Using Citations in APA 7: Why Citations Matter
In academic writing, citations are required for any information, ideas, or wording that are not your own and are not considered “common knowledge.”
- Citations show you have researched your topic.
- Citations give credit to the original authors.
- Citations help readers locate your sources.
- Missing citations can lead to plagiarism, even if unintentional.
What Is Common Knowledge?
- General Common Knowledge: Information widely known and easily found in multiple general sources.
- Example: George Washington was the first president of the United States.
- No citation is needed.
- Field- or Region-Specific Knowledge: Information that is only well-known in a certain group, field, or place.
- Example: Only about half of U.S. states have a law enforcement officer called a constable.
- Because this may not be widely known, you should cite a source for the definition or the statistic to be safe.
Rule of Thumb: If in doubt, cite it.
Citation Checklist (APA 7)
1. Facts and Information
- Did I cite every fact, statistic, or detail that is not common knowledge?
- If it’s only common knowledge in a limited group or area, did I still cite it?
2. Ideas and Theories
- Did I cite when summarizing, paraphrasing, or discussing someone else’s ideas or theories?
3. Direct Quotes
- Did I put quotation marks around all direct quotes?
- Did I include the author, year, and page number (or paragraph number for sources without pages)?
4. Paraphrasing
- Did I truly put the idea into my own words instead of just changing a few words?
- Did I still cite the original source?
5. Personal Communication
- Did I cite interviews, emails, class lectures, or private correspondence as personal communication in the body of my paper?
- Example: (J. Smith, personal communication, March 3, 2025)
- Did I avoid listing personal communications in the References list (since readers cannot retrieve them)?
6. Cite Only What You Read
- Am I citing the actual source I read, not just copying a citation I found in someone else’s work?
- If Miller quotes Jones and I only read Miller, did I cite the Miller source I read (not copying Miller's citation of Jones)?
- If I want to cite Jones directly, did I look up Jones’s original work myself?
- Did I avoid copying reference list entries for sources I never personally consulted?
7. Reference List
- Does every in-text citation (except personal communications) match a full reference?
- Is the list in proper APA 7 style (alphabetical order, hanging indent, correct sentence case or title case, correct punctuation)?
8. Final Check
- If I was unsure about whether to cite something, did I include a citation anyway?
