omit the page number.
The AI-powered Citation Checker helps you avoid common mistakes such as:
APA references generally include information about the author , publication date , title , and source . Depending on the type of source, you may have to include extra information that helps your reader locate the source.
Citing a source starts with choosing the correct reference format. Use Scribbr’s Citation Example Generator to learn more about the format for the most common source types. Pay close attention to punctuation, capitalization, and italicization.
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It is not uncommon for certain information to be unknown or missing, especially with sources found online. In these cases, the reference is slightly adjusted.
Missing element | What to do | Reference format |
---|---|---|
Author | Start the reference entry with the source title. | Title. (Date). Source. |
Date | Write “n.d.” for “no date”. | Author. (n.d.). Title. Source. |
Title | Describe the work in square brackets. | Author. (Date). [Description]. Source. |
On the first line of the page, write the section label “References” (in bold and centered). On the second line, start listing your references in alphabetical order .
Apply these formatting guidelines to the APA reference page:
On the reference page, you only include sources that you have cited in the text (with an in-text citation ). You should not include references to personal communications that your reader can’t access (e.g. emails, phone conversations or private online material).
Are you a teacher or professor looking to introduce your students to APA Style? Download our free introductory lecture slides, available for Google Slides and Microsoft PowerPoint.
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When no individual author name is listed, but the source can clearly be attributed to a specific organization—e.g., a press release by a charity, a report by an agency, or a page from a company’s website—use the organization’s name as the author in the reference entry and APA in-text citations .
When no author at all can be determined—e.g. a collaboratively edited wiki or an online article published anonymously—use the title in place of the author. In the in-text citation, put the title in quotation marks if it appears in plain text in the reference list, and in italics if it appears in italics in the reference list. Shorten it if necessary.
When you quote or paraphrase a specific passage from a source, you need to indicate the location of the passage in your APA in-text citation . If there are no page numbers (e.g. when citing a website ) but the text is long, you can instead use section headings, paragraph numbers, or a combination of the two:
(Caulfield, 2019, Linking section, para. 1).
Section headings can be shortened if necessary. Kindle location numbers should not be used in ebook citations , as they are unreliable.
If you are referring to the source as a whole, it’s not necessary to include a page number or other marker.
The abbreviation “ et al. ” (meaning “and others”) is used to shorten APA in-text citations with three or more authors . Here’s how it works:
Only include the first author’s last name, followed by “et al.”, a comma and the year of publication, for example (Taylor et al., 2018).
APA Style usually does not require an access date. You never need to include one when citing journal articles , e-books , or other stable online sources.
However, if you are citing a website or online article that’s designed to change over time, it’s a good idea to include an access date. In this case, write it in the following format at the end of the reference: Retrieved October 19, 2020, from https://www.uva.nl/en/about-the-uva/about-the-university/about-the-university.html
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Citing books in apa, print books with one author:.
APA citation format:
Author Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year Published). Title of work . Publisher.
Moriarty, L. (2014). Big little lies . G. P. Putnam’s Sons.
Last name, First initial. Middle initial., Last name, First initial. Middle initial., & Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Date). Title . Publisher.
Goldin, C. D., & Katz, L. F. (2008). The race between education and technology . Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.
Matthews, G., Smith, Y., & Knowles, G. (2009). Disaster management in archives, libraries and museums . Ashgate.
E-books are generally read either on a website, on an e-reader, or on a database.
Author Last Name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year Published). Title of work . https://doi.org/xxxx or http://xxxx
Auster, P. (2007). The Brooklyn follies . http://www.barnesandnoble.com/
To cite your ebooks automatically, use the “Book” form at CitationMachine.com, click “Manual entry mode,” and click the “E-book” tab. Everything will be properly formatted following APA bibliography guidelines.
APA Citation Generator | Website | Books | Journal Articles | YouTube | Images | Movies | Interview | PDF
Home / Guides / Citation Guides / APA Format / How to Cite a Chapter in a Book APA
Creating citations for entire books in APA is one thing, but what happens when you need to cite a specific chapter within that book? This EasyBib citation guide will go over the correct way to create an APA chapter citation for chapters from both printed books and digital books, as well as how you can use this information to cite things like sections, paragraphs, pages, and more. The information provided here references the 7th edition of the American Psychological Association’s Publication Manual (this guide is not affiliated with the association).
Looking for lessons about something other than citing a book chapter? At EasyBib, you will find citation tools and an extensive collection of reference guides to help you finish that essay or research paper.
How to cite a chapter in a printed or online book with all contents written by the same author(s), how to cite a chapter in an edited book, how to cite a chapter in an edited book in another language (not translated), how to cite a chapter in an edited and translated book, two parts to citations for chapters .
