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Massey University > OWLL > Referencing > APA style > Referencing other material in APA

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Referencing other material in APA

This page outlines the correct format for miscellaneous material in an APA reference list:

  • Image, figure, or table
  • Video and audio material
  • Podcast
  • Magazine article
  • Online magazine article
  • Newspaper article
  • Online newspaper article
  • Conference and symposium proceedings
  • Thesis or dissertation
  • Encyclopaedia or dictionary entry
  • Lecture notes, study guide, PowerPoint or book of readings
  • Act of Parliament
  • Reports, government materials, brochures, and other grey literature
  • Interview
  • All other source types

If you're not sure what type of source you are referencing, see what type of source is this?

New to referencing? See the introduction to referencing.

APA Interactive

Create customised interactive examples of APA references and in-text citations with this online tool.

Image, figure, or table

APA has strict rules about crediting images, figures, or tables that have been reproduced or copied: a footnote stating that permission has been sought to use the image is included, with a full reference.
However, unless your assignment is going to be professionally published, this level of detail is unnecessary. Instead, treat the image as a direct quotation. Provide a citation in the caption, with author, year, and page number. The source should also have an entry in the reference list, according to its type (book, journal article, etc.).
For more about referencing of visual material see:

  • Referencing visual material

Note that you do not need to include a reference listing or in-text citation for a photograph if it is your own work and has not been published. However, for APA style you should format photographs as figures.

Video and audio material

Television broadcasts, films, and audio recordings are identified by their producer and/or director. Like grey literature, the specific type of material is added in square brackets after the title: [Film], [TV broadcast], [TV series], [Audio podcast episode], [Song], [TV episode], [CD], [DVD], [Video file].

Order: Author and description of author (put description in brackets; e.g., Director, Producer, Uploader, Artist). Date. Title of work (in italics) (optional episode or season number in brackets; e.g., Season 1, Episode 21) and description of work (in square brackets; e.g., Film, TV series, Song, Audio podcast episode). Publisher (e.g. production company, music label). URL

Guggenheim, D. (Director). (2006). An inconvenient truth [Film]. Lawrence Bender Productions; Participant Productions.

Parenthetical citation:

(Guggenheim, 2006).

Television broadcasts that are shown daily or weekly, such as news or current events, include the date of broadcast:

Slater, K. (Producer). (2005, March 21). Campbell live [TV broadcast]. TV3.

Parenthetical citation:

(Slater, 2005).

Entire television shows (rather than an individual episode) are cited according to the producer. The year is given as a range (if the series has ended) or "present" is used if the series is still in production:

Brooks, J. L., Groening, M., & Simon, S. (Executive Producers). (1989-present). The Simpsons [TV series]. Twentieth Century Fox.

Parenthetical citation:

(Brooks et al., 1989-present).

Individual episodes also contain the scriptwriter(s) and director in the author position, and name both the episode title and the series title. Executive producers are given before the series title:

Vitti, J. (Writer), & Reardon, J. (Director). (1992). Mr. Plow (Season 4, Episode 9) [TV series episode]. In J. L. Brooks, M. Groening, & S. Simon (Executive Producers), The Simpsons. Twentieth Century Fox.

Parenthetical citation:

(Vitti & Reardon, 1992).

Similarly, audio recordings can include both a track title and the album title, depending on whether you are referencing a song or entire album:

The Beths. (2018). Future me hates me [Album]. Carpark Records.

Stevens, S. (2005). Chicago [Song]. On Illinois. Asthmatic Kitty.

Parenthetical citation:

(The Beths, 2018).

(Stevens, 2005).

Videos found online could be clips from a film or television episode, in which case they should be referenced as above with the addition of the URL address.

If a video only appears online, the type of material given in square brackets should be [Video]. The person or group who uploaded the video is given as the author. If both the real name and username of the creator or uploader is known, give the real name in the author position followed by the username in square brackets:

Sevillano, L. (2009, July 27). APA referencing: The basics [Video]. YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOEmM5gmTJM

Pettigrew, J. [japettigrew]. (2013, March 16). APA style citation tutorial. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CL2RrT6jFpQ

Parenthetical citation:

(Sevillano, 2009).

(Pettigrew, 2013).

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

Podcast

List the host of the podcast in the author position. The producer may also be given if this would help improve locating the source. In either case, roles should be denoted in brackets following the name:

Hickey, B., Mandow, N., & Beckford, G. (Hosts). (2018–present). Two cents worth [Podcast]. Radio New Zealand. https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/two-cents-worth

Ballance, A. (Host and senior producer). (2019, December 23). Zirconium- shape-shifting time element [Audio podcast episode]. In Elemental. Radio New Zealand. https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/elemental/story/2018725744/zirconium-shape-shifting-time-capsule

Parenthetical citation:

(Hickey et al., 2018–present).

