APA Style: The Social Sciences In most social science classes, you will be asked to use the APA (American Psychological Association) system for documenting sources, which is set forth in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th ed. (Washington: APA, 2001). APA recommends in-text citations that refer readers to a list of references. An in-text citation names the author of the source (often in a signal phrase), gives the date of publication, and at times includes a page number in parentheses. At the end of the paper, a list of references provides publication information about the source; the list is alphabetized by authors' last names (or by titles for works without authors). There is a direct connection between the in-text citation and the alphabetical listing. In the following example, that connection is highlighted in red. IN-TEXT CITATION Rumbaugh (1995) reported that "Kanzi's comprehension of over 600 novel sentences of request was very comparable to Alia's; both complied with requests without assistance on approximately 70% of the sentences" (p. 722). ENTRY IN THE LIST OF REFERENCES Rumbaugh, D. (1995). Primate language and cognition: Common ground. Social Research, 62, 711-730. NOTE: Indent the entry in your list of references as shown here unless your instructor suggests otherwise. APA in-text citations The APA's in-text citations provide at least the author's last name and the date of publication. For direct quotations and some paraphrases, a page number is given as well. The following models illustrate the APA style of in-text citation. (For additional examples, see the APA-style sample paper.) NOTE: In the models in this section, notice that APA style requires the use of the past tense or the present perfect tense in signal phrases introducing material that has been cited: Smith reported, Smith has argued. Directory to APA in-text citations (pick one to see its explanation) Select one 1. Basic format for a quotation 2. Basic format for a summary or a paraphrase 3. A work with two authors 4. A work with three to five authors 5. A work with six or more authors 6. Unknown author 7. Organization as author 8. Two or more works in the same parentheses 9. Authors with the same last name 10. Personal communication 11. An electronic document 1. Basic format for a quotation Ordinarily, introduce the quotation with a signal phrase that includes the author's last name followed by the date of publication in parentheses. Put the page number (preceded by "p.") in parentheses at the end of the quotation. Hart (1996) wrote that some primatologists "wondered if apes had learned Language, with a capital L" (p. 109). If the signal phrase does not name the author, place the author's name, the date, and the page number in parentheses at the end of the quotation. Use commas between items in the parentheses: (Hart, 1996, p. 109). up to Directory Menu 2. Basic format for a summary or a paraphrase For a summary or a paraphrase, include the author's last name and the date either in a signal phrase or in parentheses at the end. A page number is not required for a summary or a paraphrase, but include one if it would help readers find the passage in a long work. According to Hart (1996), researchers took Terrace's conclusions seriously, and funding for language experiments soon declined (p. 110). Researchers took Terrace's conclusions seriously, and funding for language experiments soon declined. up to Directory Menu 3. A work with two authors Name both authors in the signal phrase or parentheses each time you cite the work. In the parentheses, use "&" between the authors' names; in the signal phrase, use "and." Greenfield and Savage-Rumbaugh (1990) have acknowledged that Kanzi's linguistic development was slower than that of a human child (p. 567). Kanzi's linguistic development was slower than that of a human child (Greenfield & Savage-Rumbaugh, 1990, p. 567). up to Directory Menu 4. A work with three to five authors Identify all authors in the signal phrase or parentheses the first time you cite the source. The chimpanzee Nim was raised by researchers who trained him in American Sign Language by molding and guiding his hands (Terrace, Petitto, Sanders, & Bever, 1979, p. 891). In subsequent citations, use the first author's name followed by "et al." in either the signal phrase or the parentheses. Nim was able to string together as many as 16 signs, but their order appeared quite random (Terrace et al., 1979, p. 895). up to Directory Menu 5. A work with six or more authors Use only the first author's name followed by "et al." in the signal phrase or parentheses. The ape language experiments are shedding light on the language development of very young children and children with linguistic handicaps (Savage-Rumbaugh et al., 1993). up to Directory Menu 6. Unknown author If the author is unknown, mention the work's title in the signal phrase or give the first word or two of the title in the