Literature Citation Style Quick Reference Page

Quick reference page containing a brief description of suggested styles to use when referencing various types of resources. Resource types not contained within this page can be found in the American Medical Association (AMA) Manual of Style.

American Medical Association (AMA) Style

(Print and Internet)

Book
Citations for books, chapters in books, etc. should include the following basic information. If the source does not have one of these elements, skip it.

• Authors' last name followed by his/her first and middle initials
• Chapter title
• Last name and first and middle initials of book authors or editors (or translator, if any)
• Title of book and subtitle, if any
• Volume number and volume title, when there is more than 1 volume
• Edition (do not indicate 1st)
• Place of publication
• Publisher
• Year of copyright
• Page numbers, when specific pages are cited

Reference to an Entire Book, One Author:

1. LaFollette MC. Stealing into Print : Fraud, Plagiarism, and Misconduct in Scientific Publishing. Los Angeles: University of California Press; 1992.

Reference to an Authored Chapter in a Book, with Multiple Editors:

2. Cole BR. Cystinosis and cystinuria. In: Jacobson HR, Striker GE, Klahr S, eds. The Principles and Practice of Nephrology. Philadelphia, Pa: BC Decker Inc; 1991:396-403.

Government Bulletins:

3. US Bureau of the Census. Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1999. 119th ed. Washington, DC: US Bureau of the Census; 1999.

Journal Article

Citations for journal articles should include the following basic information. If the article does not have one of these elements, skip it.

• Authors' last names and initials
• Title of article and subtitle (if any)
• Abbreviated name of journal
• Year
• Volume number
• Part or supplement number (if it would help to find the journal article gain), and issue month or number when there is insequential page numbers
• Page numbers

Journal Article, One Author:

4.  Wilcox RV. Shifting roles and synthetic women in Star Trek: The
     Next Generation. Stud Pop Culture. 1991;13:53-65.

Journal Article, Three Authors:

5. Das K, Debacker V, Bouquegneau JM. Metallothioneins in marine mammals. Cell Mol Biol.  2000;46:283-94.

Journal Article, Paginated by Issue:

6. Gillman J. Religious perspectives on organ donation. Crit Care Nurs Q. November 1999;22:19-29.

Journal Article from a Supplement:

7. Buse J. Combining insulin and oral agents. Am J Med. April 2000;108(suppl):23S-32S.

Daily Newspaper Article, Discontinuous Pages:

8. Alltman LK. Medical errors bring calls for change. New York Times. July 18, 1995:C1, C10.

Encyclopedia Article
9.  Sturgeon T. Science fiction. In: Lorimer LT, editorial director;
     Cummings C, ed-in-chief; Leish KW, managing ed. The Encyclopedia
      Americana. Vol 24. International ed. Danbury, Conn: Grolier
      Incorporated; 1995:390-392.

ERIC Document (Meeting Abstracts)
10.  Fuss-Reineck M. Sibling Communication in Star Trek: The Next
     Generation: Conflicts Between Brothers. Miami, Fla: Annual Meeting
     of the Speech Communication Association; 1993. ERIC Document
     Reproduction Service ED364932.

Internet sources:

Citations to Internet sources aren't as rigid as those surrounding books and articles. If you have doubts about what to include, usually the quick rule is "More is better". Important elements to include are:

• Author(s)' last name and first and middle initials (if known)
• Name of article/webpage
• If it is an abstract, note in [brackets] - OR
• Name of journal, if appropriate, with a [serial online] notation, followed by year;volume:pages
• Phrase "Available at:" and the URL of the page
• Phrase "Accessed" and the date you looked at it

Website:

11. Rapid Early Action for Coronary Treatment (REACT) Web site. Available at: http://www.epi.umn.edu/react/. Accessed July 19, 2000.

Material from a Web Site:

12. National Institutes of Health. NIH guidelines on the inclusion of women and minorities as subjects in clinical research. Available at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not94-100.html. Accessed on July 19, 2000.

Journal Article on the Internet
13.  McCoy LH. Respiratory changes in Vulcans during pon farr. J Extr
     Med [serial online]. 1999;47:237-247. Available at:
     http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itweb/nysl_li_liu. Accessed April 7,
     1999.

Material from a Database:

14. Kemp, JP, Kemp JA. Management of Asthma in Children. Am Fam Physician [online]. 2001;63:1341-8, 1353-4. Available from: Ebsco Medline Comprehensive Fulltext. Accessed June 4, 2001.

E-Books:

15. Roemmelt AF. Haunted Children: Rethinking Medication of Common Psychological Disorders [e-book]. Albany, NY: SUNY Press; 1998. Available from: Netlibrary. Accessed June 4, 2001.

Monographic series:

16. Davidoff RA. Migraine: Manifestations, Pathogenesis, and Management. Philadelphia, Pa: FA Davis; 1995. Contemporary Neurology Series, No. 42.

Notes

• Items are listed numerically in the order they are cited in the text.
• If you are using a typewriter and cannot use italics, then use underlining.
• Authors: use initials of first and second names with no spaces. Include up to six authors. If there are more than six, include the first three, followed by et al. If no author is given, start with the title.
• Books: include the edition statement (ex: 3rd ed. or Rev ed.) between the title and place if it is not the first edition.
• Place: use abbreviations of states, not postal codes.
• Journals: abbreviate titles as shown in Index Medicus. If the journal does not paginate continuously through the volume, include the month (and day).
• Websites: include the name of the webpage, the name of the entire website, the full date of the page (if available), and the date you looked at it.