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APA Encyclopedia Citation

When you use encyclopedia as your reference, you have to cite it properly. This article will cover the APA encyclopedia citation guides and formats.  Starting with the most basic element of citation, here is the guide in citing the authors:

 Citing the Author

One Author

In-text citation Reference list
Last name

 

Sheldon

 

*Write only the last name without the initials for all in-text citations.

Last name, A. A.

 

Sheldon, R. J.

 

Multiple Authors 

Two to Seven Authors
In-text citation Reference list
Last Name A & Last name B

 

Larsein & Dee

 

*Use ampersand (&) instead of “and.” You can include up to five names, but in the next citations just use the first author’s last name followed by et al.

Last name, A. A., & Last name, B. B.

 

Larsein, G. L., & Dee, F.

 

*The names of the author should be listed in the same order as it is written in the source. Use ampersand (&) instead of “and.”

 

More than Seven Authors
In-text citation Reference list
Last name A et al.

 

Graham et al.

 

*Only include the first author’s last name followed by et al.

Last name, A. A., Last name, B. B., Last name, C. C., Last name, D. D., Last name, E. E., Last name, F. F., . . . Last name, G. G.

 

Graham, A., Diaz, J., Jones, H. R., Brown, W. C., Taylor, J., Martin, L. S., . . . White, R.

 

*Up to seven authors can be included in the reference list. After the name of the sixth author, write three ellipsis points followed by the last author’s name.

 

No Author

In-text citation Reference list
Title of the entry

 

“Inertia”

 

*Enclose the title of the entry in double quotation marks. Write the full title if short, otherwise include only a few words from the title.

Title of the entry

 

Inertia

 

We will now delve into more details on writing encyclopedia APA citation for both in-text citation and reference list. Below are the guidelines, formats and specific examples.

In-Text Citation

  • The in-text citation is written inside a parenthesis usually with the last name of the author and year of publication, separated by a comma.

(Haybron, 2001)

  • If the name of the author is included within the text, write only the year inside the parenthesis.

Haybron (2001)

  • In quoting a part of a work, include the name of the author, year, and page number.

(Piaget, 1995, p. 23)

Piaget (1995, p. 23)

Reference List

  • Italicize the title of the encyclopedia.
  • The name of the editor is written with the initials first followed by the last name and a parenthesis with the abbreviated word Ed. or Eds.
  • Page numbers are preceded by p. for one page and pp. for two or more pages.
  • U.S. states or territories are abbreviated in the reference list, and the city and country name is included for publications outside of the U.S. There is no need to write Publishers, Company or Inc. with the name of the publisher.
  • List the URL or DOI for encyclopedia found on the web. Digital Object Identifier (DOI) is a unique alphanumeric string used by scholarly publishers to provide persistent link to content in the internet.
  • When using non-routine information, provide a description in a bracket after the title: [PDF File].
  • Include only the reference information available from the source. Some encyclopedias have no volume numbers or editors.

 

Encyclopedia in print

Basic Format: Author. (Year). Title of Entry. In Editor (Ed.), Title of Encyclopedia (Edition, Volume number, Pages). Location: Publisher.

Example: Bergmann, P. G. (1993). Relativity. In The New Encyclopedia  Britannica. (Vol. 26, pp. 501-508). Chicago, IL: Encyclopedia Britannica.

 

Online Encyclopedia

Basic Format: Author. (Year). Title of Entry. In Editor (Ed.), Title of Encyclopedia (Edition, Volume number, Pages). Retrieved from http://www.someaddress.com/full/url/ or doi:0000000/000000000000 or http://dx.doi.org/10.0000/0000

Example: Graham, G. (2005). Behaviorism. In E. N. Zalta (Ed .), The Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy (Fall 2007 ed.). Retrieved from http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/behaviorism/

 

Encyclopedia from a Database

Basic Format: Author. (Year). Title of Entry. In Editor (Ed.), Title of Encyclopedia (Edition, Volume number, Pages). Retrieved from http://www.someaddress.com/full/url/ or doi:0000000/000000000000 or http://dx.doi.org/10.0000/0000

or

Author. (Year). Title of Entry. In Editor (Ed.), Title of Encyclopedia (Edition, Volume number, Pages). Location: Publisher.

Examples:

Bunson, M. R. (2012). Historical Overview. In Encyclopedia on Ancient Egypt. (3rd ed., pp. Xii-Xv). Retrieved from http://www.infobasepublishing.com.

or

Ehrensal, P. (2008). Bullying. In C.J. Russo (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Education Law (Vol. 1, pp. 130-132). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications Inc.