When writing a paper, you will need to provide in-text citations (sometimes called parenthetical citations) for quotes, summaries, and to give credit for ideas. Every in-text citation must have a corresponding entry in the reference list, unless you are told otherwise (examples include personal communications and citing an entire website). There are two ways to cite in-text.
For more guidelines, view sections Chapter 8 in the Publication Manual or consult the APA Style page on In-Text Citations.
APA requires that you provide two pieces of information for an in-text citation:
A page number is required for direct quotes, and encouraged for paraphrasing.
You will incorporate this information two ways into your text: parenthetically or narratively.
Narrative citations are the preferred method of citing quotes. You may also use them for paraphrasing or summarizing. The strength of narrative citations is that it flows better for a reader. A narrative citations weaves in the author's name(s) into the text, and then adds in the year in parentheses. The page number will bookend the quote at the end.
You will often want to use a signal phrase to introduce a narrative citation. For an overview of signal phrases along with some examples, visit George Mason University's page on Signal Phrases.
Last name (Year) ... "quote" or paraphrase (p. X).
| According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2011), rates for pregnancy, STDs and abortion are much higher in the US than in other industrialized countries (para. 1). |
| Pink (2009) explains that "rewards, by their very nature, narrow our focus. That’s helpful when there’s a clear path to a solution" (p. 42). |
| Valenas et al. (2017) explored the impact of attentional bias and rumination on test anxiety in first-year university students.
|
A parenthetical citation encompasses the components of the in-text citation in parentheses at the end of the sentence, prior to the closing period. This should mostly be used for paraphrasing, and typically not for direct quotes alone.
Recall that a page number is not necessary for paraphrasing, but is encouraged.
(Author, Date, p. X)
| Most college students are limited in their research experience to using Google and struggle to learn how to effectively navigate and use the wide variety of resources available to them (Head, 2013). |
| Researchers have cautioned that flipped instruction needs to be carefully designed, both in overall pedagogical design (Banks & Henderson, 2019) and in the design of instructional videos (Obradovich et al., 2015). |
| Moreover, Standard II.5.2 explains that school psychologists "do not promote or condone the use of restricted psychological and educational tests…by individuals who are not qualified to use them" (NASP, 2010, p. 9).
|
To include two or more different resources in one citation, use a semicolon to separate them:
| Poor empathy development has been associated with negative outcomes including increased aggression, poorer quality relationships, and psychopathology across development (Batanova & Loukas, 2014; Gambin & Sharp, 2016). |
Use the last name of the author for your in-text citation.
| (Matthews, 2010, p. 14) |
You will list up to two authors in an in-text citation, separated with an ampersand (&).
| (Smith & Miller, 2009) |
For references with three or more authors, you will only include the first author and then the words et al.
| (Smith et al., 2009) |
| Smith et al. (2009) summarized it as... |
If the author of a work is an organization, company, or group, list that group's full name in the in-text citation.
| (Santa Fe College, 2019) |
If the organization has a common acronym, you may introduce it in your first in-text citation and then use the abbreviation in all subsequent citations.
| (American Medical Association [AMA], 2007) |
| (AMA, 2007) |
You should avoid citing works with no author because you will be unable to verify authority and credibility. Remember that most resources that do not have an individual author listed will have an organization or group responsible for the content.
If there is truly no author for a reference, you use the title or first few words of the title. Note that you should capitalize the words in the title for the in-text citation. Place in quotation marks if the title is an article or chapter. Italicize if it is a book, webpage, etc.
| ("How To Find," 2009). |
| (Oxford English Dictionary, 1989). |
Narrative citations are the preferred method of citing quotes. You may also use them for paraphrasing or summarizing. The strength of narrative citations is that it flows better for a reader. A narrative citation weaves in the author's name(s) into the text, and then adds in the year in parentheses. The page number will bookend the quote at the end.
You will often want to use a signal phrase to introduce a narrative citation. For an overview of signal phrases along with some examples, visit George Mason University's page on Signal Phrases.
Last name (Year) ... "quote" or paraphrase (p. X).
| According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2011), rates for pregnancy, STDs and abortion are much higher in the US than in other industrialized countries (para. 1). |
| Pink (2009) explains that "rewards, by their very nature, narrow our focus. That’s helpful when there’s a clear path to a solution" (p. 42). |
| Valenas et al. (2017) explored the impact of attentional bias and rumination on test anxiety in first-year university students. |
A parenthetical citation encompasses the components of the in-text citation in parentheses at the end of the sentence, prior to the closing period. This should mostly be used for paraphrasing, and typically not for direct quotes alone.
Recall that a page number is not necessary for paraphrasing, but is encouraged.
