Citing a database article
Published January 28, 2021. Updated November 6, 2021.
To create a reference or citation for a database article, you will need to know the author, publication year, article title, journal title, database name, page range, and URL (uniform resource locator).
The templates and examples below will show you how to cite a database article in MLA, APA, Chicago style, and Harvard referencing.
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Citing a database article in MLA style
In-text citation example:
(Mather)
Works cited entry example:
Mather, Jeanne Ramirez Corpus. “How do American Indian Fifth and Sixth Graders Perceive Mathematics and the Mathematics Classroom?” Journal of American Indian Education, vol. 36, no. 2, 1997, pp. 9–18. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/24398484. Accessed 28 Dec. 2020.
Set the database name in italics.
Citing a database article in APA style
In-text citation example:
(Mather, 1997)
Reference list entry template and example:
Mather, J. (1997). How do American Indian fifth and sixth graders perceive mathematics and the mathematics classroom? Journal of American Indian Education, 36 (2), 9–18. Retrieved December 28, 2020, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/24398484
The name of the database need not be included. Just add only the DOI (digital object identifier) or the URL.
Citing a database article in Chicago style, notes-bibliography
If the article is taken from a database, it is sufficient to mention only the database name without the URL.
Footnotes template and example:
Note
Jeanne Ramirez Corpus Mather, “How Do American Indian Fifth and Sixth Graders Perceive Mathematics and the Mathematics Classroom?”
Journal of American Indian Education
36, no. 2 (1997): 9, JSTOR.
Bibliography entry template and example:
Mather, Jeanne Ramirez Corpus. “How Do American Indian Fifth and Sixth Graders Perceive Mathematics and the Mathematics Classroom?” Journal of American Indian Education 36, no. 2 (1997): 9–18. JSTOR.
Citing a database article in Chicago style, author-date
In-text citation example:
(Mather 1997)
Reference list entry example:
Mather, Jeanne Ramirez Corpus. 1997. “How Do American Indian Fifth and Sixth Graders Perceive Mathematics and the Mathematics Classroom?” Journal of American Indian Education 36, no. 2: 9–18. JSTOR.
How to cite a database article in Harvard referencing style
In-text citation example:
(Mather, 1997)
Reference list entry example:
Mather, J. (1997) ‘How do American Indian fifth and sixth graders perceive mathematics and the mathematics classroom?’, Journal of American Indian Education, 36(2), pp. 9–18. Available at: http://www.jstor.org/stable/24398484 (Accessed: 28 December 2020).
The name of the database need not be included. Just add the DOI (digital object identifier) or the URL.
Writing a paper? Don’t forget to include a bibliography.
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To cite an article from an online database in MLA style, the core elements required are the name of the author, year of publication, title of the work, database name, and URL. The below table shows how the in-text citation and the works cited entry are formatted for an article from an online database.
In-text citation
Template:
(Author Surname1 and Author Surname2)
Example:
(Vogler and Choi)
Works cited entry template and example:
To in-text cite a database in APA, use the core required elements: the name(s) of the author(s) and the year of publication. The table below shows how to format the in-text parenthetical citation for a database in APA.
One author
Template:
(Author Surname, Year)
Example:
(Dvoulety, 2017)
Two authors
Template:
(Author1 Surname & Author2 Surname, Year)
Example:
(Charron & Lapuente, 2013)
Three or more authors
Template:
(Author1 Surname et al., Year)
Example:
(Bachtler et al., 2014)
To cite a database in an APA reference-list entry, use the core required elements: the name(s) of author(s), publication date (year, month day), title of the work, database name*, and DOI or URL**.
The table below shows how to format a reference-list entry for a journal article from a database.
*Only include the database name when it publishes original, proprietary content only available in that database. Write the database name in italics after the article title. [Template: Author Surname, F. M. (Publication Year). Title of the article. Database Name. Retrieved Month Day, Year, from URL]
**For works without DOIs from most academic databases, do not include a URL or database information in the reference because these works are widely available.
Reference-list entry template and example:
No, you do not need to add the accessed date when you include a database citation in the works cited list entry. To cite an online database in MLA style, the core elements required are the name of the author, title of the work, year of publication, database name, and URL. The below table shows how the works cited entry is included for an online database.
Work cited entry template and example:
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