Any source used in your paper should have the corresponding citations:
The in-text citation is included within the text of your paper. There are two types:
Parenthetical citations are placed at the end of a quote or paraphrase. These citations include a few details on the source (usually the author’s name or source title and the year published) within parentheses.
“When two cultures come together, the words of their languages compete for survival” (Crystal, 2013).
Narrative citations are when part of the source’s information is included within the sentence, so only the year needs to be indicated in parentheses.
Crystal wrote that “when two cultures come together, the words of their languages compete for survival” (2013).
Next, let’s take a look at how to create full citations or references for a specific chapter.
The general structure of a full reference for a chapter includes this information:
Let’s look at how these elements fit into different types of source citations.
If you’re using information from a chapter of a book where one author or a group of authors equally share credit for all contents of the book, then you just cite the book — there’s no need to cite the chapter!
Author Last Name, First Initial. Middle Initial. (Year Published). Title of book in sentence case. Publisher name. DOI or URL
Ray, R.B. (1985). A certain tendency of the Hollywood cinema, 1930-1980. Princeton University Press.
In-text citation:
Parenthetical citation: (Ray, 1985)
Narrative citation: Ray (1985)
Note that parenthetical in-text citations for direct quotes from the book should also include page numbers:
Parenthetical citation for direct quote: (Lee & Brown, 2000, pg. 44)
For a narrative citation, you can format your citation the same way you would an in-text citation, as long as you include the page number in the sentence. If you do not include the page number in the sentence, place it at the end, like this:
Narrative citation for direct quote:
Mia Lee and Paulo Brown (2000) assert that “future generations will thank us for the care we have taken here” (p. 44).
If the chapter you are trying to cite has been published within an edited book, then it’s necessary to provide both the author(s) of the chapter and the editor of the book, as well as the appropriate titles.
Chapter Author Last Name, First Initial. Middle Initial. (Year Published). Title of chapter in sentence case. In Editor First Initial, Editor Second Initial, Editor Last Name (Ed.), Title of book in sentence case (Edition, Volume, Page No.) . Publisher Name. URL or DOI
Brooks, V.W. (1962). Preface. In R.S. Milton & L.G. Seymour (Eds.), American literature survey (3rd ed., pp. xvii-xx). Penguin Books.
Notice how both the chapter title (“Preface”) and the specific page numbers (“pp. xvii-xx”) are provided inside of the reference. For this reason, this information does not need to be included in the in-text citation unless a direct quote is being made. If a direct quote is being made, use the format in the section above (“How to cite a chapter in a printed or online book with all contents written by the same author”) to include page numbers.
Parenthetical citation: (Brooks, 1962)
Narrative citation: Brooks (1962)
Looking to cite something other than a book chapter? EasyBib is your source for comprehensive, easy-to-follow citation and reference guides that can help you finish your essay, paper, or project.
Write the name of the chapter in its original language, then write the translated name next to it in brackets. Much like citing a book that is in a different language that does not use the Roman alphabet, it is necessary to transliterate the chapter name with the Roman alphabet. The book name does not need to have a translation following it. Because the chapter name and page numbers are included in the reference, the page numbers do not need to be included in an in-text citation unless a direct quote is being made. If a direct quote is being made, use the format in the section above (“How to cite a chapter in a printed or online book with all contents written by the same author”) to include page numbers.
Chapter Author Last Name, F. M. (Year). Chapter name [Translated chapter name]. In Editor’s F. M. Last Name (Ed.), Title of book (chapter page range pp. #-#). Publisher. DOI/URL
Morales, M. (2005). Usando technologia nueva [Using new technology]. In J. Reyes (Ed.), El grande libro de enseñando (pp. 135-150). Libros Importantes.
Parenthetical citation: (Morales, 2005)
Narrative citation: Morales (2005)
If you’re using a chapter from an edited and translated book, be sure to include the names of both the translator and editor. If someone is both the translator and editor, you can include their name twice. Also, for works that have been republished from another language, include the original year published at the end of the citation. Again, because the chapter name and page numbers are included in the reference, the page numbers do not need to be included in an in-text citation unless a direct quote is being made. If a direct quote is being made, use the format in the section above (“How to cite a chapter in a printed or online book with all contents written by the same author”) to include page numbers.
Chapter Author Last Name, F. M. (Year). Chapter name (Translator F. M. Last Name, Trans.). In Editor F. M. Last Name (Ed.), Title of book (chapter pages range pp. #-#). Publisher. (Original work published Year)
Han, T. (2014). The night the tiger was caught (1922-1923) (J. S. Noble, Trans.). In X. Chen (Ed.), The Columbia anthology of modern Chinese drama (pp. #-#). Columbia University Press.
