 2nd ed. City of Publication: Publisher; Year of Publication: startpage–endpage [or alternative locator info].

Unauthored book (books published by committee, agency, or group)

Title of Work . Year of Publication.

Title of Work . 16th ed. City of Publication: Publisher; Year of Publication: startpage–endpage [or alternative locator info].

Lastname FI. Title of chapter in sentence case. In: Lastname FI, eds. Title of Work. Year of Publication.

Lastname FI, Lastname FI, Lastname FI. Title of chapter in sentence case. In: Lastname FI, Lastname FI, Lastname FI, eds. Title of Work . 2nd ed. City of Publication: Publisher; Year of Publication: startpage–endpage [or alternative locator info].

Lastname FI, Title of article in sentence case. Abbreviated Journal Title . Year of Publication; Volume No.

Lastname FI, Lastname FI, Lastname FI, et al. Title of article in sentence case. Abbreviated Journal Title . Year of Publication; Volume No. (Issue No.) (Supplement No.): startpage–endpage [or alternative locator info]. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Magazine or newspaper article

Lastname FI. Title of article in sentence case. Magazine or Newspaper Title . Month and Year of Publication.

Lastname FI. Title of article in sentence case. Magazine or Newspaper Title . Day Month and Year of Publication: startpage–endpage. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

If the article has no stated author:

Title of article in sentence case. Magazine or Newspaper Title . Month and Year of Publication.

Title of article in sentence case. Magazine or Newspaper Title . Day Month and Year of Publication: startpage–endpage. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Include of the following (in this order) in your bibliographic entry: author; title or description of the content; owner/publisher; date of publication or most recent revision (or, failing that, date accessed); and URL. Some flexibility is acceptable to accommodate the wide variety of content available online and in non-traditional formats. Follow the capitalization and italicization patterns of the examples here as much as possible.

If the nature of the material you are citing is not clear from the bibliographic information, you can provide a descriptor in brackets after the first element of the reference.

Example: Numbered reference citations and reference list—British style

Colorectal cancer (cRc) is one of the most common malignancies and the second leading cause of death from cancer in Europe and North America (1). While early stage cRc is associated with an excellent 5-year survival rate (90% for localized disease), approximately 20% of patients present with metastatic disease, and many patients diagnosed with stage ii or iii cancer will experience a recurrence and develop distant metastases (2). At present, established clinico-pathological criteria are used to estimate risks of recurrence in stage ii and iii disease, and this is routinely used in the selection of patients or adjuvant systemic therapy following surgical resection. The clinical outcome of patients who receive such adjuvant treatment can, however, vary widely, when additional molecular factors are taken into consideration. Identification of novel prognostic markers is, therefore, vital in improving the prognosis of this disease (3). One of the recently described substances important for angiogenesis is endoglin. Endoglin, also known as cD105, is a receptor for transforming growth factor-ß1 molecule, which binds preferentially to the activated endothelial cells that participate in tumour angiogenesis, with weak or negative expression in vascular endothelium of normal tissues. Endoglin is induced by hypoxia. Therefore, it is very useful for assessment of neo-angiogenesis of malignant neoplasms (4–6). Many reports indicate that endoglin assessed immunohistochemically in colorectal cancer correlates not only with tumour microvessel density, but also with survival. It has also been reported as a valuable parameter predicting patients having an increased risk of developing metastatic disease. Endoglin is expressed not only on cell surfaces since its soluble form (sol-end) can be detected also in blood (4–7). A few studies evaluated the clinical significance of elevated sol-end levels in colorectal cancer patients (7).

1. Ferlay J, Autier P, Boniol M, Heanue M, Colombet M, Boyle P. Estimates of the cancer incidence and mortality in Europe in 2006. Ann Oncol . 2007; 18: pp. 581–592.

2. Meyerhardt JA, Mayer RJ. Systemic therapy for colorectal cancer. In: Boniol M, Smith J, eds. Oncological Research Reviews . 16th ed. New York, NY: Dekker; 2005; pp. 476–487.

3. Allegra CJ, Paik S, Colangelo LH, et al. Prognostic value of thymidylate synthase, Ki-67, and p53 in patients with Dukes’ B and C colon cancer: a National Cancer Institute-National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project collaborative study. J Clin Oncol. 2003; 21: pp. 241–250.

4. Drug Topics Red Book . Montvale, NJ: Thomson Healthcare, 2009: p. 232.

5. FDA approves new treatment for advanced colorectal cancer. 2012. US Food and Drug Administration website. 27 September. http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm321271.htm.

6. Stivarga [package insert]. Wayne, NJ: Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, 2012.

7. Mysliwiec P, Pawlak K, Kuklinski A, Kedra B. Combined perioperative plasma endoglin and vegF-a assessment in colorectal cancer patients. Folia Histochem Cytobiol . 2008; 46(2)(suppl. 1): pp. 487–49.

Numbered reference citations and reference list in US style

Lastname FI, Lastname FI, Lastname FI. Title of Work , 2nd ed. City of Publication: Publisher; Year of Publication.

Title of Work. Year of Publication.

Title of Work. 16th ed. City of Publication: Publisher; Year of Publication: startpage–endpage [or alternative locator info].

Lastname FI, Title of chapter in sentence case. In: Lastname FI, ed. Title of Work. Year of Publication.

Lastname FI, Lastname FI, Lastname FI. Title of chapter in sentence case. In: Lastname FI, Lastname FI, Lastname FI, eds. Title of Work. 2nd ed. City of Publication: Publisher; Year of Publication: startpage–endpage [or alternative locator info].

Lastname FI, Title of article in sentence case. Abbreviated Journal Title. Year of Publication; Volume No. (Issue No.)

Lastname FI, Lastname FI, Lastname FI, et al. Title of article in sentence case. Abbreviated Journal Title. Year of Publication; Volume No. (Issue No.)(SupplementNo): startpage–endpage [or alternative locator info]. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Lastname FI. Title of article in sentence case. Magazine or Newspaper Title. Month, Day, and Year of Publication.

Lastname FI. Title of article in sentence case. Magazine or Newspaper Title. Month, Day, and Year of Publication: startpage–endpage. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Title of article in sentence case. Magazine or Newspaper Title. Month, Day, and Year of Publication.

Title of article in sentence case. Magazine or Newspaper Title. Month, Day, and Year of Publication: startpage–endpage. doi: DOI [or stable URL].

Include as much of the following as possible in your bibliographic entry (in this order): author; title or description of the content; owner/publisher; date of publication or most recent revision, or, failing that, date accessed; and URL if available. Some flexibility is acceptable to accommodate the wide variety of content available online and in non-traditional formats. Follow the capitalization and italicization patterns of these examples.

Example: Numbered reference citations and reference list—US style

Colorectal cancer (cRc) is one of the most common malignancies and the second leading cause of death from cancer in Europe and North America (1). While early stage cRc is associated with an excellent 5-year survival rate (90% for localized disease), approximately 20% of patients present with metastatic disease, and many patients diagnosed with stage ii or iii cancer will experience a recurrence and develop distant metastases (2). At present, established clinico-pathological criteria are used to estimate risks of recurrence in stage ii and iii disease, and this is routinely used in the selection of patients or adjuvant systemic therapy following surgical resection. The clinical outcome of patients who receive such adjuvant treatment can, however, vary widely, when additional molecular factors are taken into consideration. Identification of novel prognostic markers is, therefore, vital in improving the prognosis of this disease (3). One of the recently described substances important for angiogenesis is endoglin. Endoglin, also known as cD105, is a receptor for transforming growth factor-ß1 molecule, which binds preferentially to the activated endothelial cells that participate in tumor angiogenesis, with weak or negative expression in vascular endothelium of normal tissues. Endoglin is induced by hypoxia. Therefore it is very useful for assessment of neo-angiogenesis of malignant neoplasms (4–6). Many reports indicate that endoglin assessed immunohistochemically in colorectal cancer correlates not only with tumor microvessel density, but also with survival. It has also been reported as a valuable parameter predicting patients having an increased risk of developing metastatic disease. Endoglin is expressed not only on cell surfaces, since its soluble form (sol-end) can be detected also in blood (4–7). A few studies evaluated the clinical significance of elevated sol-end levels in colorectal cancer patients (7).

1. Ferlay J, Autier P, Boniol M, Heanue M, Colombet M, Boyle P. Estimates of the cancer incidence and mortality in Europe in 2006. Ann Oncol. 2007; 18: pp. 581–592.

2. Meyerhardt JA, Mayer RJ. Systemic therapy for colorectal cancer. In: Boniol M, Smith J, eds. Oncological Research Reviews. 16th ed. New York, NY: Dekker; 2005; pp. 476–487.

3. Allegra CJ, Paik S, Colangelo LH, et al. Prognostic value of thymidylate synthase, Ki-67, and p. 53 in patients with Dukes’ B and C colon cancer: a National Cancer Institute-National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project collaborative study. J Clin Oncol. 2003; 21: pp. 241–250.

4. Drug Topics Red Book. Montvale, NJ: Thomson Healthcare, 2009: p. 232.

5. FDA approves new treatment for advanced colorectal cancer. US Food and Drug Administration website. September 27, 2012. http://www.fda. gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm321271.htm.

7. Mysliwiec P, Pawlak K, Kuklinski A, Kedra B. Combined perioperative plasma endoglin and vegF-a assessment in colorectal cancer patients. Folia Histochem Cytobiol. 2008; 46(2)(suppl. 1): pp. 487–492.

For legal works, we recommend that you follow The Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities (OSCOLA). The fourth edition (published in 2012) covers International Law. The full set of guidance can be found at https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files/migrated/oscola_4th_edn_hart_2012.pdf

Information on how to apply OSCOLA style in EndNote, Latex, Refworks and Zotero can be found at https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/research-subject-groups/publications/oscola-styles-endnote-latek-refworks-and-zotero

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How to Reference in an Essay (9 Strategies of Top Students)

Are you feeling overwhelmed by referencing?

When you’re first asked to do referencing in an essay it can be hard to get your head around it. If it’s been a while since you were first taught how to reference, it can be intimidating to ask again how to do it!

I have so many students who consistently lose marks just because they didn’t get referencing right! They’re either embarrassed to ask for extra help or too lazy to learn how to solve the issues.

So, here’s a post that will help you solve the issues on your own.

Already think you’re good at referencing? No worries. This post goes through some surprising and advanced strategies for anyone to improve no matter what level you are at!

In this post I’m going to show you exactly how to reference in an essay. I’ll explain why we do it and I’ll show you 9 actionable tips on getting referencing right that I’m sure you will not have heard anywhere else!

The post is split into three parts:

• What is a Reference and What is a Citation?
• Why Reference? (4 Things you Should Know)
• How to Reference (9 Strategies of Top Students)

If you think you’ve already got a good understanding of the basics, you can jump to our 9 Advanced Strategies section.

Part 1: What is a Reference and What is a Citation?

