APA Style
When to Include the Year When Citing in Text
In APA, writers include the date with any parenthetical reference to a source. Additionally, they should include the date after the first reference in a paragraph when the author is referred to as part of the sentence. Then, writers repeat the date again if referred to in parentheses; however, writers do not need to repeat the date when the author is cited again in that paragraph:
Patterson (2009) found citing is fun. It could also be said that "citing is sometimes perplexing" (Patterson, 2009, p. 23). Patterson concluded that APA gets easier the more you use it. Patterson also argued that students secretly enjoy APA style rules.Once a new paragraph begins, however, this rule starts over. For help knowing how and when to cite in a paragraph, check out our information on the topic.
More Tips
Want to know more about citing the same source throughout a paragraph? Check out Amber's blog post, "Citing an Author Throughout a Paragraph: Notes on a Tricky APA Shortcut."
APA Style FAQ
In addition to the information provided here, refer to page 186 in the APA Manual (Sixth Edition) for how to cite and reference nonroutine information and titles.
eReader (Kindle, Nook, etc.)
Sources with the Same Author and Same Year
You may also find our table on citation variations useful to download and print!