Styles of formatting in-text references: examples in APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago and Vancouver formats
- December 19, 2023
- Posted by: Yury Subachev, PhD
- Categories: For young scientists, Paper publication
How to format a reference within a text of a research paper in English? Should I use rectangular or curved brackets? When should I cite all authors of a source and when is it sufficient to add “et al.”? Do I need footnotes in APA or MLA style? Is it always necessary to include a page number? And in general, how shall I format citations in different styles in the English language?
The fate of a research paper often depends on correctness of citation – whether it will be published or sent for endless revision.
In order to have no more doubts and to cite in-text sources according to certain rules without hesitation, read this article and make use of the examples of formatting in different styles from APA to Vancouver.
In APA, in-text quotations are given in the author – date format. For example: (Lennon, 1989). Note that when you mention thoughts from another work or refer to a source without using a direct quotation from it you do not need to include the page number in brackets.
However, if you are citing another work specify in brackets the page from which the phrase was taken. Use “p.” for a single page and “pp.” for a several consecutive pages. For example, (Lennon, 1989, p. 168) or (Lennon, 1989, pp. 168-171).
The table below shows some examples of in-text references for sources of different type:
|
Source type |
Example of formatting in APA |
Note |
|
One author |
As Lennon (1989) stated, “It is not an easy task to cite in APA style” (p. 199). or He stated that “it is not an easy task to cite in APA” (Lennon, 1989, p. 188). |
|
|
Two authors |
Lennon and Cage (2018) state that “APA style is difficult for citing” (p. 188). or They stated, “APA style is difficult for citing”(Lennon & Cage, 2018, p. 188). |
In brackets, & instead of and is used.
|
|
Three, four or five authors |
First mention: Lennon, Cage, and Andrews (2019) or (Lennon, Cage, & Andrews, 2019) Further mention: Lennon et al (2019). or (Lennon et al., 2017). |
|
|
Six or more authors |
Lennon et al (2019). or (Lennon et al., 2019). |
Only the first author’s name is given. |
|
Author unknown |
(A Guide to Translation, 2017). or (“A Guide to Translation,” 2017).
|
The first few words of the source title are cited. Usually this is the title. Titles of books, journals and other “self-contained” sources are italicised. Titles of sections, chapters, articles, i.e. parts of the whole are given in quotes. |
|
Works by the same author of the same year |
(Lennon, 2017a). (Lennon, 2017b). |
The reference list should also indicate the source letter (a, b, c, etc.). |
|
A reference to several works of different years by the same author |
Lennon (2003, 2007, 2009). or (Lennon, 2003, 2007, 2009). |
|
|
A reference to different works by different authors |
(Lennon & Cage, 2009; Lewis & Clark, 2017). |
The sources are arranged alphabetically by the first author’s name and are separated by semicolons. |
|
Group or organisation |
First mention: (International Translating Organisation [ITO], 2019). Further mention: (ITO, 2019). |
Use of abbreviations or acronyms is optional. |
|
Quoting in another author’s book |
Lennon (1999) as cited in Cage (2008)… or (Lennon, 1999, as cited in Cage, 2008). |
The author of the original quotation is listed first, followed by the person who quoted him/her in their work. |
|
Source with unknown date |
(Lennon, n.d.) |
|
|
Web page with an author |
(Hagrid, 2020) |
|
|
Web page without an author but belonging to some organisation |
(World Health Association, 2019) |
|
|
Web page with unknown publication date |
World Health Association (n.d.) or (World Health Association, n.d.) |
|
An important point that is often overlooked is correct use of quotation marks, capital letters and italicising titles in links to in-text sources. The APA style also envisages a number of citation rules for such cases:
- Unlike References, where only the first word in the source title and proper names are capitalised, all the words within a research paper, except functional parts of speech, are capitalised. This applies as well to two parts of a word separated by a dash or two parts of a title separated by a colon.
For example: Natural-Born, “Translation: The Rules and Mistakes”.
- If the work title in References is italicised it is also italicised in the text.
- The title of a work which is not italicised in the list of references is marked with double quotes in the text.
And the last nuance – long quotations. The quotation consisting of more than 40 words should be formatted as a separate block after a signal phrase, from a new line, with no quotation marks and with an indent on the left like for an indented line. The line spacing in the quotation is double. The quotation is followed by a full stop; the number of page which it was borrowed from is given in brackets.
For clarity, you can use an example of formatting quotations in APA style:
2. MLA style: how to cite sources within a research paper
The main difference of the MLA format from the APA style is that you place not the year of publication in brackets but the page from which the citation was taken for your paper. Therefore, this style of in-text citation is called “author – page”.
