Note: Most general reference citation principles are the same as APA 6th edition. The main two differences are as follows:
The exact formatting of APA reference list entries can vary based on what types of sources are being cited. However, the general order of information included is as follows:
1. Author(s)
2. Year/date of publication
3. Title
4. Publication information
5. Source (publisher and/or link)
The very first part in a reference entry is usually the author(s) of the source. These names are written in Last, F. M. order (where "F. M." represents the author's first and middle initials):
James Earl Jones --> Jones, J. E.
For multiple authors, use "&" prior to the final listed author.
James Earl Jones and Mark Hamill --> Jones, J. E., & Hamill, M.
Authors can also sometimes be groups (e.g., institutions, government agencies, or organizations). Do not change the order of these names.
Usually, only the year is required for APA reference list entries. The year should be written in brackets and followed by a period:
(2018).
For certain sources, like news articles or blog posts, a full date can be included in the order of Year, Month Day:
(2018, September 18).
The titles of shorter, partial works, like journal articles, news articles, or chapters, should be written in normal text with no extra formatting. Only the first word of the title, words after colons, acronyms, and proper nouns (e.g., Canada) need capital first letters.
Professional values: Results of a scoping review and preliminary Canadian survey.
The titles of longer, complete works, such as full books or full journals, should be formatted in italics.
Behind the shock machine: The untold story of the notorious Milgram psychology experiments.
The titles of full journals can keep the capital letters on all main words, whereas all other titles follow the same capitalization rules described for titles of shorter works above.
International Social Science Review
Any titles within titles should be formatted according to the rules above, but with capital letters kept on all the main words, as shown below:
Chemistry and the science of transformation in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
For a journal article, this usually includes the volume number, issue number, and page range where that article is located in its journal. The volume number is in italics, and the issue number is in brackets, as shown below:
International Social Science Review, 89(1), 1-2.
For a chapter in a book, the full book information will include any editors for the book, as well as the edition number and page range where the chapter is found within the same set of brackets. Note that the names of editors are in the F.M. Last order:
In G.J. Rich, U.P. Gielen, & H. Takooshian (Eds.), Internationalizing the teaching of psychology (1st ed., pp. 161 - 179).
For a printed source, the reference entry will contain just the name of the publishing company:
Information Age Publishing.
For an online source, provide the most stable, permanent link possible to that source. If the source comes from an academic journal, use a doi (digital object identifier) whenever possible, formatted as a link, as shown below:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2004.11.001
If the source does not have a doi, use the permalink instead. Unlike APA 6th edition, the words "Retrieved from" are not required prior to any links:
https://ezproxy.agpc.talonline.ca/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edselp&AN=S0007681304001260&site=eds-live&scope=site
Links to all other types of sources follow the same formatting as the permalink:
https://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2012/03/how-to-capitalize-and-format-reference-titles-in-apa-style.html
For more information on general formatting rules for reference lists, see Chapter 9 (start at page 281) or the back inside cover of the APA 7th edition manual.
Sample reference page created by Claire Pienaar, 2022
Author’s last name, first initial. (Year). Title of the article: Only the first letter of the first word, any words after colons, and any proper nouns like Canada are capitalized. Title of the Journal in Italics, volume #(Issue #), first page # – last page #. https://doi.org/10.1010/0001-1010.10.0.101
Stultz, J. (2006). Integrating exposure therapy and analytic therapy in trauma treatment. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 76(4), 482-488. https://doi.org/10.1037/00002-9432.76.4.482
Note that the digital object identifier, or "doi," is used instead of the URL- a doi is more reliable and stable. Use the doi whenever possible, and always format it as a link, as shown above.
For articles with between two and 20 authors, list the last names and initials of all the authors, and place an ampersand (&) before the name of the final listed author:
Sillick, T. J., & Schutte, N. S. (2006). Emotional intelligence and self-esteem mediate between perceived early parental love and adult happiness. E-Journal of Applied Psychology, 2(2), 38-48. http://ojs.lib.swin.edu.au/index.php/ejap
List the first nineteen authors and the very last one listed. Delete all other names and replace them with an ellipse (...), as shown below:
Wiskunde, B., Arslan, M., Fischer, P., Nowak, L., Van den Berg, O., Coetzee, L., Juárez, U., Riyaziyyat, E., Wang, C., Zhang, I., Li, P., Yang, R., Kumar, B., Xu, A., Martinez, R., McIntosh, V., Ibáñez, L. M., Mäkinen, G., Virtanen, E., . . . Kovács, A. (2019). Indie pop rocks mathematics: Twenty One Pilots, Nicolas Bourbaki, and the empty set. Journal of Improbable Mathematics, 27(1), 1935–1968. https://doi.org/10.0000/3mp7y-537
Treat the text as a full, complete document and italicize the title.
Birks, D.C. (2019). Groundwater heating and cooling: An evaluation of resilience in the context of recharge and temperature (Doctoral dissertation, University of Glasgow). https://ezproxy.agpc.talonline.ca/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsble&AN=edsble.768795&site=eds-live&scope=site
Treat the same as a doctoral dissertation.
