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How to Cite an Essay

Last Updated: February 4, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Diya Chaudhuri, PhD and by wikiHow staff writer, Jennifer Mueller, JD . Diya Chaudhuri holds a PhD in Creative Writing (specializing in Poetry) from Georgia State University. She has over 5 years of experience as a writing tutor and instructor for both the University of Florida and Georgia State University. There are 10 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 559,942 times.

If you're writing a research paper, whether as a student or a professional researcher, you might want to use an essay as a source. You'll typically find essays published in another source, such as an edited book or collection. When you discuss or quote from the essay in your paper, use an in-text citation to relate back to the full entry listed in your list of references at the end of your paper. While the information in the full reference entry is basically the same, the format differs depending on whether you're using the Modern Language Association (MLA), American Psychological Association (APA), or Chicago citation method.

Template and Examples

• Example: Potter, Harry.

• Example: Potter, Harry. "My Life with Voldemort."

• Example: Potter, Harry. "My Life with Voldemort." Great Thoughts from Hogwarts Alumni , by Bathilda Backshot,

• Example: Potter, Harry. "My Life with Voldemort." Great Thoughts from Hogwarts Alumni , by Bathilda Backshot, Hogwarts Press, 2019,

• Example: Potter, Harry. "My Life with Voldemort." Great Thoughts from Hogwarts Alumni , by Bathilda Backshot, Hogwarts Press, 2019, pp. 22-42.

MLA Works Cited Entry Format:

LastName, FirstName. "Title of Essay." Title of Collection , by FirstName Last Name, Publisher, Year, pp. ##-##.

• For example, you might write: While the stories may seem like great adventures, the students themselves were terribly frightened to confront Voldemort (Potter 28).
• If you include the author's name in the text of your paper, you only need the page number where the referenced material can be found in the parenthetical at the end of your sentence.
• If you have several authors with the same last name, include each author's first initial in your in-text citation to differentiate them.
• For several titles by the same author, include a shortened version of the title after the author's name (if the title isn't mentioned in your text).

• Example: Granger, H.

• Example: Granger, H. (2018).

• Example: Granger, H. (2018). Adventures in time turning.

• Example: Granger, H. (2018). Adventures in time turning. In M. McGonagall (Ed.), Reflections on my time at Hogwarts

• Example: Granger, H. (2018). Adventures in time turning. In M. McGonagall (Ed.), Reflections on my time at Hogwarts (pp. 92-130). Hogwarts Press.

APA Reference List Entry Format:

LastName, I. (Year). Title of essay. In I. LastName (Ed.), Title of larger work (pp. ##-##). Publisher.

• For example, you might write: By using a time turner, a witch or wizard can appear to others as though they are actually in two places at once (Granger, 2018).
• If you use the author's name in the text of your paper, include the parenthetical with the year immediately after the author's name. For example, you might write: Although technically against the rules, Granger (2018) maintains that her use of a time turner was sanctioned by the head of her house.
• Add page numbers if you quote directly from the source. Simply add a comma after the year, then type the page number or page range where the quoted material can be found, using the abbreviation "p." for a single page or "pp." for a range of pages.

• Example: Weasley, Ron.

• Example: Weasley, Ron. "Best Friend to a Hero."

• Example: Weasley, Ron. "Best Friend to a Hero." In Harry Potter: Wizard, Myth, Legend , edited by Xenophilius Lovegood, 80-92.

• Example: Weasley, Ron. "Best Friend to a Hero." In Harry Potter: Wizard, Myth, Legend , edited by Xenophilius Lovegood, 80-92. Ottery St. Catchpole: Quibbler Books, 2018.

' Chicago Bibliography Format:

LastName, FirstName. "Title of Essay." In Title of Book or Essay Collection , edited by FirstName LastName, ##-##. Location: Publisher, Year.

• Example: Ron Weasley, "Best Friend to a Hero," in Harry Potter: Wizard, Myth, Legend , edited by Xenophilius Lovegood, 80-92 (Ottery St. Catchpole: Quibbler Books, 2018).
• After the first footnote, use a shortened footnote format that includes only the author's last name, the title of the essay, and the page number or page range where the referenced material appears.

Tip: If you use the Chicago author-date system for in-text citation, use the same in-text citation method as APA style.

Community Q&A

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://style.mla.org/essay-in-authored-textbook/
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_page_books.html
• ↑ https://utica.libguides.com/c.php?g=703243&p=4991646
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_in_text_citations_the_basics.html
• ↑ https://guides.libraries.psu.edu/apaquickguide/intext
• ↑ https://guides.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/c.php?g=27779&p=170363
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_the_basics.html
• ↑ http://libguides.heidelberg.edu/chicago/book/chapter
• ↑ https://librarybestbets.fairfield.edu/citationguides/chicagonotes-bibliography#CollectionofEssays
• ↑ https://libguides.heidelberg.edu/chicago/book/chapter

About This Article

To cite an essay using MLA format, include the name of the author and the page number of the source you’re citing in the in-text citation. For example, if you’re referencing page 123 from a book by John Smith, you would include “(Smith 123)” at the end of the sentence. Alternatively, include the information as part of the sentence, such as “Rathore and Chauhan determined that Himalayan brown bears eat both plants and animals (6652).” Then, make sure that all your in-text citations match the sources in your Works Cited list. For more advice from our Creative Writing reviewer, including how to cite an essay in APA or Chicago Style, keep reading. Did this summary help you? Yes No

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This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

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In-Text Citations

Resources on using in-text citations in APA style

Reference List

Resources on writing an APA style reference list, including citation formats

Other APA Resources

MLA In-text Citations and Sample Essay 9th Edition

Listing your sources at the end of your essay in the Works Cited is only the first step in complete and effective documentation. Proper citation of sources is a two-part process . You must also cite, in the body of your essay, the source your paraphrased information or where directly quoted material came from. These citations within the essay are called in-text citations . You must cite all quoted, paraphrased, or summarized words, ideas, and facts from sources. Without in-text citations, you are in danger of plagiarism , even if you have listed your sources at the end of the essay. In-text citations point the reader to the sources’ information in the works cited page, so the in-text citation should be the first item listed in the source’s citation on the works cited page, which is usually the author’s last name (or the title if there is no author) and the page number, if provided.

Two Ways to Cite Your Sources In-text

Parenthetical citation.

Cite your source in parentheses at the end of quoted or paraphrased material.

Example with a page number: In regards to paraphrasing, "It is important to remember to use in-text citations for your paraphrased information, as well as your directly quoted material" (Habib 7).

Example without a page number : Paraphrasing is "often the best choice because direct quotes should be reserved for source material that is especially well-written in style and/or clarity" (Ruiz).

Signal Phrase

Within the sentence, through the use of a "signal phrase" which signals to the reader the specific source the idea or quote came from. Include the page number(s) in parentheses at the end of the sentence, if provided.

Example with a page number: According to Habib, "It is important to remember to use in-text citations for your paraphrased information, as well as your directly quoted material" (7).

Example without a page number: According to Ruiz, paraphrasing is "often the best choice because direct quotes should be reserved for source material that is especially well-written in style and/or clarity."

*See our handout "Signal Phrases" for more examples and information on effective ways to use signal phrases for in-text citations.

Do you need to include a page number in your in-text citation?

Printed materials such as books, magazines, journals, or internet and digital sources with PDF files that show an actual printed page number need to have a page number in the citation.

Internet and digital sources with a continuously scrolling page without a page number do not need a page number in the citation.

Commonly used in-text citations in parentheses

Notes on Quotes

Block quotation format.

When using long quotations that are over four lines of prose or over three lines of poetry in length, you will need to use block quotation format. Block format is indented one inch from the margin (you can hit the "tab" button twice to move it one inch). Additionally, block quotes do not use quotation marks, and the parenthetical citation comes after the period of the last sentence. Please see the following sample essay for an example block quote.

Signal Phrase Examples and Ideas

Please see the following sample essay for different kinds of signal phrases and parenthetical in-text citations, which correspond with the sample Works Cited page at the end. The Writing Center also has a handout on signal phrases with many different verb options.

Learn more about the MLA Works Cited page by reviewing this handout .

For information on STLCC's academic integrity policy, check out this website .

Home / Guides / Citation Guides / How to Cite Sources

How to Cite Sources

Here is a complete list for how to cite sources. Most of these guides present citation guidance and examples in MLA, APA, and Chicago.

If you’re looking for general information on MLA or APA citations , the EasyBib Writing Center was designed for you! It has articles on what’s needed in an MLA in-text citation , how to format an APA paper, what an MLA annotated bibliography is, making an MLA works cited page, and much more!

MLA Format Citation Examples

The Modern Language Association created the MLA Style, currently in its 9th edition, to provide researchers with guidelines for writing and documenting scholarly borrowings.  Most often used in the humanities, MLA style (or MLA format ) has been adopted and used by numerous other disciplines, in multiple parts of the world.

MLA provides standard rules to follow so that most research papers are formatted in a similar manner. This makes it easier for readers to comprehend the information. The MLA in-text citation guidelines, MLA works cited standards, and MLA annotated bibliography instructions provide scholars with the information they need to properly cite sources in their research papers, articles, and assignments.

• Book Chapter
• Conference Paper
• Documentary
• Encyclopedia
• Google Images
• Kindle Book
• Memorial Inscription
• Museum Exhibit
• Painting or Artwork
• PowerPoint Presentation
• Sheet Music
• Thesis or Dissertation
• YouTube Video

APA Format Citation Examples

The American Psychological Association created the APA citation style in 1929 as a way to help psychologists, anthropologists, and even business managers establish one common way to cite sources and present content.