(Author, Date, p. X)
| Most college students are limited in their research experience to using Google and struggle to learn how to effectively navigate and use the wide variety of resources available to them (Head, 2013). |
| Researchers have cautioned that flipped instruction needs to be carefully designed, both in overall pedagogical design (Banks & Henderson, 2019) and in the design of instructional videos (Obradovich et al., 2015). |
| Moreover, Standard II.5.2 explains that school psychologists "do not promote or condone the use of restricted psychological and educational tests…by individuals who are not qualified to use them" (NASP, 2010, p. 9). |
To include two or more different resources in one citation, use a semicolon to separate them:
| Poor empathy development has been associated with negative outcomes including increased aggression, poorer quality relationships, and psychopathology across development (Batanova & Loukas, 2014; Gambin & Sharp, 2016). |
You will use the year of the resource in the in-text citation. Even if there is a more detailed date provided, only the year is included in the in-text citation.
| (Smith, 2010) |
If there is no date for a reference, use the abbreviation n.d.:
|
(Santa Fe College, n.d.). |
|
Smith (n.d.) states that... |
If you have two or more distinct works by the same author and published in the same year, differentiate them with letters. Letters will be assigned alphabetically by the order in which they are listed in the references list.
|
Rowling, J. K. (1999a). Harry Potter and the chamber of secrets. Arthur A. Levine. |
|
(Rowling, 1999a) |
|
Rowling, J. K. (1999b). Harry Potter and the prisoner of Azkaban. Arthur A. Levine. |
|
(Rowling, 1999b) |
If both items are using n.d. instead of a year, include a hyphen before the differentiating letter.
|
(Northern College, n.d.-a) |
Narrative citations are the preferred method of citing quotes. You may also use them for paraphrasing or summarizing. The strength of narrative citations is that it flows better for a reader. A narrative citation weaves in the author's name(s) into the text and then adds in the year in parentheses. The page number will bookend the quote at the end.
You will often want to use a signal phrase to introduce a narrative citation. For an overview of signal phrases along with some examples, visit George Mason University's page on Signal Phrases.
Last name (Year) ... "quote" or paraphrase (p. X).
| According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2011), rates for pregnancy, STDs and abortion are much higher in the US than in other industrialized countries (para. 1). |
| Pink (2009) explains that "rewards, by their very nature, narrow our focus. That’s helpful when there’s a clear path to a solution" (p. 42). |
| Valenas et al. (2017) explored the impact of attentional bias and rumination on test anxiety in first-year university students. |
A parenthetical citation encompasses the components of the in-text citation in parentheses at the end of the sentence, prior to the closing period. This should mostly be used for paraphrasing, and typically not for direct quotes alone.
Recall that a page number is not necessary for paraphrasing, but is encouraged.
(Author, Date, p. X)
| Most college students are limited in their research experience to using Google and struggle to learn how to effectively navigate and use the wide variety of resources available to them (Head, 2013). |
| Researchers have cautioned that flipped instruction needs to be carefully designed, both in overall pedagogical design (Banks & Henderson, 2019) and in the design of instructional videos (Obradovich et al., 2015). |
| Moreover, Standard II.5.2 explains that school psychologists "do not promote or condone the use of restricted psychological and educational tests…by individuals who are not qualified to use them" (NASP, 2010, p. 9). |
To include two or more different resources in one citation, use a semicolon to separate them:
| Poor empathy development has been associated with negative outcomes including increased aggression, poorer quality relationships, and psychopathology across development (Batanova & Loukas, 2014; Gambin & Sharp, 2016). |
Recall that page numbers and more specific location information as detailed below are only required for direct quotes, but may be used for paraphrasing if you wish.
If you are using information from a single page, use the abbreviation p.
| (Smith, 2009, p. 12) |
If your quote (or paraphrase) spans multiple pages, use the abbreviation pp., and separate the two numbers with an en dash (–).
|
Smith (2009) discusses how the study was received by the media (pp. 12–13). |
If there are no page numbers on your resource, use section headers, paragraph numbers, or other descriptions to direct your reader to the information you are citing.
| One of the author's main points is that "people don't rise from nothing" (Gladwell, 2008, Chapter 1, Section 2, para. 5). |
If you are citing a direct quotation from a video, you can use the time stamp in place of a page number within the in-text citation.
| Pariser (2011) states that "your filter bubble is your own personal, unique universe of information that you live in online. And wha's in your filter bubble depends on who you are, and it depends on what you do" (4:12). |
Narrative citations are the preferred method of citing quotes. You may also use them for paraphrasing or summarizing. The strength of narrative citations is that it flows better for a reader. A narrative citations weaves in the author's name(s) into the text, and then adds in the year in parentheses. The page number will bookend the quote at the end.