Fleet, C. (2016). Becoming a queer teacher: Perceptions of queer teacher candidates in initial teacher education programs (Master's thesis, Brock University, St. Catharines, ON). https://dr.library.brocku.ca/bitstream/handle/10464/10106/BROCK_FLEET_COURTENAY_2016.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
For more information on citing journal articles, see page 316 (Section 10.1) of the APA 7th edition manual. For dissertations and theses, see page 333 (section 10.6).
Author last name, First initial. (Date). Article title. Magazine/Newspaper Name, Volume(Issue), firstpage-lastpage. URL
Note that newspaper and magazine names keep the capital first letters on all the main words - this is because they are more like company/organization names than titles.
Perina, K. (2008, September/October). Clothes encounters. Psychology Today, 41(5), 7.
Masters, C. (2006, December 17). The takeaway diet of 2006. Time.
http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1570794,00.html
Swanson, A. & Bradsher, K. (2019, November 7). U.S. and China agree to roll back some tariffs. New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/07/business/china-trade-trump.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage
Note: If the news article is from a source that is just a website and does not have a newspaper associated with it (like CBC), use the format for website citations instead (where the article title is in italics, and the news organization name is in normal font).
Author last name, first initial. (Year). Title of book. Publisher.
***Note that, unlike APA 6th edition, the place of publication does not need to be mentioned.***
Aronsson, L. (2000). The development of sustainable tourism. Continuum.
Cushing, C. E., & Allan, J. D. (2001). Streams: Their ecology and life. Academic Press.
Hayes, S. C., Stosahl, K. D., & Wilson, K.G. (1999). Acceptance and commitment therapy. Guilford Press.
List the first 19 authors and the very last one listed. Delete all other names and replace them with an ellipse (...). For example:
Wiskunde, B., Arslan, M., Fischer, P., Nowak, L., Van den Berg, O., Coetzee, L., Juárez, U., Riyaziyyat, E., Wang, C., Zhang, I., Li, P., Yang, R., Kumar, B., Xu, A., Martinez, R., McIntosh, V., Ibáñez, L. M., Mäkinen, G., Virtanen, E., . . . Kovács, A (2019). Improbable Mathmatics. Routledge Press.
Regulus, T. A. (1995). Gang violence. In R. L. Edwards (Ed.), Encyclopedia of social work (19th ed., pp. 1045-1055). National Association of Social Workers.
Kramer, M., & Ryan, S. (2019). Nursing assessment, diagnosis, and planning. In P. A. Potter, A. G. Perry, P.A. Stockert, A.M. Hall, Canadian fundamentals of nursing (6th ed., B.J. Astle, & W.Duggleby (Eds.). pp. 187- 212). Elsevier Canada.
Schiraldi, G. R. (2001). The post-traumatic stress disorder sourcebook: A guide to healing, recovery, and growth [Adobe Digital Editions version]. http://dxdoi.org/10.1036/0071393722
Alberta Health Services. (2018). Nutrition Guideline: Food Allergies. [PDF]. https://www.albertahealthservices.ca/assets/info/nutrition/if-nfs-ng-food-allergies.pdf
Government of Canada. (2017). Tree Nuts. [PDF]. https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/hc-sc/documents/services/food-nutrition/reports-publications/food-safety/2017-treenuts-noix-eng.pdf
Note: If the publisher is the same as the author for a PDF, do not include the publisher
For more information on citing books in the reference list, see page 312 (Section 10.2) of the APA 7th Edition Manual.
Spielberg, S. (Director). (1982). E.T. the extra-terrestrial [Motion Picture]. Universal Pictures.
David, L., & Seinfeld, J. (Writers). (1995). The soup Nazi [Television series episode]. Seinfeld. NBC.
Lockergnome. (2009, Oct. 19). How to improve reading comprehension [Video]. YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aK2JscwKkHA
The Beatles. (1967). Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart Club’s Band [LP]. Capitol Records.
Singleton, C., & Snyder, E. (1966). Strangers in the Night [Song recorded by F. Sinatra]. On On My Way: The Best of Frank Sinatra. Warner.
Darling, S. (Speaker). (1988). To Kill a Mockingbird [Cassette recording]. Recorded Books.
Beethoven, Ludwig van. (1932). Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92. Oliver Ditson.
The Nutcracker. (2006, December 2). Butler Ballet. Clowes Memorial Hall, Indianapolis.
Van Nuys, D. (Producer). (2007, December 19). Shrink rap radio [Audio podcast]. http://www.shrinkrapradio.com/
For more information on citing audiovisual materials, see page 341 (Section 10.12) of the APA 7th edition manual.
Author last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Date of Publication). Web page title. Title of Website. http://www.website.com
***Note that the italics here go on the title of the webpage, not of the name of the website. Think of the website name more like an editor or publisher name than a title.***
If no author is listed, begin entry with the web page sponsor or the web page title, as shown in the examples below.
