Political Science

Quick Citation Guide: APA Style 

Journal Articles 

Last-name, F. M. (year). Article title: Subtitle. Journal Title, Volume(issue), page range. https://doi.org/xx.xxxxxxxxxx

Last-name, F. M., Last-name, F. M., & Last-name, F. M. (Year). Article title: Subtitle. Journal Title, Volume(issue), page range. https://doi.org/xx.xxxxxxxxxx 

Examples:

Smith, J. M. (2020). Bridging the gap: Teaching citations to college students. Journal of Higher Education, 34(5), 67-89. https://doi.org/10.1234/5678-9012.34.5.67 

Poole, A., Jones, B. B., & Johnson, C. (2020). Citing sources: Working together to share knowledge. Journal of Knowledge, 7(3), 79-92. https://doi.org/10.1777/4321-8765.7.3.79

Books

Last-name, F. M. (Year). Book title: Subtitle. Publisher.

Last-name, F. M., & Last-name, F. M. (Year). Book title: Subtitle. Publisher. 

Examples:

Potter, A. (2019). Finding information: A guide. Hawk Press.

Miller, A., & Baker, F. (2007). College: A history. Lake University Press.

Book Chapters

Last-name. F. M. (Year). Title of chapter. In F. Last-name, F. Last-name, & F. Last-name (Eds.), Book title: Subtitle (page range). Publisher. 

Example:

Christie, A. (2013). Solving crime: Methods and procedures. In S. Holmes, J. Watson, & S. Baker (Eds.), How to solve mysteries: The complete guide (pp. 112-145). Johnson & Company.

Websites 

Last-name, F. M. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site name. URL

Example:

Green, B. G. (2017, March 24). Training cats as service animals. Medium. https://www.medium.com/trainingcats

In-Text

(Last name, Year, page number) 

(Last name & Last name, Year, page number) 

(Last name, Last name, & Last name, Year, page number) 

(Last name et al., year, page number) 

Examples:

(Smith, 2020, p. 80) 

(Miller & Baker, 2007, p. 30-31) 

(Poole, Jones, & Johnson, 2020, p. 88)

(Poole et al., 2020, p. 88) 

Frequently Asked Questions 

What is a DOI? 

DOI (Digital Object Identifier) is a unique string of characters used to identify a specific object (such as a journal article). It works like a barcode or URL. 

I can’t find a DOI. What should I use instead? 

If your journal article does not have a DOI, your citation is usually finished. If the journal article is from a website (not a research database), include a URL.

*Note: Previous editions of APA Style required articles without DOIs to include Retrieved from [journal home page URL] 

My eBook or book chapter has a DOI. Should I include it? 

Include the DOI for your eBook or book chapter if it has one. If there is not a DOI, do not include other information (ISBN, database name, or URL). 

Which in-text citation style should I use when citing a source that has multiple authors? 

Use (Name, Name, & Name, Year) the first time you cite the source. Use (Name et al., Year) for any citations after that. 

Do I need to use page numbers for all in-text citations? 

Use page numbers to cite any quotes. If you are paraphrasing, APA does not require the page number (check with your instructor for preference). 

Need more help? Check out these guides: 

bit.ly/csm-apa 

bit.ly/powl-apa