Harvard

In text citations and the reference list

• In text citations
  • In-text citations should be presented in a consistent style throughout a document.
  • In-text citations within brackets should be placed at the end of a sentence before the concluding punctuation. If, however, the citation refers to only part of a sentence, it should be placed at the end of the clause or phrase to which it relates. When the author’s name forms part of the sentence the citation is placed directly after the author’s name.
  • Use the author’s family name (no initials) and the year of publication for in-text citations e.g. (Smith 2008). Initials are only used when two or more authors have the same family name. e.g. (Smith JB 2008) and (Smith MA 1999). If a work has no author the title and year of publication should be used in the citation.
  • When the author's name forms part of the sentence only the year is included in brackets. e.g. "Smith (2008) claimed that…"
  • Give specific page numbers for quotations in the text and include a complete reference in the reference list. Use a colon between date and page numbers. e.g. "The results were confirmed during the trial (Hong 2001:15-16)."
  • When a work has more than one author cite the authors’ names in the order in which they appear in the publication. Use the word ‘and’ between names outside and inside parentheses. Don’t use the ampersand (‘&’).
  • If more than one reference is used at the same point in the text they are included in the same set of brackets, ordered alphabetically by author name and separated by a semi-colon (Coats 2005; Ng and Hong 2003).
  • If there is no publishing date , use 'n.d.' to indicate no date in place of the year of publication. e.g.  "Other researchers reported similar results (White and Jones n.d.)."
• Formatting the reference list
  • The reference list entry begins with the family name of the author and is followed by the year of publication. There is no comma or full-stop between the family name and the year. Commas are used to separate all other elements. The reference entry finishes with a full-stop.
  • No full stops, and no spaces, are used with people’s initials.
  • An item with no author is cited by its title. In this case there is no comma or full-stop between the title and year.
  • There is no indentation of the references.
  • Each reference appears on a new line.
  • There is no numbering of the references.
  • The reference list should be ordered alphabetically by author family name. References with no author are ordered in the reference list alphabetically by the first significant word of the title.
  • Entries by the same single or multiple authors are arranged by year of publication, the earliest first.
    • Hong BH and Yeung KL (2001),
    • Hong BH and Yeung KL (2009),
  • References with the same first author and different second or third author are arranged alphabetically by the surname of the second author, or if the same, third, and so on.
    • Brown J, Gold F, and Black L (2007),
    • Brown J, Gold F, and Greene H (2006),
  • References by the same author (or by the same two or more authors in the same order) with the same publication date are arranged alphabetically by the first significant word of the title. Lower case letters - a, b, c, etc are placed immediately after the year.
  • Smith JR (2008a),  Ancient civilization,
  • Smith JR (2008b),  Roman times,
  • Where an item with no author has an editor (compiler, reviser or translator) cite the work by their name.
  • All sources that are cited in the text must have full details provided in the reference list. If sources that have not been cited in the text need to be included (e.g. items used for background information) then the list should be called a bibliography.
  • Do not include personal communications, such as letters, informal email, in the reference list. Cite personal communications only in the text.
• Referencing books
  • Book titles are italicised.
  • Information about the book appears after the year of publication in the following order:
    Title of book, title of series, edition, editor (compiler, reviser or translator), volume number or number of volumes, publisher, place of publication, page number(s) if applicable.

  Ettinger SJ and Feldman EC (eds) (2010), Textbook of veterinary internal medicine: diseases of the dog and the cat, 7th edn, 2 vols, Elsevier Saunders, St. Louis, Missouri.