The formatting rules for various MLA style sources are as follows:
|
Source type |
Example of formatting in APA |
Note |
|
One author |
Jackson found that the most important thing about translation is… (167). or It was found that the most important thing about translation is… (Jackson 167). |
No punctuation marks are inserted between the author’s name and the page in the source. |
|
Two authors |
Jackson and Bruce found that the most important thing about translation is… (167). or It was found that the most important thing about translation is… (Jackson and Bruce 167). |
Only the conjunction and is used between authors’ names. |
|
Three or more authors |
(Jackson et al. 167) |
|
|
Author unknown |
(“Bridge to Britain” 3) or (Bridge to Britain 67) |
Titles of short materials are used with quotation marks, such as articles, while voluminous works or writings, such as books, plays, dissertations, etc. are italicised |
|
Works by the same author |
In her first book, Margareth Nixon described… (The Black Prince 88), while in her further work, she told…. (Lake of Hope 276)… |
Work titles and referenced pages are given in brackets. |
|
Reference to different works by different authors |
(Lennon and Cage, 102; Lewis and Clark, 76). |
The sources are separated by a semicolon. |
|
Citing in another author’s book |
(qtd. in Ulrich 45). |
|
|
Authors with the same name |
(L. Simmons 34), (J. Simmons 143) |
|
If a work or a paper is mentioned in the text of a research article, all the words in the title, except for functional parts of speech, are capitalised and italicised.
Long fragments of a quoted text, like in APA, are presented as a separate block and arranged with a left indent. At the end of the quotation, the page and the author are given in brackets if the latter’s name was not mentioned in the signal phrase opening the quotation.
3. Harvard style: how to make references and cite sources within the text of a research paper
The Harvard citation format is different from the patterns used by the previously described styles. For example, some manuals prescribe separating the names of several authors with and, while the others – with &. Some sources recommend italicising et al., while the others do not.
In order not to make mistakes, it is recommended that you scrutinise the works that have already been published in the journal in which you wish to place your work.
Below we shall give the most common rules for formatting in-text sources in the Harvard-style – the basic rules still remain the same for all manuals:
|
Source type |
Example of formatting in APA |
Note |
|
One author |
Lennocks (2017, p. 78) states…. or (Lennocks, 2017, p.78). |
The Harvard style requires citing both the author and the year of publication, and the page or page range of the cited source. If you need to specify a range of pages write pp. instead of p. |
|
Two or three authors |
Lennocks, Lewis and Turner (2017, pp. 15-17) state… or (Lennocks, Lewis and Turner, 2017, pp. 15-17). |
No comma is placed before the conjunction “and”. |
|
Four or more authors |
Lennocks et al (2018, p.16) state…. or (Lennocks et al, 2017, p.16). |
Some guidelines recommend putting a full stop after “al”. Therefore, carefully review the editorial policy or the already published papers. |
|
Author unknown |
(Interesting facts about cells, 2017, pp.167-169). |
Instead of the author’s name, you can give the name of the organisation to which the cited work belongs, or the work title in italics and capitalised – only for the first word (all the words in the organisation name, except for functional words, are capitalised). |
|
One-year works by one author |
Lewis (2017a, p.17) or (Lewis, 2017b, p. 145). |
|
|
Several papers by different authors |
(Lewis, 2019, p. 34; Spencer and Kraig, 2018, pp. 56-57; Billings, 2009, p.13). |
|
|
Source with no release date |
(James, no date, p.15). |
|
|
Source quoted in another source |
Thomas (2001, cited in Richards, 2016, p. 145) or (Thomas, 2001, cited in Richards, 2016, p. 145). |
|
|
Web page |
(https://www.еtrs-ways-to-translate-article, 2019) |
If the web page has no author or title you can give its URL. |
Direct quotes in the Harvard format, like in APA and MLA, exceeding 50 words or consisting of two sentences, are indented on the left and are marked by a signal phrase before the quotation.
4. Chicago style: formatting in-text quotations
The formatting of in-text references in the Chicago style supposes two methods:
1. author – date;
2. references (footnotes, endnotes).
Footnotes are more common in the humanities, while the author – date format is more likely to be met in the exact sciences. In any case, before choosing one of the options, it is better to check with the editor what format is required in the particular journal.
Note that when you use the author – date format there should be a “Reference List” at the end of the paper. “Bibliography” is an option.
Since the Chicago style in the author – date format is much the same as the Harvard style we shall not provide a comprehensive analysis of all source types. Instead, some examples of the Chicago style formatting and its difference from the previously discussed styles will be presented:
1. No comma is placed between the author’s name and the year of publication of the source. For example: (Lixter 2017, 56).
2. A comma is placed after the year of publication, with indication of the page, paragraph or line without p. or pp.
3. The names of several authors are separated by a comma. The last author’s name is preceded by the conjunction “and” without a comma. For example: (Andrews, Morgan and Freeman 2015, 89-98).
4. If a source has 4 or more authors, then et al. is placed after the name of the first author, with a full stop after “al”. For example: (Fergus et al. 2016).
