3A Accounting
Bibliographic Citation Guide
Research requires reading what others have written on the subject you are studying. Whenever you use another person's
work you must identify the work by using a standard citation format. The following is the standard for the Modern Language
Association.
The most important thing to remember is that you be consistent in the way that you present the information.
Each work is identified by three key elements:
- the author's name,
- the title or source, and
- the publication information.
A period and two spaces follow each element. Additional elements such as number of volumes, or edition numbers are
separated from other elements by a period and two spaces.
The first line of each citation starts at the left margin, the second and any succeeding lines are indented five spaces.
Each work, or portion of a work, is listed separately and is arranged alphabetically by the author's last name.
Below you will find the correct citation form for a variety of materials.
Author information is in first position with the last name first. Title information is in the second position.
Publication information comes last.
By a single author:
Lemann, Nicholas. The Promised Land, the Great Black Migration and How It
Changed America. New York: Knopf, 1991.
Multiple authors:
Gibaldi, Joseph and Walter S. Achtert. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research
Papers. 3rd ed. New York: Modern Language Association, 1988.
More than three authors:
Bailyn, Bernard, et al. The Great Republic. Lexington, MA: D. C.
Heath, 1977.
Unknown author:
(Begin with title information, include editor or translator if given.)
The Bible, a New Translation. Trans. James Moffatt. New York:
Harper and Row, 1954.
Multi-volume work:
Dorival, Bernard. Twentieth Century Painters. 2 vols. New York:
Universe Books, 1958.
Collection produced by an editor(s):
Guernsey, Otis L., Jr. and Jeffrey Sweet, ed. The Burns Mantle
Theater Yearbook of 1989-90. New York: Applause, 1990.
A work from an anthology:
Margulies, Donald. "The Loman Family Picnic, a Play in Two Acts."
The Burns Mantle Theater Yearbook of 1989-90. New York:
Applause, 1990. 131-50.
Encyclopedia Article:
A citation for a work arranged in alphabetical order does not require volume or page numbers.
Encyclopedias may be cited without the publisher's name, but date of publication must be given.
If the article is signed, give the author's name first. If the article is not signed, give the title first.
Signed Article:
Temperley, Nicholas. "Johann Sebstian Bach." Groves Dictionary of
Music. 1980.
Unsigned Article:
"Northwest Coast Indians." Encyclopedia of Native American
Tribes. 1988.
Other reference sources:
For other kinds of reference books, give full publication information as for any book.
"Swinomish." Guide to the Indian Tribes of the Northwest.
Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1986. 230-1.
"Kurasawa, Akira." Current Biography Yearbook 1991. New York:
H.W. Wilson Company, 1991. 346-50.
In addition to author and title information, each periodical entry must include either a volume and issue number, year,
and pages, or complete date and pages. Some publications have continuous paging for each volume, and in this case,
volume, year, and pages only are needed.
Omit the initial article (a, an the) from the title of publications. As with other materials, put the author's name first if it is given, if the
author is not identified, put the title first.
Articles in scholarly journals:
Wernerfelt, Birgner. "Advertising Content When Brand Choice Is a Signal."
Journal of Business 63.1 (1990) 91-8.
Articles in weekly publications:
Ryback, Timothy W. "Letter from Salzburg." New Yorker
30 Dec. 1991: 62-75.
Articles in monthly publications:
Alford, Jeffrey. "Ap Nam? Kin Khao? Feeling at Home in Thai Kitchens."
Eating Well Jan. - Feb. 1992: 44-55.
Newspaper Articles:
Miller, David. "Tightening the Belt." Seattle Times
5 Jan. 1992: A1.
Anonymous articles:
"Saddam's Republican Guards." Time Magazine 4 Feb. 1991: 24.
Editorials
(In a newspaper or magazine):
Schmemann, Serge. "The World According to Gobachev Disappears."
Editorial. New York Times 8 Dec. 1991: E3.
Treat a pamphlet as you would a book.
Outsmarting Crime: A Guide to Safer Living. N.p.:
Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission, 1990.
Washington State. Washington State University, Pullman
Cooperative Extension. Raising Rabbits, Helpful Suggestions
for Beginners. Extension Bulletin 0975. Pullman: WSU, 1991
United States. Commerce Dept. An Act to Provide the Small Business
Administration Continuing Authority to Administer a Program for Small
Innovative Firms, and for Other Purposes. Washington. D.C.:
GPO, 1986
United States. Senate. Committee on the Judiciary. The Child Abuse
Victims' Rights Act of 1986. 99th Cong., 2nd sess. S. Res. 985.
Washington, D.C.: GPO, 1986.
Author, first (if available, if in doubt, put in the title first). Title. Format. Producer's name, date.
Television:
Cuba and Cocaine. Narr. Bill Moyers. Produced by the
Documentary Consortium. Frontline. PBS. WTVS, Miami.
18 Jan. 1990.
Radio:
Sexual Harassment In the Workplace. By Daniel Schorr.
All Things Considered. KUOW, Seattle 5 March 1991.
Audio Tape, Record, or CD:
Fiestas of Peru: Music of the High Andes. Phonodisc.
Recorded in Peru by David Lewiston. Nonesuch Records,
H-72045, 1972.
Video Tape:
Welles, Orson. War of the Worlds. Videotape.
National Recording Company, DD 3667, 1985.
Treat a full-text article from a CD-ROM according to the examples that follow. In addition to the author, title, source
and date information, you should include the format, the publisher of the CD-ROM database, and the date the database
was published.
1990 Census:
"King County Per Capita Income (Dollars)". Census of
Population and Housing, 1990: Summary Tape File 1 on
CD-ROM (Washington). CD-ROM. Bureau of the Census, 1991.
Contemporary Authors:
"Walker, Alice (Malsenior) 1944- " Contemporary Authors on CD.
CD-ROM. Gale Research Inc., 1994.
Ethnic NewsWatch:
Anquoe, Bunty. "Navajo College to Stay Open." Indian Country Today
3 Aug. 1994: A1. Ethnic NewsWatch. CD-ROM. SoftLine Information, Inc.,
1994.
National Trade Data Bank:
Ozaki, Yumiko. "The Virtual Reality/Entertainment Applications
Market in Japan." Monthly Research Reports Nov. 1993.
National Trade Data Bank. CD-ROM. U.S. Dept. of Commerce,
International Trade Administration. Dec. 1993.
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