What is a citation.

An in-text mention of your source. A citation is a short mention of the source you got the information from, usually in the middle or end of a sentence in the body of your paragraph. It is usually abbreviated so as not to distract the reader too much from your own writing. Here’s two examples of citations. The first is in APA format. The second is in MLA format:

• APA: Archaeological records trace the original human being to equatorial Africa about 250,000–350,000 years ago (Schlebusch & Jakobsson, 2018) .
• MLA: Archaeological records trace the original human being to equatorial Africa about 250,000–350,000 years ago (Schlebusch and Jakobsson 1) .

In APA format, you’ve got the authors and year of publication listed. In MLA format, you’ve got the authors and page number listed. If you keep reading, I’ll give some more tips on formatting further down in this article.

And a Reference is:

What is a Reference?

A reference is the full details of a source that you list at the end of the article. For every citation (see above) there needs to be a corresponding reference at the end of the essay showing more details about that source. The idea is that the reader can see the source in-text (i.e. they can look at the citation) and if they want more information they can jump to the end of the page and find out exactly how to go about finding the source.

Here’s how you would go about referencing the Schlebusch and Jakobsson source in a list at the end of the essay. Again, I will show you how to do it in APA and MLA formats:

• APA: Schlebusch, C. & Jakobsson, M. (2018). Tales of Human Migration, Admixture, and Selection in Africa. Annual Review of Genomics and Human Genetics , 11 (33), 1–24.
• MLA: Schlebusch, Carina and Mattias Jakobsson. “Tales of Human Migration, Admixture, and Selection in Africa.” Annual Review of Genomics and Human Genetics , vol. 11, no. 33, 2018, pp. 1–24.

In strategy 1 below I’ll show you the easiest and fool proof way to write these references perfectly every time.

One last quick note: sometimes we say ‘reference’ when we mean ‘citation’. That’s pretty normal. Just roll with the punches. It’s usually pretty easy to pick up on what our teacher means regardless of whether they use the word ‘reference’ or ‘citation’.

Part 2: Why Reference in an Essay? (4 Things you Should Know)

Referencing in an essay is important. By the time you start doing 200-level courses, you probably won’t pass the course unless you reference appropriately. So, the biggest answer to ‘why reference?’ is simple: Because you Have To!

Okay let’s be serious though … here’s the four top ‘real’ reasons to reference:

1. Referencing shows you Got an Expert’s Opinion

You can’t just write an essay on what you think you know. This is a huge mistake of beginning students. Instead this is what you need to do:

Top Tip: Essays at university are supposed to show off that you’ve learned new information by reading the opinions of experts.

Every time you place a citation in your paragraph, you’re showing that the information you’re presenting in that paragraph was provided to you by an expert. In other words, it means you consulted an expert’s opinion to build your knowledge.

If you have citations throughout the essay with links to a variety of different expert opinions, you’ll show your marker that you did actually genuinely look at what the experts said with an open mind and considered their ideas.

This will help you to grow your grades.

2. Referencing shows you read your Assigned Readings

Your teacher will most likely give you scholarly journal articles or book chapters to read for homework between classes. You might have even talked about those assigned readings in your seminars and tutorials.

Great! The assigned readings are very important to you.

You should definitely cite the assigned readings relevant to your essay topic in your evaluative essay (unless your teacher tells you not to). Why? I’ll explain below.

• Firstly, the assigned readings were selected by your teacher because your teacher (you know, the person who’s going to mark your essay) believes they’re the best quality articles on the topic. Translation: your teacher gave you the best source you’re going to find. Make sure you use it!
• Secondly, by citing the assigned readings you are showing your teacher that you have been paying attention throughout the course. You are showing your teacher that you have done your homework, read those assigned readings and paid attention to them. When my students submit an essay that has references to websites, blogs, wikis and magazines I get very frustrated. Why would you cite low quality non-expert sources like websites when I gave you the expert’s article!? Really, it frustrates me so, so much.

So, cite the assigned readings to show your teacher you read the scholarly articles your teacher gave to you. It’ll help you grow your marks.

3. Referencing deepens your Knowledge

Okay, so you understand that you need to use referencing to show you got experts’ opinions on the topic.

But there’s more to it than that. There’s actually a real benefit for your learning.

If you force yourself to cite two expert sources per paragraph, you’re actually forcing yourself to get two separate pieces of expert knowledge. This will deepen your knowledge!

So, don’t treat referencing like a vanity exercise to help you gain more marks. Actually view it as an opportunity to develop deeper understandings of the topic!

When you read expert sources, aim to pick up on some new gems of knowledge that you can discuss in your essays. Some things you should look out for when finding sources to reference:

• Examples that link ideas to real life. Do the experts provide real-life examples that you can mention in your essay?
• Facts and figures. Usually experts have conducted research on a topic and provide you with facts and figures from their research. Use those facts and figures to deepen your essay!
• Short Quotes. Did your source say something in a really interesting, concise or surprising way? Great! You can quote that source in your essay .
• New Perspectives. Your source might give you another perspective, angle or piece of information that you can add to your paragraph so that it’s a deep, detailed and interesting paragraph.

So, the reason we ask you to reference is at the end of the day because it’s good for you: it helps you learn!

4. Referencing backs up your Claims

You might think you already know a ton of information about the topic and be ready to share your mountains of knowledge with your teacher. Great!

So, should you still reference?

Yes. Definitely.

You need to show that you’re not the only person with your opinion. You need to ‘stand on the shoulders of giants.’ Show what other sources have said about your points to prove that experts agree with you.

You should be saying: this is my opinion and it’s based on facts, expert opinions and deep, close scrutiny of all the arguments that exist out there .

If you make a claim that no one else has made, your teacher is going to be like “Have you even been reading the evidence on this topic?” The answer, if there are no citations is likely: No. You haven’t.

Even if you totally disagree with the experts, you still need to say what their opinions are! You’ll need to say: “This is the experts’ opinions. And this is why I disagree.”

So, yes, you need to reference to back up every claim. Try to reference twice in every paragraph to achieve this.

Part 3: Strategies for How to Reference in an Essay (9 Strategies of Top Students)

Let’s get going with our top strategies for how to reference in an essay! These are strategies that you probably haven’t heard elsewhere. They work for everyone – from beginner to advanced! Let’s get started:

1. Print out your Reference Style Cheat Sheet

Referencing is hard and very specific. You need to know where to place your italics, where the commas go and whether to use an initial for full name for an author.

There are so many details to get right.

And here’s the bad news: The automated referencing apps and websites nearly always get it wrong! They tell you they can generate the citation for you. The fact of the matter is: they can’t!

Here’s the best way to get referencing right: Download a referencing cheat sheet and have it by your side while writing your essay.

Your assignment outline should tell you what type of referencing you should use. Different styles include: APA Style, MLA Style, Chicago Style, Harvard Style, Vancouver Style … and many more!

You need to find out which style you need to use and download your cheat sheet. You can jump onto google to find a cheat sheet by typing in the google bar:

Download a pdf version of the referencing style cheat sheet, print it out, and place it on your pinboard or by your side when writing your essay.

2. Only cite Experts

There are good and bad sources to cite in an essay.

You should only cite sources written, critiqued and edited by experts. This shows that you have got the skill of finding information that is authoritative. You haven’t just used information that any old person popped up on their blog. You haven’t just gotten information from your local newspaper. Instead, you got information from the person who is an absolute expert on the topic.

Here’s an infographic listing sources that you should and shouldn’t cite. Feel free to share this infographic on social media, with your teachers and your friends:

3. Always use Google Scholar

Always. Use. Google. Scholar.

Ten years ago students only had their online university search database to find articles. Those university databases suck. They rarely find the best quality sources and there’s always a big mix of completely irrelevant sources mixed in there.

Google Scholar is better at finding the sources you want. That’s because it looks through the whole article abstract and analyses it to see if it’s relevant to your search keywords. By contrast, most university search databases rely only on the titles of articles.

Use the power of the best quality search engine in the world to find scholarly sources .

Note: Google and Google Scholar are different search engines.

To use Google Scholar, go to: https://scholar.google.com

Then, search on google scholar using keywords. I’m going to search keywords for an essay on the topic: “What are the traits of a good nurse?”

If you really like the idea of that first source, I recommend copying the title and trying your University online search database. Your university may give you free access.

4. Cite at least 50% sources you found on your Own Research

Okay, so I’ve told you that you should cite both assigned readings and readings you find from Google Scholar.

Here’s the ideal mix of assigned sources and sources that you found yourself: 50/50.

Your teacher will want to see that you can use both assigned readings and do your own additional research to write a top essay . This shows you’ve got great research skills but also pay attention to what is provided in class.

I recommend that you start with the assigned readings and try to get as much information out of them, then find your own additional sources beyond that using Google Scholar.

So, if your essay has 10 citations, a good mix is 5 assigned readings and 5 readings you found by yourself.

5. Cite Newer Sources

As a general rule, the newer the source the better .

The best rule of thumb that most teachers follow is that you should aim to mostly cite sources from the past 10 years . I usually accept sources from the past 15 years when marking essays.

However, sometimes you have a really great source that’s 20, 30 or 40 years old. You should only cite these sources if they’re what we call ‘seminal texts’. A seminal text is one that was written by an absolute giant in your field and revolutionized the subject.

Here’s some examples of seminal authors whose old articles you would be able to cite despite the fact that they’re old:

• Education: Vygotsky, Friere, Piaget
• Sociology: Weber, Marx, C. Wright Mills
• Psychology: Freud, Rogers, Jung

Even if I cite seminal authors, I always aim for at least 80% of my sources to have been written in the past 10 years.

6. Reference twice per Paragraph

How much should you reference?

Here’s a good strategy: Provide two citations in every paragraph in the body of the essay.

It’s not compulsory to reference in the introduction and conclusion . However, in all the other paragraphs, aim for two citations.

Let’s go over the key strategies for achieving this:

• These two citations should be to different sources, not the same sources twice;
• Two citations per paragraph shows your points are backed up by not one, but two expert sources;
• Place one citation in the first half of the paragraph and one in the second half. This will indicate to your marker that all the points in the whole paragraph are backed up by your citations.

This is a good rule of thumb for you when you’re not sure when and how often to reference. When you get more confident with your referencing, you can mix this up a little.

7. The sum total of your sources should be minimum 1 per 150 words

You can, of course, cite one source more than once throughout the essay. You might cite the same source in the second, fourth and fifth paragraphs. That’s okay.

But, you don’t want your whole essay to be based on a narrow range of sources. You want your marker to see that you have consulted multiple sources to get a wide range of information on the topic. Your marker wants to know that you’ve seen a range of different opinions when coming to your conclusions.

