Secondary source in a book (source within a source)
You may need to consult more than one section to accurately represent the source used. Your citation and reference list entry may look different depending on the number of authors it has. Check the APA FAQs for further advice.
In-text citation examples
(Freud, 1935, as cited in Smith, Jones & Black, 1983)…
OR
if the year of the primary source is unknown, omit it from the in-text citation.
Jung (as cited in Smith, Jones & Black, 1983, pp.46–50) suggested that…
Reference list
Reference list template
Author, A. A. & Author, B. B. (Year of publication). Title of book (Edition). Place of publication: Publisher.
Reference list example
Smith, P., Jones, M., & Black, J. (1983). Introduction to psychology: A reader. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Tips for this reference type
- Use secondary sources sparingly, for instance, when the original text is not accessible.
- In the reference list, record only the secondary source. Details about edition, volume number or chapter page range are placed in parentheses directly after the title, with the period after the parentheses, e.g., (2nd ed.). or (Rev. ed.). or (Vol.26).
- In the text, name the original work, and give a citation in parentheses for your secondary source. That is, if you did not read the work cited, list the reference for the work you did access in the Reference List, but in the text, after identifying the original work, put in parentheses the phrase as cited in followed by the authors' names for your source and the publication year of their work.
- Book titles are italicised.
- If pages are being directly referenced in the text, include the page number/s in the in-text citation after the year.
Explore resources to help with reference management and enable you to effectively integrate and cite sources into your writing and assessment tasks.