No matter which citation style you are using or source you are citing, citations contain important common elements:
You should notice that these citation elements map to our evaluation criteria discussed on the first tab of this guide.
The Modern Language Association (MLA) citation style is most commonly used in humanities disciplines such as English, foreign languages, literary criticism and comparative literature, and cultural studies.
| In-Text Citation for Direct Quotes | In-Text Citation for Information | Works Cited Page | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Journal Article | (Yodovich 872) | (Yodovich)* |
Yodovich, Neta. “Defining Conditional Belonging: The Case of Female Science Fiction Fans.” Sociology, vol. 55, no. 5, Oct. 2021, pp. 871–87. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038520949848. |
| Journal Article with Multiple Authors | (Fulkerson et al. 532) | (Fulkerson et al.)* |
Fulkerson, Jayne A., et al. “Adolescent and Parent Views of Family Meals.” Journal of the American Dietetic Association, vol. 106, no. 4, Apr. 2006, pp. 526–32. ScienceDirect, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jada.2006.01.006. |
| Book | (Golding 18) | (Golding)* |
Golding, Dan. Star Wars after Lucas: A Critical Guide to the Future of the Galaxy. University of Minnesota Press, 2019. |
| AI | ("In 200 words") | ("In 200 words") | “In 200 words, describe the symbolism of the green light in The Great Gatsby” follow-up prompt to list sources. ChatGPT, 13 Feb. version, OpenAI, 9 Mar. 2023, chat.openai.com/chat. |
*If you introduce the author(s) in the text, you don't need an in-text citation. For example, you could say, "Fulkerson et al. found that as a child ages, the frequency of family meals decreases."
Always check with your professor and syllabus for specific information on how you should use and cite AI-generated sources.
MLA does not consider Generative AI, like ChatGPT, as an author.
The American Psychology Association (APA) citation style is most commonly used in disciplines such as social sciences, business, nursing, and education.
| In-Text Citation for Direct Quotes | In-Text Citation for Information | Works Cited Page | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Journal Article | (Yodovich, 2021, p. 872) | (Yodovich, 2021) |
Yodovich, N. (2021). Defining conditional belonging: The case of female science fiction fans. Sociology, 55(5), 871–887. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038520949848 |
| Journal Article with Multiple Authors | (Fulkerson et al., 2006, p. 530) | (Fulkerson et al., 2006) |
Fulkerson, J. A., Neumark-Sztainer, D., & Story, M. (2006). Adolescent and parent views of family meals. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 106(4), 526–532. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jada.2006.01.006 |
| Book | (Golding, 2019, p. 20) | (Golding, 2019) |
Golding, D. (2019). Star wars after Lucas: A critical guide to the future of the galaxy. University of Minnesota Press. |
| AI | (OpenAI, 2023) | (OpenAI, 2023) | OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat |
*If you introduce the author(s) in the text, you don't need a full in-text citation, just the year in parenthesis after the author. For example, you could say, "Fulkerson et al. (2006) found that as a child ages, the frequency of family meals decreases."
Always check with your professor and syllabus for specific information on how you should use and cite AI-generated sources.
APA Style Simplified by The Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) citation style is most commonly used in humanities disciplines such as history and the arts.
The examples below are for the Notes and Bibliography (NB) style.
| In-Text Note | Bibliography | |
|---|---|---|
| Journal Article | Yodovich, “Defining Conditional Belonging.” |
Yodovich, Neta. “Defining Conditional Belonging: The Case of Female Science Fiction Fans.” Sociology 55, no. 5 (October 2021): 871–87. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038520949848. |
| Journal Article with Multiple Authors | Fulkerson, Neumark-Sztainer, and Story, “Adolescent and Parent Views of Family Meals.” |
Fulkerson, Jayne A., Dianne Neumark-Sztainer, and Mary Story. “Adolescent and Parent Views of Family Meals.” Journal of the American Dietetic Association 106, no. 4 (April 1, 2006): 526–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jada.2006.01.006. |
| Book | Golding, Star Wars after Lucas. |
Golding, Dan. Star Wars after Lucas: A Critical Guide to the Future of the Galaxy. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2019. |
| AI | Text generated by ChatGPT, OpenAI, March 7, 2023, https://chat.openai.com/chat. | N/A |
Always check with your professor and syllabus for specific information on how you should use and cite AI-generated sources.
Gordon College is New England’s top Christian college, located on the North Shore of Boston in Wenham, MA.
Gordon College | 255 Grapevine Road, Wenham, MA 01984 | Telephone 978.927.2300
