Intro to College Research

An in-text citation, also called a parenthetical citation, appears in the body of your research paper.

It is very short, including only the author's last name and page number. Note that there is no comma!

Example:

Students are better able to remember information when reviewing it at regular spaced intervals (Williams 104).

But when you refer to the author in the body of your paper, then you only need the page number in parentheses. Example:

Williams argued that students are better able to remember information when reviewing it at regular spaced intervals (104).

More detailed information:

• MLA Style Center: In-Text Citations: An Overview
• Purdue University: MLA In-Text Citations: The Basics

This is only a quick guide. How you cite your source depends on:

• the type of source: such as book, article, or book chapter
• other factors: such as the number of authors, whether it is a translation of another work, or whether you found it in print or online

Please see the more information links that follow each example!

Book

Basic format:

AuthorLastName, AuthorFirstName. Title of Book. City of Publication [if published before 1900], Publisher, Publication Date.

Example:

Johnson, Andre. Young Entrepreneurs. Penguin, 2019.

More information:

• MLA Style Center: How to Cite a Book
• Purdue University: MLA Works Cited Page: Books

 

Chapter in a Book (the chapter has its own author, while the overall book has an editor)

Basic format:

AuthorLastName, AuthorFirstName. "Title of Chapter." Title of Book, edited by EditorFirstName EditorLastname, Publisher, Year, Page range of entry.

Example:

Jones, Christopher. "Improving Reach of Facebook Posts." Social Media Marketing, edited by Emily Draper, Yale University Press, 2020,  pp. 25-41.

More information:

• Purdue University: MLA Works Cited Page: Books (scroll down to the section "A Work in an Anthology, Reference, or Collection")

 

Journal Article from Online Database

Basic format:

AuthorLastName, AuthorFirstName. "Article Title." Journal Title, volume number, issue number, year, pages. Name of Online Database, DOI. Date Accessed.

Example:

Smith, Jennifer. "Effectiveness of Different Studying Schedules." The Journal of College Achievement, vol. 23, no. 5, 22 Mar. 2014, pp. 317-325. EBSCOhost, doi:12.1234/1234567. Accessed 10 January 2020.

More information:

• MLA Style: How to Cite an Online Work (scroll down to the section "Journal Article in a Database")
• Purdue University: MLA Works Cited: Electronic Sources (Web Publications) (scroll down to the section "An Article From an Online Database")

 

Webpage

Basic format:

AuthorLastName, AuthorFirstName. "Title of Webpage." Title of the Entire Site, URL. Date of access.

Example:

Myers, Joshua. "Top 10 Studying Techniques." College Study Tips, https://www.collegestudytips.com/topten.html. Accessed 10 December 2021.

More information:

• Purdue University: MLA Works Cited: Electronic Sources (Web Publications)