In-Text Citations
Cite the work, ideas, and research that shaped your writing.
This credits other authors and lets readers trace your argument back to the evidence.
Why cite
Cite only sources you have actually read and whose ideas you have used. Favor primary sources — original empirical, theoretical, or meta-analytic research — over secondary sources such as textbooks, wherever possible. Every in-text citation must appear in your reference list, and every reference list entry must be cited somewhere in the text.
How much to cite
Match the number of sources to your assignment’s instructions. Avoid both extremes: overciting (repeating the same citation sentence after sentence — distracting for the reader) and underciting (a path to plagiarism). Paraphrase and summarize, then cite the key point once per idea rather than once per sentence.
Two citation styles
- Parenthetical: the author and year appear in parentheses — (Luna, 2020).
- Narrative: the author’s name is part of the sentence, with the year in parentheses — Luna (2020).
| Author type | Parenthetical citation | Narrative citation |
|---|---|---|
| One author | (Luna, 2020) | Luna (2020) |
| Two authors | (Salas & D’Agostino, 2020) | Salas and D’Agostino (2020) |
| Three or more authors | (Martin et al., 2020) | Martin et al. (2020) |
| Group author, first citation | (National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH], 2020) | National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH, 2020) |
| Group author, later citations | (NIMH, 2020) | NIMH (2020) |
| Group author, no abbreviation | (Stanford University, 2020) | Stanford University (2020) |
Double-check the spelling of every author name, and make sure every detail — year, page number for quotes — is correct.
Personal communication (a special case)
Emails, text messages, unrecorded interviews, and similar exchanges a reader can’t access themselves are cited in-text only — they never get a reference list entry, because there’s nothing for a reader to look up.