What to Know About In-Text Citations

What Are In-Text Citations?

In-text citations are references to other pieces of writing in the text that you have written. They are usually used to refer back to researches or other specific documents to prove a point or give it validation. Different types of documents are citied in different ways. There are several citation styles that can be used. For example if you are writing an academic document such as an essay or a dissertation then you need to cite all your sources using a format directed to you by your instructor.  Similarly all forms of writings follow different citation styles and rules. APA is a text citation style that guides the citation styles that should be followed.

APA Citations- The Basics

In the APA citation style you are required to follow the style of mentioning the last name of the author along with the year it was published in. this is what you will follow in the text and you can provide the entire link in the references page that is at the end of every document.

There are also ways to refer to an idea without quoting the entire thing. If you do that then you need not refer the complete link in the reference page and only mention the last name of the author and the year it was published in.

Here are some more rules that should be followed.

• You are required to always capitalize the pronouns such as:  J. Holly. If you are writing the first name as an initial then too you must capitalize the initial.
• If you are writing the name of the resource in your text then you must write all the four letter words or more than four letter words by capitalizing the first letter.
• If there is a hyphenated word then you must capitalize both, the first word and the second one. For Example:  High-Tech.
• If you are referring to names of books or TV series that are longer than usual then you have to italicize them.
• Insert quotation marks on works that refer to shorter names. 

Different styles are followed for long, short and summary references:

Long Quotations

For long quotation you must start from a new line. From the left margin it should be ½ inch indented. Write in double spaces and omit the quotation marks.

Short Quotation

For short quotations you must write the quotation in a single line along with the last name of the author and the year it was published in. You can also include the page number and write it as (p.876)

Summary Quotation

If you are referring to just an idea and are not quoting the entire things word by word then you must only write the name of the writer and the publishing date. If you want you can even go ahead and mention the page number although it is not entirely necessary.

 Here is a list of the text forms and how they are cited:

1. Online articles

Online articles as they are available only on the internet then when you refer to tem you can only include the details that are provided to you by the author. For example:  the date of issuance. You can follow the pattern mentioned below:

Author, A.C., & Author, B. D. (Publication Date ). Name Of The Article. Title of Online Periodical, volume number(issue number if available). Retrieved from
https://www.abc.com/full/url/

2. Newspaper Article

If you have to refer to a newspaper article then you need to refer to the online version of it. Almost all newspapers are now available online as e-papers. To refer to them it is recommended that you refer to the homepage first and then to the article itself.

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of article. Title of Newspaper. Retrieved from
https://www.homepageaddress.com/ and then the address of the article.

3. Online Content

The referencing of online content is done the same way as that of print content. Leave an active link at the end of the quotation. You can also provide more details such as the editor etcetera. If there are no names for the author then skip it and only write the title of the document. If the date of publishing is also not provided then skip it too or write the abbreviation (n.d.). It is observed that online content often changes over time or gets deleted entirely so it is important to write the date that you retrieved the content on.

4. Videos

To refer to videos you need to mention the original name of the author of the video along with the fake name of the author. On such sites you are supposed to have a unique name thus it is important to use the name as it is. The reference should be like this:

Author, A. A. [Screen name]. (year, month day). Title of video [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.abc.com/full/url/

5. Electronic books

Electronic books are available on several plat forms including personal blogs, different applications and other sites. These books are often sold commercially so you cannot just provide the link as people will be confused about the origins and if they should buy it. If a book is not available for free then you have to mention that it is ‘available at’ or ‘retrieved from’. If the book is available in the print form then you will follow the standard pattern for citation.

6. Online Interviews

Online interviews are often cited in research papers. To refer to them you must include the complete details such as the month, day and year. If the interview transcript is available online then you can refer to it. But if it is not available then you can skip it. Write down the medium that the interview is available in.

Alex, B. (Interviewer) & Max, R. (Interviewee). (2000). Laws Of The World [Interview transcript]. Retrieved from School of Law Project website: https:// www11.jsc.mcp.gov/law/oral_law stories/oral_lawstories.htm

Importance Of In-Text Citations

In-text citations are very important here are 5 reasons why:

1. Gives your work accuracy. Accuracy is very important in writing. To make any argument you must support it with a reference.
2. If you cite your work, it makes you a good researcher. In the world of research a piece of writing that is cited well is observed to be well-researched.
3. They help you become a more promising writer. When you cite something you are bound to use active language this practice helps eliminate passive voice from your writing.
4. If your work is well cited that makes you a credible researcher. It is a great point to have in your future when you will be doing researches at a professional level.
5. If your writing is cited extensively then it will show off your knowledge and people will think of you as very knowledgeable.

Dissertation Editing Services give a lot of importance to in-text citations as they are of great benefit to students. These services also provide citation services just to help you improve your work. As a student you must use in-text citations in the right form to practice for your professional future.