When you get to the end of your essay, check to see how many sources are listed in the end-text reference list. A good rule of thumb is 1 source listed in the reference list per 150 words. Here’s how that breaks down by essay size:

• 1500 word essay: 10 sources (or more) listed in the reference list
• 2000 word essay: 13 sources (or more) listed in the reference list
• 3000 word essay: 20 sources (or more) listed in the reference list
• 5000 word essay: 33 sources (or more) listed in the reference list

8. Instantly improve your Reference List with these Three Tips

Here’s two things you can do to instantly improve your reference list. It takes less than 20 seconds and gives your reference list a strong professional finish:

a) Ensure the font size and style are the same

You will usually find that your whole reference list ends up being in different font sizes and styles. This is because you tend to copy and paste the titles and names in the citations from other sources. If you submit the reference list with font sizes and styles that are not the same as the rest of the essay, the piece looks really unprofessional.

So, quickly highlight the whole reference list and change its font to the same font size and style as the rest of your essay. The screencast at the end of Step 8 walks you through this if you need a hand!

b) List your sources in alphabetical order.

Nearly every referencing style insists that references be listed in alphabetical order. It’s a simple thing to do before submitting and makes the piece look far more professional.

If you’re using Microsoft Word, simply highlight your whole reference list and click the A>Z button in the toolbar. If you can’t see it, you need to be under the ‘home’ tab (circled below):

You’ve probably never heard of a hanging indent. It’s a style where the second line of the reference list is indented further from the left-hand side of the page than the first line. It’s a strategy that’s usually used in reference lists provided in professional publications.

If you use the hanging indent, your reference list will look far more professional.

Here’s a quick video of me doing it for you:

9. Do one special edit especially for Referencing Style

The top students edit their essays three to five times spaced out over a week or more before submitting. One of those edits should be specifically for ensuring your reference list adheres to the referencing style that your teacher requires.

To do this, I recommend you get that cheat sheet printout that I mentioned in Step 1 and have it by your side while you read through the piece. Pay special attention to the use of commas, capital letters, brackets and page numbers for all citations. Also pay attention to the reference list: correct formatting of the reference list can be the difference between getting the top mark in the class and the fifth mark in the class. At the higher end of the marking range, things get competitive and formatting of the reference list counts.

A Quick Summary of the 9 Top Strategies…

Follow the rules of your referencing style guide (and that cheat sheet I recommended!) and use the top 9 tips above to improve your referencing and get top marks. Not only will your referencing look more professional, you’ll probably increase the quality of the content of your piece as well when you follow these tips!

Here’s a final summary of the 9 top tips:

Strategies for How to Reference in an Essay (9 Strategies of Top Students)

• Print out your Reference Style Cheat Sheet
• Only cite Experts
• Always use Google Scholar
• Cite at least 50% sources you found on your Own Research
• Cite Newer Sources
• Reference twice per Paragraph
• The sum total of your sources should be minimum 1 per 150 words
• Instantly improve your Reference List with these Three Tips
• Do one special edit especially for Referencing Style

Chris Drew (PhD)

Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 5 Top Tips for Succeeding at University
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Home » References in Research – Types, Examples and Writing Guide

References in Research – Types, Examples and Writing Guide

Table of Contents

References in Research

Definition:

References in research are a list of sources that a researcher has consulted or cited while conducting their study. They are an essential component of any academic work, including research papers, theses, dissertations, and other scholarly publications.

Types of References

There are several types of references used in research, and the type of reference depends on the source of information being cited. The most common types of references include:

References to books typically include the author’s name, title of the book, publisher, publication date, and place of publication.

Example: Smith, J. (2018). The Art of Writing. Penguin Books.

Journal Articles

References to journal articles usually include the author’s name, title of the article, name of the journal, volume and issue number, page numbers, and publication date.

Example: Johnson, T. (2021). The Impact of Social Media on Mental Health. Journal of Psychology, 32(4), 87-94.

Web sources

References to web sources should include the author or organization responsible for the content, the title of the page, the URL, and the date accessed.

Example: World Health Organization. (2020). Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) advice for the public. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public

Conference Proceedings

References to conference proceedings should include the author’s name, title of the paper, name of the conference, location of the conference, date of the conference, and page numbers.

Example: Chen, S., & Li, J. (2019). The Future of AI in Education. Proceedings of the International Conference on Educational Technology, Beijing, China, July 15-17, pp. 67-78.

References to reports typically include the author or organization responsible for the report, title of the report, publication date, and publisher.

Example: United Nations. (2020). The Sustainable Development Goals Report. United Nations.

Formats of References

Some common Formates of References with their examples are as follows:

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

The APA (American Psychological Association) Style has specific guidelines for formatting references used in academic papers, articles, and books. Here are the different reference formats in APA style with examples:

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of book. Publisher.

Example : Smith, J. K. (2005). The psychology of social interaction. Wiley-Blackwell.

Journal Article

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year of publication). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume number(issue number), page numbers.

Example : Brown, L. M., Keating, J. G., & Jones, S. M. (2012). The role of social support in coping with stress among African American adolescents. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 22(1), 218-233.

Author, A. A. (Year of publication or last update). Title of page. Website name. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, December 11). COVID-19: How to protect yourself and others. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html

Magazine article

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Title of Magazine, volume number(issue number), page numbers.

Example : Smith, M. (2019, March 11). The power of positive thinking. Psychology Today, 52(3), 60-65.

Newspaper article:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Title of Newspaper, page numbers.

Example: Johnson, B. (2021, February 15). New study shows benefits of exercise on mental health. The New York Times, A8.

Edited book

Editor, E. E. (Ed.). (Year of publication). Title of book. Publisher.

Example : Thompson, J. P. (Ed.). (2014). Social work in the 21st century. Sage Publications.

Chapter in an edited book:

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Title of book (pp. page numbers). Publisher.

Example : Johnson, K. S. (2018). The future of social work: Challenges and opportunities. In J. P. Thompson (Ed.), Social work in the 21st century (pp. 105-118). Sage Publications.

MLA (Modern Language Association) Style

The MLA (Modern Language Association) Style is a widely used style for writing academic papers and essays in the humanities. Here are the different reference formats in MLA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Smith, John. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Journal article

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal, volume number, issue number, Publication year, page numbers.

Example : Brown, Laura M., et al. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence, vol. 22, no. 1, 2012, pp. 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name, Publication date, URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC, 11 Dec. 2020, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Publication date, page numbers.

Example : Smith, Mary. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, Mar. 2019, pp. 60-65.

Newspaper article

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Publication date, page numbers.

Example : Johnson, Bob. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, 15 Feb. 2021, p. A8.

Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Thompson, John P., editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. Sage Publications, 2014.

Chapter in an edited book

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last name, Publisher, Publication year, page numbers.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, Sage Publications, 2014, pp. 105-118.

Chicago Manual of Style

The Chicago Manual of Style is a widely used style for writing academic papers, dissertations, and books in the humanities and social sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Chicago style:

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number, no. issue number (Publication year): page numbers.

Example : Brown, Laura M., John G. Keating, and Sarah M. Jones. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 22, no. 1 (2012): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name. Publication date. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. December 11, 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Publication date.

Example : Smith, Mary. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 2019.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Publication date.

Example : Johnson, Bob. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Example : Thompson, John P., ed. Social Work in the 21st Century. Sage Publications, 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last Name, page numbers. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, 105-118. Sage Publications, 2014.

Harvard Style

The Harvard Style, also known as the Author-Date System, is a widely used style for writing academic papers and essays in the social sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Harvard Style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Smith, John. 2005. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number (issue number): page numbers.

Example: Brown, Laura M., John G. Keating, and Sarah M. Jones. 2012. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 22 (1): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name. URL. Accessed date.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2020. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html. Accessed April 1, 2023.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, month and date of publication.

Example : Smith, Mary. 2019. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 2019.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, month and date of publication.

Example : Johnson, Bob. 2021. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Year of publication. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Thompson, John P., ed. 2014. Social Work in the 21st Century. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last Name, page numbers. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. 2014. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, 105-118. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Vancouver Style

The Vancouver Style, also known as the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals, is a widely used style for writing academic papers in the biomedical sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Vancouver Style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. 2nd ed. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell; 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title. Year of publication; volume number(issue number):page numbers.

Example : Brown LM, Keating JG, Jones SM. The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents. J Res Adolesc. 2012;22(1):218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Webpage. Website Name [Internet]. Publication date. [cited date]. Available from: URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others [Internet]. 2020 Dec 11. [cited 2023 Apr 1]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Title of Magazine. Year of publication; month and day of publication:page numbers.

Example : Smith M. The Power of Positive Thinking. Psychology Today. 2019 Mar 1:32-35.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Title of Newspaper. Year of publication; month and day of publication:page numbers.

Example : Johnson B. New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health. The New York Times. 2021 Feb 15:A4.

Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example: Thompson JP, editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. 1st ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Chapter. In: Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication. page numbers.

Example : Johnson KS. The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities. In: Thompson JP, editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. 1st ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2014. p. 105-118.

Turabian Style

Turabian style is a variation of the Chicago style used in academic writing, particularly in the fields of history and humanities. Here are the different reference formats in Turabian style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number, no. issue number (Year of publication): page numbers.

Example : Brown, LM, Keating, JG, Jones, SM. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” J Res Adolesc 22, no. 1 (2012): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Name of Website. Publication date. Accessed date. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. December 11, 2020. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Month Day, Year of publication, page numbers.

Example : Smith, M. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 1, 2019, 32-35.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Month Day, Year of publication.

Example : Johnson, B. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Thompson, JP, ed. Social Work in the 21st Century. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s Last name, First name, page numbers. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Johnson, KS. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by Thompson, JP, 105-118. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2014.

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Style

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) style is commonly used in engineering, computer science, and other technical fields. Here are the different reference formats in IEEE style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Oppenheim, A. V., & Schafer, R. W. Discrete-Time Signal Processing. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2010.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Abbreviated Journal Title, vol. number, no. issue number, pp. page numbers, Month year of publication.

Example: Shannon, C. E. “A Mathematical Theory of Communication.” Bell System Technical Journal, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 379-423, July 1948.

Conference paper

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Paper.” In Title of Conference Proceedings, Place of Conference, Date of Conference, pp. page numbers, Year of publication.

Example: Gupta, S., & Kumar, P. “An Improved System of Linear Discriminant Analysis for Face Recognition.” In Proceedings of the 2011 International Conference on Computer Science and Network Technology, Harbin, China, Dec. 2011, pp. 144-147.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Name of Website. Date of publication or last update. Accessed date. URL.

Example : National Aeronautics and Space Administration. “Apollo 11.” NASA. July 20, 1969. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/apollo11.html.

Technical report

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Report.” Name of Institution or Organization, Report number, Year of publication.

Example : Smith, J. R. “Development of a New Solar Panel Technology.” National Renewable Energy Laboratory, NREL/TP-6A20-51645, 2011.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Patent.” Patent number, Issue date.

Example : Suzuki, H. “Method of Producing Carbon Nanotubes.” US Patent 7,151,019, December 19, 2006.

Standard Title. Standard number, Publication date.

