APSA (American Political Science Association) Citation Style
Posted on August 12, 2007
Welcome to APSA Citation Style
Following APSA citation style guidelines, the citation usually includes the author(s) last name, the publication year and the page number(s) in parentheses. A first initial can be used if two uncommon authors with the identical name appear. These are general APSA citation samples:
… the extended share of dilettantes (Wilson 1967, 85);
… informed in several studies (C. Hermann 1988, 42; M. Hermann
1989, 337).
Government Documents and Legal Citations in APSA Referencing
Generally, details on government documents must be in the reference list. For in-text citations – the source name, date and page number in parentheses suffice. Citing in APSA to other public documents, you can use the standard form. The methods of referring to government documents vary, but these APSA citation style examples should prove adequate:
(Congressional Record October 20, 1967, H7);
(Papers of President George W. Bush March 24, 2001, 11).
Legal citations in APSA citation style include name of the case, year and number of page: (Shaker v. Carr 1966, 196). For the detailed information you can use specialized APSA citation style guidelines or the U.S. Reports for Supreme Court resolutions.
Electronic Sources in APSA Citation Style
The reference for a WWW APSA citation sample contains more elements like the author’s name; publication date or its last review; document title; title of entire paper; URL [in angle brackets] and date of access (in parentheses):
Central Intelligence Agency. 1999. Afghanistan/Government. World Fact Book, 1998. <> 1999, Jan. 29
In addition, there are APSA citation style examples for email and newsgroup message correspondently:
Albright, M. <albright@state.gov> 1999, Jan.5. Announcement on China [Personal email]. (1999, January 29);
Stratford. <alert@stratfor.com>, 1999, Jan.29. Thailand/Myanmar. <STRATFOR/Global Intelligence Update> (1999, January 29).
Referencing in APSA: Television and Radio Programs
Sometimes, material from news broadcasts or documentaries is quoted in paper. APSA citation style guidelines state that the relevant information should appear in the reference list as follows:
CBS News. December 19, 1986. Sixty Minutes.
National Public Radio. August 12, 1983. All Things Considered.
Some Recommendations for Formatting the Reference List in APSA Citation Style
- APSA citation style requires parenthetical references within the text and a reference list at the end.
- List of reference should be arranged alphabetically, not in publication’s format.
- Referencing in APSA, the author should be the first element. Otherwise, use the editor’s name. If it is absent, you may start with the title.
- Titles of book and periodical papers should be italicized.
- APSA citation style guidelines insist that each word of the titles must be capitalized.
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