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APA Citation Guide, 7th edition: Government Publication

About Citing Books

For each type of source in this guide, both the general form and an example will be provided.

The following format will be used:

In-Text Citation (Paraphrase) - entry that appears in the body of your paper when you express the ideas of a researcher or author using your own words.  For more tips on paraphrasing check out The OWL at Purdue.

In-Text Citation (Quotation) - entry that appears in the body of your paper after a direct quote.

References - entry that appears at the end of your paper.

Information on citing and several of the examples were drawn from the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.).

Numbers in parentheses refer to specific pages in the manual.

Government Publication

APA Citation Style does not have a separate category for government publications.  According to APA, government documents can be considered Books, Technical/Research Reports or Brochures.

Helpful Tips:

  • Treat a government document as a book, report, or brochure.
  • If a person is named on the title page, use them as author.
  • If no person is named, use the government agency, department, or branch as a group author (p.289).
  • Give the name of the group author exactly as it appears on the title page. 
  • If the group author is also the publisher, omit the publisher from the source (Ex. 50, p.329; Ex. 111, p. 351).
  • If there is a series or report number, include it after the title.
  • The manual refers to the GPO (U.S. Gov. Printing Office). Canadian equivalents may be: Queen’s Printer, Ministry of Supply and Services, Canadian Government Publishing, etc.
General Format 
 
      In-Text Citation (Paraphrase): 
      (Author Surname OR Name of Government Organization, Year)
     
      In-Text Citation (Quotation):
      (Author Surname OR Name of Government Organization, Year, page number)
 
      References:
Author Surname, First Initial. Second Initial. OR Name of Government Agency. (Year). Title: Subtitle (Report No. xxx [if available]). Publisher.
 
Example 1 
 
      In-Text Citation (Paraphrase): 
      (Gleason et al., 2008)
     
      In-Text Citation (Quotation):
      (Gleason et al., 2008, p. 5)
 
      References:
Gleason, R. A., Laubhan, M. K., & Euliss, Jr., N.H. (Eds.). (2008). Ecosystem services derived from wetland conservation practices in the United States prairie pothole region with an emphasis on the U.S. Department on Agriculture conservation reserve and wetlands reserve programs. U.S. Department of the Interior.
 
 
Example 2
 
      In-Text Citation (Paraphrase): 
      (United States Census Bureau, 2011)
     
      In-Text Citation (Quotation):
      (United States Census Bureau, 2011, p. 687)
 
      References:
United States Census Bureau. (2011). State disbursements for highways by state: 1995 to 2009. In Statistical abstract of the United States: 2012. (131st ed., p687). U.S. Government Printing Office.
 
Example 3 
 
      In-Text Citation (Paraphrase): 
      (Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, 2004)
     
      In-Text Citation (Quotation):
      (Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, 2004, p. 8)
 
      References:
Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. (2004). Worsening depression and suicidality in patients being treated with antidepressant medications: FDA public health advisory. U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

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