Academic Writing

Writing a list of references – APA 6

At the end of all pieces of academic writing, you need a list of materials that you have used or referred to. This usually has a heading: references but may be bibliography or works cited depending on the conventions of the system you use.

The object of your writing is for you to say something for yourself using the ideas of the subject, for you to present ideas you have learned in your own way. The emphasis should be on working with other people’s ideas, rather than reproducing their words. The ideas and people that you refer to need to be made explicit by a system of referencing. This consists of a list of materials that you have used at the end of the piece of writing and references to this list at various points throughout the text. The purpose of this is to supply the information needed to allow a user to find a source.

Therefore, at the end of your work you need a list of the materials you have used – a bibliography or a reference list.

There are many ways of writing a list of references – check with your department for specific information.

The most common system is called the Harvard system. There is no definitive version of the Harvard system and most universities and publishers have their own. But the one used here – the American Psychological Association style (6th edition) – is well known and often used (American Psychological Association, 1983, 1994, 1999, 2001, 2010). The 6th edition has been popular for many years, but the publication of the 7th edition will become usual in future. See APA Style for more information.
One variation is the MLA style. It is well known and often used in humanities.Click here or see Gibaldi (2003) and Modern Languages Association (1998, 2009, 2016) for this way.
Many scientists use a numerical system, often called the Vancouver style or BS 1629. Click here, see International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (1991), US National Library of Medicine or Citing Medicine: The NLM Style Guide for Authors, Editors, and Publishers (2nd edition) for more information.
Another common system is that defined in the Chicago Manual of Style. In fact the Chicago Manual of Style presents two basic systems: (1) a numerical system and (2) an author-date system. Choosing between the two depends on your subject and institution. See here or University of Chicago Press (2010) or Chicago Manual of Style.

A good – although idioscyncratic – overview can be found in Pears & Shields (2013).

1. Example

References

Abercrombie, D. (1968). Paralanguage. British Journal of Disorders of Communication, 3, 55-59.

Barr, P., Clegg, J. & Wallace, C. (1981). Advanced reading skills. London: Longman.

British Council Teaching Information Centre. (1978). Pre-sessional courses for overseas students. London: British Council.

Chomsky, N. (1973). Linguistic theory. In J. W. Oller & J. C. Richards (Eds.), Focus on the learner (pp. 29-35). Rowley, Massachusetts: Newbury House.

Fromkin, V. & Rodman, R. (1983). An introduction to language. London: Holt-Saunders.

Gillett, A. J. & Hammond, A. C. (2009). Mapping the maze of assessment: An investigation into practice. Active Learning in Higher Education, 10, 120-137. doi: 10.1177/1469787409104786

Guiora, A. Z., Paluszny, M., Beit-Hallahmi, B., Catford, J. C., Cooley, R. E. & Dull, C. Y. (1975). Language and person: Studies in language behaviour. Language Learning, 25, 43-61.

GVU’s 8th WWW user survey. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cc.gatech.edu/gvu/usersurveys/survey1997-10/

Jacobson, J. W., Mulick, J. A. Schwartz, A. A. (1995). A history of facilitated communication: Science, pseudoscience, and antiscience: Science working group on facilitated communication. American Psychologist, 50, 750-765. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/journals/jacobson.html

Kinsella, V. (Ed.). (1978). Language teaching and linguistics: Surveys. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Lipinsky, E. & Bender, R. (1980). Critical voices on the economy. Survey, 25, 38-42.

Oller, J. W. & Richards, J. C. (Eds.). (1973). Focus on the learner. Rowley, Massachusetts: Newbury House.

Longman dictionary of contemporary English. (1978). London: Longman.

Smith, F. (1978). Reading. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Stern, H. H. & Weinrib, A. (1978). Foreign languages for younger children: Trends and assessment. In V. Kinsella (Ed.), Language teaching and linguistics: Surveys (pp. 152-172). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

NOTES

Use heading: References.

Page numbers should be included for all articles in journals and in collections.

Use italics (or underlining in handwriting) for titles of books, periodicals, newspapers etc.

Use alphabetical order. Alphabetise works with no author by the first significant word in the title.

All co-authors should be listed.

Indent second etc. lines

Use (n.d.) if no date is given.

