If you just put one in-text cite at the end of the paragraph, it might not be clear where the ideas at the beginning of the paragraph came from. Therefore, you should include credit to the authors whenever you are quoting, summarizing or paraphrasing facts and ideas from their work.
Simply including one citation at the end of a paragraph is NOT APA compliant. The reader cannot know with one citation which ideas are yours and which are from the article.
APA in-text citation style uses the author's last name and the year of publication, for example: (Field, 2005). For direct quotations, include the page number as well, for example: (Field, 2005, p. 14).
If multiple sentences reference the same work and the same central idea, you can use one parenthetical citation for that entire block of writing, instead of including one after each sentence.
How many in-text citations should I have? A good rule to follow, is to have about two sources per paragraph. This means that each source will be cited more than once throughout your paper.
In paragraphs that contain one overall instance of paraphrased information, “cite the source in the first sentence in which it is relevant and do not repeat the citation in subsequent sentences as long as the source remains clear and unchanged” (American Psychological Association, 2020, p. 254).
The number of sources you cite in your paper depends on the purpose of your work. For most papers, cite one or two of the most representative sources for each key point. Literature review papers, however, typically include a more exhaustive list of references.
Important to remember: You DO NOT need to add an in-text citation after EVERY sentence of your paragraph.
When citing the work of the same author multiple times in one paragraph, you do not need to reference the author at the end of each sentence. That would look clunky and make your writing stilted. Instead, introduce the author with a full in-text citation at the beginning of the paragraph and then, again, at the end.
Order the citations of two or more works by different authors within the same parentheses alphabetically in the same order in which they appear in the reference list (including citations that would otherwise shorten to et al.). Separate the citations with semicolons.
In-text citations include the last name of the author followed by a page number enclosed in parentheses. "Here's a direct quote" (Smith 8). If the author's name is not given, then use the first word or words of the title. Follow the same formatting that was used in the works cited list, such as quotation marks.
You need to provide a citation whenever you refer to an idea that you derived from a source. This is the case whether you use a direct quote, a paraphrase, or even just a direct or indirect mention.
When your parenthetical citation includes two or more works, order them the same way they appear in the reference list (viz., alphabetically), separated by a semi-colon. If you cite multiple works by the same author in the same parenthetical citation, give the author's name only once and follow with dates.
When incorporating in-text citations into a document, it is common to reference the same source multiple times in a single paragraph. Use the following tips to reference the source, avoid plagiarism, and improve the quality of your writing.
Generally, there is no limit on the number of times you can cite the same author in an assignment. The assignment brief or task sheet usually outlines what is required and often indicates a minimum number and the types of scholarly resources (journal articles, books, etc.) you need to reference.
Copying verbatim a paragraph or more of research is considered plagiarism. When more than two words in a row are used from the source that is considered plagiarism.
Repeating a citation
Include the author(s) and year for every parenthetical in-text citation. Do not repeat the year for narrative in-text citations the second and subsequent times they appear in a single paragraph.
The MLA Style Center
If you continue to cite the same source in subsequent paragraphs and no other source intervenes, you do not need to identify the source again unless ambiguity would result.
If you wish to refer to more than one source which has the same viewpoint, list them together at the relevant point in the sentence, putting them in brackets with the author's name, followed by the date of publication and separated by a semi-colon. The sources should be cited in alphabetical order in each list.
Long Paraphrases & Paragraphs
When paraphrasing or summarising using one source over several sentences or even a whole paragraph, cite the source in the first sentence. There is no need to cite the work again in this paragraph provided it is clear that this is the only source being paraphrased.
Paraphrasing Example
When you write information from a source in your own words, cite the source by adding an in-text citation at the end of the paraphrased portion as follows: Mother-infant attachment became a leading topic of developmental research following the publication of John Bowlby's studies (Hunt, 1993).
My "rule of thumb" has always been to use a maximum of three references to support a particular statement. The role of a literature review is to provide a targeted review of the literature. In my view, there are several reasons why it is wise not to use too many references: It really disturbs the flow of the paper.
Citations remain an important – if controversial – metric for academics, and no matter who you ask, more is always better. A major argument against using citations as a measure of a researcher's impact, expertise or value is that it's not an exact science.
Include the author, year of publication, and page number for the reference. If the author and date are introduced in the sentence as a narrative citation, then add the page number in parentheses at the end of the quote. For example, Smith (2019) demonstrated how to "..." (p. 112).