Documentation formats for electronic sources are evolving.

For links to the latest standards,

check the BAC Web site.

APA Format

APA internal documentation gives the author's last name and the date of the work in parentheses in
the text. A comma separates the author's name from the date (Pagel & Westerfelhaus, 1999). The
page number is given only for direct quotations (Katz, 1998, p. 74). If the author's name is used in
the sentence, only the date is given in parentheses. (See Figure 14.9.) A list of REFERENCES gives
the full bibliographic citation, arranging the entries alphabetically by the author's last name.
Initials only.
Year. Period outside parenthesis.
In titles Book
of books Katz, S. M. (1998). The dynamics of writing review: Opportunities for growth and change in the
and articles,
workplace. Greenwich, CT: Ablex.
capitalize When information is known
only to you but not printed in
1 first word document, put in square
2 first Book or Pamphlet with a Corporate Author brackets.
word of subtitle Citibank. (1994). Indonesia: An investment guide. [Jakarta]:Author.
3 proper nouns. Indicates organization
authoring document
Government Document also publishes it.
House Select Committee on Children, Youth, and Families. (1991). Babies and briefcases: Cre
Indent
entries ating a family-friendly workplace for fathers. Hearing before the Select Committee on Children,
5 spaces Youth, and Families, House of Representatives, One Hundred Second Congress, first session,
or .4". hearing held in Washington, DC, June 11, 1991. Washington: Government Printing Office.

No abbreviations. Just initials for editors'

Article in an Edited Book No quotes around title of Article. names— But last names last.
Editors
before Burnett, R. E. (1993). Conflict in collaborative decision-making. In N. R. Blyler & C. Thralls
book title. (Eds.), Professional communication: The social perspective (pp. 144-162). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Give state when city is not well known. Ampersand

Article in a Periodical Comma, even when only two authors.

In titles Pagel S., & Westerfelhaus, R. (1999). Read the book or attend the seminar? Charting ironies
of journals, in how managers prefer to learn. The Journal of Business Communication, 36(2), 163-193. No "pp."
magazines, and when
Comma
newspapers, Volume, issue numbers journal
capitalize all has
main words. Petzinger, T., Jr. (1999, April 2). New business leaders find greater profit mixing work, car volume
ing. The Wall Street Journal, p. B1. "p." or "pp." for newspapers and Repeat "1" in "193." number.
magazines without volume number.
Each author's last name goes first. Put an ampersand
Article from an Electronic Database before the last author.
Atre, T., Auns, K., Badenhausen, K., McAuliffe, K., Nikolov, C., & Ozanian, M. K. (1996,
May 20). Sports stocks and bonds. Financial World, p. 53 (11). General Reference Center Gold
(GPIP). Name of database.
Page article begins on. Number of pages in article.
 Interview Conducted by the Researcher
[Identify interviews messages in the text as personal communications. Give name of
interviewee and as specific a date as possible. Do not list in References.]

E-Mail Message
[Identify e-mail messages in the text as personal communications. Give name of
author and as specific a date as possible. Do not list in References.]

Posting to a Listserv
[Identify messages on listservs to which one must subscribe in the text as personal
communications. Give name of author and as specific a date as possible. Do not list in
References.]

World Wide Web Site

American Express. (1998). Creating an effective business plan. Retrieved April 24, 1999
from the World Wide Web: http://www6.americanexpress.com/
smallbusiness/resources/starting/biz_plan/
Break Web page
address at a
No punctuation slash, period,
or hyphen
if possible.
MLA Format

MLA internal documentation gives the author's last name and page number in parentheses
in the text. Unlike APA, the year is not given, and no comma separates the name and page
number (Katz 74). If the author's name is used in the sentence, only the page number is
given in parentheses. A list of WORKS CITED gives the full bibliographic citation, arrang
ing the entries alphabetically by the author's last name.
Comma. Period.
Capitalize Book
first word Katz, Susan M. The Dynamics of Writing Review: Opportunities for Growth and Change in the
of title, Workplace. Greenwich, CT: Ablex, 1998.
subtitle, and all Include state when city is not well known.
major words.
Book or Pamphlet with a Corporate Author
Citibank. Indonesia: An Investment Guide. [Jakarta:] Citibank, 1994.
Square brackets for
information you supply.
Government Document
United States. House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs.
Accident at Three Mile Island Nuclear Powerplant. 2 vols.
Washington: GPO, 1979.
 Government Document
Use hanging United States. Cong. Select Committee on Children, Youth, and Families. Babies and Brief-
indents. Indent cases: Creating a Family-Friendly Workplace for Fathers. Hearings. 102nd Cong., 1st sess.
carry-overlines W ashington: GPO, 1991.
5 spaces or Abbreviate "Government Printing Office" Abbreviated
about .4." and other common words in publisher's name
Article from an Edited Book
Full name Burnett, Rebecca E. "Conflict in Collaborative Decision-Making." Professional Communication:
for editors The Social Perspective. Ed. Nancy Roundy Blyler and Charlotte Thralls. Newbury
Park, CA: Sage, 1993. 144-62.
Spelled out
no "pp."
Omit "1" from "162"
Article in a Periodical
Pagel, Sonya and Robert Westerfelhaus. "Read the Book or Attend the Seminar? Charting
Italicize Ironies in How Managers Prefer to Learn." The Journal of Business Communication 36.2
or underline (1999): 163-93. Volume, issue number
title of Colon space page numbers.
journal, Petzinger, Thomas, Jr. "New Business Leaders Find Greater Profit Mixing Work, Caring."
newspaper, The Wall Street Journal, 2 April 1999: B1.
or magazine. Date before month
Reverse first last name to alphabetize.
Article from an Electronic Database Remaining names go in regular number
Atre, Tushar, Kristine Auns, Kurt Badenhausen, Kevin McAuliffe, Christopher Nikolov, and
Michael K. Ozanian. "Sports Stocks and Bonds. " Financial World, 20 May 1996, 53 (11).
General Reference Center (GPIP). 30 Mar. 1997.
Date posted
Date visited. Starting page Number
number. of pages
Interview Conducted by the Researcher
.Drysdale, Andrew. Telephone interview. 12 Apr. 1999.
Abbreviate
month
E-Mail Message Title of e-mail Recipient of e-mail
Locker, Kitty O. "Work Remaining on Brochure." E-mail to Stephanie Criner. 15 Apr. 1999.
in Quotations

Posting to a Listserv Date posted

Bowman, Joel P. "Re: 'They' as Singular." 23 Mar. 1999. Online posting. BizCom.
Name of Listserv.

World Wide Web Site

Date posted Date visited
American Express. "Creating an Effective Business Plan." 1998. 24 Apr. 1999.
<http://www6.americanexpress.com/smallbusiness/resources/starting/biz_plan/>.
ULR in angle brackets Use [n.d.] if no date
is given on the site.