how to cite a research article with no author

How do I cite a source that has no author?

Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook . For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook .

When a work is published without an author’s name, begin the works-cited-list entry with the title of the work. Do not use Anonymous in place of an author’s name:

“English Language Arts Standards.” Common Core State Standards Initiative , 2017, www.corestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/.

“An Homily against Disobedience and Wylful Rebellion.” 1570. Divine Right and Democracy: An Anthology of Political Writing in Stuart England , edited by David Wootton, Penguin Books, 1986, pp. 94–98.

For works created by a corporate author—an institution, a government body, or another kind of organization—list that entity as the author:

Hart Research Associates. It Takes More Than a Major: Employer Priorities for College Learning and Student Success . Association of American Colleges and Universities , 2013, www.aacu.org/publications-research/periodicals/it-takes-more-major-employer-priorities-college-learning-and.

An exception: if a corporate author is also the work’s publisher, list that entity as the publisher and skip the “Author” slot:

Reading at Risk: A Survey of Literary Reading in America . National Endowment for the Arts, June 2004.

Cite these works in your text by title or by corporate author—that is, by the first item in the works-cited-list entry:

The homily argues that rebelling against the English monarch amounts to rebelling against God (“Homily” 97).

Eighty percent of employers believe that all college students “should acquire broad knowledge in the liberal arts and sciences” (Hart).

Review a source carefully before deciding that it has no author. It’s important to credit authors for their work.

APA Citation Style, 7th edition: Web Page with No Author

• General Style Guidelines
• One Author or Editor
• Two Authors or Editors
• Three to Five Authors or Editors
• Article or Chapter in an Edited Book
• Article in a Reference Book
• Edition other than the First
• Translation
• Government Publication
• Journal Article with 1 Author
• Journal Article with 2 Authors
• Journal Article with 3–20 Authors
• Journal Article 21 or more Authors
• Magazine Article
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• Basic Web Page
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• Web Page with No Author
• Entry in a Reference Work
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• Youtube Video
• Audio Podcast
• Electronic Image
• Twitter/Instagram
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• Formatting Your Paper

Document from a Web site with no Author

• When citing sources that you find on the Internet you only need to include a retrieval date if the information you viewed is likely to change over time.  If you reference an article from a news source (e.g., CNN, NBC, Washington Post) or a site that may experience continuous updates, you would then need to include a retrieval date.
• New in 7th edition: You must include the site name in your citation, unless the site name is the same as the corporate author. For example, a citation of a CDC report would not include the site name.

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APA (7th ed.) referencing guide (Online)

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• Journal article with one author
• Journal article with two authors
• Journal articles with three or more authors
• Journal article with no identified author/anonymous author

Articles with no identified author/anonymous author

In text citations.

• Newspaper articles
• Magazine articles
• Book review in a journal or newspaper
• Conference Papers
• Act of Parliament
• Law report (case law)
• Business Reports
• Statistics & Datasets
• Government reports
• YouTube/online videos
• Episode of a TV Show
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• Copyright statement

When a work has no identified author, cite in text the first few words of the reference list entry (usually the title) and the year. Use double quotation marks around the title of an article, a chapter or a web page, and  italicise  the title of a journal, a book, a brochure, or a report.

When a work's author is designated as "Anonymous" cite in text the word Anonymous followed by a comma and the date.

“Supporting healthy” (2013) describes.... OR ... (“Supporting healthy", 2013).

Article title.  (Year).  Journal title in italics, Volume number in italics (issue or part number), page numbers. DOI (if available)

Supporting healthy and normal physiologic childbirth: A consensus statement by ACNM, MANA, and NACPM*. (2013). Journal of Perinatal Education, 22 (1), 14-18. 

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No page numbers.

No Title 

No Database Name

If no author or creator is provided, start the citation with the title/name of the item you are citing instead. Follow the title/name of the item with the date of publication, and the continue with other citation details.

Note : an author/creator won't necessarily be a person's name. It may be an organization or corporation, for example Health Canada or a username on a site such a YouTube.

If no author or creator is provided, use a shortened version of the title where you'd normally put the author's last name. 

If you're citing something which is part of a bigger work, like an article from a magazine, newspaper, journal or encyclopedia, or chapter or short story from a book, put the shortened title in quotation marks in your in-text citation. 

Example, paraphrasing: ("A few words", 2014) 

If you're citing an entire work, like a book, website, video, etc., italicize the shortened title in your in-text citation

Example, 'paraphrasing: ( A few words , 2014)

If and only if an item is signed as being created by Anonymous, use "Anonymous" where you'd normally put the author's name.

Alphabetical Order in References List

When putting works in alphabetical order, ignore initial articles such as "the", "a", or "an". For example the title The best of Canada would be alphabetized as if it started with the word best instead of the word The

If the title begins with a number, alphabetize it as if the number was spelled out. For example the title 5 ways to succeed in business would be alphabetized under F as if it had started with the word Five .

If no date is provided, use the initials n.d. where you would normally put the date.

Also use the initials n.d. if the date of content is difficult to determine, such as on a Wikipedia page.

Page numbers may not be provided for some items, such as online materials. If this is the case:

References List

If a citation would normally include page numbers but none are provided, skip the page numbers in the citation.

In-Text Citation - Quoting Directly

When quoting directly in the text of your paper, you would normally include page numbers if they were given. If there are no page numbers given:

• Indicate the paragraph number instead of the page number with the word "para." before it. For example: (Smith, 2012, para. 3)
• If there are headings, give the name of the heading, followed by the word "section" and the number of the paragraph within the section it is from. For example: (Smith, 2012, Discussion section, para. 3)
• If there is only one paragraph, provide the author's last name and the year and omit the page number

Occasionally an item may not have a title. If you are citing something with no identified title, write a description of the item placed in square brackets. Put this description in brackets where you'd normally put the title.

If you find an article through the  search bar  on the main library page, you might be unsure which database the article is from, because this searches across many different databases.

You can find the name of the database a few ways:

Method 1. Click on the title of the article in the search results list. This will bring you to a page with a description of the article as well as other useful information. Scroll down to the bottom of this list of information, and you should see "Database" listed near the bottom.

Method 2. You can also find the name of the database in the summary of information just below the title of the article in the search results list. It will look something like this:

Notice the name of the database is listed at the end.

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APA 7th Edition Citation Guide

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Source with No Author

Source with no date, source with no title, source with no page numbers.

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Note : If a source has no author, begin with the title. If the source you are citing was published by an organization or corporation, cite it as having an organizational or corporate author.

Note : Use (n.d.) for sources with no date.

Note : For sources with no title, describe the source in brackets in place of the title.

Note : There are two options for quoting sources with no page numbers.  If the source is short, count paragraphs from the top of the document and include the paragraph number in the in-text citation.  If the source is long, but has section headings, you can include the the section heading in lieu of the paragraph number.

Source with No Page Numbers (Paragraph Numbers)

Source with No Page Numbers (Section Heading)

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APA 6th Edition Citation Style

No author / no date.

• APA 6th Edition Guide
• Annual Report
• Article, Journal
• Article, Journal (with DOI)
• Article, Journal (without DOI)
• Book, Chapter in edited work
• Book, Electronic
• Dissertation / Thesis
• Dissertation / Thesis (Database)
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• Events, Live
• Newspaper Article
• Newspaper Article (Database)
• Newspaper Article (Website)
• Podcast, Audio
• Reference Work
• Reference Work (Database)
• Website Document
• Video, Online

Newspaper article (from the newspaper’s website) with no author

Proper Bibliographic Reference Format:

• Bibliographic references are double-spaced and indented half an inch after the first line.
• If there is no author, the article title comes first.
• For titles of newspapers, use italics and "headline" style capitalization.
• Use the URL of the homepage of the newspaper to avoid non-working URLs.
• It is no longer necessary to include the date of retrieval.

Barcelona to ban burqa in municipal buildings. (2010, June 14).  Retrieved from http://gulfnews.com

In-Text Citations:

• Citations are placed in the context of discussion using the author’s last name and date of publication.
• When a work has no identified author, cite in text the first few words of the article title using double quotation marks, “headline- style” capitalization, and the year.

(“Barcelona to Ban Burqa,” 2010)

• Alternatively, you can integrate the citation into the sentence by means of narrative.
• There must be a total match between the reference list and the parenthetical citation, so the article title must stand in place of an author’s name in the essay.

“Barcelona to Ban Burqa” (2010) contends that the move is aimed at all dress that impedes identification.

Website with no author and no date

• If there is no date, use the abbreviation n.d.

United Arab Emirates architecture. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.uaeinteract.com/

• When a work has no identified author, cite in text the first few words of the article title using double quotation marks, “headline-style" capitalization, and the year.

(“United Arab Emirates Architecture,” n.d.)

“United Arab Emirates Architecture” (n.d.) describes building materials used in early settlements.

Journal or magazine article (from library database or online) with no author

• For titles of journals or magazines, use italics and "headline" style capitalization.
• Use the URL of the homepage of the journal or magazine to avoid non-working URLS

Famine relief: Just a simple matter of supplying food? (2002). Nutrition Noteworthy , 5(1). Retrieved from http://escholarship.org/uc/uclabiolchem_nutritionnoteworthy

• When a work has no identified author, cite in text the first few words of the article title using double quotation marks, “headline” style capitalization, and the year.

(“Famine Relief,” 2002)

“Famine Relief” (2002) examines the causes of poverty and famine in Africa.

Works With an Anonymous Author

When a work’s author is designated as “Anonymous,” cite in text the word Anonymous followed by a comma and the date:

(Anonymous, 2010)

In the reference list, an anonymous work is alphabetized by the word Anonymous

Anonymous. (2010). Food safety shake-up needed in the USA. The Lancet , 375(9732), 2122. Retrieved from http://www.thelancet.com

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Home / Guides / Citation Guides / Harvard Referencing / Harvard Referencing Style Examples / Referencing sources with no author in Harvard style

Referencing sources with no author in Harvard style

This guide shows you what to do when the source you need to reference has no author. Sometimes, you’ll come across sources that don’t have authors listed. These types of sources are often ones like reference books, Wikipedia pages or newspaper articles. How you reference a source with no author varies somewhat, based on the type of source. The general rule is to use the title of the book, article or newspaper in the place of the author in both the in-text citation and full reference.

Here are some examples of how to reference sources with no author in Harvard style.

Books with no author

If you are referencing a book with no author, simply use the title of the book in italics where you would have used the author’s surname.  

In-text citation template:

( Book name, Publication year, Page number)

The moon orbits the Earth in an elliptical orbit in 27 days and 8 hours ( Children’s illustrated treasury of knowledge: Earth, 2013, p. 5).

The word ‘ballast’ is defined in the Concise Oxford English dictionary (2011, p. 101) as ‘a heavy substance, such as gravel or lead, placed in the bilge of a ship to ensure its stability’.

When referencing a book with no author in the reference list, the following format is used:

Title of the book (Publication year) Place of publication: Publisher name.

Children’s illustrated treasury of knowledge: Earth (2013) London: BPI Worldwide.

Concise Oxford English dictionary (2011) 12th edn. New York: Oxford University Press.

Web page with no author

For web pages with no author, such as Wikipedia pages, you’ll use the page title in single quotation marks in place of the author’s surname.

Here’s how the in-text citation would look:

Early New High German was an early form of German predominant in the early modern period (‘Early New High German’, 2020).

For the full reference, you’ll follow a similar format:

‘Early New High German’ (2020) Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_New_High_German (Accessed: 19 October 2020).

Often when citing websites, it may appear that the web page has no author when it actually has an organization as its author, or the author is using a handle or username instead of their real name. This guide on how to cite a website in Harvard style provides details on how to cite web pages with different types of authors.

Newspaper/magazine articles with no author

When citing a newspaper or a magazine article in which the author’s name is not given, the format used for the in-text citation is:

( Name of the newspaper, Year of publication)

The article ( The Guardian , 2020) stated that …  

For the reference list, you’ll also use the newspaper title where you would normally place the author’s name. This is followed by the year of publication, the title of the article, the day and month, and, finally, a page reference if it is a print article, or a URL and access date if it is an online article.

Full reference template:  

Newspaper title (Year of publication) ‘Title of the article’, Day Month of publication. Available at: URL (Accessed: Day Month Year).

The Guardian (2020) ‘Wednesday briefing: last orders in fight to avoid lockdown’, 23 September. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/23/wednesday-briefing-last-orders-in-fight-to-avoid-lockdown (Accessed: 23 September 2020).

Published October 29, 2020.

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FAQ: How do I cite a source with no author in APA Style (in-text)?

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Last Updated: Jun 22, 2023 Views: 104961

Identifying authorship.

Per the APA, to determine authorship, ask "who is responsible for this content?" (Lee, 2010). Sometimes it isn't a person or persons who wrote or edited the material but rather an entity (government, associations, agencies, companies, etc). Therefore, the entity will be the author. For example, if you are referencing guidelines from the CDC regarding wearing masks, your author would be the Centers for Disease Control:

According to the Centers for Disease Control (2021), those who are not fully vaccinated (and over 2 years of age) should wear a mask in indoor, public spaces.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, October 25).  Your Guide to Masks . https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/about-face-coverings.html This link opens in a new window

Lee, C. (2010, January 7). The generic reference: Who? APA Style Blog. https://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2010/01/the-generic-reference-who.html This link opens in a new window

Citing Sources with No Author

When there is no author identified, use the first few words from the title of the source used, unless the author of the work is specifically identified as “Anonymous.” For more information, please review the “ Missing Reference Information This link opens in a new window ” page of the APA Style Blog.

The report condemned the practice (" Will returning to its founder's vision ," 2011).

The government was at fault for the results ( Anonymous , 2016).

Will returning to its founder's vision bring prosperity to the Detroit automotive giant, asks Ray Hutto. (2011, January 9).  Sunday Times , 9.

Anonymous. (2016, August 14). Part IV: ISIS rising 2014-2015.  New York Times Magazine , 43-50.

Examples of Citing Articles, Book Chapters, Web Pages, and Special Issue of Journal with No Author

The oil spill affected the entire Gulf Coast ("11 Facts," n.d.) .

Due to concerns about the omicron variant, Queen Elizabeth II will stay at Windsor Castle for the holidays (“Queen Elizabeth II,” 2021) .

11 facts about the BP oil spill . (n.d.). DoSomething. https://www.dosomething.org/facts/11-facts-about-bp-oil-spill This link opens in a new window

Queen Elizabeth II to skip Christmas trip amid omicron surge. (2021, December 20). AP News . https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-queen-elizabeth-ii-health-england-europe-72bdb703f2441fad41152cae96f4103c This link opens in a new window

General Rules

• Use double quotes around the title or the first few words in the title.
• The comma goes inside the double-quotes.
• You can use the first few words of the title if the entire title is too long. 
• The important words in the article title are capitalized in the text of the paper, but only the first word and proper nouns are capitalized in the reference citation at the end of the paper.

Examples of Citing Periodicals, Books, Reports, or Brochure Titles with No Author

The research findings  (Do Drug Courts Work?, 2008) were...

Do Drug Courts Work?, (2008) stated...

Do drug courts work? Findings from drug court research . (2008, May 11).  National Institute of Justice. https://www.nij.gov/topics/courts/drug-courts/Pages/work.aspx This link opens in a new window

• Italicize the title
• If the entire title is too long, use the first few words in the title.
• The important words in the title of the report are capitalized in the text of the paper, but only the first word is capitalized in the reference citation at the end of the paper.

More Information

• APA Guide  (Shapiro Library)
• APA Research Paper Basics Video Tutorials This link opens in a new window  (Atomic Learning - log in using your SNHU email username and password)
• APA Style Help This link opens in a new window  (APA)

Further Help

This information is intended to be a guideline, not expert advice. Please be sure to speak to your professor about the appropriate way to cite sources in your class assignments and projects.

Campus Students

To access Academic Support, visit your Brightspace course and select “Tutoring and Mentoring” from the Academic Support pulldown menu.

Online Students

To access help with citations and more, visit the Academic Support via modules in Brightspace:

• Academic Support Overview: Getting Help with your Schoolwork This link opens in a new window

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APA Style (7th Edition) Citation Guide: Journal Articles

• Introduction
• Journal Articles
• Magazine/Newspaper Articles
• Books & Ebooks
• Government & Legal Documents
• Biblical Sources
• Secondary Sources
• Films/Videos/TV Shows
• How to Cite: Other
• Additional Help

Table of Contents

Journal article from library database with doi - one author, journal article from library database with doi - multiple authors, journal article from a website - one author.

Journal Article- No DOI

Note: All citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent in a Reference List.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

This Microsoft support page contains instructions about how to format a hanging indent in a paper.

• APA 7th. ed. Journal Article Reference Checklist

If an item has no author, start the citation with the article title.

When an article has one to twenty authors, all authors' names are cited in the References List entry. When an article has twenty-one or more authors list the first nineteen authors followed by three spaced ellipse points (. . .) , and then the last author's name. Rules are different for in-text citations; please see the examples provided.

Cite author names in the order in which they appear on the source, not in alphabetical order (the first author is usually the person who contributed the most work to the publication).

