When citing sources with multiple authors in APA style, the format varies depending on the number of authors and the context in which the citation is used. Here’s a breakdown of how to handle in-text citations for sources with multiple authors:
1. Two Authors
For sources with two authors, cite both authors’ last names in the text, separated by an ampersand (&) when in parentheses, and use “and” when in the sentence.
- In-text citation (parenthetical): (Smith & Johnson, 2020)
- In-text citation (narrative): Smith and Johnson (2020)
2. Three or More Authors
For sources with three or more authors, list all authors’ last names in the first citation, either in the text or in the parentheses, separated by commas and then an ampersand before the last author. For subsequent citations, use the first author’s last name followed by “et al.”
- First in-text citation (parenthetical): (Smith, Johnson, Williams, & Brown, 2020)
- First in-text citation (narrative): Smith, Johnson, Williams, and Brown (2020)
- Subsequent in-text citations: (Smith et al., 2020) or Smith et al. (2020)
3. Six or More Authors
For sources with six or more authors, cite the first author’s last name followed by “et al.” in all citations.
- In-text citation (parenthetical): (Smith et al., 2020)
- In-text citation (narrative): Smith et al. (2020)
4. Group Authors
For sources where the author is a group (e.g., organizations, companies), the name of the group can be used as the author.
- In-text citation (parenthetical): (American Psychological Association, 2020)
- In-text citation (narrative): American Psychological Association (2020)
If the group author is also the publisher, to avoid repetition, use the abbreviation in the parenthetical citation but spell out the name in the narrative.
- In-text citation (parenthetical): (APA, 2020)
- In-text citation (narrative): American Psychological Association (APA, 2020)
5. No Authors
When a source does not have an author, use the title in the signal phrase or in parentheses. Titles of sources should be in title case within the text and in the reference list.
- In-text citation (parenthetical): (“Article Title,” 2020)
- In-text citation (narrative): “Article Title” (2020)
6. Multiple Sources in One Citation
When citing multiple sources in a single parenthetical citation, list them in alphabetical order by the first author’s last name, separated by semicolons.
- In-text citation (parenthetical): (Johnson, 2020; Smith, 2019; Williams, 2018)
Example Paragraph
For example, research has shown that environmental factors can significantly influence psychological well-being (Smith & Johnson, 2020). Furthermore, studies with larger teams have found that both individual and collective factors play a role (Smith et al., 2020). The American Psychological Association (2020) has guidelines for psychologists to consider when evaluating such influences. However, when sources lack specific authors, titles become the primary reference point (“Psychological Effects,” 2019).
This guide provides a comprehensive overview of handling multiple authors in APA style in-text citations, ensuring clarity and consistency in academic writing.