APA is used when citing sources for academic articles such as journals, and is intended to help readers better comprehend content, and to avoid language bias wherever possible. The APA style (or APA format ) is now in its 7th edition, and provides citation style guides for virtually any type of resource.

Chicago Style Citation Examples

The Chicago/Turabian style of citing sources is generally used when citing sources for humanities papers, and is best known for its requirement that writers place bibliographic citations at the bottom of a page (in Chicago-format footnotes ) or at the end of a paper (endnotes).

The Turabian and Chicago citation styles are almost identical, but the Turabian style is geared towards student published papers such as theses and dissertations, while the Chicago style provides guidelines for all types of publications. This is why you’ll commonly see Chicago style and Turabian style presented together. The Chicago Manual of Style is currently in its 17th edition, and Turabian’s A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations is in its 8th edition.

Citing Specific Sources or Events

• Declaration of Independence
• Gettysburg Address
• Martin Luther King Jr. Speech
• President Obama’s Farewell Address
• President Trump’s Inauguration Speech
• White House Press Briefing

Additional FAQs

• Citing Archived Contributors
• Citing a Blog
• Citing a Book Chapter
• Citing a Source in a Foreign Language
• Citing an Image
• Citing a Song
• Citing Special Contributors
• Citing a Translated Article
• Citing a Tweet

6 Interesting Citation Facts

The world of citations may seem cut and dry, but there’s more to them than just specific capitalization rules, MLA in-text citations , and other formatting specifications. Citations have been helping researches document their sources for hundreds of years, and are a great way to learn more about a particular subject area.

Ever wonder what sets all the different styles apart, or how they came to be in the first place? Read on for some interesting facts about citations!

1. There are Over 7,000 Different Citation Styles

You may be familiar with MLA and APA citation styles, but there are actually thousands of citation styles used for all different academic disciplines all across the world. Deciding which one to use can be difficult, so be sure to ask you instructor which one you should be using for your next paper.

2. Some Citation Styles are Named After People

While a majority of citation styles are named for the specific organizations that publish them (i.e. APA is published by the American Psychological Association, and MLA format is named for the Modern Language Association), some are actually named after individuals. The most well-known example of this is perhaps Turabian style, named for Kate L. Turabian, an American educator and writer. She developed this style as a condensed version of the Chicago Manual of Style in order to present a more concise set of rules to students.

3. There are Some Really Specific and Uniquely Named Citation Styles

How specific can citation styles get? The answer is very. For example, the “Flavour and Fragrance Journal” style is based on a bimonthly, peer-reviewed scientific journal published since 1985 by John Wiley & Sons. It publishes original research articles, reviews and special reports on all aspects of flavor and fragrance. Another example is “Nordic Pulp and Paper Research,” a style used by an international scientific magazine covering science and technology for the areas of wood or bio-mass constituents.

4. More citations were created on  EasyBib.com  in the first quarter of 2018 than there are people in California.

The US Census Bureau estimates that approximately 39.5 million people live in the state of California. Meanwhile, about 43 million citations were made on EasyBib from January to March of 2018. That’s a lot of citations.

5. “Citations” is a Word With a Long History

The word “citations” can be traced back literally thousands of years to the Latin word “citare” meaning “to summon, urge, call; put in sudden motion, call forward; rouse, excite.” The word then took on its more modern meaning and relevance to writing papers in the 1600s, where it became known as the “act of citing or quoting a passage from a book, etc.”

6. Citation Styles are Always Changing

The concept of citations always stays the same. It is a means of preventing plagiarism and demonstrating where you relied on outside sources. The specific style rules, however, can and do change regularly. For example, in 2018 alone, 46 new citation styles were introduced , and 106 updates were made to exiting styles. At EasyBib, we are always on the lookout for ways to improve our styles and opportunities to add new ones to our list.

Why Citations Matter

Here are the ways accurate citations can help your students achieve academic success, and how you can answer the dreaded question, “why should I cite my sources?”

They Give Credit to the Right People

Citing their sources makes sure that the reader can differentiate the student’s original thoughts from those of other researchers. Not only does this make sure that the sources they use receive proper credit for their work, it ensures that the student receives deserved recognition for their unique contributions to the topic. Whether the student is citing in MLA format , APA format , or any other style, citations serve as a natural way to place a student’s work in the broader context of the subject area, and serve as an easy way to gauge their commitment to the project.

They Provide Hard Evidence of Ideas

Having many citations from a wide variety of sources related to their idea means that the student is working on a well-researched and respected subject. Citing sources that back up their claim creates room for fact-checking and further research . And, if they can cite a few sources that have the converse opinion or idea, and then demonstrate to the reader why they believe that that viewpoint is wrong by again citing credible sources, the student is well on their way to winning over the reader and cementing their point of view.

They Promote Originality and Prevent Plagiarism

The point of research projects is not to regurgitate information that can already be found elsewhere. We have Google for that! What the student’s project should aim to do is promote an original idea or a spin on an existing idea, and use reliable sources to promote that idea. Copying or directly referencing a source without proper citation can lead to not only a poor grade, but accusations of academic dishonesty. By citing their sources regularly and accurately, students can easily avoid the trap of plagiarism , and promote further research on their topic.

They Create Better Researchers

By researching sources to back up and promote their ideas, students are becoming better researchers without even knowing it! Each time a new source is read or researched, the student is becoming more engaged with the project and is developing a deeper understanding of the subject area. Proper citations demonstrate a breadth of the student’s reading and dedication to the project itself. By creating citations, students are compelled to make connections between their sources and discern research patterns. Each time they complete this process, they are helping themselves become better researchers and writers overall.

When is the Right Time to Start Making Citations?

Make in-text/parenthetical citations as you need them.

As you are writing your paper, be sure to include references within the text that correspond with references in a works cited or bibliography. These are usually called in-text citations or parenthetical citations in MLA and APA formats. The most effective time to complete these is directly after you have made your reference to another source. For instance, after writing the line from Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities : “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…,” you would include a citation like this (depending on your chosen citation style):

(Dickens 11).

This signals to the reader that you have referenced an outside source. What’s great about this system is that the in-text citations serve as a natural list for all of the citations you have made in your paper, which will make completing the works cited page a whole lot easier. After you are done writing, all that will be left for you to do is scan your paper for these references, and then build a works cited page that includes a citation for each one.

Need help creating an MLA works cited page ? Try the MLA format generator on EasyBib.com! We also have a guide on how to format an APA reference page .

2. Understand the General Formatting Rules of Your Citation Style Before You Start Writing

While reading up on paper formatting may not sound exciting, being aware of how your paper should look early on in the paper writing process is super important. Citation styles can dictate more than just the appearance of the citations themselves, but rather can impact the layout of your paper as a whole, with specific guidelines concerning margin width, title treatment, and even font size and spacing. Knowing how to organize your paper before you start writing will ensure that you do not receive a low grade for something as trivial as forgetting a hanging indent.

Don’t know where to start? Here’s a formatting guide on APA format .

3. Double-check All of Your Outside Sources for Relevance and Trustworthiness First

Collecting outside sources that support your research and specific topic is a critical step in writing an effective paper. But before you run to the library and grab the first 20 books you can lay your hands on, keep in mind that selecting a source to include in your paper should not be taken lightly. Before you proceed with using it to backup your ideas, run a quick Internet search for it and see if other scholars in your field have written about it as well. Check to see if there are book reviews about it or peer accolades. If you spot something that seems off to you, you may want to consider leaving it out of your work. Doing this before your start making citations can save you a ton of time in the long run.

Finished with your paper? It may be time to run it through a grammar and plagiarism checker , like the one offered by EasyBib Plus. If you’re just looking to brush up on the basics, our grammar guides  are ready anytime you are.

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How to Write an Academic Essay with References and Citations

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Written by  Scribendi

If you're wondering how to write an academic essay with references, look no further. In this article, we'll discuss how to use in-text citations and references, including how to cite a website, how to cite a book, and how to cite a Tweet, according to various style guides.

You might need to cite sources when writing a paper that references other sources. For example, when writing an essay, you may use information from other works, such as books, articles, or websites. You must then inform readers where this information came from. Failure to do so, even accidentally, is plagiarism—passing off another person's work as your own.

You can avoid plagiarism and show readers where to find information by using citations and references. 

Citations tell readers where a piece of information came from. They take the form of footnotes, endnotes, or parenthetical elements, depending on your style guide. In-text citations are usually placed at the end of a sentence containing the relevant information. 

A reference list , bibliography, or works cited list at the end of a text provides additional details about these cited sources. This list includes enough publication information allowing readers to look up these sources themselves.

Referencing is important for more than simply avoiding plagiarism. Referring to a trustworthy source shows that the information is reliable. Referring to reliable information can also support your major points and back up your argument. 

Learning how to write an academic essay with references and how to use in-text citations will allow you to cite authors who have made similar arguments. This helps show that your argument is objective and not entirely based on personal biases.

How Do You Determine Which Style Guide to Use?

Often, a professor will assign a style guide. The purpose of a style guide is to provide writers with formatting instructions. If your professor has not assigned a style guide, they should still be able to recommend one. 

If you are entirely free to choose, pick one that aligns with your field (for example, APA is frequently used for scientific writing). 

Some of the most common style guides are as follows:

AP style for journalism

Chicago style for publishing

APA style for scholarly writing (commonly used in scientific fields)

MLA style for scholarly citations (commonly used in English literature fields)

Some journals have their own style guides, so if you plan to publish, check which guide your target journal uses. You can do this by locating your target journal's website and searching for author guidelines.

How Do You Pick Your Sources?

