OVERVIEW
A large variety of citation management tools are available to help you record and cite your research sources. If you are interested in a comprehensive listing of reference management software, Wikipedia offers a detailed page on this subject. The first part of this section below provides resource links for free online citation tools as well as citation tools built into commonly used software.
Following the links to citation tools, you’ll find links to resources for the most common types of citation styles.
Citing Information (UNC University Libraries)
Introduction and citation overview as well as tutorials for APA, MLA, Chicago and CSE/CBE Styles.
Citations and Style Guide (Univ. of No. Texas Libraries)
List of resources for various style manuals, including ACS, AMA, APA, APSA, ASA, CBE/CSE, Chicago/Turabian, MLA and Harvard Reference System.
Citation Guides and Style Manuals (Univ. of Minnesota Libraries) Provides an overview of when to cite sources and includes free citation generators and online guides to common styles, including AMA, APA, Chicago, and MLA.
STYLES
Major Styles:
- American Psychological Association (APA)
- Chicago Manual of Style (CMS)
- Modern Language Association (MLA)
Other Styles:
- American Chemical Society (ACS)
- American Medical Association (AMA)
- American Political Science Association (APSA)
- American Sociological Association (ASA)
- Associated Press Style (AP)
- Council of Science Editors (CSE)
AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY (ACS) STYLE
ACS Style Guidelines (Univ. of Wisconsin – Madison Libraries)
“This page provides examples for citing references in the text and the bibliography of a research paper. For more information, consult the ACS Style Guide: Effective Communication of Scientific Information, 2006 ed., or ACS Style Guide: A Manual for Authors and Editors, 1997 ed.”
Citing Your Sources: ACS (Williams College Library)
“This guide provides examples of the most commonly cited types of sources.”
AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION (AMA) STYLE
The AMA Manual of Style is used by authors publishing research findings and those involved in medical or scientific publishing. The 11th edition covers ethical and legal issues, authorship, conflicts of interest, scientific misconduct, and intellectual property, in addition to preparation of articles for publication, style, terminology, measurement and quantification.
AMA Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors (Official AMA style website)
AMA One Page Style Guide (Univ. of Illinois at Chicago, University Library)
“This style guide handout contains general AMA guidance and examples of common formats.”
AMA Style (Purdue OWL)
“These resources provide guidance on how to cite sources using American Medical Association (AMA) Style, 11th Ed., including examples for print and electronic sources.”
AMA Style CWE Presentation August 2019 (CWE Presentation from Montclair State University) (PDF)
AMA Style Guide (New York Medical College Health Sciences Library)
“This tip sheet contains most frequently requested information.”
AMA Style Guide: Paper Formatting (Western Oregon University, Hamersly Library)
Sample paper in AMA style.
AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION (APA) STYLE
APA citation style was developed by the American Psychological Association and is used in the social sciences. The distinguishing characteristics of this citation style are that the publication date is placed immediately after the author’s name, initials are used for the author’s first name, and the title can be in lowercase.
7th Edition APA Resources (Saginaw Valley State University)
A helpful resource on the newest edition of APA.
APA 7th Edition CWE PowerPoint Presentation (Montclair State University, CWE) (PDF)
This PowerPoint presentation covers the basics of APA citation style, including stylistics and documentation. Paper formatting guidelines – cover page, abstract, body, and references – are also discussed.
APA Style CWE Sample Paper January 2021 (Montclair State University, CWE) (PDF)
Attached is a sample paper in APA format.
APA Style: 7th Edition Resources (Miami Dade College Libraries) Highlights key changes from 6th Edition to 7th Edition.
APA Style Guide (Purdue OWL)
“This resource, revised according to the 5th edition of the APA manual, offers examples for the general format of APA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the reference page.”
APA Style in Brief (Montclair State University, Sprague Library)
A downloadable PDF handout that gives examples of proper APA style formatting for books, works in an anthology, scholarly journal articles, articles with two or three authors, magazines and newspapers, online articles and web sites.
Cite Resources: American Psychological Association (APA) (The Ohio State University, University Libraries)
A well-designed and up-to-date how-to guide on APA style with resources for citing electronic sources.
Style and Grammar Guidelines (Official APA style website)
The official APA style website offers tutorials, answers to frequently asked questions, and topic-specific help.
AMERICAN POLITICAL SCIENCE ASSOCIATION (APSA) STYLE
APSA Style Manual (APSA, 2018) (PDF)
“This site acts as a great resource for the preparation, production, and submission of a manuscript for acceptance to all APSA journals, including section journals. The APSA Style Manual is the premier style manual for the political science discipline.” An overview of parenthetical citations begins on page 38.
Using the APSA Format Resources (Texas A&M University Libraries)
“This brief guide provides examples of how to cite some of the most commonly used types of information resources: periodicals, books, and electronic publications.”