Parenthetical citation: (Han, 2014)
Narrative citation: Han (2014)
Here is a video that explains how to cite a chapter in APA style:
American Psychological Association. (2020a). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000
American Psychological Association. (2020b). Style-grammar-guidelines. https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/citations/basic-principles/parenthetical-versus-narrative
Crystal, D. (2013). The story of English in 100 words. St. Martin’s Press.
Published October 31, 2011. Updated April 9, 2020.
Written and edited by Michele Kirschenbaum and Elise Barbeau. Michele Kirschenbaum is a school library media specialist and the in-house librarian at EasyBib.com. Elise Barbeau is the Citation Specialist at Chegg. She has worked in digital marketing, libraries, and publishing.
APA Formatting
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To cite a book chapter in APA style, you need to have basic information including the author(s), publication year, chapter title, editor(s), and publisher. The templates for in-text citations and reference list entries of a book chapter with one author and one editor along with examples are given below.
In-text citation templates and examples:
Author Surname (Publication Year)
Broadhead (2010)
Parenthetical
(Author Surname, Publication Year)
(Broadhead, 2010)
Reference list entry template and example:
Author Surname, F. M. (Publication Year). Chapter title: Subtitle. In F. Editor Surname (Ed.), Book title (pp. #–#). Publisher.
Broadhead, P. (2010). Building friendships through playful learning in the early years. In J. Moyles (Ed.), The excellence of play (pp. 216–228). McGraw-Hill.
Both the chapter title and the book title are set in sentence case; however, the book title is set in italics. The word “In” is used before the editor’s name. Note that the style for setting the editor’s name is the initial of the first name followed by the surname. Use “(Ed.)” after the editor’s name. Enclose page information after the book title in parenthesis.
To cite a book chapter with an editor and/or a translator in APA style, you need to have basic information including the authors, publication year, chapter title, editors and/or translators, book title, publisher, and page numbers. The templates for in-text citation and reference list entry of a book chapter with an editor and/or a translator along with examples are given below:
In-text citation template and example:
Author Surname (Original Publication Year/Republished Year)
Badiou (2003/2013)
(Author Surname, Original Publication Year/Republished Year)
(Badiou, 2003/2013)
Author Surname, F. M. (Publication Year). Chapter title: Subtitle. (F. TranslatorSurname, Trans.). In F. EditorSurname (Ed.), Book title (pp. #–#). Publisher. (Original work published year).
Badiou, A. (2013). The writing of the generic. (B. Bosteels, Trans.). In N. Power & A. Toscano (Eds.), On Beckett (pp. 1–36). Clinamen. (Original work published 2003).
The chapter title is in sentence case. The translator’s name is set in parenthesis along with the word “Trans.” Follow the first initial with the surname for the translator. The word “In” is used before the editor’s name. Note that the style for setting the editor’s name is the initial of the first name followed by the surname. Use “(Ed.)” after the editor’s name. The book title is set in italics. Include page numbers in parentheses after the book title with “pp.” before the page range. Include the publication year of the original work in parenthesis.
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References provide the information necessary for readers to identify and retrieve each work cited in the text .
Check each reference carefully against the original publication to ensure information is accurate and complete. Accurately prepared references help establish your credibility as a careful researcher and writer.
Consistency in reference formatting allows readers to focus on the content of your reference list, discerning both the types of works you consulted and the important reference elements (who, when, what, and where) with ease. When you present each reference in a consistent fashion, readers do not need to spend time determining how you organized the information. And when searching the literature yourself, you also save time and effort when reading reference lists in the works of others that are written in APA Style.
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Instructional Aids
Guides, checklists, webinars, tutorials, and sample papers for anyone looking to improve their knowledge of APA Style
Generate citations in APA format quickly and automatically, with MyBib!
An APA citation generator is a software tool that will automatically format academic citations in the American Psychological Association (APA) style.
It will usually request vital details about a source -- like the authors, title, and publish date -- and will output these details with the correct punctuation and layout required by the official APA style guide.
Formatted citations created by a generator can be copied into the bibliography of an academic paper as a way to give credit to the sources referenced in the main body of the paper.
College-level and post-graduate students are most likely to use an APA citation generator, because APA style is the most favored style at these learning levels. Before college, in middle and high school, MLA style is more likely to be used. In other parts of the world styles such as Harvard (UK and Australia) and DIN 1505 (Europe) are used more often.