When learning how to write an academic essay with references, you must identify reliable sources that support your argument. 

As you read, think critically and evaluate sources for:

Objectivity

Keep detailed notes on the sources so that you can easily find them again, if needed.

Tip: Record these notes in the format of your style guide—your reference list will then be ready to go.

How to Use In-Text Citations in MLA

An in-text citation in MLA includes the author's last name and the relevant page number: 

(Author 123)

How to Cite a Website in MLA

Here's how to cite a website in MLA:

Author's last name, First name. "Title of page."

Website. Website Publisher, date. Web. Date

retrieved. <URL>

With information from a real website, this looks like:

Morris, Nancy. "How to Cite a Tweet in APA,

Chicago, and MLA." Scribendi. Scribendi

Inc., n.d. Web. 22 Dec. 2021.

<https://www.scribendi.com/academy/articles/how_to_cite_a_website.en.html>

How Do You Cite a Tweet in MLA ?

MLA uses the full text of a short Tweet (under 140 characters) as its title. Longer Tweets can be shortened using ellipses. 

MLA Tweet references should be formatted as follows:

@twitterhandle (Author Name). "Text of Tweet." Twitter, Date Month, Year, time of

publication, URL.

With information from an actual Tweet, this looks like:

@neiltyson (Neil deGrasse Tyson). "You can't use reason to convince anyone out of an

argument that they didn't use reason to get into." Twitter, 29 Sept. 2020, 10:15 p.m.,

https://twitter.com/neiltyson/status/1311127369785192449 .

How to Cite a Book in MLA

Here's how to cite a book in MLA:

Author's last name, First name. Book Title. Publisher, Year.

With publication information from a real book, this looks like:

Montgomery, L.M. Rainbow Valley. Frederick A. Stokes Company, 1919.

How to Cite a Chapter in a Book in MLA

Author's last name, First name. "Title of Chapter." Book Title , edited by Editor Name,

Publisher, Year, pp. page range.

With publication information from an actual book, this looks like:

Ezell, Margaret J.M. "The Social Author: Manuscript Culture, Writers, and Readers." The

Broadview Reader in Book History , edited by Michelle Levy and Tom Mole, Broadview

Press, 2015,pp. 375–394.

How to  Cite a Paraphrase in MLA

You can cite a paraphrase in MLA exactly the same way as you would cite a direct quotation. 

Make sure to include the author's name (either in the text or in the parenthetical citation) and the relevant page number.

How to Use In-Text Citations in APA

In APA, in-text citations include the author's last name and the year of publication; a page number is included only if a direct quotation is used: 

(Author, 2021, p. 123)

How to Cite a Website in APA

Here's how to cite a website in APA:

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year, Month. date of publication). Title of page. https://URL

Morris, N. (n.d.). How to cite a Tweet in APA, Chicago, and MLA. 

https://www.scribendi.com/academy/articles/how_to_cite_a_website.en.html       

Tip: Learn more about how to write an academic essay with  references to websites .

How Do You  Cite a Tweet in APA ?

APA refers to Tweets using their first 20 words. 

Tweet references should be formatted as follows:

Author, A. A. [@twitterhandle). (Year, Month. date of publication). First 20 words of the

Tweet. [Tweet] Twitter. URL

When we input information from a real Tweet, this looks like:

deGrasse Tyson, N. [@neiltyson]. (2020, Sept. 29). You can't use reason to convince anyone

out of an argument that they didn't use reason to get into. [Tweet] Twitter.

https://twitter.com/neiltyson/status/1311127369785192449

How to Cite a Book in APA

Here's how to cite a book in APA:   

Author, A. A. (Year). Book title. Publisher.

For a real book, this looks like:

Montgomery, L. M. (1919). Rainbow valley.

Frederick A. Stokes Company.

How to Cite a Chapter in a Book in APA

Author, A. A. (Year). Chapter title. In Editor Name (Ed.), Book Title (pp. page range).

With information from a real book, this looks like:

Ezell, M. J. M. (2014). The social author: Manuscript culture, writers, and readers. In

Michelle Levy and Tom Mole (Eds.), The Broadview Reader in Book History (pp. 375–

394). Broadview Press.

Knowing how to cite a book and how to cite a chapter in a book correctly will take you a long way in creating an effective reference list.

How to Cite a Paraphrase in APA

You can cite a paraphrase in APA the same way as you would cite a direct quotation, including the author's name and year of publication. 

In APA, you may also choose to pinpoint the page from which the information is taken.

Referencing is an essential part of academic integrity. Learning how to write an academic essay with references and how to use in-text citations shows readers that you did your research and helps them locate your sources.

Learning how to cite a website, how to cite a book, and how to cite a paraphrase can also help you avoid plagiarism —an academic offense with serious consequences for your education or professional reputation.

Scribendi can help format your citations or review your whole paper with our Academic Editing services .

Take Your Essay from Good to Great

Hire an expert academic editor , or get a free sample, about the author.

Scribendi's in-house editors work with writers from all over the globe to perfect their writing. They know that no piece of writing is complete without a professional edit, and they love to see a good piece of writing transformed into a great one. Scribendi's in-house editors are unrivaled in both experience and education, having collectively edited millions of words and obtained numerous degrees. They love consuming caffeinated beverages, reading books of various genres, and relaxing in quiet, dimly lit spaces.

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"The Complete Beginner's Guide to Academic Writing"

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Essay Writing: In-Text Citations

• Essay Writing Basics
• Purdue OWL Page on Writing Your Thesis This link opens in a new window
• Paragraphs and Transitions
• How to Tell if a Website is Legitimate This link opens in a new window
• Formatting Your References Page
• Cite a Website
• Common Grammatical and Mechanical Errors
• Additional Resources
• Proofread Before You Submit Your Paper
• Structuring the 5-Paragraph Essay

In-text Citations

What are In-Text Citations?

You must cite (give credit) all information sources used in your essay or research paper whenever and wherever you use them.

When citing sources in the text of your paper, you must list:

● The author’s last name

● The year  the information was published.

Types of In-Text Citations: Narrative vs Parenthetical

A  narrative citation gives the author's name as part of the sentence .

• Example of a Narrative Citation: According to Edwards (2017) , a lthough Smith and Carlos's protest at the 1968 Olympics initially drew widespread criticism, it also led to fundamental reforms in the organizational structure of American amateur athletics.

A  parenthetical citation puts the source information in parentheses—first or last—but does not include it in  the narrative  flow.

• Example of a Parenthetical Citation:  Although Tommie Smith and John Carlos paid a heavy price in the immediate aftermath of the protests, they were later vindicated by society at large (Edwards, 2017) .

Full citation for this source (this belongs on the Reference Page of your research paper or essay):

Edwards, H. (2017).  The Revolt of the Black Athlete: 50th Anniversary Edition.  University of Illinois Press.

Sample In-text Citations

Note: This example is a  direct quote. It is an exact quotation directly from the text of the article. All direct quotes should appear in quotation marks: "...."

Try keeping direct quotes to a minimum in your writing. You need to show your understanding of the source material by being able to paraphrase or summarize it. 

List the author’s last name only (no initials) and the year the information was published, like this:

(Dodge, 2008 ). ( Author , Date).

IF you use a direct quote, add the page number to your citation, like this: 

( Dodge , 2008 , p. 125 ).

( Author , Date , page number )

What information should I cite in my paper/essay?

Credit these sources when you mention their information in any way: direct quotation, paraphrase, or summarize.

What should you credit?

Any information that you learned from another source, including:

● statistics

EXCEPTION: Information that is common knowledge: e.g., The Bronx is a borough of New York City.

Quick Sheet: APA 7 Citations

Quick help with apa 7 citations.

• Quick Sheet - Citing Journal Articles, Websites & Videos, and Creating In-Text Citations A quick guide to the most frequently-used types of APA 7 citations.

In-text Citation Tutorial

• Formatting In-text Citations, Full Citations, and Block Quotes In APA 7 Style This presentation will help you understand when, why, and how to use in-text citations in your APA style paper.

Download the In-text Citations presentation  (above)  for an in-depth look at how to correctly cite your sources in the text of your paper.

SIgnal Phrase Activity

Paraphrasing activity from the excelsior owl, in-text citation quiz.

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• In-Text Citation and Notes

Citing Sources in the Text of your Paper

When writers use an outside source, they must give credit to the original writer or creator of that source. This also allows a reader to easily make note of the source’s bibliographic entry. Just as each style guide has rules for creating a citation in a bibliography at the end of a text, each guide also has certain rules for citing the use of sources within the text of the essay.

The following are basic guidelines for citing sources in the text of your paper when using the MLA, APA, Chicago, ASA, or Turabian style guides. These guidelines may not account for every citation situation. Since citing sources is not a creative enterprise, you should consult the appropriate print version of the style guide when you have questions about citation.

MLA: In-Text Citations

MLA citation style requires that writers cite a source within the text of their essay at the end of the sentence in which the source is used.

General Guidance on in-text citations (or reference to your source) The parenthetical reference should be inserted after the last quotation mark but before the period at the end of the sentence.

General Form: (Author Last Name Page #)

Example: (Smith 42)

If two quotations from different sources are used in the same sentence The in-text citation associated with a particular quote should be placed as close to the quotation as possible without interrupting the flow of the sentence.

Example for two sources in one sentence: According to one researcher, “the design thinking process is not meant to be a formula,” (Spencer 58) whereas others might argue that steps and formulas are in fact important like Walker suggests: “following a specific path towards design success is necessary for achieving outlined goals,” (21).