Italicize titles of journals, magazines and newspapers. Do not italicize or use quotation marks for the titles of articles.

Capitalize only the first letter of the first word of the article title. If there is a colon in the article title, also capitalize the first letter of the first word after the colon.

If an item has no date, use the short form n.d. where you would normally put the date.

Volume and Issue Numbers

Italicize volume numbers but not issue numbers.

Retrieval Dates

Most articles will not need these in the citation. Only use them for online articles from places where content may change often, like a free website or a wiki.

Page Numbers

If an article doesn't appear on continuous pages, list all the page numbers the article is on, separated by commas. For example (4, 6, 12-14)

Library Database

Do not include the name of a database for works obtained from most academic research databases (e.g. APA PsycInfo, CINAHL) because works in these resources are widely available. Exceptions are Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, ERIC, ProQuest Dissertations, and UpToDate.

Include the DOI (formatted as a URL: https://doi.org/...) if it is available. If you do not have a DOI, include a URL if the full text of the article is available online (not as part of a library database). If the full text is from a library database, do not include a DOI, URL, or database name.

In the Body of a Paper

Books, Journals, Reports, Webpages, etc.: When you refer to titles of a “stand-alone work,” as the APA calls them on their APA Style website, such as books, journals, reports, and webpages, you should italicize them. Capitalize words as you would for an article title in a reference, e.g., In the book Crying in H Mart: A memoir , author Michelle Zauner (2021) describes her biracial origin and its impact on her identity.

Article or Chapter: When you refer to the title of a part of a work, such as an article or a chapter, put quotation marks around the title and capitalize it as you would for a journal title in a reference, e.g., In the chapter “Where’s the Wine,” Zauner (2021) describes how she decided to become a musician.

The APA Sample Paper below has more information about formatting your paper.

• APA 7th ed. Sample Paper

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle if any. Name of Journal, Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. https://doi.org/doi number

Smith, K. F. (2022). The public and private dialogue about the American family on television: A second look. Journal of Media Communication, 50 (4), 79-110. https://doi.org/10.1152/j.1460-2466.2000.tb02864.x

Note: The DOI number is formatted as a URL: https://doi.org/10.1152/j.1460-2466.2000.tb02864.xIf

In-Text Paraphrase:

(Author's Last Name, Year)

Example: (Smith, 2000)

In-Text Quote:

(Author's Last Name, Year, p. Page Number)

Example: (Smith, 2000, p. 80)

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given., & Last Name of Second Author, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle if any. Name of Journal, Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. https://doi.org/doi number

Note: Separate the authors' names by putting a comma between them. For the final author listed add an ampersand (&) after the comma and before the final author's last name.

Note: In the reference list invert all authors' names; give last names and initials for only up to and including 20 authors. When a source has 21 or more authors, include the first 19 authors’ names, then three ellipses (…), and add the last author’s name. Don't include an ampersand (&) between the ellipsis and final author.

Note : For works with three or more authors, the first in-text citation is shortened to include the first author's surname followed by "et al."

Reference List Examples

Two to 20 Authors

Case, T. A., Daristotle, Y. A., Hayek, S. L., Smith, R. R., & Raash, L. I. (2011). College students' social networking experiences on Facebook. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 3 (2), 227-238. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2008.12.010

21 or more authors

Kalnay, E., Kanamitsu, M., Kistler, R., Collins, W., Deaven, D., Gandin, L., Iredell, M., Saha, J., Mo, K. C., Ropelewski, C., Wang, J., Leetma, A., . . . Joseph, D. (1996). The NCEP/NCAR 40-year reanalysis project. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society , 77 (3), 437-471. https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0477(1996)077<0437:TNYRP>2.0.CO;2

In-Text Citations

Two Authors/Editors

(Case & Daristotle, 2011)

Direct Quote: (Case & Daristotle, 2011, p. 57)

Three or more Authors/Editors

(Case et al., 2011)

Direct Quote: (Case et al., 2011, p. 57)

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle if any.  Name of Journal, Volume Number (Issue Number if given). URL

Flachs, A. (2010). Food for thought: The social impact of community gardens in the Greater Cleveland Area.  Electronic Green Journal, 1 (30). http://escholarship.org/uc/item/6bh7j4z4

Example: (Flachs, 2010)

Example: (Flachs, 2010, Conclusion section, para. 3)

Note: In this example there were no visible page numbers or paragraph numbers; in this case you can cite the section heading and the number of the paragraph in that section to identify where your quote came from. If there are no page or paragraph numbers and no marked section, leave this information out.

Journal Article - No DOI

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year of Publication). Title of article: Subtitle if any.  Name of Journal, Volume Number (Issue Number), first page number-last page number. URL [if article is available online, not as part of a library database]

Full-Text Available Online (Not as Part of a Library Database):

Steinberg, M. P., & Lacoe, J. (2017). What do we know about school discipline reform? Assessing the alternatives to suspensions and expulsions.  Education Next, 17 (1), 44–52.  https://www.educationnext.org/what-do-we-know-about-school-discipline-reform-suspensions-expulsions/

Example: (Steinberg & Lacoe, 2017)

(Author's Last Name, Year, p. Page number)

Example: (Steinberg & Lacoe, 2017, p. 47)

Full-Text Available in Library Database:

Jungers, W. L. (2010). Biomechanics: Barefoot running strikes back.  Nature, 463 (2), 433-434.

Example: (Jungers, 2010)

Example: (Jungers, 2010, p. 433)

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Document from a Web site with no Author

• When citing sources that you find on the Internet you only need to include a retrieval date if the information you viewed is likely to change over time.  If you reference an article from a news source (e.g., CNN, NBC, Washington Post) or a site that may experience continuous updates, you would then need to include a retrieval date.
• New in 7th edition: You must include the site name in your citation, unless the site name is the same as the corporate author. For example, a citation of a CDC report would not include the site name.
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How to Cite in APA with No Author

Last Updated: April 26, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was reviewed by Gerald Posner and by wikiHow staff writer, Jennifer Mueller, JD . Gerald Posner is an Author & Journalist based in Miami, Florida. With over 35 years of experience, he specializes in investigative journalism, nonfiction books, and editorials. He holds a law degree from UC College of the Law, San Francisco, and a BA in Political Science from the University of California-Berkeley. He’s the author of thirteen books, including several New York Times bestsellers, the winner of the Florida Book Award for General Nonfiction, and has been a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in History. He was also shortlisted for the Best Business Book of 2020 by the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 55,437 times.

When you're doing research in preparation to write a paper, you may find valuable sources that don't list an individual author. However, you still need to cite these sources so your readers know that you didn't come up with the information you paraphrased from the source on your own. Generally, if you're using American Psychological Association (APA) citation style, you'll start your Reference List entry with the title of the work rather than the name of the author, then use a shortened version of the title for your parenthetical in-text citation. [1] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source

Reference List Entry

• For example, if you're looking at a report published on the American Heart Association website that doesn't list an individual author, you would typically use the American Heart Association as the author.
• If you have a print source that doesn't list a specific person as the author, look at the copyright information. If a corporation, nonprofit organization, or educational institution claims the copyright in the work, use that name as the author.

• Example: The dark lord rises.

• Example: The dark lord rises. (2019, April 22).

• Example: The dark lord rises. (2019, April 22). Retrieved from https://www.thedailyprophet.org/dark-lord

APA Reference List Format – Online Source with No Author

Title of work in sentence case. (Year, Month Day). Retrieved from URL

• Example: The rise of the dark lord . (2019). Paris, France: Beauxbatons Press.

APA Reference List Format – Print Source with No Author

Title of work in sentence case . (Year). City, State/Country: Publisher.

In-Text Citation

• Example: ("The Dark Lord,"

• Example: ("The Dark Lord," 2019).

Tip: If you quote directly from the source, type a comma after the date and then add the page number or page range where the quote can be found. Use "p." to indicate a single page or "pp." to indicate multiple pages.

• For example, you might write: In 2019, an article titled "The Rise of the Dark Lord" shed new light on the politics behind Voldemort's power grab.
• If you only included the title of the source in your paper, you would put a parenthetical immediately after the title with the year of publication. For example, you might write: Although there is no attributed author, "The Rise of the Dark Lord" (2019) is considered the most thorough documentation of Voldemort's attempted rise to power.
• If you quoted from the source directly, the parenthetical with the page number goes at the end of the quote. For example, you might write: According to "The Rise of the Dark Lord" (2019), Voldemort sought not only political control but also control over "the very hearts and minds of every witch and wizard young and old" (p. 92).

Expert Q&A

• Rarely, "Anonymous" will be cited as the author of a source you want to cite. In that case, use the word "Anonymous" as the author's name in both your Reference List entry and your in-text citation. [10] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• Sources without authors may be considered less trustworthy than those that do. If you can find the same information in a source that does have an author, your work will have more credibility. Be especially critical of online sources that do not have an author listed, unless you find them own a page you know to be reliable. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_author_authors.html
• ↑ https://columbiacollege-ca.libguides.com/apa/booksandebooks
• ↑ https://aus.libguides.com/apa/apa-no-author-date
• ↑ https://www.apastyle.org/learn/faqs/web-page-no-author
• ↑ https://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2012/05/missing-pieces.html
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_author_authors.html

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How do you cite website material that has no author, no year, and no page numbers?

• Go to 7th Edition Missing Reference Information This page includes guidelines on creating references for a work with no author.
• Go to 7th Edition Webpage Reference Examples The author of a webpage is often the company or organization that created the page (known as a group author). This page includes examples of references for webpages with a group author.

Because the material does not include page numbers, you can include any of the following in the text to cite the quotation (from pp. 170–171 of the Publication Manual ):

• A paragraph number, if provided; alternatively, you could count paragraphs down from the beginning of the document.
• An overarching heading plus a paragraph number within that section.
• A short title in quotation marks, in cases in which the heading is too unwieldy to cite in full.

Because there is no date and no author, your text citation would include the title (or short title) "n.d." for no date, and paragraph number (e.g., "Heuristic," n.d., para. 1). The entry in the reference list might look something like this:

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

(adapted from the sixth edition of the APA Publication Manual , © 2010)

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Quick guide to APA referencing

Quick guide to apa referencing.

This is an introductory guide to citing and referencing using the APA system. For more detailed examples go to the iCite guide or Cite Them Right Online . 

Please note that these pages are based on the  sixth edition  of the APA style. A 7th edition has since been produced.  Details of this seventh edition can be found on the APA web pages:

• In-text citations

Citing in text

A citation is an abbreviated indication of the source(s) you have used in text., use the authors (s) or editor, date of publication, and page numbers if required. Example, (Smith, 2010).

Examples of citing in text

• One Author/ Editor: Marks (2011) states that ...OR...(Marks, 2011)
• Two Authors/Editor: Bee and Boyd (2010) state that...OR (Bee & Boyd, 2010)
• Three, four or five Authors/Editors: (Rolfe, Jasper, & Freshwater, 2010) first cite, (Rolfe et al., 2010) subsequent cities
• Six or more Authors/Editors: Cite the first name listed in the sources followed by et al. For example,... Yamada et al. (2003) OR...(Yamada et al.,2003)
• No Author/Editor: Use the Italics; do NOT use 'anonymous' or anything similar, for example, It is maintained that medicine has greatly improved ( Medicine in old ages , 1985, p.74)...
• No Author and No date:  Use the title and 'no date'. For example, Thunderstorms have become increasingly common ( Trends in atmospheric pressure , no date)... 

Citing multiple sources

If you cite two or more works within the same parentheses they should be in alphabetical order of author.

....(Philips, Ajrouch, & Hillcoat- Nalletamby, 2010: Rolfe, Jasper, & Freshwater, 2010).

Arrange two or more works by the same authors (in the same order) by year of publication. Place in-press citations last. Give the authors' last name once; for each subsequent work, give only the date.

...(Davies, 2003, 2010, 2012)

Citing sources published in the same year by the same author

Use lower case letters (a, b etc.) to distinguish between works published in the same year by the same author(s). 

...Hewitt (2010a) states that...this was supported by Hewitt (2010b)...

The suffixes are assigned in the reference list, where these kinds of references are ordered alphabetically by title (of the article, chapter, or complete work).

Page numbers

It is recommended that page numbers should be included in in-text citations where this is necessary to indicate a specific part of the text, for example with a direct quote or paraphrase.

• See the example above for ‘No Author/Editor’

A reference gives the full details of the brief citation you have referred to in a text and is shown at the end of your essay. A reference will include authors, titles, editions, publisher details or journal details. 

Examples of References

• Author/Editors: All authors'/editors' names should be listed in your reference list (no matter how many there are).

Author/Editor, year of publication (in round brackets), Title (in italics), Edition (only include the edition number if it is not the first edition, Place of publication: publisher Series and volume number (where relevant).

• One Author: Guy, J. (2001). The view across the river: Harriette Colenso and the Zulu struggle against imperialism . Charlottesville, Virginia: University Press of Virginia. 
• Two Authors: Banerjee, A., & Watson, T.F. (2011). Pickard's manual of Operative dentistry . (9th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. 
• Three to seven Authors:  List all the authors and always separate the final two authors with & as shown below.

Dym, C.L., Little, P., Orwin, E.J., & Spjut, R.E (2009). Engineering design: a project based introduction. (3rd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

• Eight or more Authors:  List the first six authors then an ellipsis (i.e. three dots) then the last author in the reference.

Standing, S., Ellis, H., Healey, J.C., Johanson, D., Williams, A., Collins, P.,...Shah,P. (Eds.). (2004). Gray's anatomy: The anatomical basis of clinical practice (39th ed.). Edinburgh, Scotland: Churchill Livingston. 

• Edited Book: Al-Sabbagh, M. (ed.). (2015) Complications in the implant dentistry . Series: Dental clinics of North America. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier.
• Chapter in a Book: Sparkes, V. (2010) Function of the Spine. In T.Everett &C.Kel (eds.), Human movement: an introductory text (pp.191-209) (6th ed.) Edinburgh: Churchill Livingston Elsevier.
• Ebook:  Wear, A. (2000). Knowledge and practice in English medicine . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/bham/detail/.action?docID=5004608

  Journals

• Journal (Print): Author, year of publication (in round brackets), Title of article, Title of journal (in italics), Volume number (in italics), Issue (in round brackets), page numbers. 

Knapik, J.J., Cosio-Lima, L.M., & Reynolds, K.L. (2015) Efficacy of functional movement screening for predicting injuries in coast guard cities. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 29(5), 1157-1162. 

•  Journal (Electronic): Same information as above, but if doi available include at the end of reference. 

Kanpil, J.J., Cosio-Lima, L.M., and Reynolds, K.L. (2015) 'Efficacy of functional movement screening for predicting injuries in coast guard cadets', The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research , 29 (5), pp. 1157-1162. EDUC 1028: E- learning . Retrieved from http://intranet.bir.ac.uk

• Web page with an Author:  Dan Snow. (n.d.). How did so many soldiers survive the trenches? Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/z3kgjxs
• Web page - author as an organisation:  BBC News. (2014). 'Lights out' ends day of WW1 centenary commemorations. Retrieved from http://www. bbc.co.uk/news/uk-28632223
• Web page - no dates:   BBC History. (n.d.). Duke of Wellington (1769-1852). Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ historicfigures/wellingtondukeof.shtml

 If you need any further help with referencing our Academic Skills Centre with be able to assist you with any help, advice or support you need. 

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In-Text Citations: Author/Authors

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Though the APA's author-date system for citations is fairly straightforward, author categories can vary significantly from the standard "one author, one source" configuration. There are also additional rules for citing authors of indirect sources, electronic sources, and sources without page numbers.

A Work by One Author 

The APA manual recommends the use of the author-date citation structure for in-text citation references. This structure requires that any in-text citation (i.e., within the body of the text) be accompanied by a corresponding reference list entry. In the in-text citation provide the surname of the author but do not include suffixes such as "Jr.". 

Citing Non-Standard Author Categories

A work by two authors.

Name both authors in the signal phrase or in parentheses each time you cite the work. Use the word "and" between the authors' names within the text and use the ampersand in parentheses.

A Work by Three or More Authors

List only the first author’s name followed by “et al.” in every citation, even the first, unless doing so would create ambiguity between different sources.

In  et al. , et  should not be followed by a period. Only "al" should be followed by a period.

If you’re citing multiple works with similar groups of authors, and the shortened “et al” citation form of each source would be the same, you’ll need to avoid ambiguity by writing out more names. If you cited works with these authors:

They would be cited in-text as follows to avoid ambiguity:

Since et al. is plural, it should always be a substitute for more than one name. In the case that et al. would stand in for just one author, write the author’s name instead.

Unknown Author

If the work does not have an author, cite the source by its title in the signal phrase or use the first word or two in the parentheses. Titles of books and reports are italicized; titles of articles, chapters, and web pages are in quotation marks. APA style calls for capitalizing important words in titles when they are written in the text (but not when they are written in reference lists).

Note : In the rare case that "Anonymous" is used for the author, treat it as the author's name (Anonymous, 2001). In the reference list, use the name Anonymous as the author.

Organization as an Author

If the author is an organization or a government agency, mention the organization in the signal phrase or in the parenthetical citation the first time you cite the source, just as you would an individual person.