Example : IEEE Standard for Floating-Point Arithmetic. IEEE Std 754-2008, August 29, 2008

ACS (American Chemical Society) Style

ACS (American Chemical Society) style is commonly used in chemistry and related fields. Here are the different reference formats in ACS style:

Author’s Last name, First name; Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title Year, Volume, Page Numbers.

Example : Wang, Y.; Zhao, X.; Cui, Y.; Ma, Y. Facile Preparation of Fe3O4/graphene Composites Using a Hydrothermal Method for High-Performance Lithium Ion Batteries. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2012, 4, 2715-2721.

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title; Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication.

Example : Carey, F. A. Organic Chemistry; McGraw-Hill: New York, 2008.

Author’s Last name, First name. Chapter Title. In Book Title; Editor’s Last name, First name, Ed.; Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication; Volume number, Chapter number, Page Numbers.

Example : Grossman, R. B. Analytical Chemistry of Aerosols. In Aerosol Measurement: Principles, Techniques, and Applications; Baron, P. A.; Willeke, K., Eds.; Wiley-Interscience: New York, 2001; Chapter 10, pp 395-424.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Webpage. Website Name, URL (accessed date).

Example : National Institute of Standards and Technology. Atomic Spectra Database. https://www.nist.gov/pml/atomic-spectra-database (accessed April 1, 2023).

Author’s Last name, First name. Patent Number. Patent Date.

Example : Liu, Y.; Huang, H.; Chen, H.; Zhang, W. US Patent 9,999,999, December 31, 2022.

Author’s Last name, First name; Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. In Title of Conference Proceedings, Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication; Volume Number, Page Numbers.

Example : Jia, H.; Xu, S.; Wu, Y.; Wu, Z.; Tang, Y.; Huang, X. Fast Adsorption of Organic Pollutants by Graphene Oxide. In Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology, American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2017; Volume 1, pp 223-228.

AMA (American Medical Association) Style

AMA (American Medical Association) style is commonly used in medical and scientific fields. Here are the different reference formats in AMA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Article Title. Journal Abbreviation. Year; Volume(Issue):Page Numbers.

Example : Jones, R. A.; Smith, B. C. The Role of Vitamin D in Maintaining Bone Health. JAMA. 2019;321(17):1765-1773.

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : Guyton, A. C.; Hall, J. E. Textbook of Medical Physiology. 13th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Saunders; 2015.

Author’s Last name, First name. Chapter Title. In: Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: Page Numbers.

Example: Rajakumar, K. Vitamin D and Bone Health. In: Holick, M. F., ed. Vitamin D: Physiology, Molecular Biology, and Clinical Applications. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Springer; 2010:211-222.

Author’s Last name, First name. Webpage Title. Website Name. URL. Published date. Updated date. Accessed date.

Example : National Cancer Institute. Breast Cancer Prevention (PDQ®)–Patient Version. National Cancer Institute. https://www.cancer.gov/types/breast/patient/breast-prevention-pdq. Published October 11, 2022. Accessed April 1, 2023.

Author’s Last name, First name. Conference presentation title. In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Place of Conference.

Example : Smith, J. R. Vitamin D and Bone Health: A Meta-Analysis. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research; September 20-23, 2022; San Diego, CA.

Thesis or dissertation

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Thesis or Dissertation. Degree level [Doctoral dissertation or Master’s thesis]. University Name; Year.

Example : Wilson, S. A. The Effects of Vitamin D Supplementation on Bone Health in Postmenopausal Women [Doctoral dissertation]. University of California, Los Angeles; 2018.

ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) Style

The ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) style is commonly used in civil engineering fields. Here are the different reference formats in ASCE style:

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title, volume number, issue number (year): page numbers. DOI or URL (if available).

Example : Smith, J. R. “Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Sustainable Drainage Systems in Urban Areas.” Journal of Environmental Engineering, vol. 146, no. 3 (2020): 04020010. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EE.1943-7870.0001668.

Example : McCuen, R. H. Hydrologic Analysis and Design. 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education; 2013.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” In: Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: page numbers.

Example : Maidment, D. R. “Floodplain Management in the United States.” In: Shroder, J. F., ed. Treatise on Geomorphology. San Diego, CA: Academic Press; 2013: 447-460.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Paper Title.” In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Location. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: page numbers.

Example: Smith, J. R. “Sustainable Drainage Systems for Urban Areas.” In: Proceedings of the ASCE International Conference on Sustainable Infrastructure; November 6-9, 2019; Los Angeles, CA. Reston, VA: American Society of Civil Engineers; 2019: 156-163.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Report Title.” Report number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. “Hurricane Sandy Coastal Risk Reduction Program, New York and New Jersey.” Report No. P-15-001. Washington, DC: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; 2015.

CSE (Council of Science Editors) Style

The CSE (Council of Science Editors) style is commonly used in the scientific and medical fields. Here are the different reference formats in CSE style:

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Article Title.” Journal Title. Year;Volume(Issue):Page numbers.

Example : Smith, J.R. “Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Sustainable Drainage Systems in Urban Areas.” Journal of Environmental Engineering. 2020;146(3):04020010.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Chapter Title.” In: Editor’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial., ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year:Page numbers.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Paper Title.” In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Location. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : Smith, J.R. “Sustainable Drainage Systems for Urban Areas.” In: Proceedings of the ASCE International Conference on Sustainable Infrastructure; November 6-9, 2019; Los Angeles, CA. Reston, VA: American Society of Civil Engineers; 2019.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Report Title.” Report number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Bluebook Style

The Bluebook style is commonly used in the legal field for citing legal documents and sources. Here are the different reference formats in Bluebook style:

Case citation

Case name, volume source page (Court year).

Example : Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954).

Statute citation

Name of Act, volume source § section number (year).

Example : Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7401 (1963).

Regulation citation

Name of regulation, volume source § section number (year).

Example: Clean Air Act, 40 C.F.R. § 52.01 (2019).

Book citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. Book Title. Edition number (if applicable). Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example: Smith, J.R. Legal Writing and Analysis. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Aspen Publishers; 2015.

Journal article citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Article Title.” Journal Title. Volume number (year): first page-last page.

Example: Garcia, C. “The Right to Counsel: An International Comparison.” International Journal of Legal Information. 43 (2015): 63-94.

Website citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed month day, year).

Example : United Nations. “Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Oxford Style

The Oxford style, also known as the Oxford referencing system or the documentary-note citation system, is commonly used in the humanities, including literature, history, and philosophy. Here are the different reference formats in Oxford style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.

Example : Smith, John. The Art of Writing. New York: Penguin, 2020.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume, no. issue (year): page range.

Example: Garcia, Carlos. “The Role of Ethics in Philosophy.” Philosophy Today 67, no. 3 (2019): 53-68.

Chapter in an edited book citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title, edited by Editor’s Name, page range. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.

Example : Lee, Mary. “Feminism in the 21st Century.” In The Oxford Handbook of Feminism, edited by Jane Smith, 51-69. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed day month year).

Example : Jones, David. “The Importance of Learning Languages.” Oxford Language Center. https://www.oxfordlanguagecenter.com/importance-of-learning-languages/ (accessed 3 January 2023).

Dissertation or thesis citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Dissertation/Thesis.” PhD diss., University Name, Year of Publication.

Example : Brown, Susan. “The Art of Storytelling in American Literature.” PhD diss., University of Oxford, 2020.

Newspaper article citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Newspaper Title, Month Day, Year.

Example : Robinson, Andrew. “New Developments in Climate Change Research.” The Guardian, September 15, 2022.

AAA (American Anthropological Association) Style

The American Anthropological Association (AAA) style is commonly used in anthropology research papers and journals. Here are the different reference formats in AAA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example : Smith, John. 2019. The Anthropology of Food. New York: Routledge.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume, no. issue: page range.

Example : Garcia, Carlos. 2021. “The Role of Ethics in Anthropology.” American Anthropologist 123, no. 2: 237-251.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title, edited by Editor’s Name, page range. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example: Lee, Mary. 2018. “Feminism in Anthropology.” In The Oxford Handbook of Feminism, edited by Jane Smith, 51-69. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed day month year).

Example : Jones, David. 2020. “The Importance of Learning Languages.” Oxford Language Center. https://www.oxfordlanguagecenter.com/importance-of-learning-languages/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Title of Dissertation/Thesis.” PhD diss., University Name.

Example : Brown, Susan. 2022. “The Art of Storytelling in Anthropology.” PhD diss., University of California, Berkeley.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Article Title.” Newspaper Title, Month Day.

Example : Robinson, Andrew. 2021. “New Developments in Anthropology Research.” The Guardian, September 15.

AIP (American Institute of Physics) Style

The American Institute of Physics (AIP) style is commonly used in physics research papers and journals. Here are the different reference formats in AIP style:

Example : Johnson, S. D. 2021. “Quantum Computing and Information.” Journal of Applied Physics 129, no. 4: 043102.

Example : Feynman, Richard. 2018. The Feynman Lectures on Physics. New York: Basic Books.

Example : Jones, David. 2020. “The Future of Quantum Computing.” In The Handbook of Physics, edited by John Smith, 125-136. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Conference proceedings citation

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Title of Paper.” Proceedings of Conference Name, date and location: page range. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example : Chen, Wei. 2019. “The Applications of Nanotechnology in Solar Cells.” Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Nanotechnology, July 15-17, Tokyo, Japan: 224-229. New York: AIP Publishing.

Example : American Institute of Physics. 2022. “About AIP Publishing.” AIP Publishing. https://publishing.aip.org/about-aip-publishing/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Patent citation

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. Patent Number.

Example : Smith, John. 2018. US Patent 9,873,644.

References Writing Guide

Here are some general guidelines for writing references:

• Follow the citation style guidelines: Different disciplines and journals may require different citation styles (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago). It is important to follow the specific guidelines for the citation style required.
• Include all necessary information : Each citation should include enough information for readers to locate the source. For example, a journal article citation should include the author(s), title of the article, journal title, volume number, issue number, page numbers, and publication year.
• Use proper formatting: Citation styles typically have specific formatting requirements for different types of sources. Make sure to follow the proper formatting for each citation.
• Order citations alphabetically: If listing multiple sources, they should be listed alphabetically by the author’s last name.
• Be consistent: Use the same citation style throughout the entire paper or project.
• Check for accuracy: Double-check all citations to ensure accuracy, including correct spelling of author names and publication information.
• Use reputable sources: When selecting sources to cite, choose reputable and authoritative sources. Avoid sources that are biased or unreliable.
• Include all sources: Make sure to include all sources used in the research, including those that were not directly quoted but still informed the work.
• Use online tools : There are online tools available (e.g., citation generators) that can help with formatting and organizing references.