If a paragraph includes several quotations from a single source A single in-text citation may be placed at the end of the paragraph. Page numbers should be included for each quotation organized by placement in the paragraph. In the following example, the first quotation from Smith appeared on page 43 of the text. The second quotation used in the paragraph came from page 12.

Example: (Smith 43, 12)

If the author is included more than once on the Works Cited page The following form should be used. Note that the format of the title on the Works Cited sheet should be mirrored in the in-text citation.

General Form: (Author Last, “Title Fragment” Page #) or (Author Last,  Title Fragment Page #)

Examples: (Smith, “Who Moved” 42) or (Smith, Big Changes 172)

If you have more than one author:

Two: (Brown and Sullivan 42)

Three: (Brown, Sullivan, and Grayson 158)

Four or more: (Brown, et al. 38)

If there is no author A title fragment should be used to make a connection between the use of the source and the citation for the source on the Works Cited page.

General Form: (“Title Fragment” Page #) or ( Title Fragment  Page #)

Examples: (“Library Links” 13) or ( Building a Bookshelf  42)

For more information related to MLA in-text citations, see the MLA Handbook , 8th ed. (pages 54-58). This title is on reserve at the circulation desk at the front of the library on the 3rd floor near the main entrance.

APA: Parenthetical In-Text Citations

To cite a source in the text of an essay, APA advocates two methods: in-text citations and attribution within the essay’s content. in-text citations should be included immediately after the quotation marks used in direct quotations or immediately after the use of the source, even if this means including the parenthetical reference in the middle of the sentence.

The following is the general form for parenthetical citations in APA style:

In-text citation: (Author Last Name, Year of Publication) Example: (Smith, 1988)

To make the citation of the source less distracting The APA also suggests mentioning the author in the essay’s content so that only the year of publication and page number may be required in the parenthetical reference.

Attribution in text: Author Last Name (Year of Publication) has argued this point. Example: Smith (1988) has argued this point.

Page numbers are not required in APA in-text citations. However, it is highly suggested that these be included. To include references to a specific part of the text, add the page number or chapter number after the year.

Examples: Smith (1988, p. 244) has written that… or Smith (1988, chap. 5) has written that…

When a work has two authors Both names should be cited every time the reference is required. Use an ampersand (&) to separate the names of authors. If a text has been authored by more than five individuals, the full listing of authors is not required in the first reference or any subsequent in-text references.

The first mention of the reference: Johnson, Smith, and Brown (1999) agree that… Subsequent mention: Johnson et al. (1999) agree that…

If a group or corporation is the author The full name of the group or corporation should be included in place of the author’s name. If an organization has a recognizable abbreviation, this may be used in subsequent references.

The first mention of the reference: (American Medical Association, 2002) Subsequent mention: (AMA, 2002)

If no author is given for a specific text Use the first couple of words of the title in place of the author’s last name. Title fragments should be formatted using the same punctuation as titles on the References page.

Examples of attribution in the text:

The recent publication  Plagiarism and You  (2002) offers some explanation…

In “Five Ways to Protect Yourself” (2000) one can find…

Examples of attribution at the end of the sentence: ( Plagiarism and You , 2002) or (“Five Ways to Protect Yourself,” 2000)

When no date is given for the publication of a text (as is the case with many websites) Include the abbreviation “n.d.” (which stands for “no date”) in place of the year of publication.

Example: In the article “Five Ways to Protect Yourself” (n.d.) one can find…

For more information related to in-text citations (or in-text referencing) using the APA format, see the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7th ed. pages 261-269. A copy of this manual is available on the 3rd floor of the library at the circulation desk.

Chicago: Notes Style

In Chicago’s Documentation Style 1, also known as notes form, the use of research sources is indicated in the text with a numerical subscript that corresponds to an entry at the end of the paper. These are called endnotes. Although footnotes (or notes at the bottom of the page) are sometimes required, endnotes have become the predominant form of notes citations.

When using endnotes to indicate the use of research sources, writers must also include a bibliography at the end of the essay. The note and the bibliographic entry include almost identical information but in a different format.

As the formats for notes are contingent on the format of the source for which the note is written, examples of note formats are included with the bibliographic examples available through the  Citing Sources  link. The B: entry would be included in the Bibliography at the end of the paper, while the N: entry gives examples to be used in footnotes or endnotes.

For further information on note format or other issues related to citing sources using the Chicago style, see  The Chicago Manual of Style , 16th ed.

Chicago: Author/Date Style

Documentation 2, also called the Author-Date style, requires the use of parenthetical references in the text of the essay as well as a list of References.

Parenthetical references should be placed at the end of the sentence, before the period, when a resource has been used. If the sentence is either long enough or complex enough so that the cited portion of the sentence is not obvious, the parenthetical reference may instead be inserted immediately after the use of information from the source. Page numbers should be included whenever possible.

General Form:  (Author Last Name Year of Publication, Page #)

Example:  (Smith 1992, 142)

The following examples illustrate parenthetical reference formats for works with more than one author.

(Smith and Johnson 1998, 14)

(Smith, Johnson, and White 2001, 42)

(Smith et al. 1998, 203)

(National Alliance for Social Consideration 1932, 11)

When organizations or corporate authors are the author of a text, the name of the organization may be shortened to its most basic title. Abbreviations for the organization are not encouraged.

In the Chicago style, daily newspapers are rarely included in a list of References. Instead, attribution may be given to information from a daily newspaper in a parenthetical reference.

General Form:  ( Newspaper Name , Day Month Year of Publication, Section and Page #)

Examples:  ( San Antonio Express-News , 2 June 2005, B2)

( New York Times , 2 June 2005, A2)

( Durant Daily Democrat , 2 June 2005, 3)

The Chicago style guide does not offer examples for creating parenthetical references when there is no given author. Standard practice has been to include the title of the work in place of the author. The title should be formatted in the same manner as the formatting in the References list entry.

( Plagiarism and You  2002, 142)

(“Five Ways to Protect Yourself” 2000, 33)

Electronic sources commonly lack a date of publication, as do other sources. When there is no date of publication listed for a source, include the abbreviation “n.d.” in place of the date.

(Statistics for Water Rights n.d.)

For further information on citing sources using the Chicago style, see The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed.

If the author’s name is mentioned in the text, use a parenthetical reference to show the year of publication at the end of the sentence.

…Welch contends that this is not the case (1991).

If the author’s name is not mentioned in the text, it should be included with the year of publication within parentheses.

…but it has been argued that this was not the case (Welch 1991).

Page numbers should be included within parentheses after the year of publication. These are separated by a colon and no spaces.

…but it has been argued that this was not the case (Welch 1991:136).

The following forms should be used for multiple authors:

A recent study confirmed her belief (Johnson and Smith 1995:34).

This was reinforced by recent research on the topic (Johnson, Smith, and Marcus 1999)

If a text has more than three authors, the term “et al.” with no additional punctuation marks may be used after the first author listed in the publication credits.

This was not accurate according to a recent study (Johnson et al. 2003).

If multiple sources are cited for the same statement, the author and publication year should be distinguished from other texts with a colon. Cited texts should be arranged by author name or by date; arrangement should be consistent throughout the paper.

Some studies have refuted these arguments (Benson 1993; Nguyen 1999; Brown and Goggans 2000).

For additional information on in-text citation using the ASA style, see the  American Sociological Association Style Guide , Third ed., pp. 45-47.

In the Turabian citation style, writers may use one of two forms in citing their resources: endnotes or author/date parenthetical references. Writers using the Turabian style may use the Chicago formats for both endnotes as references and for parenthetical references. Refer to Kate L. Turabian’s  A Manual for Writers , 7th ed., pp. 143-145 (notes style) and pp. 217-220 (author-date style) for more information.

Citation Sources

• MLA Style, 9th ed.
• APA Style, 7th ed.
• Chicago (Notes-Bibliography Style), 17th ed.
• Chicago (Author-Date Style), 17th ed.
•      See also the online version of the  Chicago Manual of Style
• Turabian (Notes-Bibliography Style), 9th ed.
• Turabian (Author-Date Style), 9th ed.
• ASA Style, 6th ed.

Citing Sources in the Text of a Paper

Including a list of Works Cited at the end of an essay is not enough. Learn how to cite the use of a source in the text of your paper.

Using Information from Sources in the Text of a Paper

Review five different methods for including the words of another writer or information from a research resource into the text of your paper.

Citing Creative Commons Materials

Find models and suggestions for citing Creative Commons images, video clips, music, or other materials.

Suggested Readings on Academic Integrity

Find books, articles and websites which deal with academic integrity issues.

Creating an Annotated Bibliography

Learn how to create an annotated bibliography for a class assignment or for your own use as a researcher and writer.

Learn more about Zotero – a citation management tool to help you keep track of and organize various references for papers and projects.

Avoiding Plagiarism

See Trinity University’s definitions of plagiarism and consider how to avoid these situations.

Detecting Plagiarized Material

Information and links for faculty members and others to use in detecting plagiarized materials.

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Want to write a college essay that sets you apart? Three tips to give you a head start

1. Keep it real. It’s normal to want to make a good impression on the school of your choice, but it’s also important to show who you really are. So just be yourself! Compelling stories might not be perfectly linear or have a happy ending, and that’s OK. It’s best to be authentic instead of telling schools what you think they want to hear.

2. Be reflective . Think about how you’ve changed during high school. How have you grown and improved? What makes you feel ready for college, and how do you hope to contribute to the campus community and society at large?

3. Look to the future. Consider your reasons for attending college. What do you hope to gain from your education? What about college excites you the most, and what would you like to do after you graduate? Answering these questions will not only give colleges insight into the kind of student you’ll be, but it will also give you the personal insight you’ll need to choose the school that’s right for you.

