Rosen Research Guides

APA Citation Style

Introduction

This guide is designed to get you started with or refresh your memory about the APA citation style. For more information, please consult the official source—the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th ed. (2001) (commonly called the "APA Manual")—which is available in the Universal Orlando Foundation Library at: Rosen Reference BF76.7 .P83 2001. For citing electronic sources, please consult the APA Style Guide to Electronic References (2007), Rosen Reference PN171.F56 A63 2007. For more assistance, please Ask a Rosen Librarian.

A shorter, printable version of this guide is also available: APA PDF (49 KB).

Citing Sources in the Text
- General rules and special cases for in-text citations
Formatting the References List
- General rules and special cases for the references list
References List Examples for common source types

Citing Sources in the Text

APA style recommends that you use parenthetical references (notes that appear in parentheses) throughout the text of your paper, along with a References list at the end of your paper.
There are several important rules to keep in mind when creating your parenthetical references:

General Format
Parenthetical references generally follow the format: (Author, Date). For instance:
- Some industry experts feel the cruise industry is still recovering (Lee, 2003).
- All survey respondents rated interpersonal skills highly (Koenig, Watson, & Ziff, 2001).
Be Specific
If you cite a specific part of a source (such as when you use a direct quote), you must also indicate the page (or for sources without page numbers the paragraph, section, or other identifiable point) from which you took the information:
- "Hotel occupancy rates in Orlando rose 2.1% last year" (Butler, 2003, p. 272).
- "Hospitality is the fastest-growing industry" (Smith, 2000, Conclusion section, para. 3).
Citing the Author
If the name of the author appears in the narrative, then you need not repeat it in the reference:
- Hall discovered a correlation between sleep deprivation and job performance (2005, p. 8).
  vs.
- A recent experiment discovered a correlation between sleep deprivation and job performance (Hall, 2005, p. 8).
No Author
If a work has no author, cite the first few words of the references list entry, putting quotes around article or chapter titles and italicizing periodical, book, brochure, or report titles:
- Most hotel workers lack adequate health care benefits ("Recent Study Finds," 2004).
- Site selection is only one of many important factors (Convention Tourism, 2002, p. 49).
No Date
If a work has no date, use the abbreviation n.d.:
- "Malt beverage output in the United States is at an all-time high" (Beer Institute, n.d., Production section, para. 3).

For more assistance with in-text citations, refer to pages 207-214 in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th ed. ("APA Manual").

Formatting the References List

General Rules
- In APA style, the list of sources at the end of the paper is called References (not Bibliography or Works Cited). Start the references list on a new page, with the word References in the top center of the page.
- Arrange the entries alphabetically by author (or, for works with no author, by the first significant word in the title).
- If no author is listed, move the title of the work to the first position in the citation:
  - Or you can shop! (1994, April). Life, 17(4): 94-95.
- If no date of publication is listed, use the abbreviation n.d. (no date).
- Double-space the lines of each entry and double-space between entries. Use a "hanging indent" (indent the second and following lines) for entries longer than one line.
- Refer to pages 306-320 in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th ed. ("APA Manual") for a sample paper done in APA style.
Author Names
- Do not spell out an author’s first or middle name:
  Shock, P.J. (not Shock, Patti J.)
- Separate two or more authors with an ampersand (&):
  Leko, P., Meyers, J.B., & Kwan, C.
Capitalization
- In titles of books, articles, websites, and other major works, only the first words of the title and subtitle are capitalized (except proper nouns, which are still always capitalized):
  Conferences and conventions: A global industry
  (not Conferences and Conventions: A Global Industry)
- However, significant words in the titles of journals, magazines, & newspapers are capitalized:
  Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research
  New York Times
Line Breaks
- When citing electronic resources, do not insert a hyphen if you need to break a URL across lines; instead, break the URL before most punctuation (an exception would be http://). For example:
  Brinker International. (2007). AnnualReport. Retrieved from http://www.brinker.com/company/Brinker2007
  /annualreport2007.pdf

References List Examples: Selected Common Source Types

The examples below are intended to approximate APA style citations for common source types, including line spacing and hanging indents. Accordingly, narrow margins have been used in order to accommodate different browser window sizes. In your paper, you should set one inch margins and half inch hanging indents. See p. 306-320 in the APA Manual for a sample paper done in APA style.

For best results, open your browser window as wide as possible, as some of the lines may run together if viewed with a narrow browser window or with a large font size setting. If you experience such difficulties with the lines, then you may wish to view the printable (PDF) version of this guide instead: APA PDF (49 KB).

