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APA 7th

APA (American Psychological Association) 7th edition is an author-date referencing style requiring an in-text citation within the text of your document and a related entry in a reference list at the end of your document.

Book - reference list

No date: For the date of publication, use the copyright date. If there is no copyright date, use the abbreviation (n.d.) for no date.

Book title: The Book title is in italics and is in sentence case, i.e. capitalise the first letter of the first word and the first word after a colon. Capitalise proper nouns.

Edition: Include edition details for a numbered edition, e.g. 2nd ed. Place the edition details after the book title, but not in italics. Use Rev. ed. for revised editions. If the edition is for a particular country, include this, e.g. (2nd Australian & New Zealand ed.).

Publishers: If there are multiple publishers, include them all separated by a semicolon. For example: Random House; John Wiley & Sons.

DOI: For electronic books, include the DOI (digital object identifier) if available. The format for a DOI is: https://doi.org/10.1080/1057356030207

If there is no DOI, use the web address.

Note: If the book is from a database (e.g. ProQuest or EBSCO) and doesn't have a DOI, do not include the URL but reference it as a print book.

For more information on reference list format and style, see General information - basics of referencing.

Format (electronic) with DOI (digital object identifier)

Author. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher. https://doi.org/xxx

Format (electronic) without a DOI

Author. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher. https://xxxx

Format (print)

Author. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher.

Note: Use this format for an e-book from an academic database or an e-book reader, e.g. Kindle.

Examples

Jungbluth, M. (2024). Directing game animation: Building a vision and a team with intent. CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003356196

Kwansniewski, P. (2023). Good music, sacred music, & silence: Three gifts of God for liturgy and for life. TAN Books. https://www.kobo.com/nz/en/ebook/good-music-sacred-music-silence

Leggott, M. (2014). Heartland. Auckland University Press.

Northouse, P. G. (2015). Introduction to leadership: Concepts and practice (3rd ed.). Sage.

Shaw, A. (1986). Black popular music in America: From the spirituals, minstrels, and ragtime to soul, disco, and hip-hop. Schirmer Books; Collier Macmillan.

Format (electronic) with a DOI (digital object identifier)

Author One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, & Twenty. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher. https://doi.org/xxx

Format (electronic) without a DOI

Author One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, & Twenty. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher. https://xxxx

Format (print)

Author One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, & Twenty. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher.

Note: Use this format for an e-book from an academic database or an e-book reader, e.g. Kindle.

Examples

Cooper, C. L., & Dewe, P. (2008). Stress: A brief history. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470774755

Hydén, L.-C., Ekström, A., & Majlesi, A. R. (2016). Living with late-stage dementia: Communication, support, and interaction. Palgrave Macmillan Cham. https://bit.ly/2NGdnEn

Peat, J., & Lockyer, J. (2010). Geography on the edge: Geography for NCEA level one (2nd ed. rev.). Nelson Cengage Learning.

Reinfeld, M., Pihama, L., & Cameron, N. (2015). Tu¯ ka ora: Traditional healing stories from Taranaki. Tu¯ Tama Wahine o Taranaki.

Weiss, P., & Taruskin, R. Music in the Western World. Schirmer Books; Collier Macmillan.

List the first nineteen authors' names, insert ellipses (3 full stops), then add the last author.

Format (electronic) with a DOI (digital object identifier)

Author One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, ... Last. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). https://doi.org/xxx

Format (electronic) without a DOI

Author One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, ... Last. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). https://xxxx

Format (print)

Author One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, ... Last. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher.

Note: Use this format for an e-book from an academic database or an e-book reader, e.g. Kindle.

