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Still needing help with APA?

Trevecca Modified APA Style Guide - Skinner School of Business & Technology

 

The MBA program and faculty have generally agreed on using a modified APA “lite” in our programs.

This guide provides you with the needed information for writing papers and documenting sources while you are enrolled in the MBA program.

The APA Style Research Guide has more detailed APA information

APA & Industry Research Databases

Citing from Industry Research databases such as Hoover's Academic and First Research can be a bit tricky when applying APA formatting. Below are accurate examples of citations you can follow:

Citing from First Research database

Hoover’s Inc. (2018). Coffee Shops: Industries. Retrieved Dec. 30, 2018, from First Research database.

Citing from Hoover’s Academic database

Hoover's Inc. (2018). Ambulance Services. Hoover's: Industries. Retrieved Jan. 29, 2018, from Hoover’s Academic database.

Citation and Documentation Styles

Trevecca has three primary citation styles, APA, Chicago, and MLA, that students should apply when writing research papers.  Each of these styles is discipline-specific. View the Citation Style Research Guide for specific tutorials and resources by citation style.

AMA Style Manual

APA (American Psychological Association) Style  View the APA guide page here

  • Used in Business, some Communication courses, Education, Medical, Psychology, Sciences, and some Social Sciences programs

Chicago or Turabian Style: View the Chicago / Turabian style page here

  • Used in some History courses and the Religion program.

MLA (Modern Language Association) Style  View the MLA style page here

  • Used in some Communication courses, English & Literature, History courses, and social sciences programs.

If your major or program of study is not on the list above, check with your professor to see what citation style is preferred.

APA 7 Learning Resources

Start with a PLAYLIST.  A playlist means consecutive videos about the topic begin automatically from one URL.

Choose a single video to help illustrate a topic

Setting up a Word doc or Google doc to comply with APA 7 Student Paper format guidelines. 
Formatting the References Page or List
In-Text Citations

Documents - Handouts, Samples, PDF 

Web Links

This video explains how to format and coordinate your APA in-text citations with your APA reference citations.

Journal Article Review, APA 7th Ed.

Everything in this section applies to APA 6th edition Style.

APA Style® (American Psychological Association) originated in 1929 when a group of psychologists, anthropologists, and business managers convened and sought to establish a simple set of procedures, or style rules, that would codify the many components of scientific writing to increase the ease of reading comprehension.

As with other editorial styles, APA Style consists of rules or guidelines that a publisher observes to ensure a clear and consistent presentation of written material. 

Frequently Asked Questions About APA Style®

APA's Publication Manual, 6th Edition, provides complete style guidelines and should be consulted first in all matters concerning APA Style®, but these FAQs will help clarify frequent areas of confusion. You might also want to search the APA 6th Edition Style blog. Search your topic in the search box, top right to navigate to the example information

     General

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     How-to-cite:

      Format Components:

 

 

 

 

Basic Citation Formatting

Note:

  • APA 6th states that including database information in citations is not necessary because databases change over time
  • Because online materials can potentially change URLs, APA recommends providing a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), when it is available, as opposed to the URL. DOIs are an attempt to provide stable, long-lasting links for online articles.
  • Only use Retrieved from dates (APA 6th) if the source could change, such as census or industry data sources.

How do you cite the Bible or other classic works?

According to the APA Style Blog, reference list entries are NOT required when you cite ancient Greek and Roman works or classical religious works [such as the Bible'. 

However, in the first text citation, whether it is general or a direct quote or paraphrase, identify the version you used. You do not need to repeat the version name in subsequent references.

See more here from the APA Style Blog

Citing Web Sources

For a passing reference to a website in text, the URL is sufficient; no reference list entry is needed.

Example:

Gussie Fink-Nottle has set up a discussion forum for newt fanciers (http://gfnnfg.livejournal.com/).

However, when you are citing a particular document or piece of information from a website, include both a reference list entry and an in-text citation. The key to creating the reference list entry is to determine the type of content on the web page. Basically, provide the following four pieces of information on the References list citation:

Author, A. (date). Title of document [Format description]. Retrieved from http://xxxxxxxxx

The in-text citation includes the author and date (Author, date), as with any other APA Style citation.