Like almost every other citation style, APA style can be cryptic and hard to understand when formatting citations. Citations can take an unreasonable amount of time to format manually, and it is easy to accidentally include errors. By using a citation generator to do this work you will:
In academia, bibliographies are graded on their accuracy against the official APA rulebook, so it is important for students to ensure their citations are formatted correctly. Special attention should also be given to ensure the entire document (including main body) is structured according to the APA guidelines. Our complete APA format guide has everything you need know to make sure you get it right (including examples and diagrams).
Our APA generator was built with a focus on simplicity and speed. To generate a formatted reference list or bibliography just follow these steps:
MyBib supports the following for APA style:
⚙️ Styles | APA 6 & APA 7 |
---|---|
📚 Sources | Websites, books, journals, newspapers |
🔎 Autocite | Yes |
📥 Download to | Microsoft Word, Google Docs |
Daniel is a qualified librarian, former teacher, and citation expert. He has been contributing to MyBib since 2018.
This handout focuses on how to format in-text citations in APA.
Proper citation of sources is a two-part process . You must first cite each source in the body of your essay; these citations within the essay are called in-text citations . You MUST cite all quoted, paraphrased, or summarized words, ideas, and facts from sources. Without in-text citations, you are technically in danger of plagiarism, even if you have listed your sources at the end of the essay.
In-text citations point the reader to the sources’ information on the references page. The in-text citation typically includes the author's last name and the year of publication. If you use a direct quote, the page number is also provided.
More information can be found on p. 253 of the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.
Direct quotation with the author named in the text.
Heinze and Lu (2017) stated, “The NFL shifted its responses to institutional change around concussions significantly as the field itself evolved” (p. 509).
Note: The year of publication is listed in parenthesis after the names of the authors, and the page number is listed in parenthesis at the end of the quote.
As the NFL developed as an organization, it “shifted its responses to institutional change around concussions significantly” (Heinze & Lu, 2017, p. 509).
Note: At the end of the quote, the names of the authors, year of publication, and page number are listed in parenthesis.
As the NFL developed as an organization, its reactions toward concussions also transformed (Heinze & Lu, 2017).
Note: For paraphrases, page numbers are encouraged but not required.
To work toward solving the issue of violence in prisons begins with determining aspects that might connect with prisoners' violent conduct (Thomson et al., 2019).
The findings were astonishing "in a recent study of parent and adult child relationships" ("Parents and Their Children," 2007, p. 2).
Note: Since the author of the text is not stated, a shortened version of the title is used instead.
When using secondary sources, use the phrase "as cited in" and cite the secondary source on the References page.
In 1936, Keynes said, “governments should run deficits when the economy is slow to avoid unemployment” (as cited in Richardson, 2008, p. 257).
When using direct quotations of 40 or more words, indent five spaces from the left margin without using quotation marks. The final period should come before the parenthetical citation.
At Meramec, an English department policy states:
To honor and protect their own work and that of others, all students must give credit to proprietary sources that are used for course work. It is assumed that any information that is not documented is either common knowledge in that field or the original work of that student. (St. Louis Community College, 2001, p. 1)
If citing a specific web document without a page number, include the name of the author, date, title of the section, and paragraph number in parentheses:
In America, “Two out of five deaths among U.S. teens are the result of a motor vehicle crash” (National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, 2004, Overview section, para. 1).
Here is a print-friendly version of this content.
Learn more about the APA References page by reviewing this handout .
For information on STLCC's academic integrity policy, check out this webpage .
For additional information on APA, check out STLCC's LibGuide on APA .
A sample APA essay is available at this link .
IMAGES
VIDEO
COMMENTS
In the reference list, start with the author's last name and initials, followed by the year. The book title is written in sentence case (only capitalize the first word and any proper nouns ). Include any other contributors (e.g. editors and translators) and the edition if specified (e.g. "2nd ed."). APA format. Last name, Initials.
In-Text Citation (Quotation) - entry that appears in the body of your paper after a direct quote. References - entry that appears at the end of your paper. Information on citing and several of the examples were drawn from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.).
Book/Ebook References. Use the same formats for both print books and ebooks. For ebooks, the format, platform, or device (e.g., Kindle) is not included in the reference. This page contains reference examples for books, including the following: Whole authored book. Whole edited book. Republished book, with editor.
For each type of source in this guide, both the general form and an example will be provided. The following format will be used: In-Text Citation (Paraphrase) - entry that appears in the body of your paper when you express the ideas of a researcher or author using your own words. For more tips on paraphrasing check out The OWL at Purdue.. In-Text Citation (Quotation) - entry that appears in ...