***Note also that, unlike in APA 6th edition, the words "Retrieved from" are not required prior to links.***
Adams, A. (2022, January 12). Happy 2022, APA stylers! APA Style Blog. https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/happy-new-year-2022
United Nurses of Alberta. (2009). Member resources: Professional responsibility. http://www.una.ab.ca/memberresources/
***Note that if the website name and the author are the same (like in this case, where both would be the United Nurses of Alberta), the website name can be omitted from the citation.***
Crosby, B. (2019, October 2). Africa’s plastic bag ban seems to be working, and a STEM challenge idea [Blog post]. http://www.learningismessy.com/uncategorized/africas-plastic-bag-ban-seems-to-be-working-and-a-stem-challenge-idea/
Filmfreakspicture. (2014, July 31). The funniest internet reviewers? (movies/games) [Online forum post]. http://www.imdb.com/board/bd0000001/thread/232859999
goodreads [@goodreads]. (2014, August 1). What is the best attribute in a sidekick: Loyalty, mischief, or strength? Join the
discussion ow.ly/ztcTE. [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/goodreads/status/495198612650229761
GPRC Alberta [@gprc_ab]. (2019, December 6). At the age of 18, Alina Ovsiy and her family moved from Ukraine to Grande Prairie [Photograph]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/B5v4Dh-FyZY/?igshid=10z753u7y441
Harper, S. (2014, July 24). Our Conservative Government is taking action to protect law-abiding gun
owners from having their firearms reclassified overnight. Sign your support http://cpcp.cc/6rsqq
[Status update]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/pmharper
Grande Prairie Regional College. (n.d.). About. [Facebook page]. Facebook. Retrieved December 9, 2019, from https://www.facebook.com/pg/GPRCAB/about/?ref=page_internal
***Note that an access date can be included when no other date can be found for a source***
***Note also that this format and the previous one can also be used for similar updates or pages on Tumblr, Linkedin, Instagram, etc.***
For more information on citing web sources, see page 348 (section 10.15) of the APA 7th edition manual.
Last name, F. (Year). Title of entry. In Title of full reference work (#th ed.). http://www.website.com
Example:
Faller, J. E., Nordtvedt, K.L., & Cook, A.H. (2019). Gravity. In Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/science/gravity-physics
Dictionary Publisher. (n.d.). Title of entry. In Title of full reference work. Retrieved Month Day, Year, from http://www.website.com
Example:
Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Heuristic. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved November 8, 2019, from http://m-w.com/dictionary/heuristic
***Note that this is one of the very few exceptions where "Retrieved from" is still used in APA 7th edition reference list entries.***
Title of webpage. (Year, Month Day). In Wikipedia. http://www.website.com
Africville. (2021, January 8). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Africville&oldid=999113309
***Note: you can find the full date and permalink information for any Wikipedia page by clicking on the "Tools" tab, and then "Cite this page" in the top right corner of a Wikipedia page. However, Wikipedia provides a different citation format; the APA 7 guidelines specify the format shown here, not the one shown on Wikipedia.***
For more information on citing dictionaries and encyclopedias, see pages 328-9 (items 47 - 49) of the APA 7th edition manual.
Author, F. M. (year). Title of presentation [Format]. Website name. www.link.com
Wills, A. (2019). Information literacy skills for the college setting [PowerPoint slides]. Moodle. https://moodle.nwpolytech.ca/enrol/index.php?id=1885
Note: cite class notes or information that is not recoverable (e.g., if your instructor said it to you but there is no record of it) as personal communications (see "In-Text Citations" section for more).
For more information on citing PowerPoints or lecture materials, see page 347 (item 102) of the APA 7th edition manual.
Formal APA style does not have a format to acknowledge information from Indigenous Elders and Knowledge Keepers as references. NorQuest College has developed the following reference style in the spirit of wahkôhtowin and reconciliation, and the staff at the NWP Learning Commons thank them for making it available.
Last name, First initial., Nation/Community. Treaty Territory if applicable. Where they live if applicable. Topic/subject of communication if applicable. personal communication. Month Day, Year.
Cardinal, D., Goodfish Lake Cree First Nation. Treaty 6. Lives in Edmonton. Oral teaching. personal communication. April 4, 2004.
Note: if you would like to approach an Elder or Knowledge Keeper for teachings, remember to follow protocol or if you are unsure what their protocol is, please ask them ahead of time.
Unless otherwise stated, the material in this guide is from NorQuest College Library, created by Lorisia MacLeod and NorQuest College Indigenous Student Centre staff. Their original guide is available at https://libguides.norquest.ca/IndigenousEducation/cite. The content was adapted by the NWP Learning Commons in May 2023 to be consistent with NWP's other citation guides. The work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
One of the biggest differences between a typical reference list entry and an entry for a religious or classical work is the inclusion of an "originally published" note in brackets at the end of the entry. The exception is in the case of texts whose original publication date is in dispute or unknown, in which case, only the year of the text you are using is included.
Note: a religious or classical work follows the template for a book or webpage, depending on the version that you are using. The King James Bible entry below, for example, follows the template for a website, while The Qur'an and The Torah: The Five Books of Moses both follow the template for a book.
General book template:
Author last name, first initial, middle initial. (Year). Title of book. Publisher.
General website template:
Author last name, first initial, middle initial. (Year). Title of webpage. Title of Website. http://www.website.com
[For more details on books and website variations, see the appropriate tabs above]