More information the APA Style Blog

Publication Manual (6th ed., section 6.32, pp. 189–192; Chapter 7, Examples 29, 30, 54, 55, and 76, pp. 198–215)

From the APA Style website:

From the APA Style Blog:

Information above attributed to :

American Psychological Association. APA Style Blog, Quick Answers - References - Websites.

      Retrieved Jan. 31, 2018 from http://www.apastyle.org/learn/quick-guide-on-references.aspx

The References Page

In-Text Citations

Start by viewing the video tutorial below to learn more about APA 6th in-text citation formatting.

References Versus Citations

Slices-of-apples-juxtaposed-by-slices-of-oranges-183352038_997x1055

by Timothy McAdoo

APA Style Blog Post, Sept. 20, 2017

In the APA Publication Manual and in many, many blog posts here, we refer to both references and citations. If you are new to writing with APA Style, you might wonder “What’s the difference?” Like this apple and orange, they are created separately but work well together!

References

Small green apple only

References appear at the end of a manuscript. They follow a who–when–what–where format.

For example:

McAdoo, T. (2017, September 20). References versus citations [Blog post].

        Retrieved from http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2017/09/Referencesversus-citations

They appear (a) so you can give credit to your sources and (b) to provide a path for your readers to retrieve those sources and read them firsthand.

Citations

Small orange only

Citations appear in the body of your paper and point your reader to your references. For that reason, we sometimes call them in-text citations. They are also sometimes called simply cites.

Citations can appear in a paper in two ways:

  • parenthetically: (Becker, 2012; Lee, 2016; McAdoo, 2017) and
  • narratively: Becker (2012), Lee (2016), and McAdoo (2017) wrote blog posts about APA Style.

Include them in a paper to support claims you have made and/or to provide the sources for paraphrases and direct quotations.

As shown in the examples above, citations are almost always composed of an author surname or surnames and a date. The surname(s) that appear in a citation must exactly match those used in the reference. Likewise, the year in the citation matches the year shown in the reference. When the reference has a more precise date, the in-text citation includes the year only. For example, compare the reference and the in-text citation for a tweet. For more about creating in-text citations, see Writing In-Text Citations in APA Style.

 

Citations versus references

 

As noted above, most citations include author names; but, because some references have no author, their citations also have no author: When the reference includes no author, the citation includes the title (or a short version of the title). Also, many types of legal references do not include author names. To learn more about legal references and citations, see Introduction to APA Style Legal References.

 

References

McAdoo, T. (2017, September 20). References versus citations [Blog post].

           Retrieved Jan. 31, 2018 from http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2017/09/References-versus-citations

Quick, easy to access to online APA guides, bookmark these!

Free Web Citation Managers & Generators
 

What is a Citation?

Image showing the different parts of an MLA journal article citation

Other Citation Tools on the Web

Online Academic Writing and Citation Guidelines
Free Writing Citation Managers or Citation Generators
Citation Proof Reading

MLA 9th Edition

MLA 9th Ed. (2021)

This information is a quick introduction to the Modern Language Association 9th edition citation style. Consult the MLA Handbook or the online MLA Style Center for detailed standards and procedures. 

This information is a quick introduction to the Modern Language Association 9th edition citation style. Consult the MLA Handbook or the online MLA Style Center for detailed standards and procedures. 

Start with a PLAYLIST.  That means consecutive videos about the topic begin automatically from one URL.

Choose a single video to help understand a MLA element

MLA 9 Citation & Formatting Tools

Online MLA Citation Sites for Examples

Print Book

Works Cited List: Author Last Name, First Name.  Title. Publisher, Year.

In-text: (Author Last Name Page Number)

Example:

Works Cited Ex. Helmer, Jodi. Protecting Pollinators: How to Save the Creatures That Feed Our World. Island Press, 2019.

In-text Ex. (Helmer 133)

E-Book

Cite an e-book as you would a book, but afterward, include the container (the site that hosts the e-book) and the location (URL). 

