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10th edition AMA Citation Style Basics: In-Text Citations

How to Cite

Use in-text citations to tell the reader where you got any information that did not come from inside your own head.  This is more obvious when you are directly quoting from a source, but it is also needed when you have summarized or paraphrased from a source, or even when you use an idea from a source.

So how do you do it?

With AMA style, you will use superscript arabic numerals to number each of the sources in your text, tables, or figures. The sources are numbered consecutively and refer to the sources listed on the "References" page at the end of your paper.

AMA Manual of Style

This guide is intended as a basic introduction to the AMA citation style.

Please consult the AMA Manual of Style eBook for more examples and in-depth information.

See section: 3.6 for more information about citations.

How to Cite

Guidelines:

  • In the document, cite references in consecutive order using arabic superscript numerals
  • Arabic superscript numerals are placed outside periods and commas, inside colons and semi-colons.
  • If you cite the same reference more than once in the document, use the same arabic superscript numeral but it is recommended that you add page numbers.
  • Material not yet accepted for publication and personal communications should be cited parenthetically in the text but are not included in the reference list (See sections 3.2, 3.3, 3.13.8, 3.13.9)

 

 In-Text Citation Examples:

  • The study's3 findings did not...
  • A review of the regulations were completed by the USDA.22
  • Please refer to the following1-3 : (NOTE: Use a hyphen for multiple consecutive sources cited)
  • As in previous discussion,2,9-11,16 (NOTE: Use a comma for multiple nonconsecutive sources cited)
  • Dr. Smith's study3(p10),9, disproves Dr. Steven's findings11(pp8,11)... (Note: AMA recommends that you add page numbers when citing the same reference again)

 

 

In-Text Author Names

Not Required (section 3.7)

If you choose to add author names

*Use only surnames
*For one or two authors, list both surnames
*For more than 2 authors, include only the first author’s surname followed by “et al,” “and associates,” or “and colleagues.”

 

Examples:

Smith and Jones1 observed

Johnson et al2 reported on the survey

Roe and associates2 reported