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Generate accurate APA citations for free

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• APA Style 7th edition
• APA format for academic papers and essays

APA Formatting and Citation (7th Ed.) | Generator, Template, Examples

Published on November 6, 2020 by Raimo Streefkerk . Revised on January 17, 2024.

The 7th edition of the APA Publication Manual provides guidelines for clear communication , citing sources , and formatting documents. This article focuses on paper formatting.

Generate accurate APA citations with Scribbr

Throughout your paper, you need to apply the following APA format guidelines:

• Set page margins to 1 inch on all sides.
• Double-space all text, including headings.
• Indent the first line of every paragraph 0.5 inches.
• Use an accessible font (e.g., Times New Roman 12pt., Arial 11pt., or Georgia 11pt.).
• Include a page number on every page.

Let an expert format your paper

Our APA formatting experts can help you to format your paper according to APA guidelines. They can help you with:

• Margins, line spacing, and indentation
• Font and headings
• Running head and page numbering

Table of contents

How to set up apa format (with template), apa alphabetization guidelines, apa format template [free download], page header, headings and subheadings, reference page, tables and figures, frequently asked questions about apa format.

Scribbr Citation Checker New

The AI-powered Citation Checker helps you avoid common mistakes such as:

• Missing commas and periods
• Incorrect usage of “et al.”
• Ampersands (&) in narrative citations
• Missing reference entries

References are ordered alphabetically by the first author’s last name. If the author is unknown, order the reference entry by the first meaningful word of the title (ignoring articles: “the”, “a”, or “an”).

Why set up APA format from scratch if you can download Scribbr’s template for free?

Student papers and professional papers have slightly different guidelines regarding the title page, abstract, and running head. Our template is available in Word and Google Docs format for both versions.

• Student paper: Word | Google Docs
• Professional paper: Word | Google Docs

In an APA Style paper, every page has a page header. For student papers, the page header usually consists of just a page number in the page’s top-right corner. For professional papers intended for publication, it also includes a running head .

A running head is simply the paper’s title in all capital letters. It is left-aligned and can be up to 50 characters in length. Longer titles are abbreviated .

APA headings have five possible levels. Heading level 1 is used for main sections such as “ Methods ” or “ Results ”. Heading levels 2 to 5 are used for subheadings. Each heading level is formatted differently.

Want to know how many heading levels you should use, when to use which heading level, and how to set up heading styles in Word or Google Docs? Then check out our in-depth article on APA headings .

The title page is the first page of an APA Style paper. There are different guidelines for student and professional papers.

Both versions include the paper title and author’s name and affiliation. The student version includes the course number and name, instructor name, and due date of the assignment. The professional version includes an author note and running head .

For more information on writing a striking title, crediting multiple authors (with different affiliations), and writing the author note, check out our in-depth article on the APA title page .

The abstract is a 150–250 word summary of your paper. An abstract is usually required in professional papers, but it’s rare to include one in student papers (except for longer texts like theses and dissertations).

The abstract is placed on a separate page after the title page . At the top of the page, write the section label “Abstract” (bold and centered). The contents of the abstract appear directly under the label. Unlike regular paragraphs, the first line is not indented. Abstracts are usually written as a single paragraph without headings or blank lines.

Directly below the abstract, you may list three to five relevant keywords . On a new line, write the label “Keywords:” (italicized and indented), followed by the keywords in lowercase letters, separated by commas.

APA Style does not provide guidelines for formatting the table of contents . It’s also not a required paper element in either professional or student papers. If your instructor wants you to include a table of contents, it’s best to follow the general guidelines.

Place the table of contents on a separate page between the abstract and introduction. Write the section label “Contents” at the top (bold and centered), press “Enter” once, and list the important headings with corresponding page numbers.

The APA reference page is placed after the main body of your paper but before any appendices . Here you list all sources that you’ve cited in your paper (through APA in-text citations ). APA provides guidelines for formatting the references as well as the page itself.

Creating APA Style references

Play around with the Scribbr Citation Example Generator below to learn about the APA reference format of the most common source types or generate APA citations for free with Scribbr’s APA Citation Generator .

Formatting the reference page

Write the section label “References” at the top of a new page (bold and centered). Place the reference entries directly under the label in alphabetical order.

Finally, apply a hanging indent , meaning the first line of each reference is left-aligned, and all subsequent lines are indented 0.5 inches.

Tables and figures are presented in a similar format. They’re preceded by a number and title and followed by explanatory notes (if necessary).

Use bold styling for the word “Table” or “Figure” and the number, and place the title on a separate line directly below it (in italics and title case). Try to keep tables clean; don’t use any vertical lines, use as few horizontal lines as possible, and keep row and column labels concise.

Keep the design of figures as simple as possible. Include labels and a legend if needed, and only use color when necessary (not to make it look more appealing).

Check out our in-depth article about table and figure notes to learn when to use notes and how to format them.

The easiest way to set up APA format in Word is to download Scribbr’s free APA format template for student papers or professional papers.

Alternatively, you can watch Scribbr’s 5-minute step-by-step tutorial or check out our APA format guide with examples.

APA Style papers should be written in a font that is legible and widely accessible. For example:

• Times New Roman (12pt.)
• Arial (11pt.)
• Calibri (11pt.)
• Georgia (11pt.)

The same font and font size is used throughout the document, including the running head , page numbers, headings , and the reference page . Text in footnotes and figure images may be smaller and use single line spacing.

You need an APA in-text citation and reference entry . Each source type has its own format; for example, a webpage citation is different from a book citation .

Use Scribbr’s free APA Citation Generator to generate flawless citations in seconds or take a look at our APA citation examples .

Yes, page numbers are included on all pages, including the title page , table of contents , and reference page . Page numbers should be right-aligned in the page header.

To insert page numbers in Microsoft Word or Google Docs, click ‘Insert’ and then ‘Page number’.

APA format is widely used by professionals, researchers, and students in the social and behavioral sciences, including fields like education, psychology, and business.

Be sure to check the guidelines of your university or the journal you want to be published in to double-check which style you should be using.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Streefkerk, R. (2024, January 17). APA Formatting and Citation (7th Ed.) | Generator, Template, Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved August 18, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/apa-style/format/

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10 Practical Ways to Improve Your Essay Writing Skills

What makes a great essay stand out from an average one? It's all about finding the right mix between what you say and how you say it. Even the best ideas can fall flat if they're not written well. At the same time, good writing can't make up for weak content.

A really good essay needs to do many things at once. It should teach the reader something new and keep them interested. It should also be fun to read. On top of that, it needs to have perfect grammar, sentence structure, and punctuation. If you're having trouble getting the grades you want and don't know why, this article will show you ten ways to improve your essay writing skills. We'll also touch on a tool that can make writing essays easier and more enjoyable.

1. Read Often

To get better at writing essays, it's important to read lots of different types of writing. Try reading different kinds of books and articles to learn new words and ideas. Pay special attention to published essays and academic journals. These can show you how good writers make their points and keep their ideas flowing smoothly.

For example, if you're writing about climate change, don't just read science papers. Read opinion pieces, stories about environmental movements from the past, and even stories that talk about nature and how people affect it. This will help you improve your essays by giving you a bigger picture of the topic.

2. Understand Your Essay Topic

Before you start writing, take time to really understand what your essay is supposed to be about. Read the instructions carefully and gather information. Don't rush this part. Instead, take your time to build a strong base for your arguments. Look at different viewpoints to make sure your main idea is correct and well-thought-out. This step is very important if you want to improve your essay and do high-quality work.

3. Create a Solid Essay Structure

Even the best writers start with an outline. Making a plan is really important for organizing your thoughts and making sure your essay makes sense from start to finish. As you research more, your topic might change in ways you didn't expect. A flexible outline can help you manage these new ideas and fit them into your essay in a way that makes sense.

You could try using the basic five-paragraph essay structure to start:

• Introduction (with your main idea)
• First main point
• Second main point
• Third main point

But don't feel like you have to stick to this exactly. As you improve your essay writing skills, you can try different structures that fit your topic and argument better.

4. Polish Your Writing Fundamentals

Knowing how to correctly use grammar, sentence structure, and punctuation is important for writing a good essay. A few small mistakes might not hurt your grade too much, but lots of mistakes can make your reader think less of your work.

Tools like the Aithor essay writer can improve your essays, but learning these rules yourself will help you use these tools better and improve your essay writing skills in the long run.

5. Write a Compelling Introduction

The introduction sets the mood for your whole essay and is your chance to get the reader interested. A good intro should start with something that grabs attention, like an interesting fact or question that leads into your main idea.

For example, instead of starting with a boring sentence like "This essay will talk about what caused the French Revolution", you could start with something more interesting: "What if a loaf of bread costs as much as you make in a week? For many French people in 1789, this was real life, and it helped start a revolution." This way of starting can really improve your essay's impact from the beginning.

6. Use Active Voice in Your Writing

Most of the time, using active voice makes your writing easier to read and more interesting. It keeps readers engaged and makes your points clearer. Look at these two sentences:

Passive: "The experiment was conducted by the scientist." 

Active: "The scientist conducted the experiment."

The active voice clearly shows who is doing the action, making your writing stronger and easier to understand. But sometimes, passive voice is okay, like in science writing or when we don't know or don't need to say who did the action. As you improve your essays, you'll learn when to use each type of voice to make your writing better.

7. Don't Repeat Things

It's important not to use the same words or ideas over and over in your essay. Try to use different words and sentence types to keep your reader interested and make your writing sound nice.