To cite a source type not listed below, or for more information, refer to pages 215-281 in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th ed. ("APA Manual") or pages 7-24 of the APA Style Guide to Electronic References.

JOURNAL OR MAGAZINE ARTICLE

Print version:

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Date). Article title. Journal Title, volume(number), pages.
Example:
Monteson, P.A., & Singer, J. (2004). Marketing a resort-based spa. Journal of Vacation Marketing, 10(2), 282-288.

Electronic versions:

Recent changes in APA style call for the use of a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) when citing electronic versions of scholarly articles.

The DOI (or doi) is an alpha-numeric code used to assign a persistent link to the article.
DOIs do not apply to trade, magazine, or newspaper articles.
When a DOI is present, you should include it at the end of your APA reference for the article.
The DOI replaces the database name and URL in the citation.
Because the DOI links to the final version of the article, the citation does not need a retrieval date.
Since DOI numbers are complex, it is recommended that you copy and paste the DOI into the citation.

Electronic version – accessed through a library database, DOI assigned

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Date). Article title. Journal Title, volume(number), pages. doi: unique identifier
Example:
Stokes, R. (2008). Tourism strategy making: Insights to the events tourism domain. Tourism Management, 29(2), 252-262. doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2007.03.014

Electronic version – accessed through a library database, no DOI assigned

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Date). Article title. Journal Title, volume(number), pages. Retrieved from Database Title database.
Example:
Milman, A., & Ricci, P. (2004). Predicting job retention of hourly employees in the lodging industry. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Management, 11(1), 28-41. Retrieved from the Hospitality & Tourism Complete database.

Electronic version – accessed through a publisher’s website, no DOI assigned

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Date). Article title. Journal Title, volume(number), pages. Retrieved from article URL
Example:
Schoolfield, J. (2008). Desert oasis. Funworld, 24(3), 28-34. Retrieved from http://www.iaapa.org/industry/funworld
/2008/mar/features/DesertOasis/DesertOasis.asp

BOOK

Print version:

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Date). Book title (edition, if other than first). Place: Publisher.
Example:
Riewoldt, O. (2002). New hotel design (2nd ed.). New York: Watson-Guptill Publications.
Example:
Parker, R.M., Jr. (2003). Bordeaux: A consumer’s guide to the world’s finest wines (4th rev. ed.). New York: Simon & Schuster.
Example:
O'Halloran, R.M., Jarvis, K., & Allen-Chabot, A. (Eds.). (2006). Cases in hospitality and tourism management. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson/Prentice Hall.

Electronic version:

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Date). Book title (edition, if other than first). Retrieved from Database Title database.
Example:
Ransley, J., & Ingram, H. (Eds.). (2004). Developing hospitality properties and facilities (2nd ed.). Retrieved from the NetLibrary database.

CHAPTER FROM A BOOK OR AN ENTRY IN A REFERENCE BOOK

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Date). Article or chapter title. In Editor(s), Book title (pages). Place: Publisher.
Example:

Whorton, J.C. (2000). Vegetarianism. In K.F. Kiple & K.C. Ornelas (Eds.), Cambridge world history of food (pp. 1553-1564). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

Print version:

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Year, Month Day). Article title. Newspaper, pages.
Example:
Landro, L. (2004, May 28). Hip hotel? Whatever. Wall Street Journal, p. W1.

Electronic version - accessed through a library database:

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Year, Month Day). Article title. Newspaper, pages. Retrieved from Database Title database.
Example:
Clarke, S.K. (2006, October 12). Disney unveils new time shares. Orlando Sentinel, p. C1. Retrieved from the Newsbank database.

Electronic version - accessed through a newspaper website:

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Year, Month Day). Article title. Newspaper. Retrieved from Newspaper URL
Example:
Evans, J.E. (2008, June 15). Slower growth shows changes in Volusia. The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved from http://www.orlandosentinel.com

GOVERNMENT DOCUMENT

Note: Citations to government documents vary widely depending on the nature of the document. The examples below are not exhaustive. For more examples and details, see pp. 255-259, 274-275, and 279-281 in the APA Manual and pp. 18-20 in the APA Style Guide to Electronic References.

Print version:

General Form:
Last, F.M. or Organization. (Year). Title of document (Report Number). Place: Publisher.
Example:
United States Congress, House, Committee on the Judiciary. (2002). Sex tourism prohibition improvement act of 2002: Report together with dissenting views (Report No. 107-525). Washington, D.C.: G.P.O.