If the organization has a well-known abbreviation, you may include the abbreviation in brackets the first time the source is cited and then use only the abbreviation in later citations. However, if you cite work from multiple organizations whose abbreviations are the same, do not use abbreviations (to avoid ambiguity).

Two or More Works in the Same Parentheses

When your parenthetical citation includes two or more works, order them the same way they appear in the reference list (viz., alphabetically), separated by a semi-colon.

If you cite multiple works by the same author in the same parenthetical citation, give the author’s name only once and follow with dates. No date citations go first, then years, then in-press citations.

Authors with the Same Last Name

To prevent confusion, use first initials with the last names.

Two or More Works by the Same Author in the Same Year

If you have two sources by the same author in the same year, use lower-case letters (a, b, c) with the year to order the entries in the reference list. Use the lower-case letters with the year in the in-text citation.

Introductions, Prefaces, Forewords, and Afterwords

When citing an Introduction, Preface, Foreword, or Afterword in-text, cite the appropriate author and year as usual.

Personal Communication

For interviews, letters, e-mails, and other person-to-person communication, cite the communicator's name, the fact that it was personal communication, and the date of the communication. Do not include personal communication in the reference list.

If using a footnote to reference personal communication, handle citations the same way.

Traditional Knowledge of Indigenous Peoples

When citing information you learned from a conversation with an Indigenous person who was not your research participant, use a variation of the personal communication citation above. Include the person’s full name, nation or Indigenous group, location, and any other relevant details before the “personal communication, date” part of the citation.

Citing Indirect Sources

Generally, writers should endeavor to read primary sources (original sources) and cite those rather than secondary sources (works that report on original sources). Sometimes, however, this is impossible. If you use a source that was cited in another source, name the original source in your signal phrase. List the secondary source in your reference list and include the secondary source in the parentheses. If you know the year of the original source, include it in the citation.

Electronic Sources

If possible, cite an electronic document the same as any other document by using the author-date style.

Unknown Author and Unknown Date

If no author or date is given, use the title in your signal phrase or the first word or two of the title in the parentheses and use the abbreviation "n.d." (for "no date").

Sources Without Page Numbers

When an electronic source lacks page numbers, you should try to include information that will help readers find the passage being cited. Use the heading or section name, an abbreviated heading or section name, a paragraph number (para. 1), or a combination of these.

Note:  Never use the page numbers of webpages you print out; different computers print webpages with different pagination. Do not use Kindle location numbers; instead, use the page number (available in many Kindle books) or the method above. 

Other Sources

The  APA Publication Manual  describes how to cite many different kinds of authors and content creators. However, you may occasionally encounter a source or author category that the manual does not describe, making the best way to proceed unclear.

In these cases, it's typically acceptable to apply the general principles of APA citation to the new kind of source in a way that's consistent and sensible. A good way to do this is to simply use the standard APA directions for a type of source that resembles the source you want to cite. For example, a sensible way to cite a virtual reality program would be to mimic the APA's guidelines for computer software.

You may also want to investigate whether a third-party organization has provided directions for how to cite this kind of source.

Citing a Website Without Authors

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Using articles published on websites as sources in academic papers is an increasingly common practice, and for good reason. They are easy to access and can contain a breadth of valuable information. It can be challenging, however, to properly cite websites when there is no clear author for the article, or if there are numerous authors listed. So how can you go about creating accurate references for these types of sources? Read on for informative tips that will help you create citations like these for your next paper.

Below are formulas and examples for how to cite a web page in MLA formatting , APA style , and Harvard referencing, which are some of the most popular styles on Cite This For Me. (The Harvard example in this article adheres to the rules in Harvard – Cite Them Right style specifically). The examples for “many authors” assume that there are six or more authors listed in the source.

How to cite a web page in MLA style with no author

“Title of the Article or Individual Page.” Title of the website , Name of the publisher, Date of publication, URL.

“Facts About Giant Pandas.” Smithsonian National Zoological Park , Smithsonian Institute, 2004, www.nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/giantpandas/pandafacts.

How to cite a web page in MLA style with many authors

First Author Last Name, First Name, et al. “Title of the Article or Individual Page.” Title of the website , Name of the publisher, Date of publication, URL.

Smith, Martha, et al. “The Early Works of Emily Dickinson.” Dickinson Electronic Archives, University of Maryland, 1994, www.emilydickinson.org/index.html .

How to cite a web page in APA style with no author

Title of web page. (Year, Month Date of publication). Retrieved from URL

India: Country specific information. (2013, October 3). Retrieved from http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1139.html

How to cite a web page in APA style with many authors

Author 1 Last Name, First Middle Initial, Author 2 Last Name, First Middle Initial, Author 3 Last Name, First Middle Initial, Author 4 Last Name, First Middle Initial, Author 5 Last Name, First Middle Initial, Author 6 Last Name, First Middle Initial . . . Final Author Last Name, First Middle Initial. (Year, Month Date of publication). Retrieved from URL.

Satalkar, B., Choi, M.J., Angeli, L.L., Harland, A.A., Stamos, J.A., Thomas, S.T., . . . Rubin, J.H. (2010, July 15). Water aerobics. Retrieved from http://www.buzzle.com  

How to cite a web page in Harvard style with no author

Web page title (Year published) Available at: URL (Accessed: Day Month Year).

Palladio’s Italian villas (2005) Available at: http://www.boglewood.com/palladio/ (Accessed: 23 December 2018).

*Need more help? Check out our Harvard referencing tool .

How to cite a web page in Harvard style with many authors

Author Last Name, First Middle Initial et al. (Year published) Web page title. Available at: URL (Accessed: Day Month Year).

Burton, P.A et al. (2012) The world’s oldest castles. Available at: http://www.castlesofspain.co.uk/ (Accessed: 14 December 2018).

Need help learning how to write an annotated bibliography ? Trying to make an in-text citation for a website ? Cite This For Me has citing guides and tools to help you with this and more!

If the webpage’s author is not available, use the title of the webpage in the in-text citation. For a webpage title, enclose the title in double quotation marks and use title case, not sentence case, in the in-text citation.

In case the title is too long, use a shortened version.

Webpage Example In-Text Citation With No Author:

“Nephrology in 2020 and Beyond” 2020 states… (paraphrase)

The article “Nephrology in 2020 and Beyond” (2020) states that…

Parenthetical:

The article explains the theory that future nephrology will focus on proactive kidney disease diagnoses (“Nephrology in 2020 and Beyond,” 2020).

For a shortened version, use only the noun in the noun phrase of the title:

(“Nephrology,” 2020).

If the webpage’s author is not available, use the title of the webpage first in the reference entry.

Webpage Example Reference Entry With No Author:

Nephrology. (2022, January 25). In Wikipedia . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nephrology

When a webpage does NOT have an author, use the title of the article or webpage to reference it within the text. Unlike other formats, do not include the year in which the webpage was created. If the title is long, use a shortened form, creating a noun phrase and excluding beginning articles. The phrase must include the first words shown in its citation on the Works Cited page.

Format: Parenthetical Citation

(“Title of the article”)

( Title of the Webpage )

Example: Parenthetical Citation

(“All Things Elon”)

( Writing Characters )

Format: Narrative Citation

According to “Title of the Article,” it is known that . . .

According to Title of the Webpage , it is . . .

Example: Narrative Citation

According to “A Crow’s Voice,” the crow is one of the most intelligent of all birds out there.

According to Investing in NFTs , these digital assets are one of the fastest growing sectors.

As per the MLA 9 handbook, if you don’t find an author’s name, don’t state it as “Anonymous.”  Instead, omit the author’s name and fill in the next element of the works-cited entry: the name of the webpage.

“Title of the Article or Individual Page.” Website Name , Publisher, Day Month Year Published, URL.

“Stanley Crane Dies at Smithsonian’s National Zoo.” Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute , Smithsonian Institute, 9 Feb. 2022,

https://nationalzoo.si.edu/news/stanley-crane-dies-smithsonians-national-zoo

For footnotes for a webpage with no authors, include as much of the following information as possible: the title or description of the page, the title of the website, the owner or sponsor of the site, and the URL. If available, include the publication date or modification date; if not available, include the access date.

“Title of the Webpage,” Title of the Website, Owner of the Site, Published/Updated/Accessed Month Day, Year, URL.

15. “Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Pandemic,” World Health Organization, WHO, last modified October 14, 2021, accessed February 19, 2022, https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019.

For a bibliography entry for a webpage with no author, include as much of the following information as possible: the title or description of the page, the title of the website, the owner or sponsor of the site, and the URL. If available, include the publication date or modification date; if not available, include the access date in your citation. When formatting the citation for your bibliography, include the site owner at the beginning of your citation in the author field.

Website Owner Name. “Webpage Name.” Website Name. Published/Updated/Accessed Month Day, Year. URL.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration. “New Era of Smarter Food Safety.” FDA. Last modified January 27, 2022. https://www.fda.gov/food/new-era-smarter-food-safety.

APA Citation Style

• Getting Started

In-Text Citations

• Instruction Videos

Quick Links

APA format requires that resources be cited using the author-date system. This means that papers need to include a reference list and in-text citations that appear in the body of the paper. The in-text citation consists of the author and the year of publication. If there Is no year, use "n.d." in place of that information.

Below are some general guidelines for in-text citations:

• if a work has two authors, cite both names every time the reference occurs in the text
• if a work has three or more authors, include the name of only the first author plus "et al." in every citation unless doing so would create ambiguity

There are two ways to cite in the text, parenthetical and narrative. Below are guidelines:

• parenthetical citations include the author and date, separated by a comma, within parentheses
• in narrative citations the author's name appears in the text, and only the year appears in parentheses
• occasionally, both the year and author will appear in the text

In-Text Citations with One Author

Narrative in-text citations:

Kessler (2003) found that........

In 2003, Kessler's study of........

Parenthetical in-text citations:

There were many plants that did not show this characteristic (Kessler, 2003).

In-Text Citations with Two Authors

Salas and D'Agostino (2020) found that...

In 2020, Salas and D'Agostino found...

(Salas & D'Agostino, 2020)

In-Text Citations with Three or More Authors

Martin et al. (2020) found that...

In 2020, Martin et al. found...

(Martin et al., 2020)

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Academic Referencing: How to Cite a Research Paper

Learning how to conduct accurate, discipline-specific academic research can feel daunting at first. But, with a solid understanding of the reasoning behind why we use academic citations coupled with knowledge of the basics, you’ll learn how to cite sources with accuracy and confidence.

When it comes to academic research, citing sources correctly is arguably as important as the research itself. "Your instructors are expecting your work to adhere to these professional standards," said Amanda Girard , research support manager of Shapiro Library at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU).

With Shapiro Library for the past three years, Girard manages the library’s research support services, which includes SNHU’s 24/7 library chat and email support. She holds an undergraduate degree in professional writing and a graduate degree in library and information science. She said that accurate citations show that you have done your research on a topic and are knowledgeable about current ideas from those actively working in the field.

In other words, when you cite sources according to the academic style of your discipline, you’re giving credit where credit is due.

Why Cite Sources?

Citing sources properly ensures you’re following high academic and professional standards for integrity and ethics.

“When you cite a source, you can ethically use others’ research. If you are not adequately citing the information you claim in your work, it would be considered plagiarism ,” said Shannon Geary '16 , peer tutor at SNHU.

Geary has an undergraduate degree in communication  from SNHU and has served on the academic support team for close to 2 years. Her job includes helping students learn how to conduct research  and write academically.

“In academic writing, it is crucial to state where you are receiving your information from,” she said. “Citing your sources ensures that you are following academic integrity standards.”

According to Geary and Girard, several key reasons for citing sources are:

• Access. Citing sources points readers to original sources. If anyone wants to read more on your topic, they can use your citations as a roadmap to access the original sources.
• Attribution. Crediting the original authors, researchers and experts  shows that you’re knowledgeable about current ideas from those actively working in the field and adhering to high ethical standards, said Girard.
• Clarity. “By citing your sources correctly, your reader can follow along with your research,” Girard said.
• Consistency. Adhering to a citation style provides a framework for presenting ideas within similar academic fields. “Consistent formatting makes accessing, understanding and evaluating an author's findings easier for others in related fields of study,” Geary said.
• Credibility. Proper citation not only builds a writer's authority but also ensures the reliability of the work, according to Geary.

Ultimately, citing sources is a formalized way for you to share ideas as part of a bigger conversation among others in your field. It’s a way to build off of and reference one another’s ideas, Girard said.

How Do You Cite an Academic Research Paper?

Any time you use an original quote or paraphrase someone else’s ideas, you need to cite that material, according to Geary.

“The only time we do not need to cite is when presenting an original thought or general knowledge,” she said.

While the specific format for citing sources can vary based on the style used, several key elements are always included, according to Girard. Those are:

• Title of source
• Type of source, such as a journal, book, website or periodical

By giving credit to the authors, researchers and experts you cite, you’re building credibility. You’re showing that your argument is built on solid research.

“Proper citation not only builds a writer's authority but also ensures the reliability of the work,” Geary said. “Properly formatted citations are a roadmap for instructors and other readers to verify the information we present in our work.”

Common Citation Styles in Academic Research

Certain disciplines adhere to specific citation standards because different disciplines prioritize certain information and research styles . The most common citation styles used in academic research, according to Geary, are:

• American Psychological Association, known as APA . This style is standard in the social sciences such as psychology, education and communication. “In these fields, research happens rapidly, which makes it exceptionally important to use current research,” Geary said.
• Modern Language Association, known as MLA . This style is typically used in literature and humanities because of the emphasis on literature analysis. “When citing in MLA, there is an emphasis on the author and page number, allowing the audience to locate the original text that is being analyzed easily,” Geary said.
• Chicago Manual of Style, known as Chicago . This style is typically used in history, business and sometimes humanities. “(Chicago) offers flexibility because of the use of footnotes, which can be seen as less distracting than an in-text citation,” Geary said.

The benefit of using the same format as other researchers within a discipline is that the framework of presenting ideas allows you to “speak the same language,” according to Girard.

APA Citation for College: A Brief Overview

Are you writing a paper that needs to use APA citation, but don’t know what that means? No worries. You’ve come to the right place.

How to Use MLA Formatting: A Brief Overview

Are you writing a paper for which you need to know how to use MLA formatting, but don’t know what that means? No worries. You’ve come to the right place.

How to Ensure Proper Citations

Keeping track of your research as you go is one of the best ways to ensure you’re citing appropriately and correctly based on the style that your academic discipline uses.

“Through careful citation, authors ensure their audience can distinguish between borrowed material and original thoughts, safeguarding their academic reputation and following academic honesty policies,” Geary said.

Some tips that she and Girard shared to ensure you’re citing sources correctly include:

• Keep track of sources as you work. Writers should keep track of their sources every time an idea is not theirs, according to Geary. “You don’t want to find the perfect research study and misplace its source information, meaning you’d have to omit it from your paper,” she said.
• Practice. Even experienced writers need to check their citations before submitting their work. “Citing requires us to pay close attention to detail, so always start your citation process early and go slow to ensure you don’t make mistakes,” said Geary. In time, citing sources properly becomes faster and easier.
• Use an Online Tool . Geary recommends the Shapiro Library citation guide . You can find sample papers, examples of how to cite in the different academic styles and up-to-date citation requirements, along with information and examples for APA, MLA and Chicago style citations.
• Work with a Tutor. A tutor can offer support along with tips to help you learn the process of academic research. Students at SNHU can connect with free peer tutoring through the Academic Support tab in their online courses, though many colleges and universities offer peer tutoring.

Find Your Program

How to cite a reference in academic writing.

A citation consists of two pieces: an in-text citation that is typically short and a longer list of references or works cited (depending on the style used) at the end of the paper.

“In-text citations immediately acknowledge the use of external source information and its exact location,” Geary said. While each style uses a slightly different format for in-text citations that reference the research, you may expect to need the page number, author’s name and possibly date of publication in parentheses at the end of a sentence or passage, according to Geary.

A longer entry listing the complete details of the resource you referenced should also be included on the references or works cited page at the end of the paper. The full citation is provided with complete details of the source, such as author, title, publication date and more, Geary said.

The two-part aspect of citations is because of readability. “You can imagine how putting the full citation would break up the flow of a paper,” Girard said. “So, a shortened version is used (in the text).”

“For example, if an in-text citation reads (Jones, 2024), the reader immediately knows that the ideas presented are coming from Jones’s work, and they can explore the comprehensive citation on the final page,” she said.

The in-text citation and full citation together provide a transparent trail of the author's process of engaging with research.

“Their combined use also facilitates further research by following a standardized style (APA, MLA, Chicago), guaranteeing that other scholars can easily connect and build upon their work in the future,” Geary said.

Developing and demonstrating your research skills, enhancing your work’s credibility and engaging ethically with the intellectual contributions of others are at the core of the citation process no matter which style you use.

A degree can change your life. Choose your program  from 200+ SNHU degrees that can take you where you want to go.

A former higher education administrator, Dr. Marie Morganelli is a career educator and writer. She has taught and tutored composition, literature, and writing at all levels from middle school through graduate school. With two graduate degrees in English language and literature, her focus — whether teaching or writing — is in helping to raise the voices of others through the power of storytelling. Connect with her on LinkedIn .