Examples

Crawley, R. B., Dockery, L. M., Branson, T. S., Carmichael, L. E., Carson, J. C., Findlay, A. F., Obama, B., Clinton, B., Bush, G. W., Kennedy, J. F., Smith, B., Brown, A., Jones, R. W., Gault, S., McVinnie, R., Pearson, G., Taylor, L., Li, L., Wong, B., ... Smith, D. M. (2015). Manor houses of the early 1900s. Black Books. https://doi.org/10.1234/9876543219876

Epstein, O., Perkin, G. D., Cookson, J., Watt, I. S., Rakhit, R., Robins, A., Nielsen, L. M., Cook, S.M., Hobson, J. M., Foggin, S. M., Wilson, A., Clark, M. P., Wang, S., Doughty, L., Kilpatrick, J., O'Brien, A., Parsons, J., Parsons, M, Jacobs, S., ... Clement, F. (n.d.). Clinical library examination. Mosby. 

Note: Group could be an organisation, association, government department, study group, etc. If the group is also the publisher, omit the publisher’s name from the reference.

Format (electronic) with a DOI (digital object identifier)

Name of Organisation. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher. https://doi.org/xxx

Format (electronic) without a DOI

Name of Organisation. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher. https://xxxx

Format (print)

Name of Organisation. (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher.

Note: Use this format for an e-book from an academic database or an e-book reader, e.g., Kindle.

Examples

Global Institute. (2023). Globalisation in Transition. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-2439-4

Human Development Teaching and Learning Group. (2021). Human development. Portland State University Library. https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/1084

Social Learning Group. (2001). Learning to manage global environmental risks. MIT Press.

World Bank Group. (1963). The World Bank Group in Africa: A summary of activities. International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

If the author is unknown, place the title in the author position followed by the copyright date.

Format (electronic) with a DOI (digital object identifier)

Title of book (Edition). (Copyright date). Publisher. https://doi.org/xxx

Format (electronic) without a DOI

Title of book (Edition). (Copyright date). Publisher. https://xxxx

Format (print)

Title of book (Edition). (Copyright date). Publisher.

Note: Use this format for an e-book from an academic database or an e-book reader, e.g. Kindle.

Examples

Lean healthcare dictionary: An illustrated guide to using the language of lean management in healthcare. (2014). Productivity Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/b17714

Reading women's lives: An introduction to women's studies. (1997). Simon & Schuster Custom.

Place the editor's name where the author would normally appear, followed by (Ed.) or (Eds.).

Note: Only use for anthologies, collected works, etc. For chapters/sections written by different authors in an edited book, see chapter/section information.

Format (electronic) with a DOI (digital object identifier)

Editor (Ed.). (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher. https://doi.org/xxx

Format (electronic) without a DOI

Editor (Ed.). (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher. https://xxxx

Format (print)

Editor (Ed.). (Copyright date). Title of book (Edition). Publisher.

Note: Use this format for an e-book from an academic database or an e-book reader, e.g. Kindle.

Examples

Adler, G., & Hull, R. F. C. (Eds.). (2014). Collected Works of C.G. Jung (Vol. 6). Princeton University Press. https://bit.ly/2QrDCkY

McDonald, L. (Ed.). (2005). Florence Nightingale on women, medicine, midwifery and prostitution. Wilfrid Laurier University Press.

Book - in-text citations

Parenthetical citation: When you use another person’s ideas or words in your text, include the author’s name and publication date in brackets, generally at the end of the sentence,  e.g. ... services closer to home (Bishop, 2024).

Narrative citation: If you use the author’s name as part of a sentence, include the date of publication in brackets, generally at the beginning of the sentence, e.g. Bishop (2024) argued that time was ...

Parenthetical citation

Avoidance is often encountered among staff who are undervalued in the workplace (Northouse, 2015). Another observation by Northouse (2015) is that avoidance can be counterproductive and lead to stress and conflict.

Note: If you use a parenthetical citation the first time, followed by a narrative citation, you need to repeat the date.

Narrative citation

Northouse (2015) argues that avoidance is often encountered among staff who are undervalued in the workplace. Northouse further claims that this can be counterproductive and lead to stress and conflict.