Purpose of References in Research

References in research serve several purposes:

• To give credit to the original authors or sources of information used in the research. It is important to acknowledge the work of others and avoid plagiarism.
• To provide evidence for the claims made in the research. References can support the arguments, hypotheses, or conclusions presented in the research by citing relevant studies, data, or theories.
• To allow readers to find and verify the sources used in the research. References provide the necessary information for readers to locate and access the sources cited in the research, which allows them to evaluate the quality and reliability of the information presented.
• To situate the research within the broader context of the field. References can show how the research builds on or contributes to the existing body of knowledge, and can help readers to identify gaps in the literature that the research seeks to address.

Importance of References in Research

References play an important role in research for several reasons:

• Credibility : By citing authoritative sources, references lend credibility to the research and its claims. They provide evidence that the research is based on a sound foundation of knowledge and has been carefully researched.
• Avoidance of Plagiarism : References help researchers avoid plagiarism by giving credit to the original authors or sources of information. This is important for ethical reasons and also to avoid legal repercussions.
• Reproducibility : References allow others to reproduce the research by providing detailed information on the sources used. This is important for verification of the research and for others to build on the work.
• Context : References provide context for the research by situating it within the broader body of knowledge in the field. They help researchers to understand where their work fits in and how it builds on or contributes to existing knowledge.
• Evaluation : References provide a means for others to evaluate the research by allowing them to assess the quality and reliability of the sources used.

Advantages of References in Research

There are several advantages of including references in research:

• Acknowledgment of Sources: Including references gives credit to the authors or sources of information used in the research. This is important to acknowledge the original work and avoid plagiarism.
• Evidence and Support : References can provide evidence to support the arguments, hypotheses, or conclusions presented in the research. This can add credibility and strength to the research.
• Reproducibility : References provide the necessary information for others to reproduce the research. This is important for the verification of the research and for others to build on the work.
• Context : References can help to situate the research within the broader body of knowledge in the field. This helps researchers to understand where their work fits in and how it builds on or contributes to existing knowledge.
• Evaluation : Including references allows others to evaluate the research by providing a means to assess the quality and reliability of the sources used.
• Ongoing Conversation: References allow researchers to engage in ongoing conversations and debates within their fields. They can show how the research builds on or contributes to the existing body of knowledge.

About the author

Muhammad Hassan

Researcher, Academic Writer, Web developer

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Generate accurate APA citations for free

• Knowledge Base
• APA Style 7th edition
• APA format for academic papers and essays

APA Formatting and Citation (7th Ed.) | Generator, Template, Examples

Published on November 6, 2020 by Raimo Streefkerk . Revised on January 17, 2024.

The 7th edition of the APA Publication Manual provides guidelines for clear communication , citing sources , and formatting documents. This article focuses on paper formatting.

Generate accurate APA citations with Scribbr

Throughout your paper, you need to apply the following APA format guidelines:

• Set page margins to 1 inch on all sides.
• Double-space all text, including headings.
• Indent the first line of every paragraph 0.5 inches.
• Use an accessible font (e.g., Times New Roman 12pt., Arial 11pt., or Georgia 11pt.).
• Include a page number on every page.

Let an expert format your paper

Our APA formatting experts can help you to format your paper according to APA guidelines. They can help you with:

• Margins, line spacing, and indentation
• Font and headings
• Running head and page numbering

Table of contents

How to set up apa format (with template), apa alphabetization guidelines, apa format template [free download], page header, headings and subheadings, reference page, tables and figures, frequently asked questions about apa format.

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

References are ordered alphabetically by the first author’s last name. If the author is unknown, order the reference entry by the first meaningful word of the title (ignoring articles: “the”, “a”, or “an”).

Why set up APA format from scratch if you can download Scribbr’s template for free?

Student papers and professional papers have slightly different guidelines regarding the title page, abstract, and running head. Our template is available in Word and Google Docs format for both versions.

• Student paper: Word | Google Docs
• Professional paper: Word | Google Docs

In an APA Style paper, every page has a page header. For student papers, the page header usually consists of just a page number in the page’s top-right corner. For professional papers intended for publication, it also includes a running head .

A running head is simply the paper’s title in all capital letters. It is left-aligned and can be up to 50 characters in length. Longer titles are abbreviated .

APA headings have five possible levels. Heading level 1 is used for main sections such as “ Methods ” or “ Results ”. Heading levels 2 to 5 are used for subheadings. Each heading level is formatted differently.

Want to know how many heading levels you should use, when to use which heading level, and how to set up heading styles in Word or Google Docs? Then check out our in-depth article on APA headings .

The title page is the first page of an APA Style paper. There are different guidelines for student and professional papers.

Both versions include the paper title and author’s name and affiliation. The student version includes the course number and name, instructor name, and due date of the assignment. The professional version includes an author note and running head .

For more information on writing a striking title, crediting multiple authors (with different affiliations), and writing the author note, check out our in-depth article on the APA title page .

The abstract is a 150–250 word summary of your paper. An abstract is usually required in professional papers, but it’s rare to include one in student papers (except for longer texts like theses and dissertations).

The abstract is placed on a separate page after the title page . At the top of the page, write the section label “Abstract” (bold and centered). The contents of the abstract appear directly under the label. Unlike regular paragraphs, the first line is not indented. Abstracts are usually written as a single paragraph without headings or blank lines.

Directly below the abstract, you may list three to five relevant keywords . On a new line, write the label “Keywords:” (italicized and indented), followed by the keywords in lowercase letters, separated by commas.

APA Style does not provide guidelines for formatting the table of contents . It’s also not a required paper element in either professional or student papers. If your instructor wants you to include a table of contents, it’s best to follow the general guidelines.

Place the table of contents on a separate page between the abstract and introduction. Write the section label “Contents” at the top (bold and centered), press “Enter” once, and list the important headings with corresponding page numbers.

The APA reference page is placed after the main body of your paper but before any appendices . Here you list all sources that you’ve cited in your paper (through APA in-text citations ). APA provides guidelines for formatting the references as well as the page itself.

Creating APA Style references

Play around with the Scribbr Citation Example Generator below to learn about the APA reference format of the most common source types or generate APA citations for free with Scribbr’s APA Citation Generator .

Formatting the reference page

Write the section label “References” at the top of a new page (bold and centered). Place the reference entries directly under the label in alphabetical order.

Finally, apply a hanging indent , meaning the first line of each reference is left-aligned, and all subsequent lines are indented 0.5 inches.

Tables and figures are presented in a similar format. They’re preceded by a number and title and followed by explanatory notes (if necessary).

Use bold styling for the word “Table” or “Figure” and the number, and place the title on a separate line directly below it (in italics and title case). Try to keep tables clean; don’t use any vertical lines, use as few horizontal lines as possible, and keep row and column labels concise.

Keep the design of figures as simple as possible. Include labels and a legend if needed, and only use color when necessary (not to make it look more appealing).

Check out our in-depth article about table and figure notes to learn when to use notes and how to format them.

The easiest way to set up APA format in Word is to download Scribbr’s free APA format template for student papers or professional papers.

Alternatively, you can watch Scribbr’s 5-minute step-by-step tutorial or check out our APA format guide with examples.

APA Style papers should be written in a font that is legible and widely accessible. For example:

• Times New Roman (12pt.)
• Arial (11pt.)
• Calibri (11pt.)
• Georgia (11pt.)

The same font and font size is used throughout the document, including the running head , page numbers, headings , and the reference page . Text in footnotes and figure images may be smaller and use single line spacing.

You need an APA in-text citation and reference entry . Each source type has its own format; for example, a webpage citation is different from a book citation .

Use Scribbr’s free APA Citation Generator to generate flawless citations in seconds or take a look at our APA citation examples .

Yes, page numbers are included on all pages, including the title page , table of contents , and reference page . Page numbers should be right-aligned in the page header.

To insert page numbers in Microsoft Word or Google Docs, click ‘Insert’ and then ‘Page number’.

APA format is widely used by professionals, researchers, and students in the social and behavioral sciences, including fields like education, psychology, and business.

Be sure to check the guidelines of your university or the journal you want to be published in to double-check which style you should be using.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Streefkerk, R. (2024, January 17). APA Formatting and Citation (7th Ed.) | Generator, Template, Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved April 8, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/apa-style/format/

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Citing references

• Introduction
• Using quotes & paraphrases
• Writing citations
• Citation examples (Harvard style)
• Compiling a reference list or bibliography

AMS (American Meteorological Society)

Apa (american psychological association).

• Which style does your School/Department use?
• Avoiding unintentional plagiarism
• Using Turnitin to develop your referencing
• Managing your references
• Getting help

Cite Them Right guide

Styles of referencing

Particular referencing styles are preferred by particular academic disciplines because they work better with the kind of texts that are most commonly used in that discipline. This page includes brief details of each style of referencing used by different departments at Reading. You should always check your course handbook to see which is their preferred style.  Remember that if you are studying modules in different departments or schools, they may each prefer a different referencing style.

Find out which style is used in your Department:

• Referencing styles in use in the University A list of Schools and Departments and their preferred referencing styles.

Watch this brief video tutorial on Which referencing style should I use? 

If you are unable to view this video on YouTube it is also available on YuJa - view the Which referencing style should I use? video on YuJa (University username and password required)

• Which referencing style should I use? (transcript) Read along while watching the video tutorial.

The Department of Meteorology recommends using the AMS style for citations. See your student handbook for more detailed guidance.

• AMS referencing style Updated February 2023

Note that AMS style requires that journal names are abbreviated. The following is a source of suitable abbreviations: 

• Chemical Abstracts Service Source Index (CASSI)

APA referencing is a variant on Harvard style. Many of the conventions are the same, with brief author-date citations in brackets in the body of the text and full citations in the reference list. It is usual to include a reference list only rather than a bibliography in APA style. Citations for websites are also slightly different, with no need to include an access or retrieval date unless the page content is likely to change over time.

Sources for more information

7th edition guidance

A new version of the APA style was published in 2019. Departments will gradually switch to this version - check your course handbook.

APA 7th edition differs significantly from APA 6th edition and other Harvard styles in that the place of publication is usually omitted from the reference. 

• APA guidelines from Purdue University Gives a good overview of the main elements of the APA style.
• APA 7th Referencing Guide from Huddersfield University Has a useful tool to help you construct accurate references.
• Academic Writer Tutorial: Basics of Seventh Edition APA Style

6th edition guidance

• Quick Answers: references Links to a searchable blog with answers to lots of queries on APA referencing.

Chicago style referencing offers two options for citations: 

So if you are asked to use Chicago style referencing, it is especially important to check which format your department wants you to use - notes and bibliography or author-date. You should be able to find more information in your course or module handbook . If you cannot find anything there, do ask your course tutor.

• Chicago Manual of Style: Quick Guide Basic principles.

Also known as 'author-date' style. In Harvard style the in-text citation can be in brackets in the body of the text or in footnotes, and uses the author's surname and the date of publication, with the page number if it is a reference to a particular page. Full details are only listed in the bibliography or reference list.