parenthetical citation. Titles of articles and chapters are put in quotation marks; titles of books and reports are italicized. Chimpanzees living in separate areas of Africa differ in a range of behaviors: in their methods of cracking nuts or gathering ants, for example, or in their grooming rituals. An international team of researchers has concluded that many of the differing behaviors are cultural, not just responses to varying environmental factors ("Chimps," 1999). NOTE: In the rare case when "Anonymous" is specified as the author, treat it as if it were a real name: (Anonymous, 2001). In the list of references, also use the name Anonymous as author. up to Directory Menu 7. Organization as author If the author is a government agency or other corporate organization, give the full name of the organization in the signal phrase or in the parenthetical citation the first time you cite the source. According to the Language Research Center (2000), linguistic research with apes has led to new methods of treating humans with learning disabilities such as autism and dyslexia. If the organization has a familiar abbreviation, you may include it in brackets the first time you cite the source and use the abbreviation alone in later citations. FIRST CITATION (National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH], 2001) LATER CITATIONS (NIMH, 2001) up to Directory Menu 8. Two or more works in the same parentheses When your parenthetical citation names two or more works, put them in the same order that they appear in the reference list, separated by semicolons. Researchers argued that the apes in the early language experiments were merely responding to cues (Sebeok & Umiker-Sebeok, 1979; Terrace, 1979). up to Directory Menu 9. Authors with the same last name To avoid confusion, use initials with the last names if your bibliography lists two or more authors with the same last name. Research by E. Smith (1989) revealed that . . . up to Directory Menu 10. Personal communication Interviews, memos, letters, e-mail, and similar unpublished person-to-person communications should be cited by initials, last name, and precise date. One of Patterson's former aides, who worked for seven months with the gorilla Michael, is convinced that he was capable of joking and lying in sign language (E. Robbins, personal communication, January 4, 2000). It is not necessary to include personal communications in the bibliographic references at the end of your paper. up to Directory Menu 11. An electronic document When possible, cite an electronic document as you would any other document (using the author-date style). R. Fouts and D. Fouts (1999) have explained one benefit of ape language research: It has shown us how to teach children with linguistic disabilities. Electronic sources may lack authors' names or dates. In addition, they may lack page numbers (required in some citations). Here are APA's guidelines for handling sources without authors' names, dates, or page numbers. UNKNOWN AUTHOR If no author is named, mention the title of the document in a signal phrase or give the first word or two of the title in parentheses (see also item 6). (If an organization serves as the author, see item 7.) According to the BBC article "Chimps Are Cultured Creatures" (1999), chimpanzees at sites in West Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda exhibit culture-specific patterns of behavior when grooming one another. UNKNOWN DATE When the date is unknown, APA recommends using the abbreviation "n.d." (for "no date"). Attempts to return sign-language-using apes to the wild have had mixed results (Smith, n.d.) NO PAGE NUMBERS APA ordinarily requires page numbers for direct quotations, and it recommends them for summaries or paraphrases from long sources. When an electronic source lacks stable numbered pages, your citation should include—if possible—information that will help readers locate the particular passage being cited. When an electronic document has numbered paragraphs, use the paragraph number preceded by the symbol ¶ or by the abbreviation "para.": (Hall, 2001, ¶5) or (Hall, 2001, para. 5). If neither a page nor a paragraph number is given and the document contains headings, cite the appropriate heading and indicate which paragraph under that heading you are referring to: According to Kirby (1999), some critics have accused activists in the Great Ape Project of "exaggerating the supposed similarities of the apes [to humans] to stop their use in experiments" (Shared Path section, para. 6). NOTE: Some electronic sources post articles in files using portable document format (PDF). When such a file contains page numbers, give the page number in the parenthetical citation. Williams, Brakke, and Savage-Rumbaugh (1997) reported that three chimpanzees who were exposed to language after they were two years old could learn symbols but could not understand speech, even after years of hearing it (p. 302). up to Directory Menu