Instead of always saying "In conclusion" or "Furthermore", try using words like "Moreover", "Additionally", or "Given these facts". Using different words not only makes your essay flow better but also shows you know how to use language well, helping you improve your essay writing skills.

8. Seek Constructive Criticism

One of the best ways to improve your essay is by asking others what they think. Your teacher's comments are very important, but getting feedback before you turn in your final essay is also good. Classmates, tutors, or people at the writing center can give you new ideas about your work.

When you get feedback, try not to feel bad about criticism. Instead, think of it as a chance to make your writing better. Ask specific questions about things you're not sure about, like whether your argument is strong or if your explanations are clear.

9. Use Your Sources Correctly

When you mention information from other places, make sure you're using the right format that your teacher asked for (like APA, MLA, or Chicago). Using sources correctly not only avoids copying others' work without permission but also makes your arguments stronger by showing you've read reliable information. Paying attention to these details is a key part of how to improve your essays.

10. Edit and Refine Your Work

The best way to improve essays is by carefully checking and fixing them. Try to finish your first draft well before it's due so you can let it sit for a while. When you come back to it with fresh eyes, you'll often see ways to make it better that you didn't notice before.

Try reading your essay out loud during this process. This can help you find awkward phrases or parts that repeat too much that you might not notice when reading silently. Tools like the Aithor essay writer can also help you make your essay better.

Key Takeaways to Improve Essays

Improving your essay writing skills takes time and practice. By using these tips, you'll be on your way to writing better, more convincing, and more interesting essays. Remember, the goal isn't to be perfect, but to keep getting better.

If you want more help on how to improve your essay, think about using tools like the Aithor essay writer . It can give you guidance and suggestions as you work on your essays, helping you improve your essay writing skills over time.

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UTA eliminates overnight library hours, citing low use. Many students aren’t happy

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Overnight library hours at UTA’s main library are being eliminated, prompting students to raise concerns about the change. 

University of Texas at Arlington officials announced the reduction of hours at the school’s main Central Library Aug. 5. A day after, UTA student Justin Pacheco started a petition, “ Keep UTA library open 24/7 ,” and by Aug. 8 more than 1,000 people signed. As of Aug. 16, the petition has collected more than 1,500 signatures.

“Nobody expected it,” Pacheco said, talking about the reduction in hours. 

Pacheco, a sophomore at UTA who started the online petition, works to pay his tuition, and the overnight library hours were something he used often. 

“It was cool to see that I’m not the only one who thinks this is a bad idea,” he said. 

For more than the past decade, not counting semesters affected by COVID-19, UTA’s Central Library has been open 24 hours on weekdays. Weekends also moved to a 24-hour schedule in fall 2017. 

The school’s decision  reduces open hours to 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to midnight on the weekends. Other popular study spots on campus — the Commons and the University Center — close every day at 10 p.m.

John Wang, the dean of UTA Libraries, said staff pored over usage data and strategized the best ways to maximize library resources when they made their decision to reduce hours.

“We did not take this lightly. We thoroughly analyzed post-pandemic library entry and usage data from recent years,” said Wang, who came to UTA in 2023. “We also gathered insights from our frontline staff regarding their experiences and observations of overnight user traffic and usage.”

Did you pull all-nighters at the library? Why or why not? Share your story with us here !

The decision will not affect the wages of library staff and students, Wang said. University officials are searching for sites on campus where students can study overnight and exploring the possibility of extending library hours during finals. 

There was a “substantial decrease in usage traffic, from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m,” Wang said. Library usage data from January 2021 to October 2023 shared with the Report supports the claim. 

The month of September, both in 2022 and 2023, had the highest numbers of visitors of any month within the shared data. The hours between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. recorded the lowest numbers of people coming into the library for both months. 

In September 2022, 68 people swiped in at 4 a.m., while at noon, there were 13,759 entries, the highest number of entries that month. The average number of visitors per hour from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. was nearly 35 times less than the average entries per hour at all hours that month. 

The 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. time frame had the lowest library usage in nearly every month between January 2021 and October 2023.

UTA officials did not respond to questions about whether students were consulted prior to the decision. The elimination of overnight hours was news to UTA student body President Deon Rodrigues, who found out about the change through the university’s Aug. 5 announcement. He is working to understand the reasons for reduced hours and is “committed to advocating for the needs of our student community.”

“As a student, I have also spent late nights in the library, along with countless other friends and students. I recognize this is an important issue to many in our UTA community,” Rodrigues said in a statement.

It’s a sentiment echoed by UTA students on the university Reddit page . Many students work during the day, while others have roommates. The library is “too packed during the day,” one wrote. The extended hours is a space “to clear my head and be productive at the same time.” One UTA alum recalled a time in the library, when they were “writing a mortuary analysis and falling in love with archaeology, all at 2 in the morning.” Students want better and more options rather than “taking away the only spot students had to study late,” wrote one Reddit user. 

Their overnight options near campus are slim. There is a McDonald’s on West Abram Street and a Jack in the Box on West Division Street that are open 24 hours.

The reduction of library hours is part of a national trend, according to Leo Lo, the president of the Association of College and Research Libraries.

“It’s become much rarer,” Lo said, speaking about university libraries remaining open at all hours, especially at a commuter campus like UTA, where Lo earned his bachelor’s degree. 

“Library budgets have not increased — or have flatlined through the years — so there are only certain things we can do to make sure that we can still provide the really essential services, like collections, rights and acquisitions, and buying the resources people need,” he said. 

Other university libraries in North Texas are open around the clock. The main libraries at the University of Texas at Dallas and Texas Christian University are open 24 hours Monday through Thursday. The main library at the University of North Texas is open 24 hours throughout the week.

In an FAQ about the new library hours , UTA officials said they made the changes to “optimize resources, enhance research support and ensure cleaner, safer facilities.”

UTA’s library system will soon offer new tools to students and faculty, said Wang. Research Mavs will have librarian-trained researchers assist people in finding resources, and MavMatrix will serve as an online digital platform for students and faculty to publish their work.

But Pacheco, and other students like him, will have to make adjustments. The overnight hours offered him a place where he could spend a concentrated amount of time studying before going to classes or heading to work in the morning. During those late hours — around 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. — he found a community of other students working on the same assignments.

Pacheco doesn’t anticipate the library will revert back to its original overnight schedule. The fall semester starts Aug. 19.

However, given the amount of voices that expressed frustration with the decision, he hopes the university will work with students on a path forward.

“I just hope the officials understand our positions, listen to everybody’s stories and see what changes need to be made,” he said.

Ismael M. Belkoura is a reporting fellow for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at [email protected].

Shomial Ahmad is a higher education reporter for the Fort Worth Report, in partnership with Open Campus . Contact her at [email protected].

At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here .

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by Ismael M. Belkoura and Shomial Ahmad, Fort Worth Report August 18, 2024

This <a target="_blank" href="https://fortworthreport.org/2024/08/18/uta-eliminates-overnight-library-hours-citing-low-use-many-students-arent-happy/">article</a> first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://fortworthreport.org">Fort Worth Report</a> and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.<img src="https://i0.wp.com/fortworthreport.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/cropped-favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1" style="width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;"><img id="republication-tracker-tool-source" src="https://fortworthreport.org/?republication-pixel=true&post=150999" style="width:1px;height:1px;">

Ismael M. Belkoura Business Reporting Fellow

Ismael M. Belkoura is a reporting fellow. Ismael has lived in Lubbock, Seattle and Dallas, but grew up in the northern Dallas suburb of Plano. He is a recent graduate of the University of North Texas,... More by Ismael M. Belkoura

Shomial Ahmad Higher Education Reporter

Shomial Ahmad is the higher education reporter at the Fort Worth Report and works in partnership with Open Campus. She’s reported on higher education issues at the City University of New York, where... More by Shomial Ahmad

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Supreme Court Leaves Biden’s Title IX Rule Fully Blocked in 26 States

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The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday denied a request by the Biden administration to partially curb injunctions that are blocking its new Title IX regulation in 26 states and at least some schools in every other state.

In an unsigned opinion, the court said that the administration had failed to show that the bulk of the new regulation could be separated from three challenged provisions that newly define sex discrimination to cover sexual orientation and gender identity.

“On this limited record and in its emergency applications, the government has not provided this court a sufficient basis to disturb the lower courts’ interim conclusions that the three provisions found likely to be unlawful are intertwined with and affect other provisions of the rule,” the court said in its short opinion in Department of Education v. Louisiana and Cardona v. Tennessee .

All nine members of the court agreed that the states and other challengers of the regulation were at least procedurally entitled to preliminary injunctions blocking the three key provisions, which include a definition of sex discrimination that includes gender identity.

However, four members of the court dissented over blocking the entire rule.

“Those injunctions are overbroad,” Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in the partial dissent, joined by Justices Elena Kagan, Neil M. Gorsuch, and Ketanji Brown Jackson. “By blocking the government from enforcing scores of regulations that [states and others] never challenged and that bear no apparent relationship to [challengers’] alleged injuries, the lower courts went beyond their authority to remedy the discrete harms alleged here.”

New Title IX rules are blocked in 26 states and at individual schools in all others

The Supreme Court mulled the emergency requests for almost four weeks, and well beyond the Aug. 1 effective date of the new regulation interpreting Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which prohibits discrimination based on sex in federally funded educational programs.

The court’s Aug. 16 action still leaves a confusing and disjointed map where the regulation—which for the first time explicitly protects LGBTQ+ students from discrimination—is in effect.

The emergency requests covered injunctions by two courts that completely blocked the new rule from taking effect in 10 states. Other courts have issued similar injunctions blocking the entire rule in an additional 16 states, and the Supreme Court’s decision will presumably keep those other injunctions in place.

