How to Format References in APA, MLA, and Chicago Styles

🧾 OVERVIEW: WHY REFERENCE FORMATTING MATTERS

Referencing styles are standardized systems used to:

Credit original authors,
Allow readers to locate sources,
Maintain academic integrity.

Each style (APA, MLA, Chicago) differs in structure, punctuation, and order of information.

📘 1. APA (American Psychological Association) STYLE — 7th Edition

✅ Commonly used in:

Social Sciences
Education
Psychology
Business Studies

🔹 General Rules (APA 7th Edition)

Author’s surname comes first, followed by initials.
Year of publication in parentheses ( ).
Only the first word of the title and subtitle is capitalized (sentence case).
The title of journals/books is in italics.
DOI (Digital Object Identifier) or URL should be included if available.

🧠 APA Reference List Format

Book:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the book: Subtitle (if any). Publisher.

Example:

Adebayo, O. T. (2021). Cybersecurity in Nigerian banking sector: Challenges and prospects. University of Lagos Press.

Journal Article:

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of the article. Title of the Journal, volume number(issue number), page range. https://doi.org/xxxxx

Example:

Musa, H. A., & Johnson, K. O. (2023). The role of ICT in financial inclusion. African Journal of Finance and Management, 15(2), 44–59. https://doi.org/10.1234/ajfm.2023.0021

Website:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of the webpage. Website Name. URL

Example:

National Bureau of Statistics. (2024, March 10). Nigeria’s economic outlook for 2024. National Bureau of Statistics. https://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng/outlook2024

In-text Citation (APA):

(Author, Year) → (Adebayo, 2021)
If quoting directly, include page number → (Musa & Johnson, 2023, p. 47)

📗 2. MLA (Modern Language Association) STYLE — 9th Edition

✅ Commonly used in:

Arts and Humanities
Literature
Languages
Cultural Studies

🔹 General Rules (MLA 9th Edition)

Author’s full name as written in the source.
Titles are in title case (capitalize major words).
Italicize books and journals; put articles and web pages in quotation marks.
Date written in full (e.g., 10 Mar. 2024).
“Works Cited” page instead of “References.”

🧠 MLA Works Cited Format

Book:

Author Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Year.

Example:

Adebayo, Oluwaseun T. Cybersecurity in Nigerian Banking Sector: Challenges and Prospects. University of Lagos Press, 2021.

Journal Article:

Author Last Name, First Name, and Second Author First Name Last Name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal, vol. number, no. number, Year, pp. page range.

Example:

Musa, Hassan A., and Kemi O. Johnson. “The Role of ICT in Financial Inclusion.” African Journal of Finance and Management, vol. 15, no. 2, 2023, pp. 44–59.

Website:

Author Last Name, First Name. “Title of Web Page.” Website Name, Day Month Year, URL.

Example:

National Bureau of Statistics. “Nigeria’s Economic Outlook for 2024.” National Bureau of Statistics, 10 Mar. 2024, https://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng/outlook2024.

In-text Citation (MLA):

(Author Page) → (Adebayo 45)
Two authors → (Musa and Johnson 47)

📙 3. CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE — 17th Edition

✅ Commonly used in:

History
Law
Theology
Social Sciences (sometimes)

Chicago style has two systems:

Notes and Bibliography (NB) – uses footnotes or endnotes.
Author-Date – similar to APA.

Let’s focus on Notes and Bibliography (most common).

🔹 General Rules (Chicago 17th Edition)

Use footnotes or endnotes for citations in text.
Bibliography at the end lists all sources alphabetically.
Titles of books/journals are italicized.
Publication details (city, publisher, year) included.

🧠 Chicago Style Examples

Book (Bibliography):

Adebayo, Oluwaseun T. Cybersecurity in Nigerian Banking Sector: Challenges and Prospects. Lagos: University of Lagos Press, 2021.

Footnote:

Oluwaseun T. Adebayo, Cybersecurity in Nigerian Banking Sector: Challenges and Prospects (Lagos: University of Lagos Press, 2021), 45.

Journal Article (Bibliography):

Musa, Hassan A., and Kemi O. Johnson. “The Role of ICT in Financial Inclusion.” African Journal of Finance and Management 15, no. 2 (2023): 44–59.

Footnote:

2. Hassan A. Musa and Kemi O. Johnson, “The Role of ICT in Financial Inclusion,” African Journal of Finance and Management 15, no. 2 (2023): 47.

Website (Bibliography):

National Bureau of Statistics. “Nigeria’s Economic Outlook for 2024.” National Bureau of Statistics. March 10, 2024. https://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng/outlook2024.

Footnote:

3. National Bureau of Statistics, “Nigeria’s Economic Outlook for 2024,” National Bureau of Statistics, March 10, 2024, https://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng/outlook2024.

In-text Citation (Chicago Author-Date):

(Adebayo 2021, 45)
(Musa and Johnson 2023, 47)

🧾 COMPARISON TABLE — APA vs MLA vs Chicago

Feature	APA (7th Ed.)	MLA (9th Ed.)	Chicago (17th Ed.)
Used in	Social sciences	Arts & Humanities	History, Law
Title of List	References	Works Cited	Bibliography
Author Format	Surname, Initials	Full Name	Full Name
Year Placement	After author	At end	At end
Capitalization	Sentence case	Title case	Title case
In-text citation	(Author, Year)	(Author Page)	Footnotes or (Author Year, Page)
Example Book	Adebayo, O. T. (2021). Cybersecurity…	Adebayo, Oluwaseun T. Cybersecurity…	Adebayo, Oluwaseun T. Cybersecurity…
Website Example	(Author, Year, URL)	“Title,” Website, Date, URL	“Title.” Website, Date, URL

💡 PRACTICAL TIPS FOR ALL STYLES

✅ Be consistent — don’t mix citation styles.
✅ Use hanging indent for all references (second line indented).
✅ Alphabetize entries by author surname.
✅ Italicize book and journal titles.
✅ Use reliable tools like:

Zotero
Mendeley
Grammarly Citation Generator
Google Scholar “Cite” feature

🧾 SAMPLE REFERENCE LIST (APA Example)

References

Adebayo, O. T. (2021). Cybersecurity in Nigerian banking sector: Challenges and prospects. University of Lagos Press.
Musa, H. A., & Johnson, K. O. (2023). The role of ICT in financial inclusion. African Journal of Finance and Management, 15(2), 44–59. https://doi.org/10.1234/ajfm.2023.0021
National Bureau of Statistics. (2024, March 10). Nigeria’s economic outlook for 2024. National Bureau of Statistics. https://www.nigerianstat.gov.ng/outlook2024

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Saturday, 25 October 2025