(Ballance, 2019).

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

Magazine article

Order: Author(s). Date of publication. Article title (not in italics). Magazine name (in italics), volume number (in italics), issue number (in brackets, following the volume number without a space), page number range of the article.

Jianying, H. (2007, July). Qing tomb enigmas. China Today, 56(7), 72–76.

  • The volume number is usually found on the title page of the magazine, inside the front cover.
  • In the year position, put the month as well (if the magazine is a monthly), and the month and day (if the magazine is a weekly). The month and day are not included in the in-text citation.
  • Missing an author? See no author.

Online magazine article

An online magazine article is referenced like a print magazine article (see above), but the page range at the end is replaced with the article URL.

The domino effect. (2008, July 3). The Economist. http://www.economist.com/​node/​11667810?story_id=11667810

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

Newspaper article

Howe, J. (2007, November 16). Manawatu worth $8.1b. Manawatu Standard, p. 1.

  • The reference list gives a full date in the year position. However, only the year is used in the in-text citation. See reference lists for details.

If there is no author, the title moves to the author position:

Beehive updating job wins award. (2007, October 29). The Dominion Post, p. A5.

See no author for details.

Online newspaper article

An online newspaper article is referenced like a print newspaper article (see above), but the page number at the end is replaced with the article URL.

Knell, C. (2022, March 13). Street art making a splash in Feilding. Manawatu Standard. https://www.stuff.co.nz/manawatu-standard/news/300539965/manawat-street-art-festival-making-a-splash-in-feilding

Government urged to act on child poverty. (2008, August 7). New Zealand Herald. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/​section/​1/​story.cfm?​c_id=1&​objectid=10525782

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

Conference and symposium proceedings

If a conference paper has been formally published, it is referenced like a chapter in an edited book.

Bowker, N., & Tuffin, K. (2002). Users with disabilities' social and economic development through online access. In M. Boumedine (Ed.), Proceedings of the IASTED International Conference on Information and Knowledge Sharing (pp. 122–127). ACTA Press.

If it has not been published in book form, give the name of the organisation convening the conference (if any) or the name of the conference itself, as well as the location of the conference. The date should match the date of the entire conference even if the paper or poster was presented on a single day to help readers locate the source.

Stewart-Withers, R. R., & Brook, M. S. (2008, December 2-5). Sports as a vehicle for development: The influence of rugby league in/on the Pacific [Paper presentation]. Aotearoa New Zealand International Development Studies Network Conference, Wellington, New Zealand.

"Paper presentation" can be replaced with "Conference session" or "Symposium" or "Poster presentation."

Conference papers retrieved online, whether they have been formally published or not, should end with the URL address.

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

Thesis or dissertation

A thesis or dissertation that is only available in print form from the author's university is considered unpublished.

Order: Author. Date of publication. Thesis title (in italics) and description (in square brackets; e.g., Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Unpublished master’s thesis). Name of awarding university.

Bowker, N. I. (2003). What it means to be online for people with disabilities [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Massey University.

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

A thesis or dissertation that is available in an online database follows a different format.

Order: Author. Date of publication. Thesis title (in italics) and description of document and university (in square brackets; e.g., Doctoral dissertation/Master’s thesis, Massey University). Database. URL

Mason, R. L. (2011). Learning at work: A model of learning & development for younger workers [Doctoral dissertation, Massey University]. Massey Research Online. http://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/2862

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

Encyclopaedia or dictionary entry

Encyclopaedias or dictionaries without identified authors are referenced with the encyclopaedia or dictionary title in the author position. A retrieval date is generally given as often online reference materials are continually updated, and no publication date is available:

Encyclopaedia Britannica. (n.d.). Avempace. In Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved January 10, 2020, from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Avempace

If there is an identified author, their name should be used. Multi-volume encyclopaedias also include the volume number in brackets:

Dimad, R. W. (2005). Game theory. In New dictionary of the history of ideas (Vol. 3, pp. 853–857). Thomson Gale.

Shields, C. (2016). Aristotle. In E. N. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford encyclopaedia of philosophy (Winter 2016 ed.). Stanford University. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/aristotle/

Encyclopaedias and dictionaries can be a useful starting point for research, but academic sources are preferable.

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

Lecture notes, study guide, PowerPoint or book of readings

APA does not prescribe a specific format for study guides, so they should be treated like books, online books, or chapters in an edited book. Generally, it is a good idea to check with your lecturer about how they would like course material referenced.

If a single author is listed, use their name. Otherwise, use the name of the school or institute in the author position (see group authors):

Smith, A. (2022). 179.704 Social policy studies: Course material. School of Social Work and Social Policy, Massey University.