If the author of a document is not given, begin the reference with the title of the document.

Include the DOI, if one has been assigned.

2. Books

a. One author:

Smith, F. (1978). Reading. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

b. Two authors:

Fromkin, V. & Rodman, R. (1983). An introduction to language. New York: Holt-Saunders.

c. More than two authors:

Barr, P., Clegg, J. & Wallace, C. (1981). Advanced reading skills. London: Longman.

d. Edited collections:

Kinsella, V. (Ed.). (1978). Language teaching and linguistics: Surveys. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Oller, J. W. & Richards, J. C. (Eds.). (1973). Focus on the learner. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.

e. Book, corporate author:

British Council Teaching Information Centre. (1978). Pre-sessional courses for overseas students. London: British Council.

f. Book, no author, or editor:

Longman dictionary of contemporary English. (1978). London: Longman.

The Times atlas of the world (5th ed.). (1975). New York: New York Times.

g. Book, third edition:

Fromkin, V. & Rodman, R. (1983). An introduction to language (3rd ed.). London: Holt-Saunders.

h. Book, revised edition:

Cohen, J. (1977). Statistical power analysis for the behavioural sciences (rev. ed.). New York: Plenum Press.

i. Non-English book:

Piaget, J. & Inhelder, B. (1951). La genése de l’idée de hasard chez l’enfant [The origin of the idea of danger in the child]. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France.

Huang, G. & Liu, H. (2008). Xinbian yingyongxiezuo jiaocheng [A new course on practical writing]. Beijing: Higher Education Press.

j. English translation of a book:

Luria, A. R. (1969). The mind of a mnemonist (L. Solotaroff, Trans.). London: Avon Books. (Original work published 1965)

k. Books or articles, two or more by the same author in the same year:

Lyons, J. (1981a). Language and linguistics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Lyons, J. (1981b). Language, meaning and context. London: Fontana.

l. Self-published book:

McHai, B. (2013). Self-publishing for teachers.London: Author.

3. Periodical articles

a. One author:

Abercrombie, D. (1968). Paralanguage. British Journal of Disorders of Communication, 3, 55-59.

b. Two authors:

Lipinsky, E. & Bender, R. (1980). Critical voices on the economy. Survey, 25, 38-42.

c. More than two authors:

Guiora, A. Z., Paluszny, M., Beit-Hallahmi, B., Catford, J. C., Cooley, R. E. & Dull, C. Y. (1975). Language and person: Studies in language behaviour. Language Learning, 25, 43-61.

d. Review of a book:

Carmody, T. P. (1982). A new look at medicine from a social perspective [Review of the book Social contexts of health, illness and patient care, by E. G. Mishler, L. R. Amarasingham, S. D. Osherson, S. T. Hauser, N. E. Waxler & R. Liem]. Contemporary Psychology, 27, 208-209.

e. Review of a book, no title:

Maley, A. (1994). [Review of the book Critical language awareness, by N. Fairclough]. Applied Linguistics, 15, 348-350.

f. Magazine article:

Gardner, H. (1981, December). Do babies sing a universal song? Psychology Today, 70-76.

g. Newspaper article:

James, R. (1991, December 15). Obesity affects economic social status. The Guardian, p. 18

h. Newspaper/Magazine article, no author:

Acid attack ‘scarred girl for life’. (1986, October 21). The Guardian, p. 4.

(In the essay use a short form of the title for citation: (“Acid Attack.” 1986))

i. Newspaper article, letter to the editor:

Hain, P. (1986, October 21). The police protection that women want [Letter to the editor]. The Guardian, p. 4.

j. Non-English journal articles:

Cao, L. (2000). Zhongguo yingyu chutan [The first exploration into China English]. Xibei Qinggongye Xueyuan Xuebao, 18, 120–23.

k. Journal article, in press:

Johns, A. M. (in press) Written argumentation for real audiences. TESOL Quarterly.

l. An on-line journal article:

m. Journal article, with DOI:

Gillett, A. J. & Hammond, A. C. (2009). Mapping the maze of assessment: An investigation into practice. Active Learning in Higher Education, 10, 120-137. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1177/1469787409104786

4. Selections from edited collections

a. One author:

Chomsky, N. (1973). Linguistic theory. In J. W. Oller & J. C. Richards (Eds.), Focus on the learner (pp. 29-35). Rowley, MA: Newbury House.

b. Two authors:

c. One author, second edition:

Wadeson, H. (2001). An eclectic approach to art therapy. In J. A. Rubin (Ed.), Approaches to art therapy: Theory and technique (2nd ed., pp. 306-318). New York: Brunner-Routledge.

