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In-Text Citations

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While this tutorial focuses primarily on the citations that you list at the end of your research project, it is also important to know how to include parenthetical citations when sources are either quoted directly or paraphrased within the body of your research project.

The parenthetical citation acts as a cross reference and directs the reader to the full citation in the Works Cited listing. Place your parenthetical citation at the end of a direct quote, and as near as possible to the paraphrased information.

A parenthetical citation typically includes the author's last name and the specific page number where you found the information that you are quoting or paraphrasing:

This parenthetical citation indicates that you found your information in the source with the author with the last name Jiménez, on page 94. The reader can then look in your Works Cited Listing and find the specific resource with Jiménez as the author.

If the source you are citing has two authors, include both author's last names. If there are more than 3 authors, list the first author's last name followed by "et al."

For sources with no author, abbreviate the title (or article title for periodicals and websites) and include the page number if available.

Note: Notice that there is no page number for the second example. The second example is for a website, which does not have page numbers.

When your paper is documented in this way, it will be easy for the reader to see exactly where your supporting documentation originated.