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• How to Cite a Journal Article | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples

How to Cite a Journal Article | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples

Published on March 9, 2021 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on January 17, 2024.

To cite an article from an academic journal, you need an in-text citation and a corresponding reference listing the name(s) of the author(s), the publication date, the article title and journal name, the volume and issue numbers, the page range, and the URL or DOI .

Different citation styles present this information differently. The main citation styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago style .

You can use the interactive example generator to explore the format for APA and MLA journal article citations.

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Table of contents

Citing an article in apa style, citing an article in mla style, citing an article in chicago style, frequently asked questions about citations.

In an APA Style journal article reference , the article title is in plain text and sentence case, while the journal name appears in italics, in title case.

The in-text citation lists up to two authors; for three or more, use “ et al. ”

When citing a journal article in print or from a database, don’t include a URL. You can still include the DOI if available.

You can also cite a journal article using our free APA Citation Generator . Search by title or DOI to automatically generate a correct citation.

Generate accurate APA citations with Scribbr

Scribbr citation checker new.

The AI-powered Citation Checker helps you avoid common mistakes such as:

• Missing commas and periods
• Incorrect usage of “et al.”
• Ampersands (&) in narrative citations
• Missing reference entries

In an MLA Works Cited entry for a journal article , the article title appears in quotation marks, the name of the journal in italics—both in title case.

List up to two authors in both the in-text citation and the Works Cited entry. For three or more, use “et al.”

A DOI is always included when available; a URL appears if no DOI is available but the article was accessed online . If you accessed the article in print and no DOI is available, you can omit this part.

You can also use our free MLA Citation Generator to create your journal article citations.

Generate accurate MLA citations with Scribbr

In Chicago notes and bibliography style, you include a bibliography entry for each source, and cite them in the text using footnotes .

A bibliography entry for a journal article lists the title of the article in quotation marks and the journal name in italics—both in title case. List up to 10 authors in full; use “et al.” for 11 or more.

In the footnote, use “et al.” for four or more authors.

A DOI or URL (preferably a DOI) is included for articles consulted online; for articles consulted in print, omit this part.

Chicago also offers an alternative author-date style of citation. Examples of how to cite journal articles in this style can be found here .

The elements included in journal article citations across APA , MLA , and Chicago style are the name(s) of the author(s), the title of the article, the year of publication, the name of the journal, the volume and issue numbers, the page range of the article, and, when accessed online, the DOI or URL.

In MLA and Chicago style, you also include the specific month or season of publication alongside the year, when this information is available.

The DOI is usually clearly visible when you open a journal article on an academic database. It is often listed near the publication date, and includes “doi.org” or “DOI:”. If the database has a “cite this article” button, this should also produce a citation with the DOI included.

If you can’t find the DOI, you can search on Crossref using information like the author, the article title, and the journal name.

The abbreviation “ et al. ” (Latin for “and others”) is used to shorten citations of sources with multiple authors.

“Et al.” is used in APA in-text citations of sources with 3+ authors, e.g. (Smith et al., 2019). It is not used in APA reference entries .

Use “et al.” for 3+ authors in MLA in-text citations and Works Cited entries.

Use “et al.” for 4+ authors in a Chicago in-text citation , and for 10+ authors in a Chicago bibliography entry.

Check if your university or course guidelines specify which citation style to use. If the choice is left up to you, consider which style is most commonly used in your field.

• APA Style is the most popular citation style, widely used in the social and behavioral sciences.
• MLA style is the second most popular, used mainly in the humanities.
• Chicago notes and bibliography style is also popular in the humanities, especially history.
• Chicago author-date style tends to be used in the sciences.

Other more specialized styles exist for certain fields, such as Bluebook and OSCOLA for law.

The most important thing is to choose one style and use it consistently throughout your text.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2024, January 17). How to Cite a Journal Article | APA, MLA, & Chicago Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved August 26, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/citing-sources/cite-a-journal-article/

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Organizing and Managing Citations

Citation management software can help you manage your research and easily organize and format your citations in a wide variety of citation styles. Check out the links below for more information about these useful programs. 

• Citation Management Basics This guide provides an overview of citation management software options, including basic functions and the differences between the various options available, including EndNote, EndNote Web, and Zotero. Also provided is contact information for Purdue librarians available to provide citation management support for Purdue faculty, students, and staff.
• EndNote at Purdue This guide provides detailed how-to and FAQ for EndNote citation management software, the desktop version.
• EndNote Basic EndNote Basic is an online citation management program that is freely available for all Purdue users. This guide highlights how-to, key functions, and FAQ, as well as differences between the desktop and online versions of this product.
• Zotero Zotero is a free and open, web-based citation management program. This guide provides info on getting started and carrying out key functions, for students and instructors. It also includes video tutorials.

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• Types of Plagiarism Plagiarism.org presents Plagiarism 101: What is Plagiarism?
• Citing Sources Plagiarism.org's useful guide to everything about citing sources.
• Avoiding Plagiarism Tips on how to summarize, paraphrase, and quote sources without plagiarizing from the Purdue OWL. Use the links on the left to navigate.
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Postgraduate Advanced Clinical Education (PACE) study support guide: 5. Citing references

• 1. University jargon-buster
• 2. Library resources
• 3. Literature searching
• 4. Plagiarism
• 5.1 Using EndNote
• 6.1 Academic writing
• 6.2 Reflective practice & writing
• 6.3 Understanding feedback
• 6.4 Presentations
• 6.5 Preparing for exams and OSCEs

General guidance on referencing

• Video intro to referencing and plagiarism

Referencing also...

• Provides evidence of the depth and breadth of your reading
• Enables the reader to find the source and read in more detail
• Gives your work academic authority
• Protects intellectual property rights

Which style should I use?

For PACE programmes guidance is provided below for a numbered style (Vancouver) and an author-year style (Harvard).  However you can use a different style as long as your references are clear and consistent.

If you are new to referencing and not familiar with using the more advanced features of word processing software, we advise using the Harvard format for longer assignments as it is easier to keep track of the placement and order of your references, but it will eat into your word count. The numbered Vancouver style is useful for shorter assignments but can become impractical for longer ones (unless using a reference management system like EndNote). 

Further support with writing references

For further help with formatting your references consult your Academic Liaison Librarian, Jackie Skinner - email or make an appointment (contact details below).

This video gives an overview of why and how you should reference materials used in your assignments. You will need to login with your University username and password to view this video.

Quick links to referencing guidance

Vancouver referencing

Guidance on using the numbered Vancouver style of referencing.

Harvard referencing

Guidance on using the name-year Harvard referencing style.

Secondary referencing

Guidance on citing a source you have read about in another source (to be avoided if possible!)

Citing images, tables, diagrams, charts

Referencing visual elements taken from other sources.

Vancouver referencing - click on the tabs for guidance on specific publications

• General guidance
• Video guide to Vancouver
• Chapters in edited books
• Journal articles
• British Pharmacopoeia
• NICE guidelines
• Local guidelines
• SmPCs/PILs on EMC
• Systematic reviews on the Cochrane Library
• Clinical trials
• Materials posted on Blackboard

Vancouver is a numbered style. Each piece of work cited should have a unique number, assigned in order (your first reference is 1, your second is 2 etc.). It is a very plain style with little punctuation and no text formatting such as italics, underlining or bold.

In-text citations

When adding an in-text citation to your document you can write the number in brackets:

Medical systems need to be carefully considered and designed to reduce the likelihood of medication errors (1).

How do I cite multiple sources together?

• When citing two or more sources at once, write a number for each separated by a comma e.g. (1, 2) or (6, 12)
• When citing more than two sources which are numbered consecutively, use a hyphen instead of a comma e.g. (3-5)

For example:

There are many studies that have examined the effect of alcohol on cognitive impairment (1,2, 4-7, 9).

Other citation questions

How should i refer to authors in the text.

You do not have to refer to the authors' names in the text but it may help the flow of your writing to do so.

Two authors: give both author's surnames linked with 'and'. For example:

A recent study by Chen and Lee (4) found that...

Three or more authors: use the first author's surname followed by "et al.". For example:

A recent study by Rang et al. (2) found that...

An organisation: give the full name with any recognised abbreviation in brackets afterwards e.g. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Thereafter you can refer to it using the abbreviation. Give the full name and abbreviation in the full reference. For example:

A survey by Asthma UK found that one in 20 people suffer from severe asthma (6).

How do I include a quote from a source?

If directly quoting from a work, you need to use single quotation marks. Include a page number in the in-text citation. For example:

More recently, a paper by Walker et al. (3) stated that 'student pharmacists are valuable and important to practice model transformation' (p. 47).

A paper by Walker et al.stated that 'student pharmacists are valuable and important to practice model transformation' (3, p. 47).

How do I refer to a source referenced in another work?

This type of referencing is known as secondary referencing and should be avoided wherever possible, as the author citing the work may have their own bias or misinterpretation. It is better to seek out the original reference (in this example, Ahmed’s) and cite it directly if it is useful.

You need to include both authors' names in the body of your text to show that you have not read the original article. In the final reference list, you should only include the reference you have read yourself (Jones in this example):

According to Ahmed as cited in Jones (5)...

Reference list

References must be listed at the end of your document in numerical order based on the order of citation.  If you use the same source more than once, the original citation number should be used. 

Author names

Cited by Surname Initials - there is no comma between the surname and initials, nor any full stop or space between initials.

Multiple authors

Authors should be listed in the order they appear on the publication. Only list the first six authors followed by et al. 

Monzer NL, Hartmann M, Buckert M, Wolff K, Nawroth P, Kopf S et al. 

Additional guidance

See the tabs in this box for additional guidance and relevant examples. Our Vancouver guidance is closely aligned with that given in the 'Cite them right' book and website (below). You can find extra publication types and examples via this website. Note that we deviate from this guide in some case to make references simpler. For instance you should put journal names in full not abbreviated.

• Vancouver referencing guidance in Cite Them Right

Find an overview of the essentials of Vancouver referencing in this video (8 mins). You will need to login with your University username and password to view this video.

Citing books and e-books

Most books and e-books can be cited in the same way. If you are viewing the PDF of a printed book there is no need to include the web address in your reference if you have the place published and publisher.

Include the following in your reference:

• Author(s) or editors in the format Surname Initials (no full stops or spaces between initials). For books with more than six authors list the first six followed by 'et al.'
• Title of book (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns)
• Edition (if not the first)
• Place of publication: Publisher; Year. You can usually find this information on the title page or following page.

Copy the format and punctuation of these examples:

• Ritter JM, Flower RJ, Henderson G, Loke YK, MacEwan D, Robinson E, Fullerton J. Rang & Dale's pharmacology. 10th ed. London: Elsevier; 2024.
• Ashley C, Dunleavy A, editors. The renal drug handbook: the ultimate prescribing guide for renal practitioners. 5th ed. Boca Raton: CRC Press; 2019.

Citing online only books

Some books are born digital and are not published in a traditional format. If the book does not have a Place published and Publisher then you will need to follow this guidance. Include the following in your reference:

• Author(s) or editors in the format Surname Initials (no full stops or spaces between initials) For books with more than six authors list the first six followed by 'et al.'
• Year. 
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2022 Jun 18] You can usually find this information on the title page or following page.
• Available from: https://doi.org... or web address

Note: if you are unable to find a place published and publisher you will need to cite the item following the web page guidance.

• UK Health Security Agency. Immunisation against infectious disease (The Green Book) [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2024 Jan 26]. Available from: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immunisation-against-infectious-disease-the-green-book.
• Grabrucker AM, editor. Autism spectrum disorders [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2024 Feb 10]. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK573612/.

Note: Using StatPearls? Follow the guidance on citing an online only book chapter .

EndNote tips

• Use the Reference Type 'Book'
• Author: in the format surname, initials, each author on a separate line
• Place published:
• Edition: if not the first - just add the number e.g. 2nd, 3rd
• Use the Reference Type  'Edited book'
• Same as above but instead of the Author field fill in the Editor field 
• Use the Reference Type 'Electronic Book'
• Type of Medium: Internet
• Year Cited: in the format 2024
• Date Cited: in the format month day e.g. Jan 23
• URL: paste in the web link
• Note that even with the information entered as above EndNote will not quite format the reference correctly - the edition will not appear and for edited e-books 'editors' will not be added after the editor names. To correct this, as a final step before submission, create a plain text version of your document. Go to the EndNote toolbar in Word and select 'Convert citations and bibliography' to 'Plain text' (this will be under 'Tools' on the Mac version of the toolbar). This will create a copy of your document which is divorced from EndNote so that you can make final tweaks to the references to match the guidance above.

Citing chapters in printed books and e-books with publication details

Follow this guidance to cite a printed book or an e-book which has the publisher and place published information. Include the following in your reference:

• Chapter author(s) in the format Surname Initials (no full stops or spaces between initials)
• Title of chapter. (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns)
• Editor(s) of the book followed by , editors
• Title of book. (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns)
• Place of publication: Publisher; Year.
• Page numbers of the chapter preceded by p. Abbreviate where appropriate e.g. 110-128 would be 110-28, 450-455 would be 450-5.

Copy the format and punctuation of this example

• Singh H, Khurana LK, Singh R. Pharmaceutical development. In: Vohora D, Singh G, editors. Pharmaceutical medicine and translational clinical research. London: Academic Press; 2018. p. 33-46.
• Davies J, Nuttall D. Prescribing for specific groups. In: Nuttall D, Rutt-Howard J, editors. The textbook of non-medical prescribing. 3rd ed. Hoboken: Wiley; 2020. p. 238-73.

Citing chapters in online only books

Some books are born digital and are not published in a traditional format. When citing chapters in these include the following in your reference:

• Chapter author(s) in the format Surname Initials  (no full stops or spaces between initials)
• Title of chapter. (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns)
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2022 Jun 18]
• Page numbers of the chapter if available preceded by p. Abbreviate where appropriate e.g. 110-128 would be 110-28, 450-455 would be 450-5.
• UK Health Security Agency. Immunisation by nurses and other healthcare professionals. In: Immunisation against infectious disease (The Green Book) [Internet]. 2013. p. 35-9 [cited 2024 Feb 3]. Available from: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immunisation-by-nurses-and-other-health-professionals-the-green-book-chapter-5.
• Kawakami S, Otsuka S. Multisensory processing in autism spectrum disorders. In: Grabrucker AM, editor. Autism spectrum disorders [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2024 Jan 7]. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK573612/.
• Squadrito FJ, del Portal D. Nitrofurantoin. In: StatPearls [Internet]. 2022 [cited 2024 Feb 1]. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470526/.

Endnote tips

• Use the Reference Type 'Book Section'
• Author(s): in the format surname, initials. Each author on a separate line.
• Title: title of chapter 
• Editor(s): in the format surname, initials. Each editor on a separate line.
• Book title: capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns
• Pages: page numbers for the chapter
• Use the Reference Type 'Electronic Book Section'
• Title: chapter title
• Editor: (if there is one)
• Book Title:
• Type of Work: Internet
• Access Date: in the format year, month (abbreviated to three letters) day e.g. 2024 Jan 21
• Note that even with all the required information entered in EndNote it will not format the reference correctly - the Edition and Type of Work will not be in the correct place. For edited e-books 'editors' will not be added after the editor names. The Access Date will be repeated at the end. To correct this, as a final step before submission, create a plain text version of your document. Go to the EndNote toolbar in Word and select 'Convert citations and bibliography' to 'Plain text' (this will be under 'Tools' on the Mac version of the toolbar). This will create a copy of your document which is divorced from EndNote so that you can make final tweaks to the references to match the guidance above.

Note that the way you enter a chapter on EndNote for the Vancouver style is different from the way you enter it for the Harvard style. It is not possible to reuse one entry in both styles.

Citing journal articles which have page numbers or article reference numbers

• Article author(s) in the format Surname Initials (no full stops or spaces between initials). For articles with more than six authors list the first six followed by 'et al.'
• Title of article. (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns)
• Journal title in full (use a capital letter at the start of each significant word in the title) Note: we are not following the 'Cite them right' guidance to abbreviate journal names.
• Volume number
• Issue number in brackets (where present)
• Page numbers or article reference number. Abbreviate page ranges where appropriate e.g. 110-128 would be 110-28, 450-455 would be 450-5.

Copy the format and punctuation of this example:

Rana MN, Neeland IJ. Adipose tissue inflammation and cardiovascular disease: an update. Current Diabetes Reports.   2022; 22(1):27-37. 

Monzer NL, Hartmann M, Buckert M, Wolff K, Nawroth P, Kopf S et al. The cardiac autonomic response to acute psychological stress in type 2 diabetes. PloS One. 2022;   17(3):e0265234.

Citing online journal articles without page numbers or article reference numbers

• Article author(s) in the format Surname Initials (no full stops or spaces between initials). For articles with more than six authors list the first six followed by 'et al.'
• Available from: https://doi.org/... or web address if no DOI. When including a web address make sure it is as short as possible and doesn't include intermediate websites or your search string. 