5. CD ROMs etc

a. Newspaper or magazine on CD-ROM:

Gardner, H. (1981, December). Do babies sing a universal song? Psychology Today [CD-ROM], pp. 70-76.

b. Abstract on CD-ROM:

Meyer, A. S. & Bock, K. (1992). The tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon: Blocking or partial activation? [CD-ROM]. Memory Cognition, 20, 715-726. Abstract from: SilverPlatter File: PsycLIT Item: 80-16351

c. Article from CD-ROM Encyclopedia:

Crime. (1996). In Microsoft Encarta 1996 Encyclopedia [CD-ROM]. Seattle: Microsoft Corporation.

d. Dictionary on CD-ROM:

Oxford English dictionary computer file: On compact disc (2nd ed.) [CD-ROM]. (1992). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

6. Documents obtained from the Internet

All references begin with the same information that would be provided for a printed source (or as much of that information as possible). The WWW information is then placed at the end of the reference in the same way as publishing information is given for books. It is not necessary to give the date of retrieval unless the document on the Web may change in content – e.g. a wiki – move, or be removed from a site altogether.

The object of this is the same as all referencing – to supply the information needed to allow a user to find a source. If you do not know the author or the date and it does not have a clear title, think carefully before using it. See Evaluating Sources

a. A journal article:

b. A journal article, with DOI:

c. A newspaper article:

Sleek, S. (1996, January). Psychologists build a culture of peace. The New York Times, pp. 1, 33. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com

d. WWW Document:

Li, X. & Crane, N. (1996, May 20). Bibliographic formats for citing electronic information. Retrieved from http://www.uvm.edu/~xli/reference/estyles.html

e. WWW Document – corporate author:

World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). (1995, May 15). About the World Wide Web. Retrieved from http://www.w3.org/hypertext/WWW/

f. WWW Document – corporate author:

American Psychological Association (1996). How to cite information from the world wide web. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/journals/webref.html

g. WWW Document – no author:

A field guide to sources on, about and on the Internet: Citation formats. (1995, Dec 18). Retrieved from http://www.cc.emory.edu/WHSCL/citation.formats.html

h. WWW Document – no author, no date:

WWW user survey. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.wast.ac.uk/usersurveys/survey2000-10/

i. An abstract:

Rosenthal, R. (1995). State of New Jersey v. Margaret Kelly Michaels: An overview [Abstract]. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 1, 247–271. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/journals/ab1.html

j. Wikipedia Document – no author, no date, source material may change over time:

Psychology. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved October 14, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychology

k. Entry in online reference work, no author, editor or date:

Heuristic (n.d.) In Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary (11th ed.). Retrieved from http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/heuristic

l. Page from a website:

Gillett, A. (2017). Academic writing: Writing a list of references. Retrieved from https://www.uefap.org/writing/writing-references/writing-references-introduction

m. Blog post:

Gillett, A. (2017, February 23). EAP and student motivation.Retrieved from https://www.uefap.org/blog/?p=176

7. Others

a. Government report:

National Institute of Mental Health. (1982). Television and behaviour: Ten years of scientific progress and implications for the eighties (DHHS Publication No. ADM82-1195). Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.

b. Publication with no date given:

Malachi, Z. (Ed.). (n.d.) Proceedings of the International Conference on Literary and Linguistic Computing. Faculty of Humanities, Tel Aviv University.

c. Unpublished dissertation or thesis:

Devins, G. M. (1981). Helplessness, depression, and mood in end-stage renal disease. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, McGill University, Montreal.

d. Unpublished conference paper:

Howarth, P. (1995, March). Phraseological standards in EAP. Paper presented at the meeting of the British Association of Lecturers in English for Academic Purposes, Nottingham.

e. Film or videotape:

Maas, J. B. (Producer), and Gluck, D. H. (Director). (1979). Deeper into hypnosis [Film]. London: Prentice Hall.