Electronic version – accessed through a government website:

General Form:
Last, F.M. or Organization. (Year). Title of document (Report Number). Retrieved from URL
Example:
United States, Congress, Senate, Committee on the Judiciary. (2006). Proposed western hemisphere passport rules: Impact on trade and tourism (Report No. 109-275). Retrieved from http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS68875

BROCHURE / PAMPHLET

Print version:

General Form:
Last, F.M. or Organization. (Year). Brochure title [Brochure]. Place: Publisher.
Example:
Crystal Cruises. (2003). Cruise guide 2004 [Brochure]. Los Angeles: Crystal Cruises.

Electronic version - accessed from a website:

General Form:
Last, F.M. or Organization. (Year). Brochure title [Brochure]. Retrieved from URL
Example:
South Dakota Office of Tourism. (2007). Meeting planners guide [Brochure]. Retrieved from http://www.travelsd.com/_downloads/brochures/guides/MPG-07-08.pdf

FILM / VIDEO / DVD

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Producer), & Last, F.M. (Writer/Director). (Year). Title of film [Motion picture]. Place: Publisher.
Examples:
Educational Institute of the American Hotel and Motel Association (Producer). (1997). Supervisory skill builders: Leadership [Motion picture]. East Lansing, MI: The Institute.

McCallum, R. (Producer), Lucas, G. (Director), & Lucas, G., Hales, J. (Writers). (2002). Star wars II: Attack of the clones [Motion picture]. Beverly Hills, CA: Twentieth Century Fox.

WEBPAGE

General Form:
Last, F.M. (Date). Webpage title [Document type, if other than a standard website]. Retrieved from Organization [if applicable]: URL
Examples:
Cope, J. (2003). Towards a dynamic learning perspective of entrepreneurship [White paper]. Retrieved from Lancaster University Management School website: http://www.lums.co.uk/ publications/viewpdf/224/

Note: in reality, many webpages do not provide as much information as the general form calls for. In such cases, give as much information as you can, follow the general form as closely as possible, and provide any clarifying information in brackets. In all cases, provide at least the page title and URL. If the web page is undated or likely to change, include the retrieval date:

Convention Industry Council. (2004). CIC facts. Retrieved June 10, 2005, from http://www.conventionindustry.org/aboutcic/about_cic.htm

How do we dwell in Orlando? (n.d.). Retrieved June 14, 2005, from http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~janzb/life@ucf/dwellorlando.htm

U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Miami city, Florida [American FactFinder Fact Sheet for Miami, Florida]. Retrieved from http://factfinder.census.gov

Entire websites (as opposed to specific documents or sections of the website) are not cited in the reference list, but are cited within text:

The Ritz Carlton website features panoramic images of their hotels (http:// www.ritzcarlton.com).

WIKI

Because wikis are collaboratively authored and always changing, author and publication date are not included in the citation. Use caution when citing wikis: as APA states, "there is no guarantee that professional or subject experts have contributed to the information found in a wiki."

General Form:
Title of entry. (n.d.). Retrieved Month Day, Year, from title of Wiki: URL
Example:
How to vacation in Chicago. (n.d.). Retrieved May 28, 2008, from wikiHow: http://www.wikihow.com/Vacation-in-Chicago

INTERVIEW, TELEPHONE CONVERSATION, E-MAIL

Because they do not provide recoverable data, letters, interviews, telephone conversations, and e-mails are not included in the reference list. Cite these personal communications in the text only:

D.R. Dickson (personal communication, May 22, 2008) contended that...

...attributed to tourism decline (A. Pizam, personal communication, April 1, 2008).

For more information about citing personal communications, see p. 214 of the APA Manual or speak with your instructor.

OTHER

To cite a source type not listed above, refer to pages 215-281 in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th ed. ("APA Manual") or pages 7-24 of the APA Style Guide to Electronic References.

Go to: Rosen Research Guides page

Go to: UCF Main Library Research Guides page

Questions? Ask a Rosen Librarian!

A printable version of this guide is also available: APA PDF (49 KB)

Rosen Research Guides • Hospitality Research: APA Citation Style Guide
Universal Orlando Foundation Library

Last Updated: June 2008 RH/TB

Need Help?

Universal Orlando
Foundation Library

Catalog Search

Website Search

APA Citation Style

Introduction

Contents

Citing Sources in the Text

Formatting the References List

References List Examples: Selected Common Source Types

JOURNAL OR MAGAZINE ARTICLE

BOOK

CHAPTER FROM A BOOK OR AN ENTRY IN A REFERENCE BOOK

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

GOVERNMENT DOCUMENT

BROCHURE / PAMPHLET

FILM / VIDEO / DVD

WEBPAGE

WIKI

INTERVIEW, TELEPHONE CONVERSATION, E-MAIL

OTHER