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How to Cite Material With No Authors

Online documents and electronic resources often do not list their authors. Making citations for such documents in a research paper requires citing the material without using the author's name. Oftentimes, dates are also absent. Citation styles take this into account and have researchers cite the materials using the title of the document and the corresponding reference pages or website links only, leaving out references to a date and author. This format eases the researcher's task of trying to track down more information about the creator and publication date.

Instructions

- 1
  Cite the material in MLA style. Begin the citation with the title of the work. If a date is present, include a date. For example: "Taken by Surprise." Yahoo. Web. 15 Dec. 2010." If the date is not present, cite "(N.d.)." in place of the date.
- 2
  List your source in Chicago style. Start the citation with the title of the document, leaving off the author name and following the rest of the reference in traditional Chicago style. If the document is online, cite the date you found the document. For example Guinea pigs. Retrieved April 17, 2011, from http://www.guineapigssite.com/guineapigs.
- 3
  Reference the citation in APA style. Place the title of the work at the beginning of the citation, where the author name would usually be placed. Follow the rest of the citation in standard APA style. For example: Taking on giants. (2010). Encyclopedia of Everyday Heroes, 27-39.

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