  • Minimal capitalisation is recommended. Capitalise only the first word of the title and any proper nouns. Subtitles are not capitalised and are separated from the main title by a colon.
  • No author: Where an item has no author it is cited by its title, and ordered in the reference list alphabetically by the first significant word of the title. If an item with no author has an editor (compiler, reviser or translator) cite the work by their name. Subtitles are not capitalised and are separated from the main title by a colon.
  • Two or three authors: Cite author names in the order in which they appear on the title page.
  • Four or more authors: The in text citation shows only the name of the first listed author followed by 'et al.' All the authors' names must be listed in the reference list in the order in which they appear on the title page.
  • Secondary sources: In the text refer to the original work and cite the secondary source. For example, if Freud's work is referred to in Smith, Jones and Black and you did not read the original work by Freud; use the phrase 'cited in' inside brackets in the text (e.g. Freud's study (cited in Smith, Jones and Black 2005) reported … ). Give the secondary source in the reference list. (Optionally the details of the primary source can also be included in the reference list if considered useful to the reader).
  • Edited books: If the role of editor (compiler, reviser or translator) is important to the work cite the work by their name rather than the authors' names. If the author's role remains of primary importance to the work cite the work using the author's name and acknowledge the editor in the reference list. When an item with no author has an editor, cite the work by the name of the editor. Use the abbreviations ed, eds, comp, comps, rev and trans as appropriate.
  • Chapter in a book: Provide both the title of the book and the title of the chapter. Chapter titles are not italicised and are placed within single quotation marks ' '. Give inclusive page numbers for the chapter in the reference list. The initials of the editor of the book precede the family name. (This differs to the placement of the initials of the author of the chapter, which are placed after the family name, allowing for correct alphabetical ordering of the reference list). e.g. Daniels PJ (1993), 'Australia's foreign debt: searching for the benefits', in P Maxwell and S Hopkins (eds), Macroeconomics: contemporary Australian readings, Harper Educational, Pymble, N.S.W., pp. 200-50.
  • Group authors: If there is no identifiable individual credited as author, use the organisation name as author. Only use a shortened version of the organisation's name if it is in common usage. If you have used an abbreviated version of an organisation's name in your writing, use it in your references, followed by the full  version spelt out in parentheses. e.g. ANAO (Australian National Audit Office) (1990), Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade : officers' entitlements and other staff related matters, Australian Government Public Service, Canberra.
• Referencing journal articles
  • Italicise the name of the journal/publication. Use maximal capitalisation - capitalise the first and all major words of the journal name. Give the journal name in full e.g. Journal of Immunology not J Immunol
  • Article titles are contained within single quotation marks and are not italicised. Use minimal capitalisation - capitalise only the first word of the article title and any proper nouns. Include both article title and subtitle regardless of length e.g. 'Still moving: between cinema and photography'.
  • If the journal is part of a series include the series title in the citation. Series titles are not italicised and are placed after the journal name. Use minimal capitalisation.
  • The volume number, issue details and inclusive page numbers follow the journal title.
  • If a journal does not use volume numbers, include the month, season or other designation after the title.
  • The reference list entry for an article in a foreign language can include a translation, in brackets, following the article title e.g. Langhi C and Cariou B (2010), 'Metabolisme du cholesterol et fonction beta-cellulaire', (Cholesterol metabolism and beta-cell function),
  • Two or three authors: Cite author names in the order in which they appear on the article. Use the word "and" before last author; don't use an ampersand (&).  e.g. Beirne J, Renzhi N and Volz U (2023) 'Non-bank financing  and monetary policy transmission in Asia', Emerging Markets Finance & Trade, 59(6):1976–1991.
  • Four or more authors: The in text citation shows only the name of the first listed author followed by 'et al.' All the authors' names must be listed in the reference list in the order in which they appear on the article.
  • Secondary sources: In the text refer to the original work and give a citation for the secondary source. For example, if Lakatos' work is cited in an article by Gholson and Barker use the phrase 'cited in' inside brackets in the text (e.g. According to Lakatos (cited in Gholson & Barker 1985), scientists justifiably continue…). Give the secondary source in the reference list. (Optionally the details of the primary source can also be included in the reference list if considered useful to the reader).
• Referencing magazines
  • Magazine names are italicised. Use maximal capitalisation - capitalise the first and all major words of the publication's name.
  • Give the publication's name in full.
  • Article titles are contained within single quotation marks and are not italicised. Use minimal capitalisation - capitalise only the first word of the article title and any proper nouns. Include both article title and subtitle regardless of length e.g. 'Still moving: between cinema and photography'.
  • In the reference list the date follows the magazine title.
  • For weekly magazines, give the day and month e.g. 18 April.
  • For monthly/bimonthly/quarterly magazines give the month or other descriptor e.g. October-November, Spring.
  • Include page numbers at the end of the reference entry. If an article continues towards the end of the publication provide both sets of page numbers e.g. :14-15, 32.
• Referencing newspapers
  • Newspaper names are italicised. Use maximal capitalisation - capitalise the first and all major words of the publication's name
  • Article titles are contained within single quotation marks and are not italicised. Use minimal capitalisation - capitalise only the first word of the article title and any proper nouns. Include both article title and subtitle regardless of length e.g. 'Still moving: between cinema and photography'.
  • If the authorship of the newspaper article is not evident, provide all the details in the in text citation. In this case, there is no need for an entry in the reference list.
  • If the authorship of the newspaper item is evident, follow the procedures described for magazines.
• Referencing DVDs, videos, TV or radio broadcast
  • Titles are italicised. Minimal capitalisation is recommended. Capitalise only the first word of the title and any proper nouns.
  • Further information/credits can follow the citation.
• Acceptable abbreviations

  ch	chapter
  edn	edition
  ed ( eds)	editor (editors)
  n.d.	no date
  ser	series
  suppl	supplement
  rev	revised
  trans	translator(s)
  vol	volume (as in vol. 4)
  vols	volumes (as in 4 vols.)

• Referencing web sites and electronic sources
  • Use angle brackets to contain the web address to eliminate confusion with other punctuation.
  • A web address can be given directly in the text, enclosed in angle brackets. An entry in the reference list is not required in this case