Basic guidelines for formatting the reference list at the end of a standard APA research paper Author/Authors Rules for handling works by a single author or multiple authors that apply to all APA-style references in your reference list, regardless of the type of work (book, article, electronic resource, etc.)
Put a comma and an ampersand (&) before the name of the last author cited. 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." Note: If the listed names are editors rather than authors, include " (Eds.)." at the end of the list of names.
This guide contains examples of common types of APA Style references. Section numbers indicate where to find the examples in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). More information on references and reference examples are in Chapters 9 and 10 of the Publication Manual as well as the Concise Guide to APA ...
In the text, when you have paraphrased an edited book chapter, cite the author (s) of the chapter and the year of publication of the book, as shown in the following examples. Parenthetical citation of a paraphrase from an edited book chapter: (Fountain, 2019) Narrative citation of a paraphrase from an edited book chapter: Fountain (2019) If the ...
Throughout your paper, you need to apply the following APA format guidelines: Set page margins to 1 inch on all sides. Double-space all text, including headings. Indent the first line of every paragraph 0.5 inches. Use an accessible font (e.g., Times New Roman 12pt., Arial 11pt., or Georgia 11pt.).
Solution #2: How to cite a republished translated book. For translated books, include the name of the original author at the start of the citation, but for the year, include the date of publication for the version you are using. After the title, include the translator's name, and after the publisher, provide the original publication date.
A Chicago bibliography entry for a book includes the author's name, the book title and subtitle, the edition (if stated), the location and name of the publisher, and the year of publication. For an e-book, add the e-book format (e.g. "Kindle") at the end. Author last name, First name. Book Title: Subtitle.
For an article written by Kelly James appearing in a book published in 2011, the citation would appear like this: (James, 2011). References. The References page entry begins with the information that appears in the citation, so start with the author of the essay, the last name followed by the first initial with a comma between.
Cite a book automatically in APA. The following contains a list of the most commonly cited print book sources. E-books are described on our "Electronic Sources" page . For a complete list of how to cite print sources, please refer to the 7 th edition of the APA Publication Manual. Note: If available, APA 7 requires a DOI for all works that have ...
More than 100 reference examples and their corresponding in-text citations are presented in the seventh edition Publication Manual.Examples of the most common works that writers cite are provided on this page; additional examples are available in the Publication Manual.. To find the reference example you need, first select a category (e.g., periodicals) and then choose the appropriate type of ...
Example: Finney, J. (1970). Time and again. Simon and Schuster. Notes: When citing a book in APA, keep in mind: The title of the book should be written in sentence case. This means you should capitalize the first letter of the first word of the title and any subtitles, as well as the first letter of any proper nouns.
For a work with more than 20 authors, list the first 20 authors and insert ellipses. After the ellipses, write the last author's name. Author's Last Name, First Initial., Author's Last Name, First Initial., (list first 20 authors), . . . Final Author's Last Name, First Initial. (Year of Publication). Title of Book.
Scenario: You read a 2007 article by Linhares and Brum that cites an earlier article, by Klein. You want to cite Klein's article, but you have not read Klein's article itself. Reference list citation. Linhares, A., & Brum, P. (2007).
On the first line of the page, write the section label "References" (in bold and centered). On the second line, start listing your references in alphabetical order. Apply these formatting guidelines to the APA reference page: Double spacing (within and between references) Hanging indent of ½ inch.
Citing books in APA Print books with one author: APA citation format: Author Last name, First initial. Middle initial. (Year Published). Title of work. Publisher. Example: Moriarty, L. (2014). Big little lies. G. P. Putnam's Sons. Print books with two or more authors: Structure:
If a direct quote is being made, use the format in the section above ("How to cite a chapter in a printed or online book with all contents written by the same author") to include page numbers. Structure: Chapter Author Last Name, F. M. (Year). Chapter name [Translated chapter name]. In Editor's F. M.
References provide the information necessary for readers to identify and retrieve each work cited in the text. Check each reference carefully against the original publication to ensure information is accurate and complete. Accurately prepared references help establish your credibility as a careful researcher and writer. Consistency in reference ...
Generate APA style citations quickly and accurately with our FREE APA citation generator. Enter a website URL, book ISBN, or search with keywords, and we do the rest! Updated with APA 7th Edition! ... APA 6 & APA 7: 📚 Sources: Websites, books, journals, newspapers: 🔎 Autocite: Yes: 📥 Download to: Microsoft Word, Google Docs: About the ...
In-text citations point the reader to the sources' information on the references page. The in-text citation typically includes the author's last name and the year of publication. If you use a direct quote, the page number is also provided. More information can be found on p. 253 of the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American ...