Hum3

Applied Humanities

Exploration Document In-Text Citations 3 Module Three: Examining the Humanities / Page 3.2.3 In-Text Citations On this page: 0 of 5 attempted (0%) | 0 of 4 correct (0%) Objective: Learn how to use in-text citations according to APA Style guidelines.

In your exploration document, you need to include an APA Style in-text citation whenever you quote or paraphrase other people’s words or ideas. In-text citations are little notes in parentheses that give the reader just enough information so they can find the full details of the source in your reference list, which should appear on the final page of your exploration document. Your in-text citations and your reference list go hand in hand. The sources you cite in your document (using in-text citations) should also appear in a more detailed form in your reference list.

In-Text Citations

The formula for a basic in-text citation includes the following elements:

last name(s) of author(s) year of publication page or paragraph number

Below are two examples of parenthetical in-text citations used with direct quotations. Notice how all three of the above elements appear together and come before the period, since the citation is part of the sentence.

“Whatever the way in which we come into contact with art, the crux, as in all serious matters, is how much we want the experience. The encounter with art is precious, and so it costs us in terms of time, effort and focus” (Beckett, 2007, p. 2).

“Instead of sitting down with a specific plan or outcome in mind, let your child explore, experiment and use their imaginations. They might make a big mess or change their mind several times—this is all part of the creative process” (Rymanowicz, 2015, para. 7).

Multiple-Choice Question

What is the primary purpose of an in-text citation?

to help you keep track of which ideas are yours and which belong to someone else to avoid using a reference list since you’re already citing your sources in your document to give you the opportunity to use a scholarly source and sound intelligent when you write to enable the reader to find more details about your source in the alphabetized reference list

Multiple-Choice Question

How are in-text citations connected to the reference list?

In-text citations are more essential for your document than the reference list. Each in-text citation should be listed more than once in your reference list. In-text citations contain more details about a source than the reference list does. Each in-text citation requires a corresponding entry in your reference list.

The following example is an in-text citation for a paraphrase. Like a quotation, a paraphrase requires an in-text citation. Even though paraphrases are your own words and don’t require quotation marks, the idea behind the words still belongs to someone else. And that person or group deserves to be acknowledged whenever you use their ideas.

Let’s look at an example:

Many studies have shown that for hospital patients, access to nature or visual art has a quantifiable effect on their pain levels (Masterson & Leigh, 2014, para. 12).

To avoid the most common mistakes people make when using in-text citations, remember these important points:

Include an in-text citation for each sentence that contains information from an outside source.

A single in-text citation can refer only to the sentence that it’s a part of. One in-text citation cannot refer to multiple sentences, unless the sentences make up a direct quotation.

List all the sources from your in-text citations in your reference list so your readers can easily find more details about where you got your information.

Multiple-Choice Question

Which of the following examples includes a properly formatted in-text citation?

“A person’s a person no matter how small” (Seuss, 1954, p. 6). “A person’s a person no matter how small.” (Seuss) Dr. Seuss once said, a person’s a person no matter how small. “A person’s a person no matter how small” (1954).

Narrative In-Text Citations

There is another format you can use for in-text citations. You can cite a source using a signal verb to make a narrative in-text citation. Compared with basic parenthetical in- text citations, signal verbs give you the option of varying your sentence structures. They tell the reader how someone is expressing his or her ideas, so they can allow you, the writer, to be more creative with your word choices.

In the examples below, signal verbs are highlighted in purple. Notice how the information highlighted in orange does not appear together, but the important elements (authors’ names, year of publication, paragraph numbers) are still cited.

De Pisapia et al. (2016) assert in their study that “artistic abilities were often assigned to external factors (divine inspiration) or to artistic ‘genius.’ Currently, however, it is widely believed that artistic ability, and creativity more generally, exists to varying degrees in most, if not all, people” (para. 9).

Note that the example above does not include a comma before the quotation. You leave out the comma if the quotation is introduced by a conjunction such as that, because, or whether, because the quotation blends into the flow of the sentence. In the example

below, by contrast, a comma is used before the quotation, and the first word of the quote is capitalized. This is because the quote stands apart from the rest of the sentence.

In her article in U.S. News & World Report, Stacey Boyd (2014) observes, “Concentration, strong recall skills, evolved communication skills, and being a good team player are just a few of the benefits research shows music, foreign language and physical education have on a developing mind” (para. 7).

The following table can help you choose appropriate signal verbs for a variety of situations.

Common Signal Verbs

advise claim emphasize observe see

advocate comment explain offer show

agree complain find portray specify

analyze concede grant propose speculate

appeal conclude illustrate recommend state

argue consider imply reflect suggest

ask contend inquire refute suppose

assert declare insist report tell

assume deny maintain reveal think

believe describe note say write

Multiple-Choice Question

Which of these statements BEST explains how narrative citations are different from basic parenthetical citations?

Narrative citations allow you to use varying sentence structures with direct quotations. With narrative citations, you don’t have to enclose direct quotes in quotation marks. Narrative citations allow writers to sound more intelligent by using a variety of signal verbs. With narrative citations, you don’t have to enclose any information in parentheses.

Attributive Tags

The following example shows a paragraph in which the writer is using information from only one source. It illustrates how to incorporate signal verbs (shown in italics) and attributive tags, which are references to the author (shown in bold).

A strong topic sentence is an important method of maintaining focus in a good essay. Wicker (2008), in her article “The Parts of a Good Essay,” describes a topic sentence as “an independent clause occurring at the beginning of a paragraph that illustrates the main idea to be discussed in the following sentences” (p. 1). She explains that this rhetorical feature helps establish the focus of the paragraph for the audience (Wicker, 2008, p. 2). The audience will know exactly what will be discussed in more depth in the paragraph and how it relates back to the main claim of the paper. Wicker (2008) also advises student writers to include an alternatively worded topic sentence at the end of the paragraph in some rhetorical situations (p. 2). Thus, a topic sentence can be used at both the beginning and the end of a paragraph as a way to maintain focus in a strong essay.

Short-Answer Question

In the example paragraph above, what words are used as signal verbs and attributive tags?

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SNHU Academic Support Resources

Visit the Online Writing Center by opening the Academic Support module in your course and clicking “Get Help with Your Schoolwork.” You will find options like live workshops, drop-off paper review, video resources, and one-on-one tutoring.

Watch the video below to learn more about the Academic Support resources.

YouTube video. https://youtu.be/RWiS5DEu-To. Uploaded June 3, 2020, by SNHU Academic Support Resources. To activate captions, first click the play button and then click the CC button in the embedded player. For a text transcript, follow the link below.

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Citation Guide

If you need to cite content in this webtext, you can refer to the citation guide, which has various examples of citations in APA Style. Click on the Tools Menu in the upper right corner of the webtext, and then click Citation Guide to download the guide as a Word document.

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