Smith, A. (2022). 179.704 Social policy studies: Course material. https://stream.massey.ac.nz/course/view.php?id=68

Smith, A. (2022, February 28). Introduction [PowerPoint slides]. https://stream.massey.ac.nz/course/view.php?id=68

School of Social Work and Social Policy, Massey University. (2022). 179.704 Social policy studies: Course material.

Sometimes, however, study guides are written by many different authors with editors, in which case they should be treated like a chapter in an edited book.

Jackson, K. (2008). The anger and pain of tertiary studies. In A. Smith (Ed.), Social policy studies: Course material (pp. 49-65). School of Social Work and Social Policy, Massey University.

Jackson, K. (2008). The anger and pain of tertiary studies. In A. Smith (Ed.), Social policy studies: Course material (pp. 49-65). School of Social Work and Social Policy, Massey University. https://stream.massey.ac.nz/course/view.php?id=68

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

Caution: Many lecturers prefer you to go outside academic sources rather than just relying on their own wording and ideas. Doing research demonstrates that you can explore the topic outside the boundaries of the course materials. However, if you have been directly requested in assignment instructions to reference lecture notes and study guide materials, then they should be should be referenced as indicated above in the reference list. The in-text citations should match the reference listing. If you cite an individual author in the reference list, then use that author’s name in the in-text citations. If you cite a group author in the reference list, then cite that group author in the in-text citations.

Many courses at Massey University use a book of readings, which is a collection of photocopied journal articles, book chapters, and other relevant material. Because the sections are direct photocopies, the original source is referenced rather than the book of readings.

In the reference list, format the entries according to their original type:

  • journal article
  • book
  • chapter in an edited book
  • magazine article
  • newspaper article
  • online material
  • other material

If you're not sure what the original source was, see what type of source is this?

In the in-text citation, cite the original source's author and date of publication. If you are giving a page number, use the page number of the original source, not the page number of the book of readings.

Act of Parliament

Because APA is an American citation style, it does not have details on referencing New Zealand legislation. The format described here is sufficient in most papers:

Resource Management Act, No. 69. (1991). http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1991/0069/latest/whole.html

6th editionThe earlier (6th) edition of APA formats this differently. See 6th vs. 7th for details.

In-text, the act number is not included:

The Resource Management Act (1991) prohibits…

The full text of all New Zealand legislation is available through http://www.legislation.govt.nz/.

If you are studying a law paper, more detailed formats are described at the page on legal citations.

Reports, government materials, brochures, and other grey literature

Grey literature is a type of material produced by government departments, corporations, and other organisations that has not been published in book or journal form. It includes technical and research reports, annual reports, brochures and fact sheets, press releases, and white papers.

Sometimes, particularly with government materials (such as government reports), it can be difficult to determine who the author is, as often the author is an organisation, or government ministry rather than an individual. Often with government publications, the author is cited in the first few pages of the publication rather than on the website. If no specific author is given, then cite the ministry or department responsible for posting the report or publication.

Grey literature should be cited like a book, with author (or organisational author), year of publication, title (in italics), and either publisher information (for printed documents) or URL (for online material). Grey literature often has identical organisational author and publisher. If this is the case, do not repeat the author again in the publisher position.

Radio New Zealand. (2005). Annual report 2004/2005.

Ministry of Health. (2015). Living well with diabetes: A plan for people at high risk of or living with diabetes. https://www.health.govt.nz/publication/living-well-diabetes

Technical and research reports often come with a number; if this is the case, put it in brackets after the title:

Cuisick, G. R. & Courtney, M. E. (2007). Offending during late adolescence: How do youth aging out of care compare with their peers? (Issue Brief No. 101). Center For Children.

For types of grey literature aside from reports, the specific type of material is added in square brackets after the title: [Brochure], [Fact sheet], [Press release], [White paper].

The Warehouse. (2008). Bargain bonanza week [Brochure].

Interview

Published interviews are referenced according to their form: books, journal articles, etc.

Interviews that you have conducted yourself are considered personal communications.

All other source types

If a source does not match any of these types, it may be necessary to choose a format that most closely matches one of the other types. The APA blog calls this a Frankenreference.

If in doubt, the following pattern is usually the best to begin with:

Order: author(s), date of publication, title (in italics), publishing information.

Also see the 7th edition referencing examples at APA Style reference examples, which includes examples for sources such as brochures, fact sheets, musical scores, online courses, transcripts, LinkedIn, and whole websites.

References and further reading

American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). [Massey Library link]

Disclaimer

These pages are provided as a guide to proper referencing. Your course, department, school, or institute may prescribe specific conventions, and their recommendations supersede these instructions. If you have questions not covered here, check in the style guide listed above, ask your course coordinator, or ask at Academic Q+A.

Page authorised by Director - Centre for Learner Success
Last updated on 2 December, 2020

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