Note that because Harvard is a 'style' rather than a system or set of rules, the preferred punctuation and formatting of the text may differ and your School/Department might have their own preferred version. Check your course handbook or the information in your subject guide for details of any local variations:

• Referencing styles in use in the University Consult this list to find out if your School/Department uses the Harvard style and has their own variant which you should use.
• Citation examples in the Harvard style We've compiled a list of citation examples in the Harvard style. These include the five most commonly cited materials: book; journal article; chapter in edited collection; website; cited by another author. Plus more frequently used texts including conference papers, newspapers, government publications, social media postings and theses.
• Harvard System (Anglia Ruskin University Library) Detailed guidance on using Harvard referencing with examples for a wide range of sources.

The MHRA (Modern Humanities Research Association) style usually uses numbers in the text which are linked to footnotes or endnotes (this is the version used by English Literature). Alternatively name-year in-text citations may be used (as used by Film, Theatre and Television). The full bibliography is in alphabetical order by the surname of the first author.

• English Literature citing references guidance Guidance on using the MHRA style for students studying English literature.
• Film, Theatre & Television citing references guidance Guidance on using the MHRA style for students studying Film, Theatre and Television.

OSCOLA stands for Oxford Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities. It is preferred by the School of Law at Reading, as it has rules for dealing with the kind of sources that law students will frequently use, including cases, statutes and command papers. In-text citations are placed in footnotes, with a formal set of abbreviations for key sources, e.g. AC for Appeal Cases. Punctuation is kept at a minimum, and there are specific rules for dealing with subsequent mentions.

• Law citing references guide Guidance on using OSCOLA for students studying Law.
• OSCOLA 4th ed. Quick Reference Guide
• OSCOLA (Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities) Manual and other instructional materials for the leading referencing scheme used in UK law schools and scholarly publishing.

• Manual of legal citations (2 vols) by University of London Call Number: 340.035-LON Publication Date: 1960

In Oxford referencing, in-text citations are in footnotes. Full details should be included in the footnotes for the first mention of a text. After this, a shortened version can be used.

Sources for more information:

• Classics citing references guide Guidance on using the Oxford style to cite ancient texts for students studying Classics.
• History citing reference guide Guidance on using the Oxford style for students studying History
• Oxford referencing: the basics (University of New South Wales)
• Oxford referencing: more detailed (Deakin University)

In Vancouver referencing, which is a numeric referencing style, each source is given a number which corresponds to the order in which it appears in the text. If the same source is referred to again in the text, the same number is used. The reference list comprises a single numbered list of citations with full details. You may also include a separate bibliography, alphabetically ordered by author, which lists works that you have used as part of your research for your assignment but not cited in the text.

• Pharmacy Vancouver referencing guidance Guidance on using the Vancouver style for students studying Pharmacy, Pharmacoogy, Physician Associates or CIPPET.
• Vancouver style (Imperial College, London) Guidelines and a printable guide.
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• Last Updated: Apr 5, 2024 12:17 PM
• URL: https://libguides.reading.ac.uk/citing-references

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• Academic and Writing Resources

Writing Research Papers

• What Types of References Are Appropriate?

When writing a research paper, there are many different types of sources that you might consider citing.  Which are appropriate?  Which are less appropriate?  Here we discuss the different types of sources that you may wish to use when working on a research paper.   

Please note that the following represents a general set of recommended guidelines that is not specific to any class and does not represent department policy.  The types of allowable sources may vary by course and instructor.

Highly appropriate: peer-reviewed journal articles

In general, you should primarily cite peer-reviewed journal articles in your research papers.  Peer-reviewed journal articles are research papers that have been accepted for publication after having undergone a rigorous editorial review process.  During that review process, the article was carefully evaluated by at least one journal editor and a group of reviewers (usually scientists that are experts in the field or topic under investigation).  Often the article underwent revisions before it was judged to be satisfactory for publication. 

Most articles submitted to high quality journals are not accepted for publication.  As such, research that is successfully published in a respected peer-reviewed journal is generally regarded as higher quality than research that is not published or is published elsewhere, such as in a book, magazine, or on a website.  However, just because a study was published in a peer-reviewed journal does not mean that it is free from error or that its conclusions are correct.  Accordingly, it is important to critically read and carefully evaluate all sources, including peer-reviewed journal articles.

Tips for finding and using peer-reviewed journal articles:

• Many databases, such as PsycINFO, can be set to only search for peer-reviewed journal articles. Other search engines, such as Google Scholar, typically include both peer-reviewed and not peer-reviewed articles in search results, and thus should be used with greater caution. 
• Even though a peer-reviewed journal article is, by definition, a source that has been carefully vetted through an editorial process, it should still be critically evaluated by the reader. 

Potentially appropriate: books, encyclopedias, and other scholarly works

Another potential source that you might use when writing a research paper is a book, encyclopedia, or an official online source (such as demographic data drawn from a government website).  When relying on such sources, it is important to carefully consider its accuracy and trustworthiness.  For example, books vary in quality; most have not undergone any form of review process other than basic copyediting.  In many cases, a book’s content is little more than the author’s informed or uninformed opinion. 

However, there are books that have been edited prior to publication, as is the case with many reputable encyclopedias; also, many books from academic publishers are comprised of multiple chapters, each written by one or more researchers, with the entire volume carefully reviewed by one or more editors.  In those cases, the book has undergone a form of peer review, albeit often not as rigorous as that for a peer-reviewed journal article.

Tips for using books, encyclopedias, and other scholarly works:

• When using books, encyclopedias, and other scholarly works (that is, works written or produced by researchers, official agencies, or corporations), it is important to very carefully evaluate the quality of that source.
• If the source is an edited volume (in which case in the editor(s) will be listed on the cover), is published by a reputable source (such as Academic Press, MIT Press, and others), or is written by a major expert in the field (such as a researcher with a track record of peer-reviewed journal articles on the subject), then it is more likely to be trustworthy.
• For online encyclopedias such as Wikipedia, an instructor may or may not consider that an acceptable source (by default, don’t assume that a non-peer reviewed source will be considered acceptable). It is best to ask the instructor for clarification. 1

Usually inappropriate: magazines, blogs, and websites  

Most research papers can be written using only peer-reviewed journal articles as sources.  However, for many topics it is possible to find a plethora of sources that have not been peer-reviewed but also discuss the topic.  These may include articles in popular magazines or postings in blogs, forums, and other websites.  In general, although these sources may be well-written and easy to understand, their scientific value is often not as high as that of peer-reviewed articles.  Exceptions include some magazine and newspaper articles that might be cited in a research paper to make a point about public awareness of a given topic, to illustrate beliefs and attitudes about a given topic among journalists, or to refer to a news event that is relevant to a given topic. 

Tips for using magazines, blogs, and websites:

• Avoid such references if possible. You should primarily focus on peer-reviewed journal articles as sources for your research paper.  High quality research papers typically do not rely on non-academic and not peer-reviewed sources.
• Refer to non-academic, not peer-reviewed sources sparingly, and if you do, be sure to carefully evaluate the accuracy and scientific merit of the source.

Downloadable Resources

• How to Write APA Style Research Papers (a comprehensive guide) [ PDF ]
• Tips for Writing APA Style Research Papers (a brief summary) [ PDF ]

Further Resources

How-To Videos     

• Writing Research Paper Videos

Databases and Search Engines (may require connection to UCSD network)

• Google Scholar
• PubMed (NIH/NLM)
• Web of Science  

UCSD Resources on Finding and Evaluating Sources

• UCSD Library Databases A-Z
• UCSD Library Psychology Research Guide: Start Page
• UCSD Library Psychology Research Guide : Finding Articles
• UCSD Library Psychology Research Guide : Evaluating Sources

External Resources

• Critically Reading Journal Articles from PSU/ Colby College
• How to Seriously Read a Journal Article from Science Magazine
• How to Read Journal Articles from Harvard University
• How to Read a Scientific Paper Infographic from Elsevier Publishing
• Tips for searching PsycINFO from UC Berkeley Library
• Tips for using PsycINFO effectively from the APA Student Science Council

1 Wikipedia articles vary in quality; the site has a peer review system and the very best articles ( Featured Articles ), which go through a multi-stage review process, rival those in traditional encyclopedias and are considered the highest quality articles on the site.

Prepared by s. c. pan for ucsd psychology, graphic adapted from  t-x-generic-apply.svg , a public domain creation by the tango desktop project..

Back to top

• Research Paper Structure
• Formatting Research Papers
• Using Databases and Finding References
• Evaluating References and Taking Notes
• Citing References
• Writing a Literature Review
• Writing Process and Revising
• Improving Scientific Writing
• Academic Integrity and Avoiding Plagiarism
• Writing Research Papers Videos

• Free Tools for Students
• Harvard Referencing Generator

Free Harvard Referencing Generator

Generate accurate Harvard reference lists quickly and for FREE, with MyBib!

🤔 What is a Harvard Referencing Generator?

A Harvard Referencing Generator is a tool that automatically generates formatted academic references in the Harvard style.

It takes in relevant details about a source -- usually critical information like author names, article titles, publish dates, and URLs -- and adds the correct punctuation and formatting required by the Harvard referencing style.

The generated references can be copied into a reference list or bibliography, and then collectively appended to the end of an academic assignment. This is the standard way to give credit to sources used in the main body of an assignment.

👩‍🎓 Who uses a Harvard Referencing Generator?

Harvard is the main referencing style at colleges and universities in the United Kingdom and Australia. It is also very popular in other English-speaking countries such as South Africa, Hong Kong, and New Zealand. University-level students in these countries are most likely to use a Harvard generator to aid them with their undergraduate assignments (and often post-graduate too).

🙌 Why should I use a Harvard Referencing Generator?

A Harvard Referencing Generator solves two problems:

• It provides a way to organise and keep track of the sources referenced in the content of an academic paper.
• It ensures that references are formatted correctly -- inline with the Harvard referencing style -- and it does so considerably faster than writing them out manually.

A well-formatted and broad bibliography can account for up to 20% of the total grade for an undergraduate-level project, and using a generator tool can contribute significantly towards earning them.

⚙️ How do I use MyBib's Harvard Referencing Generator?

Here's how to use our reference generator:

• If citing a book, website, journal, or video: enter the URL or title into the search bar at the top of the page and press the search button.
• Choose the most relevant results from the list of search results.
• Our generator will automatically locate the source details and format them in the correct Harvard format. You can make further changes if required.
• Then either copy the formatted reference directly into your reference list by clicking the 'copy' button, or save it to your MyBib account for later.

MyBib supports the following for Harvard style:

🍏 What other versions of Harvard referencing exist?

There isn't "one true way" to do Harvard referencing, and many universities have their own slightly different guidelines for the style. Our generator can adapt to handle the following list of different Harvard styles:

• Cite Them Right
• Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU)
• University of the West of England (UWE)

Daniel is a qualified librarian, former teacher, and citation expert. He has been contributing to MyBib since 2018.

