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APA Style Guide: 6th Edition

How to Incorporate Page and Paragraph Number or Heading

 

When directly quoting information from a resource, you must include a page number, paragraph number, or heading in your in-text citation. If you are paraphrasing from a large document or book, it is recommended that you include a page number, paragraph number, or heading. When referring to a resource broadly, you are not required to include page/paragraph numbers or headings.

Select a tab below or visit "When and How to Include Page Numbers in APA Style Citations", courtesy of the APA Style Blog, for more information.

  • Page numbers must be placed within parentheses at the end of a quoted statement
  • Use p. when referring to a single page
  • Use pp. when referring to multiple consecutive pages
  • Use pp. and a comma between page numbers when referring to multiple non-consecutive pages

For example:

(Smith, 2018, p. 20)

OR

In his latest work, Smith (2018) suggests that children do not respond to time-out methods of discipline (pp.10,12). 

 

  • When a resource does not have page numbers, use paragraph numbers or heading titles instead
  • Use para. when referring to a paragraph
  • Use quotation marks around a heading title when referring to a section with a heading

For example:

(Smith, 2018, para. 3)

OR

In his latest work, Smith (2018) revealed that "over the past 10 years, children have stopped responding to traditional methods of discipline" ("Conclusion").

 

  • If you are making a broad reference to an entire work, while not directly quoting or paraphrasing specific material from the work, include only the author and year in your in-text citation
  • When you are paraphrasing from a short article or document, it is not necessary to include page, paragraph, or heading information