You will often want to use a signal phrase to introduce a narrative citation. For an overview of signal phrases along with some examples, visit George Mason University's page on Signal Phrases.
Last name (Year) ... "quote" or paraphrase (p. X).
| According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2011), rates for pregnancy, STDs and abortion are much higher in the US than in other industrialized countries (para. 1). |
| Pink (2009) explains that "rewards, by their very nature, narrow our focus. That’s helpful when there’s a clear path to a solution" (p. 42). |
| Valenas et al. (2017) explored the impact of attentional bias and rumination on test anxiety in first-year university students. |
A parenthetical citation encompasses the components of the in-text citation in parentheses at the end of the sentence, prior to the closing period. This should mostly be used for paraphrasing, and typically not for direct quotes alone.
Recall that a page number is not necessary for paraphrasing, but is encouraged.
(Author, Date, p. X)
| >Most college students are limited in their research experience to using Google and struggle to learn how to effectively navigate and use the wide variety of resources available to them (Head, 2013). |
| Researchers have cautioned that flipped instruction needs to be carefully designed, both in overall pedagogical design (Banks & Henderson, 2019) and in the design of instructional videos (Obradovich et al., 2015). |
| Moreover, Standard II.5.2 explains that school psychologists "do not promote or condone the use of restricted psychological and educational tests…by individuals who are not qualified to use them" (NASP, 2010, p. 9). |
To include two or more different resources in one citation, use a semicolon to separate them:
| Poor empathy development has been associated with negative outcomes including increased aggression, poorer quality relationships, and psychopathology across development (Batanova & Loukas, 2014; Gambin & Sharp, 2016). |
Signal phrases are short phrases that introduce a quote, paraphrase, or summary; they signal to readers that an outside source is being used.
A signal phrase introducing a quote:
The CEO of Lighthouse Consulting predicts “a year of exciting, challenging endeavors that will expand the company’s horizons and stimulate growth throughout the company.”
A signal phrase introducing a paraphrase:
According to a recent survey from Pew Research Center, more than 50% of adults in the U.S. play video games, with 21% engaging in this activity on a daily basis.
A signal phrase introducing a summary:
The nutritionists Young and Robinson propose that an iron-fortified soy sauce is the solution to the anemia problem in the young women of rural China.
Why do we use them?
There are three important reasons to use signal phrases:
To mark boundaries: Signal phrases mark boundaries between your words and the source’s words. By marking the boundaries, you also provide a smooth transition for the reader between your words and the source.
To emphasize the source: Signal phrases call attention to the author or source being used. In some cases, such as a literature review or the use of a well-known author, specific information about the source is important for the reader to know.
To avoid plagiarism: All source material must be cited, and signal phrases are one way to cite a source—however, additional citation formatting may be necessary depending on your citation style.
Below are some guidelines and tips for using signal phrases.
Signal phrases usually include the author’s name but can also include the author’s job title or background (“reporter for Washington Post,” “researcher,” “senator,” “scholar,” and so on) and/or the title of the source.
Signal phrases usually come at the beginning of a sentence before the source material, but they can also occur in the middle of a source or at the end.
To avoid monotony and repetition, try to vary both the language and placement of your signal phrases.
According to Maxwell and Hanson,…
As the 2017 IRS report indicates, …
Smith and Johnson state that …
Some scholars have shown…
Legal scholar Terrence Roberts offered a persuasive argument: “….”
Choose a verb that is appropriate to the way you are using your source. Below is a list of verbs that can be used in signal phrases:
acknowledges adds admits affirms agrees answers argues asserts claims comments concedes confirms contends counters counterattacks declares defines denies disputes echoes endorses estimates finds grants illustrates implies insists mentions notes observes predicts proposes reasons recognizes recommends refutes rejects reports responds reveals speculates states suggests surmises warns writes
Adapted from A Writer’s Reference with Writing in the Disciplines 7th ed. by Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers
According to Jones (1998), "Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time" (p. 199).
Jones (1998) found "students often had difficulty using APA style" (p. 199); what implications does this have for teachers?
If the author is not named in a signal phrase, place the author's last name, the year of publication, and the page number in parentheses after the quotation.
She stated, "Students often had difficulty using APA style" (Jones, 1998, p. 199), but she did not offer an explanation as to why.
Jones's (1998) study found the following:
Students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time citing sources. This difficulty could be attributed to the fact that many students failed to purchase a style manual or to ask their teacher for help. (p. 199)
According to Jones (1998), APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners.
APA style is a difficult citation format for first-time learners (Jones, 1998, p. 199).
If you are paraphrasing many ideas from the same work, you need to provide an in-text citation after each idea or statement of a fact.