Our expert, award-winning staff selects the products we cover and rigorously researches and tests our top picks. If you buy through our links, we may get a commission. How we test routers

• Home Internet

Internet Connection Types Explained -- and Ranked Best to Worst

Not all internet is the same. Here's what separates each internet connection type, why it matters and how to tell what kind of connection you have.

The technology your ISP uses to send internet to your home makes a difference in speed, reliability, availability and more.

When comparing internet providers in your area , you're most likely checking available speeds and pricing along with the fine-print details like data caps and equipment fees. There's another factor to consider that is equally as important but easy to overlook: the connection type, or what technology your internet service provider uses to send internet to your home. We at CNET have encountered them all and can tell you first-hand the difference the connection type can make .

ISPs use wired or wireless connections (or a mix of the two). Wired connection types -- meaning a wire is connected directly to your home -- include  fiber-optic , coaxial cable and copper (DSL) internet. Satellite internet , fixed wireless and the increasingly popular 5G home internet round out your potential wireless internet options.

So what's the difference between them all? This guide will walk you through the different types of internet connections that may be available in your area, how they work and what limitations you can expect from them. Connection types are listed in order of most to least recommended.

Locating local internet providers

Fiber internet: The best, but least available

Fiber-optic internet uses long, thin strands (fibers) of glass or plastic to send data as light signals. The result is speed and reliability that are superior to other connection types.

Fiber-optic can deliver download speeds as fast as 10 gigabits (10,000 megabits per second) or higher -- fast enough to download a 2-hour movie in HD in less than a minute -- but you're likely to find max download speeds around 1,000 to 5,000Mbps from most fiber-optic providers.

Upload speeds , which are essential for working and learning from home, uploading to videos to social media and gaming online, are also significantly faster with fiber-optic service and typically mirror download speeds. No other connection type can deliver symmetrical upload and download speeds like fiber-optic internet.

Pricing for the ultraspeedy plans can easily run you $100 or more per month, but most providers also offer slower speed tiers (if speeds of 100 to 1,000Mbps can be considered  slow ) for $40 to $90 per month. Other connection types may present slightly lower introductory prices, depending on the available providers in your area, but when you take into account the speeds you get for the price you pay, you're likely to find the best value with fiber internet.

Availability is the only real disadvantage with fiber. Laying enough fiber-optic cables to connect entire cities and regions is a huge logistical challenge , and with lots of competition and red tape to cut through, it's been slow going for any of the major service providers to expand coverage to underserved areas. Consequently, fiber internet is only available to around 40% of US households and primarily those in urban areas, according to the Federal Communications Commission .

Notable fiber internet providers

• CenturyLink
• Frontier Fiber
• Google Fiber
• Verizon Fios
• Ziply Fiber

Cable internet delivers a connection to your home via copper coaxial cable -- the same as traditional cable TV.

Cable internet: Your standard connection

Cable internet lacks the full speed potential and reliability of fiber-optic service, but it's much more widely accessible. Cable is one of the most common types of internet connections -- available to nearly 90% of US households -- and you'll often find it bundled with TV packages . That makes sense, because cable internet uses the same coaxial connections as cable TV. 

Though not as speedy as fiber internet, cable internet service is still one of the fastest connection types. Most cable providers offer a variety of speed options, including a gigabit plan with download speeds around 940Mbps. Upload speeds are a much different story, however, as few cable internet providers deliver upload speeds above 50Mbps. Speed reliability can also be a concern with cable internet as the connection type is susceptible to network congestion and slowed speeds, especially during peak usage times.

Cable internet pricing varies quite a bit among providers, but cable is, for the most part, one of the more affordable internet connection types. You can get a broadband connection from providers like Astound, Mediacom and Xfinity starting at around $30 per month or less. Spectrum, another big name in cable internet, has a higher starting price at around $40 per month but comes with max download speeds of 300Mbps.

Notable cable internet providers

• Comcast Xfinity
• Charter Spectrum
• Cox Communications
• WOW internet

This portable Netgear Nighthawk mobile router takes an incoming 5G signal and broadcasts it out as a Wi-Fi network your nearby devices can use to get online. If you wire it to a dedicated Wi-Fi router, the connection can cover a wider area.

5G home internet: A growing wireless alternative

Mobile internet is largely designed for your phone, but as the technology improves and speeds increase, 5G mobile connections are becoming more practical for home internet use. 

With this internet connection type, a cell carrier such as T-Mobile or Verizon sends 5G signals in all directions. Many are picked up by cellphones, but for home internet, a router receives those signals and turns them into a home connection. It's a great way to get broadband without the need for running a line to your home or in some cases, dealing with the companies that have run those lines -- ISPs are notorious for low customer satisfaction ratings .

If you're living in a city or another area with strong cellular infrastructure, you might be able to connect over 5G, with providers like Verizon offering speeds up to 1Gbps . You'll also find cellular internet plans that use LTE, the previous generation of technology, or a mix of LTE and 5G.

When shopping for mobile internet for home use, it's probable that you will only have one or two plans to choose from with a flat rate for whatever speeds are available at your address. T-Mobile offers a single 5G plan ($60 per month for download speeds ranging from 72 to 245Mbps), while Verizon offers two ($50 or $70 per month for download speeds ranging from 50 to 300Mbps or 85 to 1,000Mbps, respectively).

Notable cellular internet providers

Fixed wireless internet: also wireless, but with a few strings attached.

Another wireless internet option -- but one that may come with more steps and equipment while delivering slower speeds and less data -- is fixed wireless. Similar to 5G, fixed wireless providers send internet signals over the air. But unlike 5G, you'll need a mounted receiver with a direct line of sight to the nearest tower to receive those signals. Hills, trees, buildings or other obstacles nearby can distort or outright block your connection.

Fixed wireless internet speeds often range from 5 to 50Mbps. There are many variables that can affect the quality of the incoming signal, including distance from a local tower, so your available speeds may vary. Regardless of the speeds you can get, expect flat-rate pricing or around $50 per month. Plans also typically come with a monthly data cap of 200 to 300GB, depending on the provider.

Though fixed wireless has traditionally been a rural internet option, the connection type is rapidly expanding in metro areas thanks to providers like Google Fiber and Starry Internet. Instead of beaming services to individual residences, these providers send internet signals to entire buildings, such as an apartment complex, then run service to individual units via an Ethernet cable. These providers are capable of delivering speeds much faster than traditional fixed wireless service with gigabit speeds available in select areas.

Notable fixed wireless internet providers

• Google Fiber Webpass
• Rise Broadband
• Etheric Networks
• Starry Internet
• Unwired Broadband

DSL internet: A last resort before satellite

DSL (that's "digital subscriber line") is a fixed connection most popular in areas without access to cable or fiber internet. With DSL, your connection to the internet runs through copper phone lines. it's similar to dial-up service in that regard, but DSL is significantly faster than dial-up and won't tie up your phone line. 

DSL internet is best for those in rural communities looking for a somewhat reliable and affordable internet connection. While it does lack the speed potential of pretty much every other internet type, it is typically a cheaper and sometimes faster alternative to satellite internet. Since DSL uses existing phone lines to deliver service, availability is high and providers can keep prices relatively low.

Notable DSL internet providers

• Frontier Communications

With satellite internet, your connection comes from radio-equipped satellites in Earth's orbit. You'll need a dish to receive the signal.

Satellite internet: When there are no other options

Satellite internet is the most widely available type of internet because it doesn't rely on ground-laid infrastructure like cables, cellular towers or line-of-sight antenna connections. Instead, you'll use a mounted dish to connect with geostationary satellites orbiting miles overhead. If you have a clear view of the southern sky, there's a pretty good chance that there's a satellite provider willing to install a dish and offer you service, for a price.

On average, today's satellite internet providers offer speeds that typically vary from 12 to 100Mbps. In most cases, that makes it a suitable option for smaller households who want to stream video, browse the internet and update social media. 

New satellite providers -- namely Elon Musk's Starlink network , which began expanding service in select areas the last few years and  Amazon's Project Kuiper  -- are promising to bump those speeds up by using low Earth orbit satellites that are closer to the ground. That means that the signal doesn't need to travel as far, which also makes for a reduction in latency, or lag.

Increased competition in the satellite internet industry may help bring costs down for the consumer. Currently, satellite internet is the most expensive internet connection type, by far. Starting prices for satellite internet are around $60 per month, but that's often for slow speeds and low data allowances. If you want faster speeds or more data, satellite internet can quickly get up to $150 to $200 per month, and equipment fees will add another $15 or so to your monthly bill. 

Notable satellite internet providers

Finding the right internet service for you.

So which kind of internet connection is right for you? It depends on several factors. The first thing to think about is your typical usage, and how much speed you really need . If you plan to surf the web and check email only, you can get away with a slower connection, but smaller households with users who stream videos, play games online, or upload files for work or school will ideally want access to download speeds of at least 100Mbps.

Costs are another key factor, obviously. Some providers bundle their various services to offer you a discount , but be aware that the promotional pricing might not last as long as the service contract. In that case, you'll pay more for the same service during the second year, for example.

In the end, the biggest factor is likely beyond your control and that's your location. Some parts of the US have lots of options for getting online, while others hardly have any options at all. 

Whatever choices are available to you, understanding the different technologies at play will help you know what to expect before you sign up.

Internet connection types FAQs

What type of internet is wi-fi.

Wi-Fi is a way to connect to the internet, not a separate type of internet. With Wi-Fi, a router converts your internet connection into wireless signals and transmits them throughout your home. If you have a cable internet connection, your Wi-Fi is a wireless means of connecting devices to your cable internet service.

How do I know what type of internet connection I have?

Wireless connections are fairly obvious -- you have a satellite dish or antenna mounted for satellite or fixed wireless service, or your provider is Verizon 5G Home Internet or T-Mobile Home Internet.

Determining the type of wired connection you have can be a bit more of a challenge, but a good speed test should do the trick. If your speed test shows similar upload and download speeds, your connection is most likely fiber. Speed tests with download speeds over 100Mbps, especially in the 200 to 940Mbps range, but with significantly lower upload speeds, indicate cable internet service.

If your speed test shows download speeds around 100Mbps or lower, it's possible you have cable or DSL internet. In that case, take a quick peek at the back of your modem -- a coaxial cable means cable internet while a telephone line means a DSL connection.

What is considered broadband?

The FCC recently upgraded the speeds required to qualify as broadband from 25Mbps down and 3Mbps up to 100Mbps down and 20Mbps up. Consequently, many DSL services, which often fall below 100Mbps down and almost always below 20Mbps up, are no longer considered broadband internet. Satellite internet may have the ability to deliver 100Mbps download speeds, but the 20Mbps upload speed is a difficult threshold to cross, meaning satellite internet does not meet the requirements of a broadband connection in many cases.

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More From Forbes

The 15 top ai-powered tools for automated unit testing, what is unit testing, what are unit testing examples, top automated unit testing softwares and tools.