AMERICAN SOCIOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION (ASA) STYLE
ASA Style (Trinity College Library)
This page includes a list of sources you may be citing in ASA. When you click on any of the categories, a PDF handout opens that shows you how to properly cite the source.
ASA Style Citations (University of Nebraska at Kearney, Calvin T. Ryan Library)
“Links to helpful websites, citation examples, and personal assistance using the style guide of the American Sociological Association.”
Formatting in Sociology (ASA Style) (Purdue OWL)
A guide to formatting citations using the ASA style.
- Manuscript Formatting
- In-Text (Citation) References
- References Page Formatting
- Manuscript Writing Style
How to Prepare Bibliographic Citations: American Sociological Association (Univ. of Connecticut Libraries, compiled by Kathy Banas-Marti) (PDF)
A quick guide to in-text citations and reference lists in ASA style.
ASSOCIATED PRESS (AP) STYLE
Associated Press Writing Style CWE Presentation August 2019 (CWE Presentation from Montclair State University) (PDF) PowerPoint presentation providing an overview of Associated Press Style.
CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE (CMS)
This style was developed by the University of Chicago Press in 1906 and is widely used in the humanities and social sciences. The distinguishing characteristic of this style is the use of footnotes or back-notes.
Chicago Manual of Style Online (University of Chicago Press)
The Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) is one of the standard styles of the publishing world. In 2006, CMS produced an online version with a yearly subscription fee of $39 per year. A free 30 day trial subscription is available and a reduced rate is offered for groups. The site does include some noteworthy free services. The Quick Guide section offers an overview of the Chicago Manual of Style and includes electronic source examples.
Chicago Style CWE Presentation (Montclair State University, CWE) PDF)
This PowerPoint presentation covers the basics of the 17th Edition Chicago citation style.
Chicago Style CWE Sample Paper August 2019 (Montclair State University, CWE; Distributed at Montclair State University Graduate Development Conference, August 2019) (PDF)
Attached is a sample paper in Chicago format.
Citation Help: Chicago Style (The Ohio State University, University Libraries)
Resources for citing electronic sources. It also includes a link to the Notes-Bibliography System.
CMS Video (YouTube, Karelia Stetz-Waters, Linn Benton Community College)
Posted on YouTube: April 2, 2009 | length 5:02
A no-frills PowerPoint with voiceover that reviews how to use the Chicago Manual of Style in the humanities.
COUNCIL OF SCIENCE EDITORS (CSE) STYLE
This style is from the Council of Science Editors, formerly known as the Council of Biology Editors. It is the citation style used in publications in the hard sciences.
Council of Science Editors CWE Guide (Montclair State University, CWE) (PDF) This PowerPoint presentation covers the basics of CSE citation style.
Council of Science Editors (CSE) Style Guide (The Ohio State University, University Libraries)
A well-designed and up-to-date how-to guide on CSE style with resources for citing electronic sources.
Council of Science Editors Documentation Style (Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison, The Writing Center)
This resource provides an overview of the three systems of documentation in CSE style.
Writing Guides, Style Manuals and the Publication Process in the Biological and Health Sciences (University of Minnesota Libraries)
A collection of links to writing guides, style manuals, and other resources for writing in the biological and health sciences.
MODERN LANGUAGE ASSOCIATION (MLA) STYLE
MLA (Modern Language Association) is the citation style used in the liberal arts and humanities. Note: The ninth edition of the MLA style manual was released in 2021.
MLA 9th Edition CWE PowerPoint Presentation (Montclair State University, CWE) (PDF)
This presentation covers the basics of MLA citation style.
MLA General Format(Purdue OWL)
“This resource, updated to reflect the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (8th ed.) and the MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing (2nd ed.), offers examples for the general format of MLA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the Works Cited page.”
MLA Style CWE Sample Paper: Ninth edition paper coming soon
MLA Style Center (Modern Language Association)
The MLA Style Center, a free companion to the MLA Handbook, is the only official Web site devoted to MLA style. This site provides the opportunity to submit your own questions, insights about MLA style from the MLA’s editors, sample research papers, instructions on formatting research papers, teaching resources, and tools for creating works-cited-list entries.
TOOLS
BibDesk
An open source tool for Macs for editing and managing a bibliography. The tool helps keep track of bibliographic information, associated files and web links.
BibMe
A web service that assists in formatting citations in MLA, APA and Chicago through the use of simple forms.
EndNote
Endnote Software page to access tutorials, webinars, free trials or purchase.
Making a Bibliography using Microsoft Word 2007 (Video)
Posted on YouTube: December 11, 2007 | length 2:01
This video shows how to use the bibliography feature on Microsoft Word 2007.
Zotero
“Zotero is a free, easy-to-use tool to help youcollect, organize, cite, and share research.”