5. All the words in the source title are capitalised. Functional parts of speech are an exception.
6. If the publication date is unknown d. is typed.
As for the format of footnotes, the rules should be considered in more detail.
Chicago style formatting with footnotes
Footnotes can be arranged in two ways:
- at the end of each page (footnotes);
- at the end of the paper before the references (endnotes).
To make a footnote, use the superscript format. Place a footnote at the end of the phrase or sentence in which the quotation was used, after the punctuation mark. For example: Johnson stated that “some cells have unique structure”.1
Footnotes can be short or long:
- short footnotes contain the author’s name, source title (abbreviated if it contains more than four words) and page number;
- long footnotes represent complete information on the source.
Long footnotes are needed only in papers having no bibliographic list (since bibliography is not always required by the Chicago style). In this case, if you cite a source more than once give full details for the first reference; subsequently, you can limit yourself to short footnotes.
A long footnote and subsequent short footnotes look like this:
1. Mary Shelley, “Frankenstein,” in Selected Novels, ed. Richard Norman (London: My Publisher, 2009), 13.
2. Shelley, “Frankenstein,” 25.
The table below shows some examples of Chicago formatting for full and short references:
|
Source type |
Full reference |
Short reference |
|
Web site |
Liza Methews, “How to Translate Books,” Translation Family, May 15, 2018, https://www.translation-family.com |
Methews, “How to Translate Books.” |
|
Book |
Andrew Morton, 10 Great habits to Stop Smoking, 3rd ed. (New York: My Publisher, 1999), 75–89. |
Morton, 10 Great Habits, 15. |
|
Book section |
Henry James, “How to Become Successful Man,” in Good Advice for Every Day, ed. Norman Reedus (London: My Publisher, 2010), 98. |
James, “How to Become,” 98. |
|
Journal article |
Robert Nice, “Free Trials and Behavioral Dysfunction,” Journal of Marketing Research 62, no. 5 (2018): 117, www.jmag.org/stable/34578756. |
Nice, “Free Trials,” 117. |
If a source has two or three authors their names are separated by a comma, for example: 1. Smith, Thompson, and Ulrich, “Supernatural Nature,” 143-145.
If there are four or more authors the first author’s name is followed by “et al”. For example: Smith et al, “Supernatural Nature,” 143-145.
Before deciding which Chicago style format to use (author – date or footnotes), check with the editor about the journal’s requirements. Check whether a bibliographic list is required, what type of footnotes should be used, and carefully examine the published papers. This way you will secure yourself against article retraction, lots of edits and rejection of your work.
5. Vancouver style: how to format a reference to a source within a research paper
All sources in the list of references at the end of the paper are given in the order in which they were mentioned in the text. Numbering of sources is mandatory.
After presenting the in-text quotation, the source number should be given. That is all. The Vancouver style requires no names, years of publication or titles of works. This is its main difference from the other styles of formatting quotations in a research paper.
However, the simplicity of formatting does not at all mean the absence of rules:
1. Depending on the journal’s editorial policy, curved or rectangular brackets can be used.
2. Arabic numerals are used for numbering sources and references to them.
3. Superscript can be used instead of brackets.
4. A reference is placed after the quotation author’s name or at the end of the sentence, after a full stop.
In practice, Vancouver style citation of sources looks like this:
…as one author has put it “the greatest days were waiting for us ahead.”(1)
. as one author has put it “the greatest days were waiting for us ahead.”[1]
..as one author has put it “the greatest days were waiting for us ahead”.1
If the author’s name is entered in the text, the reference can be placed after it:
Stevens1 agreed…
Although the Vancouver style does not require specifying any other data other than the source number, you can act as follows if it is critical for you to identify the page from which the quotation was borrowed:
…as one author has put it “the greatest days were waiting for us ahead.”(1 p45)
Or like this:
..as one author has put it “the greatest days were waiting for us ahead”.1 (p25)
Stevens (1 p25-26) agreed…
If more than one source is cited in a sentence, their numbers are separated by a comma or a dash, for example (1, 5, 8-10).
Conclusion
Scientists spend a lot of time on formatting in-text references and quotations in different styles, and still make mistakes. Therefore, we recommend one to carefully check every letter and punctuation mark.
Although the essential requirements for citation and formatting of the reference list in APA, MLA, Harvard, Chicago and Vancouver styles (which is covered in detail by a separate article of ours) are basically the same in many editorial agencies, some departure from the rules is also present. So, we advise that, before proceeding to formatting, you carefully read the requirements of the journal and scrutinise the already published papers.
Do not pin high hopes on automated formatting service generators for quotations and references. We know from experience that they make a lot of mistakes which are no easier to fix than formatting in-text links and References manually. It is better to practice, sharpen your skills or apply to professionals. Then you can be sure that your work is formatted according to the prescribed rules.