Works Cited Ex. Lester, Phil. Healthy Bee, Sick Bee: The Influence of Parasites, Pathogens, Predators and Pesticides on Honey Bees, Victoria University Press, 2021. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/trevecca/detail.action?docID=6473801.

In-text Ex. (Lester 87)

Journal Article from Database 

In the Works Cited List:  Author Last Name, First Name. "Title." Journal/Magazine/Newspaper Title, Publication Information [volume, issue/number, year, pages]. Name of Database, DOI, Permalink, or shortened URL for an article in the database. 

In-text: (Author Last Name Page Number)

Works Cited 

Ex. Abrol, D. P., et al. “Foraging Rhythm of Bees in Relation to Flowering of Sweet Basil, Ocimum Basilicum L.” Current Science, vol. 113, no. 12, 2017, pp. 2359–62. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/26493548. 

In-text: Ex. (Abrol 2360-2361)

MLA 9th Ed. Citation Examples

Image of print book citation in MLA 9th edition
Image of ebook citation in MLA 9th edition
Image of print journal article citation in MLA 9th edition

About MLA 8th Ed.

MLA 8th Edition (2016)

This information is for MLA 8th Ed. users. Keep in mind the most current MLA edition is the 9th Edition (2021). 

MLA 8th edition examples. Note: The hanging indent is not applied in these citations. 

Book with one or two authors - List the authors in order of appearance on the title page. Use a comma and an and to separate authors.

Ex. Gilbert, Richard M. Caffeine, the Most Popular Stimulant. Chelsea House, 1986.

Ex. Scharre, Paul, and Lauren Fish. Human Performance Enhancement. Center for a New American Security, 2018.

Books (or Articles) with three or more authors - When a source has three or more authors, only the first one shown in the source is normally given. It is followed by et al.

Ex. Smith, Barry D, et al. Caffeine and Activation Theory: Effects on Health and Behavior. CRC Press, 2007.

Article found in print, not online - Basic format elements for a journal article citation:

  • Name of the author  as it appears in the journal 
  • Title of the article in quotation marks 
  • Title of the journal (italicized)
  • Volume number, issue number (include issue number whenever available)
  • Date of publication (abbreviate all months except May, June, and July)
  • First and last page numbers
  • Capitalize first and last word, and all principal words in the article title (See MLA Handbook 8th. ed., section 1.2 on Title of Sources)
Ex. Murray, Yxta Maya. “When the Prophet Gazed upon the Face of the Lord.” Ploughshares, vol. 47, no. 3, 2021, pp. 125–47. 

Article from a database - The formatting for articles from online databases is the same as the print periodical formatting above. However, to aid in locating the article, the container (name of database) and the location (URL, doi, or permalink) should be added unless otherwise instructed by your professor.

Ex. Saunders, Manu E. “Bees Visiting Unopened Flowers: Bumbling Burglars or Sneaky Pollinators?” Ecology, vol. 98, no. 7, 2017, pp. 1968–69. JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27068478. Accessed 22 Jul. 2022.

 

Works Cited

Works Cited is the title of the bibliography.

It is a list of 'Works Cited' within the document's text.

The title 'Works Cited' is centered on a new page.

 

This video shows how to format a Works Cited page in Microsoft Word properly. The example page uses the newest updated 2016 MLA 8th edition citation guidelines.

In-Text Citation

The list of Works Cited at the end of your paper tells your reader what resources you used to write your paper. To avoid plagiarism or taking credit for ideas that are not your own, you must also indicate in the text of your paper precisely what is borrowed from a source and where to locate that information in the source.

The in-text citation usually appears in parentheses and corresponds directly to an entry in your list of Works Cited.
The author's last name and the page number are usually enough to indicate the location in the source.
If the author's name is used in the introductory sentence, do not repeat it in the citation.

Examples:

[Narrative format] - Author’s name in the text

...Sellers had expressed that the market changed in the 17th century (91-92).
 

[Parenthical format] - The author’s name follows paraphrased content

…the view on economic growth is not widely embraced among historians (Sellers 91).

Online MLA 8th ed. Citation Guides