One such injunction that wasn’t specifically before the high court, issued by a federal judge in Kansas, blocks the regulation in four states but is also in force at any school across the nation attended by the members of three groups that joined the challenge—Moms for Liberty, Young America’s Foundation, and Female Athletes United. Those lists include schools in all 24 states not covered by a statewide injunction.

That injunction significantly expands the geographic scope of where the new Title IX regulation is blocked. And the list of schools subject to that injunction is growing and includes at least a few schools in every state plus the District of Columbia. The Kansas judge has allowed those groups to recruit new members and add their children’s schools to the list.

There was no immediate reaction from the Biden administration, but U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona on Aug. 1 told stakeholders in a webinar that he “loudly and unapologetically” rejects the “politicization” of the regulation.

U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar in July asked the high court to allow most of the Title IX rule to take effect on Aug. 1, even as the Biden administration went along with pausing some challenged provisions that touch on gender-identity discrimination.

The Education Department regulation clarifies for the first time that Title IX protects students based on sexual orientation and gender identity. It also expands protections for pregnant and postpartum students, offers stronger language about retaliation, and sets out new grievance and due process procedures.

“Most of the rule does not address gender identity,” Prelogar said , citing the other provisions.

The solicitor general told the court the administration was OK, for now, with allowing the injunctions to block two provisions that deal with gender identity while it continues to fight them in appeals courts. One of those deals with restrooms, locker rooms, and other sex-separated spaces in education, making clear that transgender students may use restrooms, for example, that align with their gender identity. The other provision Prelogar was fine with leaving blocked clarifies that “hostile-environment harassment” in schools would cover gender identity.

But Prelogar did seek to halt the injunctions with respect to the broad new definition of sex discrimination to include gender identity.

Supreme Court notes lower courts are moving ahead on merits of Title IX lawsuits

The states and others challenging the new regulation argued that the new definition pervades the entire new regulation and provisions could not be easily separated into what could take effect and what could not.

“The states challenged the whole rule” and “are injured by the whole rule,” the state of Tennessee said in a Supreme Court filing .

On those points, the Supreme Court majority appeared to agree.

“The government [has not] adequately identified which particular provisions, if any, are sufficiently independent of the enjoined definitional provision and thus might be able to remain in effect,” the majority said in its unsigned opinion.

The majority noted that the 6th Circuit has expedited its consideration of the merits arguments in the Tennessee-led case and has scheduled oral arguments for October.

“The court expects that the Courts of Appeals will render their decisions with appropriate dispatch,” the Supreme Court opinion states.

In her nine-page dissent, Sotomayor outlined the significance of some of the provisions the solicitor general sought to make effective now, including the pregnancy and retaliation provisions and language that bars schools from “from making a preemployment inquiry as to an applicant’s marital status and limits the circumstances under which a school may make a preemployment inquiry as to an applicant’s sex.”

“At this juncture,” Sotomayor said, “enjoining the application of any other part of the rule needlessly impairs the government from enforcing Title IX and deprives potential claimants of protections against forms of sex discrimination not at issue in [the challengers’] suit.”

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The Best AI Tools for Students & Researchers in 2024 (Top Recommendations)

There is no doubt that AI tools have not only made writing easier but have also helped many students and researchers improve the quality of their work. However, finding a good tool might be difficult, especially with the recent increase in AI tools online.

In this blog, we have mentioned a few incredible AI writing tools that have proven to be helpful not only with writing and research but also with other factors. These factors include citation generation, grammar checking, image generation, etc.

Let's have a look!

Interesting Topic Selection to Get Started

Choosing a good topic is important for writing engaging academic work. Many students struggle with finding ideas that match their interests or assignment requirements.

AI tools use advanced technology to suggest topics and refine ideas based on what students need. Here are some suggested tools to help you generate ideas:

ChatGPT - Get Ideas for Your Research

ChatGPT uses smart technology to have conversations and suggest interesting topics. It helps students overcome writer's block by offering different perspectives and ideas that fit their assignments.

EssayService.ai - Generate Research Specific Topics

EssayService.ai helps students by generating essay topics based on what students need. It analyzes prompts and suggests topics that are relevant and interesting, helping students start their essays with clarity.

Generate Content to Overcome Writer's Block

It is not uncommon for students to face writer's block from time to time. AI can boost creativity by suggesting new ideas and ways to write. This can make writing more interesting and help explore new ideas.

Take a look at these AI tools that can help students write creatively:

MyEssayWriter.ai - Helps You Write Clear Essays Since 2021

MyEssayWriter.ai assists students in writing essays by generating ideas and improving the clarity of their writing. It helps structure essays so they are easier to read and understand. This essay writer also helps with organizing thoughts and making sure the writing flows well.

CollegeEssay.org's AI Essay Writer - Expert College-Level Essays

CollegeEssay.org's AI Essay Writer specializes in writing college-level essays on various subjects. This essay maker helps students create well-written essays that follow academic guidelines. This tool also ensures sources are cited correctly and helps students develop their ideas effectively.

MyPerfectWord.com's EssayBot - Comprehensive Essay Assistance

MyPerfectWord.com's EssayBot covers a wide range of essay topics and assists with essay structure and originality. This essay writer tool helps students brainstorm ideas, organize their writing logically, and ensure their essays are unique and well-structured. This tool is useful for improving writing skills across different subjects.

MyPerfectPaper.net's AI Essay Writer - Original, Plagiarism-Free Essays

MyPerfectPaper.net's AI Essay Writer generates essays that are original and free from plagiarism. It conducts thorough research and ensures the essays meet academic rigor. This paper writer helps students produce high-quality essays that meet specific academic requirements.

Citation Generation: Keeping Your References in Order

When working on any academic assignment, it is important to cite the information. Using the right citations is important in academic writing to give credit to sources and avoid plagiarism.

However, with so many rules to follow, citing accurately might be a problem.

AI citation tools make this easier by automatically formatting references in different styles, saving time and ensuring accuracy.

Here are some of the suggested tools that might be helpful:

MyBib - Generate Citations Fast

MyBib is easy to use to generate citations in APA, MLA, Chicago, and other formats. Students can input details about their sources, and MyBib formats the citations correctly for their research papers.

PerfectEssayWriter.ai - Get Accurate Citations in 20+ Styles

PerfectEssayWriter.ai handles citations in over 20 styles, including APA and MLA. It helps students accurately cite sources from books, journals, and websites. This tool makes citing sources easier, so students can focus more on their writing and ensure their papers meet academic standards.

Writing and Editing Tools: Enhancing Clarity and Coherence

Clear and well-structured writing is important in academic work. Many students face challenges with grammar, style, and making their writing flow smoothly.

AI writing tools provide helpful support by checking grammar, suggesting improvements, and even rewriting sentences to make them clearer. Take a look at these tools to help you:

Grammarly - Improve the Content

Grammarly is a popular tool for checking grammar and improving writing style. It helps students correct mistakes in punctuation, spelling, and word choice, making their writing more polished and professional.

PerfectEssayWriter.ai - Enhancing Clarity and Quality

PerfectEssayWriter.ai offers advanced grammar checking and rewriting suggestions. It helps students improve sentence structure and clarity in their essays and research papers, ensuring their writing meets high academic standards. Moreover, its style and tone suggestion can also help students understand whether the tone is suitable or not.

Image Generation: Enhance Visuals & Presentations

Visuals play a key role in presenting complex ideas in academic work. AI tools for image generation empower students to create compelling visuals without needing design skills, enhancing the impact of their presentations.

Here are some of the best tools for image generation:

Leonardo - High Quality Images

Leonardo uses AI to create high-quality images from descriptions. It's useful for illustrating concepts and data trends in academic presentations, making ideas clearer and more engaging.

Canva - Let Your Creativity Flow

Canva is an easy-to-use tool with AI-powered design features. It offers templates for creating presentations, infographics, and posters, helping students create professional-looking visuals that enhance their academic projects.

Free to Use AI Tool for Students

The tools mentioned above all offer something great. However, they might not be a good fit for students on a budget. Though their prices are low, they still might not be feasible for students. Here is a free AI tool that can help with all of the functions mentioned above and perhaps more:

5StarEssays.com - AI Essay Writer - Budget-Friendly Option

5StarEssays.com - AI Essay Writer tool is free to use and helps with writing well-written drafts. This free AI essay writer is good for students who need help with their work but don't want to pay money. This tool helps students improve their writing and do well in school without needing to worry about money.

To Wrap it Up!

AI tools are changing how essays are written by making them faster, more creative, and better for students' needs. AI makes writing easier and helps students learn more about different things.

Using these AI tools can greatly improve productivity, research quality, and the overall presentation of academic work. Whether you're a student working on assignments or a researcher advancing in your field, these tools help with various tasks and ensure your work meets high academic standards.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best ai text writer.

PerfectEssayWriter.ai is considered one of the best AI text writers. It creates customized drafts, generates citations, and checks grammar, ensuring your writing is clear and accurate. It's especially useful for students and professionals who need to produce high-quality drafts quickly and efficiently.

Which AI tool is the most advanced for writers?

MyEssayWriter.ai is one of the most advanced AI tools for writers. It offers a range of features such as idea generation, paraphrasing, summarizing, and the Humanizer tool, which makes writing sound more natural and human-like. This tool is ideal for those looking to enhance their writing quality and creativity.

Can AI writing tools help with all types of writing?

Yes, AI writing tools can help with many types of writing, including essays, research papers, creative writing, and more. Different tools have different strengths, so it's good to choose one that fits your needs.

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How to cite ChatGPT

Use discount code STYLEBLOG15 for 15% off APA Style print products with free shipping in the United States.