Azpiroz F, Dubray C, Bernalier-Donadille A, Cardot JM, Accarino A, Serra J, Wagner A, Respondek F, Dapoigny M. Effects of scFOS on the composition of fecal microbiota and anxiety in patients with irritable bowel syndrome: a randomized, double blind, placebo controlled study. Neurogastroenterology & Motility [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2024 Jan 24] ;29(2). Available from: https://doi.org/10.1111/nmo.12911.

Note: if an article is in press and doesn't yet have a volume number treat like as above but add 'Forthcoming' before the year:

Vaghari-Tabari M, Jafari-Gharabaghlou D, Mohammadi M, Hashemzadeh MS. Zinc oxide nanoparticles and cancer chemotherapy: helpful tools for enhancing chemo-sensitivity and reducing side effects? Biological Trace Element Research [Internet]. Forthcoming 2024 [cited 2024 Jan 28]. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-023-03803-z

You should be able to download details for most articles from databases such as Summon, Web of Science, Scopus and PubMed. If you need to type one in from scratch this is the information to include.

For most articles

• Use the Reference Type 'Journal Article'
• Author: in the format surname, initials - each author on a separate line
• Title: title of the article - in lower case apart from the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns
• Journal: name of the journal - give the journal name in full, not abbreviated. Use initial capital letters on all significant words.
• Issue: (if present)
• Pages: page numbers or article reference number

For online only articles without page numbers or an article reference number and 'In press' articles:

• Use Reference Type 'Electronic Article'
• Periodical Title: name of the journal - give the journal name in full, not abbreviated. Use initial capital letters on all significant words.
• Volume: (if the article doesn't yet have a volume number add 'Forthcoming ' before the year - as in the above example)
• Issue: (put in press here for articles currently being published).
• Date Cited in the format month day e.g. Feb 5.
• URL: paste in the web link for the article or move the DOI from the DOI field and add https://doi.org/ in front of it e.g. https://doi.org/10.1136/ejhpharm-2021-003215 If there is already a URL in the box check that it goes to the article, not back to the reference on the database you downloaded it from. Replace any database links with the DOI with https://doi.org/ in front of it or add the direct link to the article. When including a web address make sure it is as short as possible and doesn't include intermediate websites or your search string. 

Citing websites or webpages

You should avoid citing webpages unless you are clear of their quality and suitability for inclusion in academic work. See the 'Websites' tab within this guide for more information on evaluating webpages.

Only follow this guidance if the item you want to reference is not a book, a book chapter or a journal article.  When you search the internet you will find many different types of content. The first step to referencing correctly is to recognise what you are looking at.

• Could it be a book? Is it a PDF? Does it have a title page giving the title and the authors/editors? Does it have a place published and publisher on the following page? If 'Yes' it is probably a book - follow the guidance on citing a book.
• Could it be a book chapter? Does it say 'Chapter' on it? Does it have page numbers? If 'Yes' it could be a book chapter - follow the guidance on citing a book chapter.
• Could it be journal article? Does it have an abstract or summary? Does it mention the name of a journal and have a volume number? If 'Yes' it could be a journal article - follow the guidance on citing a journal article.

For guidance on citing specific, commonly used pharmacy-related sources see the other tabs in this box.

Citing reputable websites and webpages

• Author(s)/Organisation name
• Title of page/document (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns)
• [Internet].
• Year created/updated (for webpages with no date omit this element - see the final example)
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2022 Feb 18]
• Available from: web link. When including a web address make sure it is as short as possible and doesn't include intermediate websites or your search string. 

Use the format and punctuation shown in these examples:

• Reynolds M. How the team monitoring new and emerging infectious diseases could help prevent the next pandemic [Internet]. 2023 [cited 2024 Feb 2]. Available from: https://ukhsa.blog.gov.uk/2023/08/08/how-the-team-monitoring-new-and-emerging-infectious-diseases-could-help-prevent-the-next-pandemic/.
• DrugBank. Ranitidine [Internet]. 2024 [cited 2024 Feb 8]. Available from: https://www.drugbank.ca/drugs/DB00863.
• IUPHAR/BPS. Ibuprofen [Internet]. [cited 2024 Feb 6]. Available from:  https://www.guidetopharmacology.org/GRAC/LigandDisplayForward?ligandId=2713. (this example is for a webpage without a date)
• Use the Reference Type 'Web Page'
• Author: in the format surname, initials - each author on a separate line Organisation as the author? Put a comma after the name to ensure it formats correctly e.g. British Nutrition Foundation,
• Year: use the updated date for the page, if there isn't a date use 'no date'
• Title: (in lower case apart from the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns)
• Type of Medium: Internet
• URL: paste in the web link. When including a web address make sure it is as short as possible and doesn't include intermediate websites or your search string. 
• Organisation as the author? Put a comma after the name to ensure it formats correctly e.g. British Nutrition Foundation,

Citing the BNF

When citing the BNF you only need one generic reference, not specific references for each drug or piece of information you have used. Just make it clear in your text which drug/section you are referring to. 

Print version

• Author - Joint Formulary Committee.
• Title - British National Formulary (BNF).
• Place of publication - London:
• Publisher -  BMJ Group and Pharmaceutical Press;

Use the format and punctuation shown in this example - update the edition and year to the one you are using:

• Joint Formulary Committee. British National Formulary (BNF). 87. London: BMJ Group and Pharmaceutical Press; 2024.

Online versions (NICE and MedicinesComplete)

• Author - Joint Formulary Committee
• For the NICE website version take this from the 'Last updated' date on the BNF homepage.
• For the MedicinesComplete take this from the 'Publication last updated' date from the top of the page.
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2024 Jul 29]
• Available from: https://bnf.nice.org.uk/  OR Available from: https://www.medicinescomplete.com

Copy the format and punctuation of these examples:

Full reference (NICE version): Joint Formulary Committee. British National Formulary (BNF). 27 June 2024 [Internet]. 2024 [cited 2024 Jul 4]. Available from: https://bnf.nice.org.uk/.

Full reference (MedicinesComplete version): Joint Formulary Committee. British National Formulary (BNF). 9 July 2024 [Internet]. 2024 [cited 2024 Jul 29]. Available from: https://www.medicinescomplete.com.

Access MedicinesComplete

Provides access to the British National Formulary, British National Formulary for Children and Stockley’s Drug Interactions.

Please note, due to licensing restrictions students and staff must access the BNF and BNF for Children on the MedicinesComplete platform. Use of the NICE BNF platform is only permitted for those working for, or on placement with, the NHS.

• Title - British National Formulary (BNF) app followed by the update date e.g. British National Formulary (BNF) app. June 2024.
• Format: [Mobile app].
• Year of publication - use the year given on the homepage of the app
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2024 Jul 13]
• Available from: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pharmpress.bnf  OR Available from: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/bnf-publications/id1045514038

Copy the format and punctuation of this example:

Full reference: Joint Formulary Committee. British National Formulary (BNF) app. June 2024 [Mobile app]. 2024 [cited 2024 Jul 13]. Available from: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pharmpress.bnf 

For the print version

• Author: Joint Formulary Committee, (make sure you put the comma after the name to make it format correctly)
• Title: British National Formulary (BNF) followed by Version number e.g. British National Formulary (BNF) 87

For the online versions:

• Use the Reference Type 'Web Page'
• Year: 
• Title: followed by the update date e.g. British National Formulary (BNF). 9 July 2024
• Year Cited: in the format 2024
• Date Cited: in the format month day e.g. Jul 13
• URL: https://bnf.nice.org.uk/ OR https://www.medicinescomplete.com (depending on which version you are using)

For the app:

• Title: followed by the update date e.g. British National Formulary (BNF) app. June 2024
• Type of medium: Mobile app
• URL: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pharmpress.bnf OR https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/bnf-publications/id1045514038 (depending on which version you are using)

Citing the BNF for children

When citing the BNFC you only need one generic reference, not specific references for each drug or piece of information you have used. Just make it clear in your text which drug/section you are referring to. 

• Author - Pediatric Formulary Committee
• Title - BNF for children
• Publisher -  BMJ Group, Pharmaceutical Press and RCPCH Publications;

Use the format and punctuation shown in this example:

• Pediatric Formulary Committee. BNF for children. 2022-2023 ed. London: BMJ Group, Pharmaceutical Press and RCPCH Publications; 2022. 

Online versions (NICE and MedicinesComplete)

• Title - British National Formulary for children (BNFC)
• Update date For the NICE website version take this from the 'Last updated' date on the BNF homepage. For the MedicinesComplete take this from the 'Publication last updated' date from the top of the page.
• Year published For the NICE website version take this from the 'Last updated' date on the BNF homepage. For the MedicinesComplete take this from the 'Publication last updated' date from the top of the page.
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2024 July 29]
• Available from: https://bnfc.nice.org.uk/  OR Available from: https://www.medicinescomplete.com

Copy the format and punctuation shown of these examples:

Full reference (NICE version): Pediatric Formulary Committee. British National Formulary for children (BNFC). 27 June 2024 [Internet]. 2024 [cited 2024 Jul 29]. Available from: https://bnfc.nice.org.uk/.

Full reference (MedicinesComplete version): Pediatric Formulary Committee. British National Formulary for children (BNFC) . 9 July 2024 [Internet]. 2024 [cited 2024 Jul 29]. Available from: https://www.medicinescomplete.com.

• Title - British National Formulary for children (BNFC) app followed by the update date e.g. British National Formulary for children (BNFC) app. June 2024.
• Year of publication - use the year given on the homepage of the BNFC section of the app
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2024 Jul 29]

Full reference: Pediatric Formulary Committee. British National Formulary for children (BNFC) app. July 2024 [Mobile app]. 2024 [cited 2024 Jul 29]. Available from: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pharmpress.bnf 

• Author: Pediatric Formulary Committee, (make sure you put the comma after the name to make it format correctly)
• Title: followed by version e.g. BNF for children 2022-2023
• Place published: London
• Publisher:  BMJ Group, Pharmaceutical Press and RCPCH Publications
• Author: Pediatric Formulary Committee, (make sure you put the comma after the name to make it format correctly)
• Date Cited: in the format month day e.g. Jul 29
• Title: followed by the update date e.g. British National Formulary for children (BNFC) app. June 2024 

Citing the British Pharmacopoeia

When citing the British Pharmacopoeia you only need one generic reference, not specific references for each drug or section you have used. Just make it clear in your text which drug/section you are referring to. 

• Author - British Pharmacopoeia Commission
• Title - British Pharmacopoeia
• Version e.g. Ph. Eur. 11.4
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2024 Feb 8]
• Available from: https://www.pharmacopoeia.com

Use the format and punctuation shown in this example (make sure you change the Version and dates to match the ones you use):

• British Pharmacopoeia Commission. British Pharmacopoeia. Ph. Eur. 11.4 update [Internet]. 2024 [cited 2024 Feb 8]. Available from: https://www.pharmacopoeia.com.
• Author: British Pharmacopoeia Commission, (make sure you put the comma after the name to make it format correctly)
• Title: followed by the update date e.g. British Pharmacopoeia. Ph. Eur. 11.4 update
• Date Cited: in the format month day e.g. Feb 8
• URL: https://www.pharmacopoeia.com

Access the British Pharmacopoeia

Access to the latest edition of The British Pharmacopoeia (BP), the leading collection of standards for UK medicinal products and pharmaceutical substances.

Help and guidance How to use the BP

Citing NICE guidelines

• Author - National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)
• Title of page/document including reference number in round brackets (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns)
• Year created/updated 
• Available from: web link (For a shorter reference use the link for the webpage instead of the longer PDF link)
• National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Vaccine uptake in the general population (NG218) [Internet]. 2022 [cited 2024 Feb 9]. Available from: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng218.
• National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Acute heart failure: diagnosis and management (CG187) [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2024 Jan 10]. Available from: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg187.
• Author: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), - make sure you put a comma after the name so it formats correctly Organisation as the author? Put a comma after the name to ensure it formats correctly e.g. British Nutrition Foundation,
• Date Cited: in the format month day e.g. Jan 13
• URL: paste in the web link

Citing local guidelines

Local guidelines, although authored by individuals, should be ratified by a designated committee therefore are the work of the organisation.

Print guidelines

• Author - organisation name
• Title of policy (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns) and Version
• Place of publication
• Publisher (usually the same as the author)

Use the format and punctuation shown in this example:

• Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. Non-medical prescribing policy: Version 3. London: Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust; 2016.

Online guidelines

• Title of page/document (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns) and Version
• Year created/updated (for guidelines with no date just use the cited date)
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2022 June 18]
• Available from: web link
• North East London Health & Care Partnership. North East London (NEL) management of infection guidance for primary care. August 2023 [Internet]. 2023 [cited 2024 Feb 8]. Available from: https://gp-website-cdn-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/prescribing-guideline-downloads/1697724608-4663d459fc894709f71ce7beaa8662db.pdf

For print guidelines

• Use the Reference Type 'Book'
• Author: in the format surname, initials, each author on a separate line. If the author is an organisation put a comma after the name to make sure it formats correctly e.g. Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust,
• Title: (in lower case apart from the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns) include the Version after the title e.g. Non-medical prescribing policy. Version 5

For online guidelines

• Author: in the format surname, initials, each author on a separate line. Organisation as the author? Put a comma after the name to ensure it formats correctly e.g. e.g. North East London Health & Care Partnership,
• Year Cited: in the format 2022
• Date Cited: in the format month day e.g. Dec 20

Citing Summaries of Product Characteristics (SmPCs) or Patient Information Leaflets (PILs) on the Electronic Medicines Compendium

• Author - drug company who wrote the SmPC
• Title (capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns) followed by Electronic Medicines Compendium 
• Year created/updated
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. 2024 Jan 29
• Available from: web link 

Use the format and punctuation shown in these examples.

• Wokhardt UK Ltd. Aciclovir 400mg tablets summary of product characteristics. Electronic Medicines Compendium [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2024 Jan 29]. Available from: https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/2352/smpc.
• Dermal Laboratories Limited. Ibugel patient information leaflet. Electronic Medicines Compendium [Internet]. 2024 [cited 2024 Feb 9]. Available from: https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/3759/pil.
• Use the Reference Type 'Web Page'
• Author: company name. Put a comma after the company name to ensure it formats correctly e.g. Accord-UK Ltd.,
• Title: (in lower case apart from the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns). Add ': Electronic Medicines Compendium' after the title.
• Date Cited: in the format month day e.g. Jan 20

Citing systematic reviews in the Cochrane Library

• Author(s) in the format Surname, Initials
• Title of review
• Year month day of review
• Title of database: The Cochrane Library
• Issue number
• Article number
• Available from: web address or DOI
• Crowe L, Chang A, Wallace K. Instruments for assessing readiness to commence suck feeds in preterm infants: effects on time to establish full oral feeding and duration of hospitalisation. 2016 August 23. In: The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews [Internet]. Issue 8.  Art. No.: CD005586. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD005586.pub3.
• Use the Reference Type 'Electronic Book Section'
• Title: title of the review - in lower case apart from the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns. Add the year month day of review after the title e.g. Instruments for assessing readiness to commence suck feeds in preterm infants: effects on time to establish full oral feeding and duration of hospitalisation. 2016 August 23.
• Book title: The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
• Edition: Issue 8. Article no.: CD005586
• Type of Work: Internet

Note that the way you enter a Cochrane Review on EndNote for the Vancouver style is very different from the way you enter it for the Harvard style. It is not possible to reuse one entry in both styles.

Access The Cochrane Library

Systematic reviews, protocols and trials on the effects of interventions in health care. Free to UK residents

Includes: -The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (Cochrane Reviews) -The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) -The Cochrane Database of Methodology Reviews (Methodology Reviews) Help and guidance You can find training materials and videos by registering with the Cochrane Library Training Hub (requires an e-mail address).

Citing clinical trials

If a trial is still ongoing you may need to refer to it directly instead of to a published paper. 

• Author - primary contact for the trial
• Trial title
• Database/registry name
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2024 Jan 18]
• Available from: DOI or web address

Use the format and punctuation shown in these examples:

• Crooks M. An investigation into how adding an inhaled steroid to COPD treatment may potentially protect against heart disease. In: ISRCTN Registry [Internet]. 2023 [cited 2024 Jan 18]. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN29148209.
• Lingor P. Safety, tolerability and symptomatic efficacy of the ROCK-inhibitor Fasudil in patients with Parkinson's disease. In:  ClinicalTrials.gov [Internet]. 2023 [cited 2024 Feb 9]. Available from: https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05931575.
• Title (in lower case apart from the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns) followed by . In: [name of Database/Registry] e.g. Implementing improved asthma self-management as routine. In: ISRCTN Registry

Note that the way you enter a Clinical Trial on EndNote for the Vancouver style is very different from the way you enter it for the Harvard style. It is not possible to reuse one entry in both styles.

Citing materials posted on Blackboard

Always check with the academic who set the assignment if you are allowed to refer to course materials in your own work. It is preferable to do your own research and use published sources, such as articles and books, instead of referring to lecture materials.