Note: If you use a narrative citation the first time, followed by another narrative citation, you can omit the date. But, if you use a parenthetical citation the next time, you must include the date.

Parenthetical citation

Use ‘&’ between the authors' surnames when they are enclosed within brackets. Use ‘and’ when they form part of the sentence.

... devastation of earthquakes (Peat & Lockyer, 2010). Tsunamis, according to Peat and Lockyer (2010), are ...

Note: If you use a parenthetical citation the first time, followed by a narrative citation, you need to repeat the date.

Narrative citation

Peat and Lockyer (2010) investigate why such events ... According to Peat and Lockyer, geography has an important part ...

Note: If you use a narrative citation the first time, followed by another narrative citation, you can omit the date. But, if you use a parenthetical citation the next time, you must include the date.

Parenthetical citation

Cite only the surname of the first author followed by ‘et al.’

... climatic extremes in New Zealand (Plummer et al., 1999). Plummer et al. (1999) discovered that drought conditions ...

Note: If you use a parenthetical citation the first time, followed by a narrative citation, you need to repeat the date.

Narrative citation

In a recent study, Plummer et al. (1999) found that precipitation had increased over this century. According to Plummer et al., climatic impacts are ...

Note: If you use a narrative citation the first time, followed by another narrative citation, you can omit the date. But, if you use a parenthetical citation the next time, you must include the date.

Use the name of the group as it appears in your reference list. However, the group name can be abbreviated. The first time, cite the full name with the abbreviation. Subsequently, only use the abbreviation. If the reader could be confused by the abbreviation use the full group name each time.

Parenthetical citation

Denmark has the most efficient process for property transfers (World Bank Group, 2016). The World Bank Group (2016) identified Greece as having the worst process with 10 different procedures needing to be completed before the property transfer is registered. 

OR

... compensation guide (Accident Compensation Corporation [ACC], 1983).

Subsequently, cite the name of the group in the abbreviated form.

Employee accidents at work will receive compensation (ACC, 1983).

Note: If you use a parenthetical citation the first time, followed by a narrative citation, you need to repeat the date.

Narrative citation

The Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC, 1983) gives guidance as to the employer's liability.

Subsequently, cite the name of the group in the abbreviated form.

ACC (1983) stated that liability is the responsibility of the employer.

Note: If you use a narrative citation the first time, followed by another narrative citation, you can omit the date. But, if you use a parenthetical citation the next time, you must include the date.

For the title of the book/edited book, use Title Case with italics. For a long title, use only the first few words.

Parenthetical citation

... delivers an introduction to the study of women through feminism, social constructs and relationships (Reading Women's Lives, 1997).

Note: If you use a parenthetical citation the first time, followed by a narrative citation, you need to repeat the date.

Narrative citation

Reading Women's Lives (1997) provides a greater understanding of the academic field of women's studies and the methods used.

Note: If you use a narrative citation the first time, followed by another narrative citation, you can omit the date. But, if you use a parenthetical citation the next time, you must include the date.

In the reference list

Use sentence case , i.e. only capitalise the first word of the title, the first word of a subtitle or the first word after a colon, plus proper nouns.

Example

Reading women's lives: An introduction to women's studies. (1997). Simon & Schuster Custom.

If there is no date provided, use n.d. (for 'no date') where you'd normally put the date.

Parenthetical citation

… the evolution of the species has evolved from a mutual forebear (Darwin, n.d.).

Note: If you use a parenthetical citation the first time, followed by a narrative citation, you need to repeat the date.

Narrative citation

Darwin (n.d.) used the Tree of Life to illustrate that all species on Earth are from a common ancestor.

Note: If you use a narrative citation the first time, followed by another narrative citation, you can omit the date. But, if you use a parenthetical citation the next time, you must include the date.

In the reference list

Where the publication date is not known, use n.d. for no date. 

Example

Darwin, C. R. (n.d.) Evolution of the species. Blackwell Books.