Citing Resources: Electronic & Print

Citation Styles:
MLA Style
APA & ASA Style
Turabian & Chicago Styles
CSE Style (formerly CBE)
Government Resources (including ERIC Documents)

More Resources:
Other Online Guides

Introduction

While the basics for citing textual resources may be familiar to most of you, there is a general concern over how to cite electronic resources. This can be a complicated matter as many electronic resources, especially the Internet, are not always consistent in the basic bibliographic information that they contain, and are constantly changing as well.

Following are resources and links to guidelines on how to cite various resources using the formats of the Modern Language Association, (MLA), the American Psychological Association, (APA), the American Sociological Association, (ASA), Kate Turabian, and the Council of Biology Editors (CBE), and others.

While some of the information requested in the following templates may not be available, particularly when citing from the Internet, it is important to include at least

      1. the name of the author, creator, or maintainer of the information
      2. the title of the document
      3. the date of creation or last revision
      4. the date when you visited the site
      5. the exact electronic address/URL where the document can be found

For more information than is provided in this guide, be sure to check out these sites:
VU Writing Center
Research & Documentation Online (Bedford/St. Martin's) Writer's Handbook:
Documentation Styles
 (U of Wisconsin)

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MLA Style

For specific examples of the various different types of electronic resources and a more detailed explanation of the MLA style, consult the following print publications:

Gibaldi, Joseph. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th edition. New York: The Modern Language Association of America, 2003.
   Christopher Center Reserve LB 2369 .G53 2003
   Christopher Center Reference LB 2369 .G53 2003

Also try these links to sites on MLA style:

MLA Style   
(MLA's authorized online guidelines; on the left-side peach bar, click on "MLA Style," then "Frequently Asked Questions about MLA Style")
Documentation: Modern Language Association   Excellent site! (U of Wisconsin)
Research & Documentation Online (Bedford/St. Martin's)
Electronic Sources: MLA Style of Citation   (Bedford / St. Martin's)

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APA and ASA Style

For specific examples of the various different types of electronic resources and a more detailed explanation of the APA or ASA style, consult the following print publications:

American Psychological Association. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th edition. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2001.
   Christopher Center Reserve BF 76.7 .P83 2001
   Christopher Center Reference BF 76.7 .P83 2001
   Christopher Center Stacks BF 76.7 .P83 2001

American Sociological Association. ASA Style Guide, 1st edition. Washington, DC: American Sociological Association, 1996.
   Christopher Center Reference HM 73 .A547 1996

Also try these links to sites on APA and ASA style:

Electronic Reference Formats    (APA's authorized online guidelines; 5th ed.)
Documentation: APA Style   Excellent site! (U of Wisconsin; 5th ed.)
APA Sample Formats for VU Education/ERIC users   (based on 5th ed.)
Research & Documentation Online (Bedford/St. Martin's)
Electronic Sources: APA Style of Citation   (Bedford / St. Martin's)
Formatting in Sociology (Purdue University)
APA's FAQs   (APA)

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Turabian & Chicago Styles

For specific examples of the various different types of electronic resources and a more detailed explanation of Turabian and Chicago styles, consult the following print publications:

Turabian, Kate. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 6th edition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.
   Christopher Center Stacks LB 2369 .T8 1996

University of Chicago Press. Chicago Manual of Style, 15th ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003.
   Christopher Center Reference and Reserve Z 253 .U69 2003

Also try these links to sites on Turabian style:

Research & Documentation Online Excellent site! (Bedford/St. Martin's)
Using Chicago Style to Cite and Document Sources  (Bedford / St. Martin's Press site)
Documentation: Chicago/Turabian Style (U of Wisconsin; for the 14th edition [not current])
Chicago Manual of Style FAQs  (University of Chicago/Chicago Manual of Style)

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CSE Style (formerly CBE)

CSE is a complicated style, with two main citation style formats, the citation-sequence system and the name-year system. Find out which your professor would prefer that you use.

For specific examples of the various different types of electronic resources and a more detailed explanation of the CSE style, consult the following print publication in the Christopher Center:

Style Manual Committee, Council of Science Editors. Scientific Style and Format : The CSE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers, 7th ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006.
   Christopher Center Stacks T11 .S386 2006

Also try these links to sites on CSE style:

Documenting Sources: CSE Style: Biology and Other Sciences
CSE Citation Guide [Name/Year format]

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Citing Government Resources (includes ERIC Documents)

Garner, Diane L. The Complete Guide to Citing Government Information Resources : A Manual for Writers & Librarians , Rev. ed. Bethesda, MD : Congressional Information Service, c1993.
   Christopher Center Reference and Stacks J9.5 .G376 1993

Uncle Sam--Brief Guide to Citing Government Publications (U of Memphis)

ERIC Info & APA Format: Samples for VU Education / ERIC users
     http://www.valpo.edu/library/user/ERICcitation.html
Publication Guide: Citing ERIC Documents (ERIC Clearinghouse)
     http://www.eriche.org/publications/guide10.html
Citing ERIC Documents (Winthrop University)
     http://www.winthrop.edu/dacus/About/Infoguides/ericcite.htm

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More Style Resources: Other Online Guides

Writer's Handbook Excellent site! (U of Wisconsin)

Online Writing Lab (OWL): Research Papers (Purdue University)

Research & Documentation Online (Bedford/St. Martin's)

ONLINE! Citation Styles (Bedford/St. Martin's Press)

The Columbia Guide to Online Style (Columbia University Press)

Sources (Dartmouth College)

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