• Author's name in the format Surname Initials
• Title of document/presentation as given on Blackboard
• Format in square brackets e.g. [PowerPoint presentation, Lecture notes, Recorded lecture, Handout]
• Place of publication:
• Institution;
• Course details, date
• [cited year month day] - the date you looked at it e.g. [cited 2024 Jan 18]
• Available from: https://www.bb.reading.ac.uk Note that you do not need to give the specific web address for the material you are citing. The address for Blackboard is sufficient.

Copy the format and punctuation of these examples.

Example 1: PowerPoint slides

Cottrell G. The molecules of life: proteins [PowerPoint presentation]. Reading: University of Reading; PM1PY2: Fundamentals of Cell Biology; 2023 [cited 2023 Dec 2]. Available from: https://www.bb.reading.ac.uk.

Example 2: Handout with no date

University of Reading. Direct observation of procedural skills (DOPS) assessment form [Handout] Reading: University of Reading; PM2PY1: Professional Practice 2. [cited 2023 Nov 30]. Available from: https://www.bb.reading.ac.uk.

• Use the 'Web Page' Reference Type
• Place published: Reading
• Publisher: University of Reading
• Type of Medium: add the Format here e.g. PowerPoint presentation, Lecture notes, Recorded lecture, Handout
• Contents: module code and title e.g. PM2PY1: Professional Practice 2
• Date Cited: in the format month day e.g. Jan 20
• URL: https://www.bb.reading.ac.uk

Note that even with the information entered as above EndNote will not quite format the reference correctly - the module details will be in the wrong place. To correct this, as a final step before submission, create a plain text version of your document. Go to the EndNote toolbar in Word and select 'Convert citations and bibliography' to 'Plain text' (this will be under 'Tools' on the Mac version of the toolbar). This will create a copy of your document which is divorced from EndNote so that you can make final tweaks to the references.

Harvard referencing - click on the tabs for guidance on specific publications

• Video guide to Harvard
• Systematic reviews on The Cochrane Library

The 'Cite Them Right' Harvard style is an author-date system. In-text citations include the author and year of the reference. Full references are listed at the end in alphabetical order by the author's surname. See the other tabs in this box for guidance on citing specific types of publication in this style.

For the Harvard style, your in-text citation should include:

• The author of the cited work
• The year of publication of the cited work.

There are two ways of including an in-text citation and you can use both depending on how you want to structure each sentence. You can include the citation with the author’s surname and date in brackets at the end of the sentence:

Medical systems need to be carefully considered and designed to reduce the likelihood of medication errors (Ferner, 2020).

Or, you can include the author’s surname as part of your sentence, in which case only the date is in brackets:

More recently, a paper by Ferner (2020) has suggested that...

You can use a mix of these approaches in your assignment.

How many authors do I need to include in the in-text citation?

If the citation has two authors.

List both authors with 'and' or '&' in between (but be consistent in your use of 'and' or '&').

A recent study by Morbey and Smith (2021) found that...

... (Morbey and Smith, 2021) .

If the citation has three authors

List all three authors with a comma after the first author, '&' or 'and' before the last author (but be consistent in your use of 'and' or '&').

A recent study by Chen, Savana and Patel (2022) found that...

... (Chen, Savana and Patel, 2022) .

If the citation has four or more authors

Use the first author's name followed by " et al. " in italics.

A recent study by Rang et al. (2020) found that...

It has been shown previously (Rang et al. , 2020) that....

Note: you will need to include ALL authors in the full reference at the end of your document.

How do I cite more than one source for a sentence?

List the sources chronologically, separated by semi-colons.

There are many studies that have examined the effect of alcohol on cognitive impairment (Chen and Xi, 2012; Patel, 2020; Hussein et al ., 202 2) .

How do I differentiate references by the same author in the same year?

Differentiate them using letters after the year - both in the in-text citation and the full reference.

Chen and Hussein (2021a) ... and Chen and Hussein (2021b) ...

Can I cite a work by a company or organisation?

Many works by organisations do not have individually named authors. In this case, you can use the name of the organisation or company, such as Cancer Research UK or National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), as the author. This is known as a corporate author. 

Asthma UK (2015) studies have shown...    ...  (Asthma UK, 2015) .

What if I have multiple references by the same author in a sentence?

If you need to refer to two or more sources by the same author in different years, you do not need to keep repeating the author's surname in the citation. Include the surname and the oldest year first, then separate the other years by semicolons (;). The sources should be ordered by year of publication, with the oldest first.

NHS (2016; 2019; 2021) studies have consistently shown    ... (NHS, 2016; 2019; 2021)

You must include all of the sources separately in your reference list.

Do I need to include page numbers in my citation?

You only need to include a page number if directly quoting from a work. Enclose the quote in single quotation marks and include a page number in the in-text citation. For example:

More recently, a paper by Walker et al. (2020) stated that 'student pharmacists are valuable and important to practice model transformation' (p. 47) .

A recent paper stated that 'student pharmacists are valuable and important to practice model transformation' (Walker et al.,  2020, p. 47) .

This type of referencing is known as secondary referencing and should be avoided wherever possible , as the author citing the work may bring their own bias or misinterpretation. It is better to seek out the original reference and cite it directly if it is useful.

See further guidance on secondary referencing .

References must be listed at the end of your document in  alphabetical order by author surname/organisation name.  If you use the same source more than once, just use the same in-text citation as previously to refer to the same full reference. 

Cited using Surname, Initials - place a comma and a space between the surname and initials. Full stops between initials e.g.:

List all of the authors in the full reference in the order they appear on the publication.

See the tabs in this box for additional guidance and relevant examples. Our Harvard guidance is closely aligned with that given in the 'Cite them right' book and website (below). You can find extra publication types and examples via this website. Note that we deviate from this guide in some case to make references simpler e.g. only requiring DOI or web address for articles which do not have page numbers or an article reference number.

• Harvard referencing guidance in Cite Them Right

Find an overview of the essentials of Harvard referencing in this video (10 mins). You will need to login with your University username and password to view this video.

• Author/Editor name(s) in the format 'Surname, Initials'
• Year of publication (in round brackets)
• Book title (in italics or underlined) followed by a full stop.
• Edition (if 2nd edn or later)
• Place of publication followed by a colon e.g. London:

Copy the format and punctuation of these examples.

Example: book with a single author/editor

Citation in the text:      (Houghton, 2020)

Full reference:      Houghton, A.R. (2020) Making sense of the ECG: a hands-on guide.  5th edn. Boca Raton: CRC Press.

Example: book with two authors/editors

Citation in the text:   (Jeukendrup and Gleeson, 2019)

Full reference: Jeukendrup, A. and Gleeson, M. (2019) Sport nutrition . 3rd edn. Champaign: Human Kinetics.

Example: book with four or more authors/editors

Citation in the text:    (Ritter  et al. , 2023)

Full reference: Ritter, J.M., Flower, R.J., Henderson, G., Loke, Y.K., MacEwan, D., Robinson, E. and Fullerton, J. (2024)  Rang & Dale's pharmacology.  10 th edn. London: Elsevier.

Note that all authors are included in the full reference.

Where an e-book looks like a printed book (usually PDFs) and you can find all the publication information (including place published and publisher) - cite it in the same way as a printed book (above). You do not need to include the web address. 

Some books are born digital and are not published in a traditional format. Where it is not possible to find the publication information include the web address and date accessed instead, as in the examples below:

Citation in the text:    (UK Health Security Agency, 2020)

Full reference: UK Health Security Agency (2020) Immunisation against infectious disease (The Green Book) . Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immunisation-against-infectious-disease-the-green-book (Accessed: 21 January 2024).

Citation in the text:    (Grabrucker, 2021)

Full reference: Grabrucker, A.M. (ed.) (2021)  Autism spectrum disorders.  Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK573612/ (Accessed: 25 January 2024).

Note: Using StatPearls? Follow the guidance on  citing an online only book chapter .

• Editor: in the format surname, initials, each editor on a separate line
• Other fields the same as above
• Date Accessed: the date you looked looked at the book in the format day month year e.g. 17 January 2024

Citing book chapters

• Chapter author name(s) in the format 'Surname, Initials'
• Chapter title in single quotation marks
• in followed by book editor(s) name(s) in the format 'Surname, Initials' followed by (ed.) or (eds)
• Book title (in italics)
• Edition (if second edition or later)
• Publisher's name
• Chapter pagination preceeded by pp.

Include the page extent of the whole chapter when writing your full citation. Put just the pages you have referred to in the in-text citation.

Example: book chapter with three authors

Citation in the text:      (Singh, Khurana and Singh, 2018, p. 38)

Full reference:     Singh, H., Khurana, L.K. and Singh, R. (2018) 'Pharmaceutical development', in Vohora, D. and Singh, G. (eds) Pharmaceutical medicine and translational clinical research . London: Academic Press, pp.33-46.

Example: book chapter with four or more authors

Citation in the text:      (Hosznyak  et al ., 2012, p. 199)

Full reference: Hosznyak, R., Hosznyak, E., Westaway, A. and Graveson, J. (2017) 'Eye, ear, nose and throat assessment', in Ranson, M. and Abbott, H. (eds)  Clinical examination skills for healthcare professional . 2nd edn. Keswick: M & K Publishing, pp. 126-137.

Where an e-book chapter looks like a printed book chapter (usually PDFs) and you can find all the publication information (including place published and publisher) - cite it in the same way as a printed book (above). You do not need to include the web address.

Where it is not possible to find the publication information include the web address and date accessed instead:

• Chapter author(s) in the format 'Surname, Initials' 
• Chapter title in single quotation marks. Capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns.
• 'in' followed by book editor(s) name(s) in the format 'Surname, Initials' followed by (ed.) or (eds)
• Book title (in italics). Capitalise only the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns.
• Edition (if 2nd or later)
• Available at: https://doi.org... or web address
• Accessed: date in round brackets (date in this format 25 January 2022)

UK Health Security Agency (2013) 'Immunisation by nurses and other healthcare professionals', in  Immunisation against infectious disease (The Green Book) . Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immunisation-by-nurses-and-other-health-professionals-the-green-book-chapter-5 (Accessed: 3 February 2024)

Kawakami, S and Otsuka, S. (2021) 'Multisensory processing in autism spectrum disorders', in Grabrucker, A.M. (ed.)  Autism spectrum disorders . Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK573612/ (Accessed: 7 January 2024)

Squadrito, F.J. and del Portal, D. (2022) 'Nitrofurantoin', in  StatPearls . Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470526/ (Accessed: 1 February 2024).

• Use the Reference Type  'Book Section'
• Author: in the format surname, initials. Each author on a separate line.
• Editor: (include all the editors in the format surname, initials. Each editor on a separate line)
• Book title:
• Pages: page numbers for the chapter e.g. 301-335
• Complete the details above (as much as possible)
• Add URL: paste in the web link
• Add Access Date: the date you looked looked at the book in the format day month year e.g. 3 February 2024

Note that the way you enter an online only chapter on EndNote for the Harvard style is different from the way you enter it for the Vancouver style. It is not possible to reuse one entry in both styles.

Note that the default 'Cite Them Right Harvard' style in EndNote does not handle e-book sections very well. Download and use our amended style which corrects these issues:

• Reading Cite Them Right Harvard style Once downloaded open the style and go to 'File' and 'Save as' and 'Save'. This should save it into a location where EndNote can find it and use it. You will then need to select the 'Reading Cite Them Right-Harvard' style from the list of styles in Word (click on 'Select another style' to find it).

Alternatively as a final step before submission, create a plain text version of your document. Go to the EndNote toolbar in Word and select 'Convert citations and bibliography' to 'Plain text' (this will be under 'Tools' on the Mac version of the toolbar). This will create a copy of your document which is divorced from EndNote so that you can make final tweaks to the reference to match the guidance above.

• ALL Author name(s) in the format 'Surname, Initials'
• Year of publication (in brackets)
• Article title - in lower case apart from the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns
• Journal title (in italics) - give the journal name in full, not abbreviated. Use initial capital letters on all significant words.
• Issue number (if present, in round brackets)
• Page numbers or reference number (Include the page numbers of the whole article when writing your full citation, not just the pages you have referred to)

Example: journal article with a single author

Citation in the text:    (Rhee, 2022)

Full reference:    Rhee, E. (2022) 'The influence of obesity and metabolic health on vascular health',  Endocrinology and Metabolism,  37(1), pp. 1-8.

Example: journal article with two authors

Citation in the text:    (Rana and Neeland, 2022)

Full reference:     Rana, M.N. and Neeland, I.J. (2022) 'Adipose tissue inflammation and cardiovascular disease: an update',  Current Diabetes Reports,  22(1), pp. 27-37.

Example: journal article with four or more authors and an article reference number

Citation in the text:    (Zheng  et al ., 2021)

Full reference: Zheng, Y., Phillips, C.L., Sivam, S., Wong, K., Grunstein, R.R., Piper, A.J. and Yee, B.J. (2021) 'Cardiovascular disease in obesity hypoventilation syndrome – a review of potential mechanisms and effects of therapy',  Sleep Medicine Reviews,  60, pp. 101530.

You must include all authors in the full reference.

• Available at: DOI (preceded by https://doi.org/) or Web link If including a weblink make sure it is as short as possible and doesn't include intermediate websites or your search string. 
• Accessed: date you looked at the article in the format day month year e.g. 12 January 2024.

Copy the format and punctuation of these examples:

Article with no page numbers or reference number:

Citation in the text:    (Azpiroz  et al ., 2017)

Full reference: Azpiroz, F., Dubray, C., Bernalier-Donadille, A., Cardot, J.M., Accarino, A., Serra, J., Wagner, A., Respondek, F., Dapoigny, M. (2017) 'Effects of scFOS on the composition of fecal microbiota and anxiety in patients with irritable bowel syndrome: a randomized, double blind, placebo controlled study'. Neurogastroenterology & Motility , 29(2). Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/nmo.12911 (Accessed: 29 January 2024)

In Press article

Articles are often made available before they receive their official publication details (volume and issue number). If an article is shown as 'In press' or 'Online ahead of print' and doesn't yet have these details, just use (in press) after the journal name and add the DOI web address and date accessed.

Citation in the text: (Vaghari-Tabari  et al ., 2023)

Full reference: Vaghari-Tabari, M., Jafari-Gharabaghlou, D., Mohammadi, M., & Hashemzadeh, M.S. (2023). Zinc oxide nanoparticles and cancer chemotherapy: helpful tools for enhancing chemo-sensitivity and reducing side effects?  Biological Trace Element Research  (in press). Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-023-03803-z (Accessed: 25 January 2024)

For online only articles without page numbers or an article reference number and 'In press' articles

• Use the reference Type 'Electronic Article'
• Issue: (put in press here for articles currently being published)
• Date Accessed: the date you looked at the article in the format day month year e.g. 25 January 2024.
• URL: If there isn't a DOI add the web address for the article in the URL field. If there is already a URL in the box check that it goes to the article, not back to the reference on the database you downloaded it from. When including a web address make sure it is as short as possible and doesn't include intermediate websites or your search string. 

Citing web pages or web sites

• Author name(s) in the format 'Surname, Initials', or organisation that created the page
• Year information was created or last edited (in brackets). You might need to scroll to the bottom of the page to find it. If there is no date put (no date)
• Page title (in italics and in lower case apart from the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns)
• Available at: followed by the web address. Make sure the address is as short as possible and doesn't include intermediate websites or your search string. 
• Accessed: date in round brackets

Example: webpage with a named author

Citation in the text:    (Reynolds, 2023)

Full reference:  Reynolds, M. (2023) How the team monitoring new and emerging infectious diseases could help prevent the next pandemic . Available at: https://ukhsa.blog.gov.uk/2023/08/08/how-the-team-monitoring-new-and-emerging-infectious-diseases-could-help-prevent-the-next-pandemic/ (Accessed: 2 February 2024) 

Examples: webpages with an organisation as the author

Citation in the text:      (DrugBank, 2024)

Full reference:  DrugBank (2024)  Ranitidine . Available at: https://www.drugbank.ca/drugs/DB00863 (Accessed: 8 February 2024).

Citation in the text:     (Office for Health Improvement & Disparities, 2024)

Full reference: Office for Health Improvement & Disparities  (2024)  Cardiovascular disease . Available at: https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/cardiovascular (Accessed: 31 January 2024).

Example: webpage without a date

If there isn't a date on the website, even at the bottom of the page, use 'no date'. 

Citation in the text:     (IUPHAR/BPS, no date)

Full reference: IUPHAR/BPS (no date)  Ibuprofen . Available at: https://www.guidetopharmacology.org/GRAC/LigandDisplayForward?ligandId=2713 (Accessed: 6 February 2024).

• Access Date: the date you looked at the site in the format day month year e.g. 17 January 2024 Note there is a fault in the Cite Them Right Harvard style which omits the closing bracket after the date. Just type the closing bracket after the year in EndNote for it to appear e.g. 17 January 2024)
• URL: paste in the web link. Make sure it is as short as possible and doesn't include intermediate websites or your search string. 

You can also download our amended 'Cite Them Right-Harvard' style to correct the issue with the missing closing bracket:

When citing the BNF you only need one generic reference, not specific references for each drug or piece of information you have used. Just make it clear in your text which drug/section you are referring to. 

