Insert parenthesis with citation information after the end quotation in a sentence. In APA style, it is customary to place citations directly after the quoted information. For example, "My life is interesting only if it is related to psychoanalysis." (Freud, 1884) The parentheses enclose author name and the date of the publication from which the quote has been taken.
Begin short quotes with a short introduction, the author's name and the date of publication. End the quote with the page number from which the quote was taken. For example, "According to Freud (1884) the human psyche goes through several crucial stages of development during the first four years of life (p. 197)." In this example, the introduction of the author is followed by year of publication, the quote as stated by the original author, and the page from the publication. Always remember to enclose the page number within the quoted sentence.
Place quotations longer than 40 words in their own block of text. The block of text should be free-standing and placed on a new line indented 1/2 inch from the left margin. Remove quotation marks and double-space throughout the block of text. Place the parenthetical citation after the closing punctuation mark.
When citing only a specific part of a text, you may include the paragraph information within the in-text citation as in this example, (Freud, 1884 para. 3). Citing a specific part of the text may be helpful if you want to direct a reader to a part of the text that is obscure or difficult to find for those unfamiliar with the publication.
Create a works cited list with all citations in APA format. Consult the publication manual on how to format the list correctly because formatting differs depending on the source of the citations. You may also wish to consult the style guide to electronic references for proper formatting of electronic sources in the works cited list.