We, the APA Style team, are not robots. We can all pass a CAPTCHA test , and we know our roles in a Turing test . And, like so many nonrobot human beings this year, we’ve spent a fair amount of time reading, learning, and thinking about issues related to large language models, artificial intelligence (AI), AI-generated text, and specifically ChatGPT . We’ve also been gathering opinions and feedback about the use and citation of ChatGPT. Thank you to everyone who has contributed and shared ideas, opinions, research, and feedback.

In this post, I discuss situations where students and researchers use ChatGPT to create text and to facilitate their research, not to write the full text of their paper or manuscript. We know instructors have differing opinions about how or even whether students should use ChatGPT, and we’ll be continuing to collect feedback about instructor and student questions. As always, defer to instructor guidelines when writing student papers. For more about guidelines and policies about student and author use of ChatGPT, see the last section of this post.

Quoting or reproducing the text created by ChatGPT in your paper

If you’ve used ChatGPT or other AI tools in your research, describe how you used the tool in your Method section or in a comparable section of your paper. For literature reviews or other types of essays or response or reaction papers, you might describe how you used the tool in your introduction. In your text, provide the prompt you used and then any portion of the relevant text that was generated in response.

Unfortunately, the results of a ChatGPT “chat” are not retrievable by other readers, and although nonretrievable data or quotations in APA Style papers are usually cited as personal communications , with ChatGPT-generated text there is no person communicating. Quoting ChatGPT’s text from a chat session is therefore more like sharing an algorithm’s output; thus, credit the author of the algorithm with a reference list entry and the corresponding in-text citation.

When prompted with “Is the left brain right brain divide real or a metaphor?” the ChatGPT-generated text indicated that although the two brain hemispheres are somewhat specialized, “the notation that people can be characterized as ‘left-brained’ or ‘right-brained’ is considered to be an oversimplification and a popular myth” (OpenAI, 2023).

OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat

You may also put the full text of long responses from ChatGPT in an appendix of your paper or in online supplemental materials, so readers have access to the exact text that was generated. It is particularly important to document the exact text created because ChatGPT will generate a unique response in each chat session, even if given the same prompt. If you create appendices or supplemental materials, remember that each should be called out at least once in the body of your APA Style paper.

When given a follow-up prompt of “What is a more accurate representation?” the ChatGPT-generated text indicated that “different brain regions work together to support various cognitive processes” and “the functional specialization of different regions can change in response to experience and environmental factors” (OpenAI, 2023; see Appendix A for the full transcript).

Creating a reference to ChatGPT or other AI models and software

The in-text citations and references above are adapted from the reference template for software in Section 10.10 of the Publication Manual (American Psychological Association, 2020, Chapter 10). Although here we focus on ChatGPT, because these guidelines are based on the software template, they can be adapted to note the use of other large language models (e.g., Bard), algorithms, and similar software.

The reference and in-text citations for ChatGPT are formatted as follows:

• Parenthetical citation: (OpenAI, 2023)
• Narrative citation: OpenAI (2023)

Let’s break that reference down and look at the four elements (author, date, title, and source):

Author: The author of the model is OpenAI.

Date: The date is the year of the version you used. Following the template in Section 10.10, you need to include only the year, not the exact date. The version number provides the specific date information a reader might need.

Title: The name of the model is “ChatGPT,” so that serves as the title and is italicized in your reference, as shown in the template. Although OpenAI labels unique iterations (i.e., ChatGPT-3, ChatGPT-4), they are using “ChatGPT” as the general name of the model, with updates identified with version numbers.

The version number is included after the title in parentheses. The format for the version number in ChatGPT references includes the date because that is how OpenAI is labeling the versions. Different large language models or software might use different version numbering; use the version number in the format the author or publisher provides, which may be a numbering system (e.g., Version 2.0) or other methods.

Bracketed text is used in references for additional descriptions when they are needed to help a reader understand what’s being cited. References for a number of common sources, such as journal articles and books, do not include bracketed descriptions, but things outside of the typical peer-reviewed system often do. In the case of a reference for ChatGPT, provide the descriptor “Large language model” in square brackets. OpenAI describes ChatGPT-4 as a “large multimodal model,” so that description may be provided instead if you are using ChatGPT-4. Later versions and software or models from other companies may need different descriptions, based on how the publishers describe the model. The goal of the bracketed text is to briefly describe the kind of model to your reader.

Source: When the publisher name and the author name are the same, do not repeat the publisher name in the source element of the reference, and move directly to the URL. This is the case for ChatGPT. The URL for ChatGPT is https://chat.openai.com/chat . For other models or products for which you may create a reference, use the URL that links as directly as possible to the source (i.e., the page where you can access the model, not the publisher’s homepage).

Other questions about citing ChatGPT

You may have noticed the confidence with which ChatGPT described the ideas of brain lateralization and how the brain operates, without citing any sources. I asked for a list of sources to support those claims and ChatGPT provided five references—four of which I was able to find online. The fifth does not seem to be a real article; the digital object identifier given for that reference belongs to a different article, and I was not able to find any article with the authors, date, title, and source details that ChatGPT provided. Authors using ChatGPT or similar AI tools for research should consider making this scrutiny of the primary sources a standard process. If the sources are real, accurate, and relevant, it may be better to read those original sources to learn from that research and paraphrase or quote from those articles, as applicable, than to use the model’s interpretation of them.

We’ve also received a number of other questions about ChatGPT. Should students be allowed to use it? What guidelines should instructors create for students using AI? Does using AI-generated text constitute plagiarism? Should authors who use ChatGPT credit ChatGPT or OpenAI in their byline? What are the copyright implications ?

On these questions, researchers, editors, instructors, and others are actively debating and creating parameters and guidelines. Many of you have sent us feedback, and we encourage you to continue to do so in the comments below. We will also study the policies and procedures being established by instructors, publishers, and academic institutions, with a goal of creating guidelines that reflect the many real-world applications of AI-generated text.

For questions about manuscript byline credit, plagiarism, and related ChatGPT and AI topics, the APA Style team is seeking the recommendations of APA Journals editors. APA Style guidelines based on those recommendations will be posted on this blog and on the APA Style site later this year.

Update: APA Journals has published policies on the use of generative AI in scholarly materials .

We, the APA Style team humans, appreciate your patience as we navigate these unique challenges and new ways of thinking about how authors, researchers, and students learn, write, and work with new technologies.

American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000

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Democracy challenged

‘A Crisis Coming’: The Twin Threats to American Democracy

Credit... Photo illustration by Matt Chase

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By David Leonhardt

David Leonhardt is a senior writer at The Times who won the Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the Great Recession.

• Published Sept. 17, 2022 Updated June 21, 2023

Listen to This Article

The United States has experienced deep political turmoil several times before over the past century. The Great Depression caused Americans to doubt the country’s economic system. World War II and the Cold War presented threats from global totalitarian movements. The 1960s and ’70s were marred by assassinations, riots, a losing war and a disgraced president.

These earlier periods were each more alarming in some ways than anything that has happened in the United States recently. Yet during each of those previous times of tumult, the basic dynamics of American democracy held firm. Candidates who won the most votes were able to take power and attempt to address the country’s problems.

The current period is different. As a result, the United States today finds itself in a situation with little historical precedent. American democracy is facing two distinct threats, which together represent the most serious challenge to the country’s governing ideals in decades.

The first threat is acute: a growing movement inside one of the country’s two major parties — the Republican Party — to refuse to accept defeat in an election.

The violent Jan. 6, 2021, attack on Congress , meant to prevent the certification of President Biden’s election, was the clearest manifestation of this movement, but it has continued since then. Hundreds of elected Republican officials around the country falsely claim that the 2020 election was rigged. Some of them are running for statewide offices that would oversee future elections, potentially putting them in position to overturn an election in 2024 or beyond.

“There is the possibility, for the first time in American history, that a legitimately elected president will not be able to take office,” said Yascha Mounk, a political scientist at Johns Hopkins University who studies democracy.

Vote Margins by State in Presidential Elections since 1988

Senate representation by state.

Residents of less populated states like Wyoming and North Dakota, who are disproportionately white, have outsize influence.

1 voter in Wyoming

has similar representation as

1 voter in North Dakota

6 voters in Connecticut

7 voters in Alabama

18 voters in Michigan

59 voters in California

has similar

representation as

Landslides in 2020 House Elections

There were about twice as many districts where a Democratic House candidate won by at least 50 percentage points as there were districts where a Republican candidate won by as much.

Landslide (one candidate won

by at least 50 percentage points)

Barbara Lee

Calif. District 13

Jerry Nadler

N.Y. District 10

Diana DeGette

Colo. District 1

Donald Payne Jr.

N.J. District 10

Jesús García

Ill. District 4

Landslide (one candidate won by at least 50 percentage points)

Presidential Appointments of Supreme Court Justices

Supreme Court appointments

Presidential election winners

Popular vote

Electoral College

Party that nominated a justice

David H. Souter (until 2009)

Clarence Thomas

Ruth Bader Ginsburg (until 2020)

Stephen G. Breyer (until 2022)

John G. Roberts Jr.

Samuel A. Alito Jr.

Sonia Sotomayor

Elena Kagan

Neil M. Gorsuch

Brett M. Kavanaugh

Amy Coney Barrett

Ketanji Brown Jackson

Supreme Court

Presidential election

nominated a justice

Souter (until 2009)

Ginsburg (until 2020)

Breyer (until 2022)

State Legislators and Election Lies

The share of Republican state legislators who have taken steps, as of May 2022, to discredit or overturn the 2020 presidential election results

Pennsylvania

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