The ASA or the American Sociological Association Style is usually intended for students working on different types of sociology assignments. Whether you are writing coursework or an essay in Sociology, following the ASA citation guidelines is mandatory. Using ASA citations give evidence of your careful and thorough research skills, thereby helping you avoid plagiarism. It also helps you foster clear communication with your readers. All in all, though citations can be time-consuming, you can’t ignore its strong impact on the authenticity of your assignments. Thus, the question here is: how to use ASA citation style format without leaving any loopholes behind? Let’s find that out.
![ASA Ccitation]( "ASA Citation")
How To Do ASA Citation?
As with any other citations, ASA also includes both in-text citations and reference list. You may not find it difficult to take care of both these formats if you are aware of the right guidelines. So, here are the basic guidelines along with relevant examples to make ASA citations way easier for you.
In-text citations in ASA writing style
In-text citations are the ones that you include within your texts alongside your sources. These include the author's last name, followed by the year of publication. The rules related to writing the in-text citations in ASA format are:
- Include the publication year in parenthesis if you write the author’s name in the text.
When Robert (1977) researched...
- Enclose the author’s last name and the publication year in parenthesis if the name isn’t mentioned at all in the text.
...when the research was completed (Robert 1997).
- You can also include the page number if you want right after the publication year. Separate these two with a colon.
Robert (1977:16)...
- In the case of three authors, write down their last names in the first citation in the text. Then you can use the first name and et al.
(Robert, Garcia, Smith 1997); (Snow et al. 1999)
- Use quotation marks if you are using quotations. Include the citation after the end quote mark.
"In 1999, the data were reported by more particular job types which showed that technologically oriented jobs paid better" (Hilden brand 1999:47).
Follow these basic rules while writing the apa in-text citations in your assignments. Whether your source is a book or a website, the basic rules stay somewhat the same for in-text citations. Now check out the guidelines for getting your reference list right in ASA format.
Reference lists in ASA writing style
A reference list consists of all the in-text citations and footnotes in a separate section named as ‘References.’ Make sure all your citations are present in this section. Also, it is your duty to make sure the publication information in the reference list is accurate and 100% complete. The basic rules for writing the reference list are:
- All the references that you have cited in the text should be present in this section and vice versa.
- Keep double spaces in the references.
- List your citations in alphabetical order according to the last name of the authors.
- Indent one-half inch on all the lines after the first line from the left margin.
- Invert the first author’s name if you are using two or more authors.
- Arrange multiple references by the same author according to the year of publication.
- For repeated authorship, use six hyphens and a period.
- Add letters to distinguish works by the same author in the same year.
- Use italics for periodical and book titles.
- Write "N.d." if the publication date is not available.
The formats of each citation may differ depending on the type of source you have used. Check out the examples below.
The basic format is:
Author1 (invert the last name inverted), Author2 (include full surname, do not invert the last name), and Author3. Publication Year. Publication Name (italicized). Publisher's city and state: Name of the publisher.
Examples:
Bursik, Robert J., Jr. and Harold G. Grasmick. 1993. Neighbourhoods and Crime: The Dimensions of Effective Community Control. New York: Lexington Books.
Hagen, John and Ruth D. Peterson, eds. 1995. Crime and Inequality. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
The basic format is:
Author Last, First. Year of Publication. "Title." Magazine Name, Month Day. Retrieved Month Day, Year (URL).
Example:
Leonard, Joey. 2002. “Embracing the dark side of technology.” TechRadar, May 18. Retrieved May 22, 2002 (URL).
The basic format is:
Author1 (Last name inverted), Author2 (including full surname, last name is not inverted), and Author3.Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Name of Publication (italicized) Volume Number (Issue Number): Page numbers of article.
Examples:
Kalleberg, Arne L., Barbara F. Reskin, and Ken Hudson. 2000. “Bad Jobs in America: Standard and Nonstandard Employment Relations and Job Quality in the United States.” American Sociological Review 65(2):256-78.
Aseltine, Robert H., Jr. and Ronald C. Kessler. 1993. "Marital Depression in a Community Sample." Journal of Social Behavior and Health 34(3):237-51.
These are some of the most common sources that students usually use while writing their sociology papers. Consult with your seniors if you want to know more about what is ASA citation. You may need some time to get the hang of all these formats initially. Practise is the key here. So, practise the formats for the most common sources every day, and you will be able to nail ASA citations like a pro in no time. Good Luck.
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