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Artificial intelligence can be a huge help to humans writing unit testing scripts.

Software development is a creative endeavor, but it can be filled with tedious tasks. Most mundane of all is writing “unit tests,” bits of code to verify that software components work as intended. Unit tests help developers catch bugs early and ensure that code can be maintained.

Ideally, developers writing code for a program write unit tests as they go along. But writing unit tests is the drudge work of software development and it can take up a significant amount of a developer’s time. Worse, developers can make mistakes in manually written tests for complex codebases. Consequently, a lot of software lacks adequate unit tests and that makes the code difficult to maintain. Without unit tests, if something breaks, finding the problem can be like hunting for a needle in a haystack.

A unit is a part of a program that performs a particular operation. Units are the building blocks of software; a piece of software is a stack of units. If a unit doesn’t do what it’s supposed to do, the software program will not work efficiently — or, in some cases, will not work at all.

Unit testing involves testing individual units of a software application in isolation to ensure they function as expected. The process involves identifying the unit to be tested, writing a test case that exercises the unit and verifies its behavior, running the test and observing the results. If the test fails, the developer investigates the issue, makes necessary changes to the unit's code, and re-runs the test until it passes. Unit testing helps catch bugs early, improves code quality and enables faster debugging, ultimately ensuring the reliability and quality of the software application.

Automated unit testing will play an increasingly critical role in maintaining the integrity and robustness of the code that runs much of our lives. Artificial intelligence is now helping developers write those unit tests, freeing them to focus on higher-value tasks.

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Diffblue logo

One of the most promising tools is Diffblue Cover , an AI-powered platform that automatically writes unit tests for Java code, one of the most popular programming languages. Diffblue uses reinforcement learning to analyze the codebase and generate human-readable, executable tests that cover a wide range of scenarios. "We only focus on unit tests,” said Peter Schrammel, Diffblue’s co-founder, explaining his company’s success in solving the problem for Java.

Another notable tool is EvoSuite , an open-source framework that uses genetic algorithms to generate test suites for Java programs, although EvoSuite's generated tests are not as readable as those produced by Diffblue.

Both Diffblue and EvoSuite stand out for being completely automatic.

Beyond that, there are many code suggestion tools that can help developers write tests. While these tools speed up the work of writing unit tests, they are not fully automatic and still require a developer’s time and attention.

For example, Amazon CodeWhisperer , GitHub Copilot , and even ChatGPT can look at a function and predict a unit test. But generative AI based on large language models (LLMs) is prone to errors, and so developers still need to check their work. They help developers, but don’t free them from the unit-test writing task.

The space is starting to heat up with new start-ups entering the race. Startup Cognition has announced an AI agent called Devin that it claims can scan code, identify and fix bugs and write unit tests. A Cognition engineer named Andrew posted a video on YouTube of Devin reviewing a code repository and successfully writing a regression test on its own. Devin is not yet publicly available so it will take some time to see if it can challenge the current leaders.

Here are the top tools on the market today for writing unit tests. These tools use various AI techniques to automate and optimize different aspects of code review, test generation and quality assurance.

DiffBlue Cover

DiffBlue Cover provides AI-powered unit test generation for Java codebases.

• Automated Java unit test generation tool
• Uses reinforcement learning to generate and optimize tests
• Integrates with popular Java integrated development environments (IDEs) and build tools
• Achieves high code coverage and maintains tests over time
• Offers both cloud and on-premises deployment options

GitHub Copilot

GitHub Copilot is powered by generative AI models developed by GitHub, OpenAI and Microsoft, and is trained on all natural languages that appear in public repositories.

• AI pair programmer that suggests code and entire functions in real-time
• Supported in terminals through GitHub CLI (command line interface) and natively integrated into GitHub.com with the GitHub Copilot Enterprise plan
• Suggests code completions in the code editor
• Answers questions in a chat
• Automatically pulls relevant context from the opened project

Tabnine is an AI coding assistent supporting multiple languages and IDEs.

• AI coding assistant; supporting code generation, explanation, and fixes across 80+ languages and frameworks, plus support for automatic generation of tests and documentation.
• Support for a broad set of IDEs, including all of the most popular (eg., Visual Studio, VSCode, IntelliJ, Eclipse, Android Studio)
• Pulls context automatically from all relevant files accessible from the IDE, and can be connected to any Git-based repo for increased context.
• Offers a proprietary model trained exclusively on permissive code, and also offers custom models trained on additional customer's code (trained and deployed privately)
• Offers deployment in secure SaaS, or private deployments on VPC or on-premises (can be fully air-gapped)

CodiumAI Codiumate

CodiumAI Codiumate is an AI coding assistant for writing, reviewing and testing code.

• IDE plugin for interactive high-quality code generation, testing and reviewing
• Interactively generates a task plan and spec
• Suggests task-aware code completions in the code editor
• Provides guidance, code improvements, task review, etc. to generate high-quality code to complete the task
• Private instances can be installed on-premises
• Uses a proprietary model (but enterprises can choose to use OpenAI models instead)

Google Cloud's Duet

Google Cloud's Duet provides AI-powered code completion and generation for developers

• Chat interface for coding questions and guidance on cloud best practices
• Code explanation to quickly understand, map and navigate unfamiliar code bases
• Code security guardrails to scan AI-generated code for vulnerabilities
• Leverages Google AI foundation models
• Source citations to help comply with license requirements

Amazon Q/Amazon Codewhisperer

Amazon Q/Amazon Codewhisperer is an AI-powered coding companion from Amazon Web Services.

• Accessible directly in popular IDEs
• Proposes code snippets to full functions, across 15 programming languages
• Provides company-specific responses through customization capability
• Scans for security vulnerabilities and suggests remediation in code
• Filters out code suggestions that may be considered biased or unfair
• Flags code suggestions that may resemble particular open-source training data
• Upgrades programming language versions
• Builds new application features with a descriptive prompt
• Uses a proprietary model

Symflower provides automated unit test generation for Java.

• Combines symbolic execution, static analysis, and natural language processing
• Generates readable, maintainable, and effective unit tests
• Explains test assertions and edge cases in natural language
• Integrates with Java IDEs and continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipelines

Testim is an AI-based test automation platform for web and mobile apps.

• AI-powered test automation platform
• Supports web, mobile and API testing
• Uses machine learning to create and maintain tests
• Provides visual test editing and debugging tools
• Integrates with popular CI/CD tools and test management systems

Squaretest is a plugin for IntelliJ IDEA that automatically generates unit tests for Java classes.

• Uses dataflow analysis, control flow analysis, pattern detection and heuristics to generate as much of the tests as it can. Manual work is required to complete the generated tests.
• Enables developers to customize output by creating custom Apache Velocity templates.
• Enables developers to choose which dependencies should be mocked, which methods should be tested and how to construct the source class.

Bito is an AI-powered code review and quality assurance tool.

• Analyzes code changes and understands your codebase, providing real-time feedback
• Identifies potential bugs, security issues and performance bottlenecks
• Supports multiple programming languages and frameworks
• Integrates with popular version control systems and CI/CD tools

DeepUnitAI is an AI tool that writes unit tests for multiple programming langauges.

• AI-driven unit test generation tool
• Supports vrious langauges including Typescript, Javascript, Java, Python and C#
• Uses deep learning to understand code semantics and generate meaningful tests
• Provides IDE extensions, CI/CD pipelines and CLI option.

Seniordev.ai

Seniordev.ai is an AI programming assistant for code generation, optimization and mentoring.

• Web-based application designed to enable dev teams to work more efficiently and effectively
• Uses AI to review pull requests, create/update docs and generate unit tests where applicable
• Provides a collaborative interface for team members to work together
• Integrates with popular version control systems and project management tools

Testsigma.com

Testsigma.com is an AI-driven, codeless test automation platform for web and mobile.

• AI-driven test automation platform for web, mobile and API testing
• Supports codeless test creation using natural language processing
• Provides a visual interface for creating and managing tests
• Offers real-time test results and analytics

Functionize

Functionize is an intelligent test automation platform that uses machine learning.

• AI-powered test automation platform for web and mobile applications
• Uses natural language processing and machine learning to create and maintain tests
• Supports cross-browser and cross-device testing

Mabl is an AI-powered, codeless test automation platform for web applications.

• Built using cloud, AI and low-code innovations
• Functional and non-functional testing scalability across web apps, mobile apps, APIs, performance and accessibility testing
• Delivers 3x faster test creation, 70% maintenance reduction, 10x faster test runs, 80% savings over homegrown solutions
• Integrations with Slack, Jira, Microsoft Teams and Github

Bottom Line

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What is the difference between a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse?

It almost time! Millions of Americans across the country Monday are preparing to witness the once-in-a-lifetime total solar eclipse as it passes over portions of Mexico, the United States and Canada.

It's a sight to behold and people have now long been eagerly awaiting what will be their only chance until 2044 to witness totality, whereby the moon will completely block the sun's disc, ushering in uncharacteristic darkness.

That being said, many are curious on what makes the solar eclipse special and how is it different from a lunar eclipse.

The total solar eclipse is today: Get the latest forecast and everything you need to know

What is an eclipse?

An eclipse occurs when any celestial object like a moon or a planet passes between two other bodies, obscuring the view of objects like the sun, according to NASA .

What is a solar eclipse?

A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon comes in between the Earth and the sun, blocking its light from reaching our planet, leading to a period of darkness lasting several minutes. The resulting "totality," whereby observers can see the outermost layer of the sun's atmosphere, known as the corona, presents a spectacular sight for viewers and confuses animals – causing nocturnal creatures to stir and bird and insects to fall silent.

Partial eclipses, when some part of the sun remains visible, are the most common, making total eclipses a rare sight.

What is a lunar eclipse?

A total lunar eclipse occurs when the moon and the sun are on exact opposite sides of Earth. When this happens, Earth blocks the sunlight that normally reaches the moon. Instead of that sunlight hitting the moon’s surface, Earth's shadow falls on it.

Lunar eclipses are often also referred to the "blood moon" because when the Earth's shadow covers the moon, it often produces a red color. The coloration happens because a bit of reddish sunlight still reaches the moon's surface, even though it's in Earth's shadow.

Difference between lunar eclipse and solar eclipse

The major difference between the two eclipses is in the positioning of the sun, the moon and the Earth and the longevity of the phenomenon, according to NASA.

A lunar eclipse can last for a few hours, while a solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes. Solar eclipses also rarely occur, while lunar eclipses are comparatively more frequent. While at least two partial lunar eclipses happen every year, total lunar eclipses are still rare, says NASA.

Another major difference between the two is that for lunar eclipses, no special glasses or gizmos are needed to view the spectacle and one can directly stare at the moon. However, for solar eclipses, it is pertinent to wear proper viewing glasses and take the necessary safety precautions because the powerful rays of the sun can burn and damage your retinas.

Contributing: Eric Lagatta, Doyle Rice, USA TODAY