The in-text citation tells the reader briefly the source where you found your information so that you can find it in the references list at the end. The basic in-text citation includes the author's last name followed by a comma, then the year of publication, all in parentheses at the end of the sentence where that person's ideas are included.e.g. (Jones, 2020)
For a Direct Quote: Also add the page number of your source to the in-text citation.
e.g. (Schwartz, 2019, p.12)
For an Unknown Author: Include the title in the in-text citation. If the title is long, shorten it to 2-3 words.
As explained in the OWL at Purdue Website:
"If you are directly quoting from a work, you will need to include the author, year of publication, and the page number for the reference (preceded by "p."). You can introduce the quotation with a signal phrase that includes the author's last name followed by the date of publication in parentheses."
For example:
According to Jones (2018), "students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time" (p. 199).
Jones (2018) found "students often had difficulty using APA style" (p. 199); what implications does this have for teachers?
If the author is not named in a signal phrase, place the author's last name, the year of publication, and the page number in parentheses after the quotation.
She stated, "Students often had difficulty using APA style" (Jones, 2018, p. 199), but she did not offer an explanation as
to why.
Citation for this excerpt from the OWL at Purdue Website:
In-text citations: The basics-Short quotations. (n.d.). Retrieved May 12, 2020
In-Text Citation Examples
One author |
(Johnson, 2020) |
Two authors |
(Kelly & Schwartz, 2020) |
Three or more authors |
(Martin et al., 2020) |
Group author with abbreviation |
First citation: (National Institute of Mental Health [NIMH]), 2020 Subsequent citations: (NIMH, 2020) |
Rules when your source has no author and the title is put in the in-text citation:
In-Text Citation Examples for a Source with No Author
Book with no author: (Interpersonal Skills, 2019)
Webpage with no author: ("Understanding Sensory Memory," 2018)
In-Text Citation Examples for a Source with No Date
Webpage with no date: ("Objectives and Data," n. d.)
On the webpage "Objectives and Data" (n.d.), the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion gathers data....