• Title - British National Formulary (BNF) in italics
• Place of publication: London
• Publisher: BMJ Group and Pharmaceutical Press

Citation in the text:       (Joint Formulary Committee, 2024)

Full reference: Joint Formulary Committee (2024)  British National Formulary (BNF)   87 . London: BMJ Group and Pharmaceutical Press.

• For the NICE website version take the year from the 'Last updated' date on the BNF homepage.
• For the MedicinesComplete version use the year from the 'Publication last updated' date from the top of the page instead of the date the individual drug was updated
• Available at: https://bnf.nice.org.uk/ (Accessed: date) OR Available at: https://www.medicinescomplete.com (Accessed: date) Note that you just use the site web address, not the page address for the specific drug you are using. The accessed date is the date you looked at the information in the format day month year e.g. 29 July 2024.

Citation in the text:       (Joint Formulary Committee, 2024)

Full reference (NICE version): Joint Formulary Committee (2024)  British National Formulary (BNF). 27 June 2024  . Available at: https://bnf.nice.org.uk/ (Accessed: 29 July 2024)

Full reference (MedicinesComplete version): Joint Formulary Committee (2024)  British National Formulary (BNF). 29 July 2024 . Available at: https://www.medicinescomplete.com (Accessed: 29 July  2024 )

• Year of publication (in round brackets) - use the year given on the homepage of the app
• Title - British National Formulary (BNF) app in italics
• BNF update date - use the month and year from given on the homepage of the app
• Available at (use the Google Android or Apple Mac link depending on which you are using) followed by (Accessed: date): Available at: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pharmpress.bnf (Accessed: date) Available at: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/bnf-publications/id1045514038 (Accessed: date) The accessed date is the date you looked at the information in the format day month year e.g. 9 July 2024.

Full reference: Joint Formulary Committee (2024)  British National Formulary (BNF) app. June 2024 . [Mobile app]. Available at: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pharmpress.bnf (Accessed: 9 July 2024).

• Access Date: the date you looked at the site in the format day month year e.g. 29 July 2024 Note there is a fault in the Cite Them Right Harvard style which omits the closing bracket after the date. Just type the closing bracket after the year in EndNote for it to appear e.g. 29 July 2024 )
• Note that if you have added Type of Medium 'Internet' to comply with the Vancouver style, you will need to remove it to create a correct Harvard reference. 
• Title: followed by the update date e.g. British National Formulary (BNF). June 2024 

Citing the British National Formulary for children (BNFC)

• Author(s): Pediatric Formulary Committee
• Title: British National Formulary for children (in italics) and version
• Publisher: BMJ Group, Pharmaceutical Press and RCPCH Publications

Copy the format and punctuation of this example.  Make sure you check the date and edition of the version you are using.

Citation in the text:      (Pediatric Formulary Committee, 2022)

Full reference: Pediatric Formulary Committee (2022)  British National Formulary for children   2022-2023 . London: BMJ Group, Pharmaceutical Press and RCPCH Publications.

• Year of publication (in round brackets) For the NICE website version take the year from the 'Last updated' date on the BNFC homepage. For the MedicinesComplete version use the year from the 'Publication last updated' date from the top of the page you are viewing.
• Title: British National Formulary for children (BNFC)  (in italics)
• BNFC update date For the NICE website version take this from the 'Last updated' date on the BNFC homepage. For the MedicinesComplete take this from the 'Publication last updated' date from the top of the page.
• Available at: https://bnfc.nice.org.uk/ (Accessed: date) OR Available at: https://www.medicinescomplete.com (Accessed: date) Note that you just use the site web address, not the page address for the specific drug you are using. The accessed date is the date you looked at the information in the format day month year e.g.29 July 2024.

Copy the format and punctuation of this example.  Make sure you check the date and edition (month and year) of the version you are using.

Citation in the text:      (Pediatric Formulary Committee, 2024)

Full reference (NICE version): Pediatric Formulary Committee (2024)  British National Formulary for children (BNFC) . 27 June 2024. Available at: https://bnfc.nice.org.uk/ (Accessed: 4 July 2024)

Full reference (MedicinesComplete version): Pediatric Formulary Committee (2023)  British National Formulary for children (BNFC) . 9 July 2024 . Available at: http://www.medicinescomplete.com (Accessed: 24 July 2024)

• Title - British National Formulary for children (BNFC) app in italics
• BNFC update date - use the month and year from given on the homepage of the app
• Available at (use the Google Android or Apple Mac link depending on which you are using) followed by (Accessed: date): Available at: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pharmpress.bnf (Accessed: date) Available at: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/bnf-publications/id1045514038 (Accessed: date) The accessed date is the date you looked at the information in the format day month year e.g. 1 July 2024.

Citation in the text:       (Pediatric Formulary Committee, 2024)

Full reference: Pediatric Formulary Committee (2024)  British National Formulary for children (BNFC) app. June 2024 . [Mobile app]. Available at: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pharmpress.bnf (Accessed: 14 July 2024)

• Title: followed by version e.g. British National Formulary for children 2022-2023
• Title: followed by the latest update date (see above for where to find this date) e.g. British National Formulary for children (BNFC). 9 July 2024
• Access Date: the date you looked at the site in the format day month year e.g. 24 July 2024 Note there is a fault in the Cite Them Right Harvard style which omits the closing bracket after the date. Just type the closing bracket after the year in EndNote for it to appear e.g. 24 July 2024 )
• URL: https://bnfc.nice.org.uk/ OR https://www.medicinescomplete.com (depending on which version you are using)
• Title: followed by the update date e.g. British National Formulary for children (BNFC). June 2024 
• Access Date: the date you looked at the site in the format day month year e.g. 23 July 2024 Note there is a fault in the Cite Them Right Harvard style which omits the closing bracket after the date. Just type the closing bracket after the year in EndNote for it to appear e.g. 23 July 2024 )
• Author: British Pharmacopoeia Commission
• Title: British Pharmacopoeia. Version. (in italics)
• Available at: https://www.pharmacopoeia.com (Accessed: date)

Copy the format and punctuation of this example (make sure you change the Version and dates to match the ones you use):

Citation in the text:      (British Pharmacopoeia Commission, 2024)

Reference list: British Pharmacopoeia Commission. (2024).  British Pharmacopoeia . Ph. Eur. 11.4 update. Available at: https://www.pharmacopoeia.com (Accessed: 8 February 2024)

• Access Date: the date you looked at the site in the format day month year e.g. 8 February 2024 Note there is a fault in the Cite Them Right Harvard style which omits the closing bracket after the date. Just type the closing bracket after the year in EndNote for it to appear e.g. 8 February 2024)
• Author: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)
• Year created/updated (use the most recent date) in round brackets
• Title of document/page  (in italics) followed by the guideline reference number in round brackets
• Available at: followed by the web address

Copy the format and punctuation of this example.

In-text citation:   (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 2021)

Full reference: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) (2021)  Acute heart failure: diagnosis and management (CG187).  Available at: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg187 (Accessed: 28 January 2024)

• Access Date: the date you looked at the site in the format day month year e.g. 28 January 2024 Note there is a fault in the Cite Them Right Harvard style which omits the closing bracket after the date. Just type the closing bracket after the year in EndNote for it to appear e.g. 28 January 2024)
• URL: paste in the web link (For a shorter reference use the link for the webpage instead of the longer PDF link)
• Year of publication in round brackets
• Title of policy and Version (in italics)
• Publisher (often the same as the author)

Use the text formatting and punctuation shown in this example.

Citation in the text:     (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, 2023)

Full reference: Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (2023)  Non-medical prescribing policy .  Version 5. London: Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.

• Title of policy and Version  (in italics)

Citation in the text:     (North East London Health & Care Partnership, 2023)

Full reference: North East London Health & Care Partnership  (2023)  North East London (NEL) management of infection guidance for primary care . August 2023 . Available at: https://gp-website-cdn-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/prescribing-guideline-downloads/1697724608-4663d459fc894709f71ce7beaa8662db.pdf (Accessed: 8 February 2024)

• Use the Reference Type 'Web Page' 

Citing SmPCs (Summaries of Product Characteristics) OR PILs (Patient Information Leaflets) on the Electronic Medicines Compendium

• Author - drug company who wrote the SmPC
• Year updated on EMC
• Title followed by Electronic Medicines Compendium.  (in italics)

Citation in the text:     (Wockhardt UK Ltd, 2017)

Full reference: Wokhardt UK Ltd (2017)  Aciclovir 400mg tablets summary of product characteristics . Electronic Medicines Compendium . Available at: https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/2352/smpc (Accessed: 25 January 2024).

Citation in the text:      (Dermal Laboratories Limited, 2024)

Full reference: Dermal Laboratories Limited (2024)  Ibugel patient information leaflet . Electronic Medicines Compendium . Available at: https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/3759/pil (Accessed: 7 February 2024).

• Author: company name. Put a comma after the company name to ensure it formats correctly e.g. Wockhardt UK Ltd,
• Access Date: the date you looked at the site in the format day month year e.g. 7 February 2024 Note there is a fault in the Cite Them Right Harvard style which omits the closing bracket after the date. Just type the closing bracket after the year in EndNote for it to appear e.g. 7 February 2024)

Citing systematic reviews on The Cochrane Library database

• Title of review (in single quotation marks)
• Database name (in italics)
• Article number (CD ...)
• DOI or Available at: web address (Accessed: date)

Citation in the text:     (Crowe, Chang and Wallace, 2016)

Reference list: Crowe, L., Chang, A., and Wallace, K. (2016) 'Instruments for assessing readiness to commence suck feeds in preterm infants: effects on time to establish full oral feeding and duration of hospitalisation',  Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews,  8, CD005586, DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD005586.pub3

• Use the Reference Type 'Electronic article'
• Title: title of the review - in lower case apart from the first letter of the first word and any proper nouns
• Periodical Title: The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
• Volume: Issue number, Article number e.g. 8, CD005586

Note that the way you enter a Cochrane Review on EndNote for the Harvard style is very different from the way you enter it for the Vancouver style. It is not possible to reuse one entry in both styles.

Although most references refer to the published paper as this details the results of the clinical trial, depending on the context of what you write you may need to reference the clinical trial itself.

• Author(s) in the format Surname, Initials (this will be the primary contact for the trial)
• Title of trial (in single quotation marks)
• Database/registry name (in italics)
• Trial reference number

Example 1: with a DOI

Citation in the text:     (Crooks, 2023)

Full reference: Crooks, M. (2023) 'An investigation into how adding an inhaled steroid to COPD treatment may potentially protect against heart disease',  ISRCTN , ISRCTN29148209. DOI: 10.1186/ISRCTN29148209 .

Example 2: without a DOI

Citation in the text:     (Lingor, 2023)

Full reference: Lingor, P. (2023) 'Safety, tolerability and symptomatic efficacy of the ROCK-inhibitor Fasudil in patients with Parkinson's disease',  ClinicalTrials.gov,  NCT05931575. Available at: https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05931575 (Accessed: 9 January 2024).

• Periodical Title: Database/Registry name
• Volume: Trial number
• Date Accessed: date you looked at it in the format day month year e.g. 9 January 2024 Note there is a fault in the Cite Them Right Harvard style which omits the closing bracket after the date. Just type the closing bracket after the year in EndNote for it to appear e.g. 9 January 2024)
• DOI: add DOI if it has one
• URL: the web link if no DOI
• Note that the way you enter a Clinical Trial on EndNote for the Harvard style is very different from the way you enter it for the Vancouver style. It is not possible to reuse one entry in both styles.

Always check with your tutor if you are allowed to refer to course materials in your own work. It is preferable to use published sources where possible, such as articles and books. 

• Author's name in the format Surname, Initials
• Year in round brackets
• Title of document/presentation as given on Blackboard (in single quotation marks)
• Medium in square brackets e.g. [PowerPoint presentation, Lecture, Recorded lecture)
• Module code: module title (in italics)
• Institution
• Available at: https://www.bb.reading.ac.uk (Accessed: date)  Note that you do not need to give the specific web address for the material you are citing. The address for Blackboard is sufficient.

Citation in the text:     (Cottrell, 2023)

Full reference: Cottrell, G. (2023) 'The molecules of life: proteins' [Presentation slides]. PM1PY2: Fundamentals of Cell Biology . University of Reading. Available at: https://www.bb.reading.ac.uk (Accessed: 2 December 2023).

Example 2: Handout

Citation in the text:     (University of Reading, no date)

Full reference: University of Reading (no date)  'Direct observation of procedural skills (DOPS) assessment form' [Handout]   PM2PY1: Professional Practice 2 . University of Reading. Available at: https://www.bb.reading.ac.uk (Accessed: 20 November 2023).

For guidance on citing other types of materials posted on Blackboard see Section G7 of the following book:

• Use the Reference Type  'Web Page' 
• Series title: module code and title
• Access Date: date you looked at it in the format day month year e.g. 25 January 2024
• Type of Medium: add the Format here e.g. Presentation slides, Lecture notes, Recorded lecture, Handout
• URL: https://www.bb.reading.ac.uk 

Note that even with the information entered as above the default 'Cite Them Right-Harvard' style in EndNote will not quite format the reference correctly - the title of the document should be enclosed in single quotes and be in plain text; the module details should be in italics; there should be closing bracket after the access date; the Type of Medium should be after the document title. To correct this, as a final step before submission, create a plain text version of your document. Go to the EndNote toolbar in Word and select 'Convert citations and bibliography' to 'Plain text' (this will be under 'Tools' on the Mac version of the toolbar). This will create a copy of your document which is divorced from EndNote so that you can make final tweaks to the references.

Secondary referencing (citing a source you have read about in a different source)

A secondary reference is used when you are referring to a source which you have not read yourself, but have read about in another source.  Where possible, you should always try to read the original of anything you wish to refer to ; otherwise you are relying on the author who cited the reference to have interpreted it correctly and not taken it out of context. Use the reference list at the end of the source you are reading to find details of the reference and search for it using the search boxes below.

Find books using the Enterprise catalogue

Just type in the first author's surname and a few words from the title.

Find journal articles using Summon

Just type in the first author's surname and first part of the article title.

If you can't get hold of the original source you'll need to do a secondary reference and you should make clear that you are not using the original source. Only include the source you have used in your list of references following the guidance above on citing that type of publication. Indicate in your in-text citation that it is a secondary reference by preceeding the citation with 'as cited in' or 'as quoted in'.

Vancouver example

In-text citation:

According to France as cited in Weingart et al. (4) , hospitals use internal reporting procedures to identify...

4. Weingart, SN, Zhang L, Sweeney M, Hassett M. Chemotherapy medication errors. The Lancet Oncology, 2018; 19(4): e191-e199.

Harvard example

According to France (2003, as cited in Weingart et al. , 2018), hospitals use internal reporting procedures to identify...

Reference: 

Weingart, S.N., Zhang, L., Sweeney, M, & Hassett, M. (2018) 'Chemotherapy medication errors',  The Lancet Oncology , 19(4), pp. e191-e199.

Vancouver - just edit your text as in the example above and insert the reference for the paper you have read in the usual way.

• Insert the in-text citation for the paper you have read in the usual way.
• Right-click on the in-text citation and select ' Edit Citation(s) ' and ' More... '. 
• In the prefix box type the year of the paper you haven't read followed by a comma and space and 'as cited in ' (as in the example above). Click OK.
• In front to the in-text citation type in the author name(s) for the paper you haven't read (as in the example above), including the correct number of authors.

Citing tables, figures & images

Images, graphs, charts, diagrams and tables that you have used from books, websites and other texts should be referenced in the same way that you would any other material.

The captions for both tables and figures should include a citation if taken from or based on another source (name-year or number depending on the style you are using). When you refer to it in your writing, use the figure/table number. Give a full citation in the reference list for the source of the image.

Citing tables

Tables should be sequentially numbered with the title/legend above the table - as in this example which uses the Harvard referencing style:

Example of referring to a table in a sentence:

The macronutrient content of the diets used in the study is shown in Table 2. 

Full details for reference list (Harvard style):

Mitchell, N.S. and Ard, J.D. (2021) 'Weight loss, lifestyle, and dietary factors in cardiovascular diseases in African Americans and Hispanics', in Ferdinand, K.C., Taylor, H.A. and Rodriguez, C.J. (eds)  Cardiovascular disease in racial and ethnic minority populations . Cham: Humana Press, pp. 167-182.

Citing figures (images, graphs and diagrams)

Images, graphs and diagrams should be labelled as 'Figure' and sequentially numbered with the caption below - as in this example which uses the Harvard referencing style:

Example of referring to a figure in a sentence:

The prebiotics can induce direct or indirect effect on the gut-associated epithelial and immune cells (Figure 3).

Pujari, R. and Banerjee, G. (2021) 'Impact of prebiotics on immune response: from the bench to the clinic',  Immunology and Cell Biology , 99(3), pp. 255-273.

Decorative images

If the image is purely decorative you should still acknowledge the creator and source but there is no need to include a full reference.

See the example on the right which includes the caption: 'Image: [creator] via [website image captured from]'.

If it is a picture you have taken use this format:

'Image by author'.

Compiling your own table from multiple sources

If you are taking information from multiple sources and compiling your own table you still need to acknowledge those sources. 

