To the left are links to examples for citing published standard publication types.
Generally, the basics of an APA reference are Who[Author]; When[Date]; What[Title]; Where. For further information and more examples and guidance, consult the sources on the APA Style: Basics and Tools page.
Standard Format:
The following is a standard format for articles regardless if they are found on a publisher's site, in a database, etc. PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation. This software cannot display references formatted properly.
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year of publication). Title of article: Subtitle if applicable.Title of Periodical, volume number (issue number), start page – end page.
Examples:
Journal Article:
Santos, F. M. (2012). A positive theory of social entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Ethics, 111(3), 335-351.
Newspaper Article:
Middleton, D. (2009, October 15). M.B.A.s seek social change. Wall Street Journal - Eastern Edition. p. B7.
Journal Article with DOI[Digital Object Identifier]
Smith, B., Kistruck, G., & Cannatelli, B. (2016). The impact of moral intensity and desire for control on scaling decisions in social entrepreneurship. Journal Of Business Ethics, 133(4), 677-689. doi:10.1007/s10551-014-2447-6.
Standard Format
PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation. This software cannot display references formatted properly.
Author, A.A. (Year, Month Day of post). Title of blog post [Blog post]. Retrieved from url.
Standard Format
PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation. This software cannot display references formatted properly..
Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Location: Publisher.
Editor, A.A. , Ed. (Year of publication). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Location: Publisher.
No author/editor
Title: Capital letter also for subtitle.(Year of publication) Location: Publisher.
E-book? Essentially the same as print
Author, A. A. (Year of Publication). Title of book: Subtitle of book. edition. City of Publication, State: Publisher. (Looks the same as print if retrieved from a database such as Ebsco)
Author, A. A.. (Year of Publication). Title of book: Subtitle of book. edition. Retrieved from home URL for authoritative website ie Gutenberg.
Author, A. A. (Year of Publication). Title of book: Subtitle of book. edition. DOI[Digital Object Identifier] number.
Standard Format
If the case stands on its own, like a book, it is referenced like a book. If the case is found in a journal, cite the case as a journal article. PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation. This software cannot display references formatted properly.
Examples
Boris Groysberg, B., Bell, D., Gordon, I. & Decker, S. (2014) Should a female director "tone it down"? HBS No. 79100020. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing.
Huggins, K., Burger, J., Pretorius, M., & Overby, J. (2016). Two-a-day: a choice of target market selection of apple export business. Business Case Journal, 23(2).
Standard Format
The Canadian Legal Research and Writing Guide provides general rules on citing Canadian cases and secondary sources and gives examples based on the 7th edition of the Canadian Guide to Uniform Legal Citation (the McGill Guide), as adapted by the British Columbia Court of Appeal in Citation of Authorities (Civil & Criminal Practice Directive, 30 May 2013).
PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation.
Standard Format:
Corporate Author. (date). Title of work [Type of report]. Retrieved date from Name of Database/ Retrieved from url, if not in database. PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation. This software cannot display references formatted properly.
Examples for various databases
EIU ViewsWire (2016, Dec 01). Egypt: Political structure.[Country profile]. Retrieved Nov. 28, 2016 from ABI Global
GlobalData. (2016, March). Apple: Financial and strategic analysis review. Retrieved March 15, 2016 from Business Insights Global.
BMI Research. (2016, July). Canada Oil & Gas Report (Industry profile). Retrieved Dec. 5, 2016 from Business Source Premier.
Example from originating site
World Economic Forum. (2015). Travel and tourism competitiveness report. Retrieved from http://www3.weforum.org/docs/TT15/WEF_Global_Travel&Tourism_Report_2015.pdf
Standard Format
Author/Rightsholder. (Date). Title of data set (Version number) [Description of form]. Retrieved from url/database
Some providers provide guides and references for citing their data and statistics on their site. If you are provided with this option, use the source's preferred citation. PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation. This software cannot display references formatted properly.
Examples
1. Eikon
a. Where Eikon is the author of the item
Eikon. (2016, December 7) Exxon Mobil - VP & Gen. Tax Counsel James Spellings reports open market sale of 15,678 common shares [Reuters Investor Briefs]. Retrieved from Eikon.
b. Where Eikon hosts material generated by a company
Exxon Mobil (2016) Exxon Mobil [Financial Statements] .Retrieved from Eikon.
2. International Organizations
UNESCO Institute for Statistics. (2013) Youth literacy rate, population 15-24 years, both sexes (%). Retrieved from http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.ADT.1524.LT.ZS?end=2010&start=1990&view=chart
4.SiteWise
Recommended APA format for referencing SiteWise databases:
a. 2016 Census
Statistics Canada. 2016 Census of Canada: Profile Data for Community A, Community B, Community C. Ottawa, Canada. Statistics Canada [producer]; Tetrad Computer Applications, Vancouver, BC [distributor]. Available from SiteWise.
b. 2019 EAG Data & 2016 Census database
2019 EAG & 2016 Census Profile Data for Community A, Community B, Community C. Toronto, Canada. Environics Analytics[producer]; Tetrad Computer Applications, Vancouver, BC [distributor]. Available from SiteWise.
Canadian government documents include departmental reports, parliamentary debates, standing committees etc. Unfortunately, the APA Manual does not cover these documents, however, Simon Fraser University Library has produed a great online guide for citing Canadian Government Documents
Standard Format
PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation. This software cannot display references formatted properly.
Lastname, F.M. (Role). (Year, Month Day). Title of podcast. [audio/video podcast]. Retrieved from url
Example
Smith, J.A. (Producer). (2016, November 15). My red socks [audio podcast]. Retrieved from www.whataday.com
Standard Format
PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation. This software cannot display references formatted properly.
Author, A.A. [social media identifier] (Date) title of item expressed in first words of item. [Content form i.e tweet, status update]. Retrieved from url
Example
PewResearch Global (@pewglobal) (2016, December 13). There are large gaps in education levels around the world [Tweet]. https://twitter.com/pewglobal/status/808691176329068544?lang=en
Standard Format
PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation.
The Canadian Legal Research and Writing Guide provides links and resources for Canadian statutory citation and research.
Standard Format
PLEASE NOTE: APA references should be double-spaced with hanging indentation. This software cannot display references formatted properly.
Author, A.A. (Year, Month Day Published). Title of article. Retrieved from url
No author given?
Title of article. (Year, Month Day Published). Retrieved from url
No date given?
Author, A.A. (n.d.). Title of article. Retrieved from url
Note that the title is not italicized for website references
Facebook Twitter Instagram