The World Wide Web (WWW) is a way to find multimedia information on computers called servers, on the Internet. Files found on the WWW should be acknowledged and cited like any other information. Sometimes information is available in paper (eg. magazine article) and also on the WWW. Always cite the version you used as there is no guarantee that they are exactly the same.

Included here are  APA citation exemplars for the files found on the WWW. As electronic publishing is quickly growing and changing, the recommendations on citation format are also developing. These examples are based on the original APA format guides and articles published on this topic. The basic forms mirror the analogous print resources (articles, books) but should include the publication medium (WWW address), the date you found it.

One important difference in citing WWW sources is that page numbers are not used in the body of a paper.  Electronic articles are one file and therefore one page.  Links to additional files are also each just one page.  If the article is also in print form and a starting page number  or inclusive page numbersis are used in a periodical index or on a webpage, that page number(s) is part of the citation on your literature cited page but not used in the body of your paper.

Electronically stored information is mutable. It is also ephemeral and may be here today and gone tomorrow, or it may move to another server at a new location. Take care to get the complete information needed for your citation. It may be several different files such as the journal title page and the article itself which may have several files.

The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (4th ed.) shows paragraph style indentations for citations in reference lists for articles submitted to APA journals.  This was done to accommodate word processors. Publishers of journals change the style back to hanging indentations and the reference list in the Publication Manual uses hanging indentations for reader comfort.  This can be confusing. 

As student papers are not being prepared for publication, the Manual states that instructor preference always takes precedence over the Manual and that instructions to use the Publication Manual should always be accompanied by specific teacher instructions.   The following are preferences provided by faculty. Some Psychology Department faculty prefer the "hanging indent" and others the "paragraph."  The Education Department prefers that each citation be single spaced with no indentation and a double space between citations.  The Nursing Department is phasing in the style found in Amato, C.J. (1998.) The World's easiest guide to using the APA (2nd ed). Westminster, CA: Stargazer Publishing Co.

The first example below is shown three ways. Use the style preferred by your instructor.  

Individual Electronic Work without author
Title of ElectronicWork.  Date of access. < www address.>
Example - paragraph indent:
    Latin Phrases and Words Used in English. Retrieved December 10, 1999 from the World Wide Web: http://depthome.brooklyn.cuny.edu/classics/englatin.htm

Example - hanging indent:
Latin Phrases and Words Used in English. Retrieved December 10, 1999 from the World Wide Web:
     http://depthome.brooklyn.cuny.edu/classics/englatin.htm

Example - no indent:
Latin Phrases and Words Used in English. Retrieved December 10, 1999 from the World Wide Web:    http://depthome.brooklyn.cuny.edu/classics/englatin.htm

Individual Electronic Work with author
Author. Title of ElectronicWork.  Date of access. < www address.>. 
Example:
Beard, Robert. A Web on On-line Dictionaries. Retrieved December 10, 1999 from the World Wide Web:
         http://www.facstaff.bucknell.edu/rbeard/diction.html

Part of a Work
Author. (Date). Title of part. In Source. Retrieved date from the World Wide Web: www address
Example:
Definition of mutable. In Hypertext Webster Interface Retrieved January 16, 1996
        from the World Wide Web: http://c.gp.cs. cmu.edu: 5103/prog/webster?mutable

Journal Article
Author. (Year). Title. Journal title. volume (issue), paging. Retrieved date from the World Wide Web: www address  
Example:
Steele, K.M., Bass, K.E. & Crook, M.D. (1999). The mystery of the Mozart effect:
        failure to replicat. Psychological Science, 10 (4), 366(4). Retrieved September
        8, 1999 from the World Wide Web: web7.infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark

Magazine Article
Author. (Year, month, day). Title. Magazine Title, volume, paging. Retrieved date from the World Wide Web: www address
Example:
Grochow, J. M. (1999, August). Productivity and the IT personnel shortage. PC Week.
        23: 75. Retrieved September 8, 1999 from the World Wide Web:
        http://web6.infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/  

Newspaper Article
Author. (Year, month day). Title. Newspaper Title, paging - available. Retrieved date from the World Wide Web: www address
Example:
Boshart, R. (1999, May 19). GOP resumes tax-cut push. The Gazette, Retrieved from
        the World Wide Web September 8, 1999:
        http://www.gazetteonline.com/ialegis/1999/tax/99tx039.htm

Image (art reproduction, photograph or other graphic)
Artist, if given. (year). Title of image or desciption.  Retrieved date from the World Wide Web: www. <www address>
Example:
Kaufman, S. (ca 1993). Japanese Crane in Snow. Retrieved November 10, 1999 from
    the World Wide Web: http://search.corbis.com/default.asp?i=10898330&vID=1&rID=101

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