The following link shows two ways of doing this. Although this is a guide to using the APA style the approaches can be adapted for use with Harvard and Vancouver.

• How to cite sources in a table (APA)

Quotes and copying information

• Copying information
• Example 1 (prose)
• Example 2 (standards)
• When taking information from a reference source which you are not putting into your own words i.e. copying and pasting you need to put quotes around the words to indicate that it is not your own work
• Students are expected to put the majority of information into their own words to demonstrate their understanding and independent thought - the amount of information in quotes should therefore be minimal
• Quotes should be reserved for situations where no alternative wording is possible and/or where it is not appropriate (e.g. quoting a standard or particular statement which supports your argument)
• Wenger (1, p. 181) argues that 'Engagement, imagination and alignment each create relations of belonging'.
• The focus of Wenger's discussion is on the way that different aspects come together to build notions of identity (1).
• Theorists have considered the impact of a variety of circumstances on the creation and expansion of identity (1-3).

Avoid quoting large blocks of text:

The NICE guidance for hypertension (1) states the following:

'Beta-blockers are not a preferred initial therapy for hypertension. However, beta-blockers may be considered in younger people, particularly:

• those with an intolerance or contraindication to ACE inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor antagonists or
• women of child-bearing potential or
• people with evidence of increased sympathetic drive'

Instead this could be paraphrased as:

NICE no longer recommend beta-blockers to be used as initial therapy for hypertension, although it is recognised that there may be circumstances in which younger patients may benefit from beta-blockers (1).  In my practice I may review younger patients, therefore I will consider the recommendations from NICE on appropriate prescribing of beta-blockers, for example women of child-bearing age, patients with increased sympathetic drive or unable to take ACE inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor antagonists.

Consider using a reference management system such as EndNote to help you reference correctly. This bibliographic management package can be used to store references, and then insert the citation in your Word document, automatically building the reference list for you in the correct style (''Vancouver' or Cite Them Right-Harvard').

Go to the EndNote page in this guide to download the software and learn how to use it:

• Using EndNote for PACE students

For information on other options for electronic management of your references see our guide to Managing references:

• Managing references

Referencing help from your librarian

• Reading School of Pharmacy referencing guide A summary and printable version of the School's referencing guidance (note this does not include as much detail as the information on this page).

Video guides to referencing

See also our short videos on referencing and avoiding plagiarism:

• Videos on avoiding plagiarism, Turnitin, using quotes and paraphrasing
• Video on Harvard referencing for Pharmacy
• Video on Vancouver referencing for Pharmacy
• << Previous: 4. Plagiarism
• Next: 5.1 Using EndNote >>
• Last Updated: Aug 27, 2024 2:32 PM
• URL: https://libguides.reading.ac.uk/pace

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• 28 August 2024

Exclusive: the papers that most heavily cite retracted studies

• Richard Van Noorden &
• Miryam Naddaf

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Credit: Waldemar Thaut/Zoonar via Alamy

In January, a review paper 1 about ways to detect human illnesses by examining the eye appeared in a conference proceedings published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in New York City. But neither its authors nor its editors noticed that 60% of the papers it cited had already been retracted.

The case is one of the most extreme spotted by a giant project to find papers whose results might be in question because they cite retracted or problematic research. The project’s creator, computer scientist Guillaume Cabanac at the University of Toulouse in France, shared his data with Nature ’s news team, which analysed it to find the papers that most heavily cite retracted work yet haven’t themselves been withdrawn (see ‘Retracted references’).

Chain retraction: how to stop bad science propagating through the literature

“We are not accusing anybody of doing something wrong. We are just observing that in some bibliographies, the references have been retracted or withdrawn, meaning that the paper may be unreliable,” Cabanac says. He calls his tool a Feet of Clay Detector, referring to an analogy, originally from the Bible, about statues or edifices that collapse because of their weak clay foundations.

The IEEE paper is the second-highest on the list assembled by Nature , with 18 of the 30 studies it cites withdrawn. Its authors didn’t respond to requests for comment, but IEEE integrity director Luigi Longobardi says that the publisher didn’t know about the issue until Nature asked, and that it is investigating.

Cabanac, a research-integrity sleuth, has already created software to flag thousands of problematic papers in the literature for issues such as computer-written text or disguised plagiarism . He hopes that his latest detector, which he has been developing over the past two years and describes this week in a Comment article in Nature , will provide another way to stop bad research propagating through the scientific literature — some of it fake work created by ‘papermill’ firms .

Further scrutiny

Cabanac lists the detector’s findings on his website , but elsewhere online — on the paper-review site PubPeer and on social media — he has explicitly flagged more than 1,700 papers that caught his eye because of their reliance on retracted work. Some authors have thanked Cabanac for alerting them to problems in their references. Others argue that it’s unfair to effectively cast aspersions on their work because of retractions made after publication that, they say, don’t affect their paper.

Scientific sleuths spot dishonest ChatGPT use in papers

Retracted references don’t definitively show that a paper is problematic, notes Tamara Welschot, part of the research-integrity team at Springer Nature in Dordrecht, the Netherlands, but they are a useful sign that a paper might benefit from further scrutiny. ( Nature ’s news team is independent of its publisher, Springer Nature.)

Some researchers argue that retraction of references in a narrative review — which describes the state of research in a field — doesn’t necessarily invalidate the original paper. But when studies assessed by a systematic review or meta-analysis are withdrawn, the results of that review should always be recalculated to keep the literature up to date, says epidemiologist Isabelle Boutron at Paris City University.

Retracted references

These studies have the highest proportion of retracted papers in their reference lists, according to Nature ’s analysis of articles flagged by the Feet of Clay Detector.

Source: Nature analysis of data from the Feet of Clay Detector . Figures for references and retractions were hand-checked and altered where necessary; detector data sources do not always give accurate counts.

Picking up fraudsters

Some of the papers that cite high proportions of retracted work are authored by known academic fraudsters who have had many of their own papers retracted.

These include engineering researcher Ali Nazari, who was dismissed from Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia, in 2019, after a university misconduct investigation into his activities. He previously worked at Islamic Azad University in Saveh, Iran, and his current whereabouts are unclear. After Nature told publishers about his extant papers 2 , 3 topping Cabanac’s lists — including Elsevier and Fap-Unifesp, a non-profit foundation that supports the Federal University of São Paulo in Brazil — they said that they would look into the articles. One of the relevant journals was discontinued in 2013, Elsevier noted.

Cabanac’s detector also flags papers 4 by Chen-Yuan Chen, a computer scientist who worked at the National Pingtung University of Education in Taiwan until 2014. He was behind a syndicate that faked peer review and boosted citations, which came to light in 2014 after an investigation by the publisher SAGE. Some of Chen’s papers that are still in the literature were published by Springer Nature, which says it hadn’t been aware of the issue but is now investigating. Neither Chen nor Nazari responded to Nature ’s requests for comment.

Another flagged study 5 is by Ahmad Salar Elahi, a physicist affiliated with the Islamic Azad University in Tehran who has already had dozens of his papers retracted, in many cases because of excessive self-citation and instances of faked peer review. In 2018, the website Retraction Watch (which also wrote about the Nazari and Chen cases) reported that according to Mahmoud Ghoranneviss, then-director of the Plasma Physics Research Centre where Elahi worked, Elahi was likely to be dismissed from the university. Now, Ghoranneviss — who has retired — says that Elahi was barred only from that centre and not the rest of the university. Elahi continues to publish papers, sometimes listing co-authors including Ghoranneviss, who says he wasn’t aware of this. Neither Elahi nor the university responded to Nature ’s queries. The IEEE and Springer Nature, publishers of the journals that ran the Elahi papers, say they’re investigating.

Unhappy authors

Some authors are unhappy about Cabanac’s work. In May 2024, editors of the journal Clinical and Translational Oncology placed an expression of concern on a 2019 review paper 6 about RNA and childhood cancers, warning that it might not be reliable because it cited “a number of articles that have been retracted”. The journal’s publishing editor, Ying Jia at Springer Nature in Washington DC, says the team was alerted by one of Cabanac’s posts on social media last year.

Computer scientist Guillaume Cabanac has flagged more than 1,700 papers that caught his eye because of their reliance on retracted work. Credit: Fred Scheiber/SIPA/Shutterstock

Cabanac’s analysis finds that just under 10% of the article’s 637 references have been retracted — almost all after the review was published. However, the paper’s corresponding author, María Sol Brassesco, a biologist at the University of São Paulo, says that removing these references doesn’t change the conclusions of the review, and that she has sent the journal an updated version, which it hasn’t published. Because the cited works were retracted after publication, the expression of concern “felt like we were being punished for something that we could not see ahead”, she says. Jia says that editors felt that adding the notice was the most appropriate action.

In other cases, authors disagree about what to do. Nature examined three papers 7 , 8 , 9 in which between 5 and 16% of the references have now been retracted, all co-authored by Mohammad Taheri, a genetics PhD student at Friedrich Schiller University of Jena in Germany. He says that criticisms of his work on PubPeer “lack solid scientific basis”. Yet, in May, a co-author of two of those works, Marcel Dinger, dean of science at the University of Sydney in Australia, told Retraction Watch that he was reassessing review papers that cited retracted articles. He now says that his team has submitted corrections for the works, but Frontiers, which published one paper, says it hasn’t received the correspondence and will investigate. Elsevier — which published the other two papers — also says that it is examining the issue.

Catching problems early

Examples in which papers cite already-retracted work suggest that publishers could do a better job of screening manuscripts. For instance, 20 studies cited by a 2023 review paper 10 about RNA and gynaecological cancers in Frontiers in Oncology had been retracted before the article was submitted. Review co-author Maryam Mahjoubin-Tehran, a pharmacist at Mashhad University of Medical Sciences in Iran, told Nature that her team didn’t know about the retractions, and does not plan to update or withdraw the paper. The publisher, Frontiers, says it is investigating.

Until recently, publishers have not flagged citations to retracted papers in submitted manuscripts. However, many publishers say they are aware of Cabanac’s tool and monitor issues he raises, and some are bringing in similar screening tools.

Last year, Wiley announced it was checking Retraction Watch’s database of retracted articles to flag issues in reference lists, and Elsevier says it is also rolling out a tool that assesses manuscripts for red flags such as self-citations and references to retracted work. Springer Nature is piloting an in-house tool to look for retracted papers in manuscript citations and Longobardi says the IEEE is considering including Feet of Clay or similar solutions in its workflow. A working group for the STM Integrity Hub — a collaboration between publishers — has also tested the Feet of Clay Detector and “found it useful”, says Welschot.

Medical trend

Medical reviews that cite studies in areas later shown to be affected by fraud are a recurring theme in Cabanac’s findings.

In theory, meta-analyses or systematic reviews should be withdrawn or corrected if work they have cited goes on to be retracted, according to a policy issued in 2021 by the Cochrane Collaboration, an international group known for its gold-standard reviews of medical treatments .

Boutron, who directs Cochrane France in Paris, is using Cabanac’s tool to identify systematic reviews that cite retracted work, and to assess the impact the retracted studies had on the overall results.

However, a 2022 study 11 suggests that authors are often reluctant to update reviews, even when they are told the papers cite retracted work. Researchers e-mailed the authors of 88 systematic reviews that cited now-retracted studies in bone health by a Japanese fraudster, Yoshihiro Sato . Only 11 of the reviews were updated, the authors told Nature last year.

Retraction alerts

Authors aren’t routinely alerted if work cited in their past papers is withdrawn — although in recent years, paper-management tools for researchers such as Zotero and EndNote have incorporated Retraction Watch’s open database of retracted papers and have begun to flag papers that have been taken down. Cabanac thinks publishers might use tools like his to create similar alerts.

In 2016, researchers at the University of Oxford, UK, began developing a tool called RetractoBot , which automatically notifies authors by e-mail when a study that they have previously cited has been retracted. The software currently monitors 20,000 retracted papers and about 400,000 papers, published after 2000, that cite them. The team behind it is running a randomized trial to see whether papers flagged by RetractoBot are subsequently cited less than those not flagged by the tool, and will publish its results next year, says project lead Nicholas DeVito, a integrity researcher at Oxford.

The team has alerted more than 100,000 researchers so far. DeVito says that a minority of authors are annoyed about being contacted, but that others are grateful. “We are merely trying to provide a service to the community to reduce this practice from happening,” he says.

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Americans love nature but don’t feel empowered to protect it, new research shows

Assistant Professor, Indiana University

Disclosure statement

Jessica Eise receives funding from the National Science Foundation to explore how to create enduring change in environmental public behavior to support actions that will effectively address climate change and its impacts on society.

Indiana University provides funding as a member of The Conversation US.

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Climate change has been in the news for more than 40 years . It’s typically covered as a scientific or political issue . However, social scientists like me have found that feelings and values are what drive people toward broad, collective change – not charts, graphs or images.

Surveys confirm that the majority of Americans now believe that climate change is real . But many adults seem to feel too exhausted, defeated or powerless to do anything about it.

I am leading a large multiyear research project funded by the National Science Foundation that examines how to tap into morals, ethics and spirituality to create enduring behavioral shifts on this issue. In the pilot study for this project, which has not been published yet, we recently surveyed 275 U.S. adults to understand their relationship with and feelings toward the natural world.

This is a first step toward understanding how to start communicating differently about climate change. Climate change is altering weather patterns, temperatures and seasons, which people are now beginning to feel in nearly all locations in the world.

Many people said that when they thought of nature, it raised happy memories of climbing trees, stomping in puddles or watching sunsets. But underneath, they described fraught relationships with the environment – a tense blend of love, longing, guilt and worry.

No predetermined answers

We used an open-ended survey that allowed respondents to answer however they wished, without predetermined choices. For example, we asked “What is your personal relationship with nature?” and gave respondents a blank box to write down their own interpretation.

Open-ended questions are coded line by line by a team of researchers – a time-consuming process that limits the number of survey participants. Large surveys typically use close-ended questions that are more straightforward to analyze and are easier to administer to larger numbers of people.

However, using this approach meant that responses were not limited or prompted by a researcher’s ideas. The themes we found arose out of participants’ own thoughts and feelings.

How do people think about and engage with nature?

To understand people’s relationships with nature, we asked several questions. In one set we asked, “How are humans and nature related? What is the role of humans in nature?” Over half of respondents (53%) noted that we should care for and preserve Earth. Some 45% explicitly mentioned the benefits of nature for human health and well-being. And 27% discussed how humans depend on Earth and its resources.

About a quarter of responses (26%) mentioned that humans can choose to be positive or negative forces in nature. This was closely followed by statements that humans take too much from nature (23%).

When analyzing another question, “What is your personal relationship with nature?” we noted prominent themes and how participants tended to connect them to one another. For instance, participants reported that, to them, nature represented beauty, health, joy, childhood and escape.

To connect with nature, respondents said they commonly engaged in activities such as taking walks outdoors, going camping, watching sunsets or gardening. However, many said that barriers – such as time constraints, lack of physical access or being distracted by technology – prevented them from connecting with nature in the ways they wanted.

Wanting to do better

Underlying all of this were strong feelings of love, longing, worry and guilt. These emotions showed up most commonly in responses – usually through a literal statement, although sometimes by alluding to the emotion.

When discussing love, participants were most direct. They usually simply said, “I love it, honestly” or “Love it.” Longing was often expressed in slightly more varied ways, such as stating “It makes me sad to not be outside as much as I would hope to,” or “Wish I could go hiking and other things to get closer.”

Worry and guilt emerged in responses such as: “I try my best to respect the environment and take care of it. I know I can do better”; “I take care of it the best I can, but I wouldn’t say I make any large gestures either”; and “I don’t appreciate it enough.” One person simply responded: “Appreciation, respect, care, sadness.”

This question had asked, “What is your personal relationship with nature?” We did not guide respondents to list their feelings. Yet, the responses were laden with emotions.

No sense of how to help

The way in which people talk about or portray an issue – their words, symbols, phrases or images – is called a frame. Frames highlight a subset of an issue , which then generally becomes people’s primary way of thinking about something.

Positive self-efficacy frames – in other words, a belief that people can make a difference – have been largely absent from conversations about climate change . Political or distant environmental frames are more common.

For example, prominent images typically contain political figures or distant environmental impacts, such as smokestacks or melting ice . These tend to leave people feeling powerless or feeling that they have little to offer.

Our survey findings reflect these frames. People feel longing, guilt and worry toward the environment, with virtually no mention of hope, excitement or empowerment.

From paralysis to engagement

Social scientists have been learning through climate change research that some emotions paralyze and others catalyze . Is it possible to reduce paralysis and match love for nature with hope?

Other surveys show that Americans’ concern for future generations is rising, that they are worried about harm to plants and animals and that nearly all groups see human actions as the cause of these concerns . However, as long as people lack a personal sense that they have the ability to make change, they won’t take steps such as telling political leaders to act.

Our next phase of research will build on findings from this survey by examining how ethical, moral and spiritual considerations influence behavior . We want to know what’s required for these ideas to invoke a sense of personal empowerment that’s necessary to take action.

When someone focuses on their connection with one another and future generations, it draws on a different set of ethics and sense of self – and that can motivate action.

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