Citation Styles; a Brief Guide to APA, MLA, & Turabian   Tags: apa, citation styles, cite, mla, turabian  

Style Managers

The following examples are based on the rules listed in the current editions of the APA, MLA, and Turabian style manuals for writers. This quick reference guide is not intended to replace or to be a substitute for the following complete style manuals:

American Psychological Association. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. 6th Edition. Washington, DC: APA, 2009.

Modern Language Association. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 7th Edition. New York: MLA, 2009.

Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2007.

For online assistance with APA, MLA, and Turabian (Chicago) styles, see Diana Hacker’s Research and Documentation Online at http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/home.html .

Formatting Notes:

• Use a “hanging indent” to show the beginning of a citation. In other words, the first line of the citation begins at the left margin. Subsequent lines are indented ½ inch from the left margin (typically 5 spaces).
• Double-space all entries in the reference list for APA and MLA. Turabian uses single spacing. (This guide does not double-space the entries in order to save space.)
• APA, MLA, and Turabian use italicized type to indicate titles of major works (book titles, journal titles, etc.).
• With its latest edition of the Handbook, MLA has dropped the requirement for including the URL for materials retrieved online. MLA’s current advice is to include the URL only if the source might be difficult to find again or if it is required by a particular professor.
• Turabian examples given are for the bibliography, not for the notes. Refer to the full style manual for more help on notes and parenthetical references.