When writing a research paper or essay in APA style, it is important to correctly cite authors that you have used as sources of information. Proper citations will not only help your work to be taken seriously, but it will also give credit to the authors whose words and ideas you are using in your work. Knowing how to cite an author in APA style is easy and will ensure that you avoid plagiarism.
Step 1: Identify the Author and Their Work
Before you can cite an author in APA style, you need to identify the author and their work. This information can be found on the title page of the book, on the cover page of a journal article, or on the website that you are using as a source. Make sure to record the author’s name and the title of their work. You also need to note down the year that the work was published, so you can include this in your citation.
Step 2: Format the Citation
Once you have identified the author and their work, you can format the citation. For books and journal articles, you will need to include the author’s name, the title of the work, the year of publication, and the publisher’s name. For websites, you will need to include the author’s name, the title of the website, the date that the website was accessed, and the URL.
Step 3: Include the Citation in Your Work
Once you have formatted the citation, you can include it in your work. You can either include it in the text of your paper or in a footnote or endnote. If you include the citation in the text of your paper, you need to include the author’s name and the year of publication in parentheses. For example: (Smith, 2020). If you include the citation in a footnote or endnote, you can include the full citation information.
Step 4: Create a Reference List
As well as including citations in the text of your paper, you will also need to create a reference list at the end of your paper. This should include all of the sources that you have used in your paper, listed in alphabetical order. For each source, include the author’s name, the year of publication, and the title of the work. You should also include any additional information that is relevant for the source, such as the publisher’s name and the URL for a website.
Step 5: Check Your Citations
Once you have included citations in your paper and created a reference list, you should check that you have done everything correctly. You can use a citation generator to check that your citations are formatted correctly, or you can use a plagiarism checker to make sure that you haven’t accidentally plagiarized any of your sources.
Conclusion
Citing authors in APA style is easy once you know how. Identifying the author and their work is the first step, followed by formatting the citation. You then need to include the citation in your work, either in the text or in a footnote or endnote. Finally, create a reference list at the end of your paper and check that everything is correct.