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How to Cite Sources in Your Research Paper

A guide on how to cite your sources and avoid plagiarism

AMA

American Medical Association (AMA) Manual is primarily used to cite references in the medical research field and other health sciences.

Information below based on AMA Manual of Style, 11th ed., 2020.

General Rules

Reference List

  • References are listed numerically in the order they are cited in the text. 
  • Use the author's surname followed by initials without periods or spaces. The names of all authors should be given unless there are more than 6, in which case the names of the first 3 authors are used, followed by “et al.” Do not use and between names.
    • Examples:
      • Fewer than six authors: Frey T, Young RK.
      • Six or more authors: Christiansen S, Iverson C, Flanagin A, et al.
  • References to material not yet accepted for publication or to personal communications (oral, written, and electronic) are not included in the reference list and, instead, should be included parenthetically in the text.
  • Abbreviate and italicize names of journals. Use initial capital letters. Abbreviate according to the listing in the PubMed Journals database. 
  • In article titles, capitalize only the first letter of the first word, proper names, and abbreviations that are ordinarily capitalized in the reference.
    • Example: Investigating disease outbreaks under a protocol to the biological and toxin weapons convention.
  • When citing electronic material, in addition to the basic information included as with print references, you must also, include the URL (link) to the item as well as the date you accessed it. If the material has a DOI, its use is preferred over a URL and no access date is needed.
    • Examples:
      • Accessed October 31, 2010. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol6no6/wheelis.htm.
      • doi: 10.1186/s12913-023-09852-3.

In-text Citations

  • Use Arabic superscript numerals outside periods and commas, inside colons and semicolons. When more than 2 references are cited at a given place in the manuscript, use hyphens to join the first and last numbers of a closed series; use commas without spaces to separate other parts of a multiple citation.
    • Examples:
      • As previously,1,3–8,19
      • The derived data were as follows3,4:

If you don't see an example for your type of reference, consult the manual itself.

Type of Entry
Sample
 Book (printed)  AuthorLastName Initials. Book Title: Subtitle. Publisher; Year.
 Christiansen S, Iverson C, Flanagin A, et al. AMA Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors. 11th ed. Oxford
 University Press; 2020.
 Book (online)  AuthorLastName Initials. Book Title. Volume # and title. Edition #. Publisher name; copyright year. Accessed date. URL.
 Christiansen S, Iverson C, Flanagin A, et al. AMA Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors. 11th ed. Oxford
 University Press; 2020. Accessed August 20, 2020. https://www.amamanualofstyle.com/.
 Online journals  AuthorLastName Initials. Article title. Journal Name. Year;Volume(Issue):Page range. DOI or URL.
 Wheelis M. Investigating disease outbreaks under a protocol to the biological and toxin weapons convention. Emerg
 Infect Dis. 2000;6(6):595-600. Accessed October 26, 2010. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol6no6/wheelis.htm.
 Website  AuthorLastName Initials. Page title. Website Name. Published Month Day, Year. Accessed Month Day, Year. URL.
 King MW. Carbohydrate Nomenclature. The Medical Biochemistry Page. n.d. Updated April 2, 2020. Accessed June 3,
 2020. http://themedicalbiochemistrypage.org.
 Chapter from an
 online book		  AuthorLastName Intials. Chapter title. In: Editor(s). Book Title. Edition number. Publisher name; copyright year.
 Accessed Month, Day, Year. URL.
 Frey T, Young RK. Jargon. In: Christiansen S, Iverson C, Flanagin A, et al. AMA Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors
 and Editors. 11th ed. Oxford University Press; 2020. Accessed August 20, 2020.
 https://www.amamanualofstyle.com/view/10.1093/jama/9780190246556.001.0001/med-9780190246556-chapter-11.

AMA AI Citation and Disclosure Guidance

The AMA Style has specific guidelines for using and citing the involvement of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity to name a few. When using any AI tool, make sure that their use is allowed. There may be different policies on the permitted involvement of AI in academic work based on the individual assignment, your professor, your course, or the university. Additionally, there may be restrictions on AI use for professional writing such as journalism and scholarly publication. If the use of an AI tool is permitted and you choose to use one, AMA Style requires adherence to specific disclosure and citation rules. For detailed information and examples, visit this post from AMA Style Insider: Can JAMA Network Authors Use Generative Artificial Intelligence to Create Content?