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APA (6th ed.) referencing guide (Online): Websites

Mae'r dudalen hon hefyd ar gael yn Gymraeg

Evaluating information online

Finding information on the internet is easy, but finding good quality and reliable information is trickier than you think. Before you use any web resource in your assignment ask yourself “Is the web page as good as information you would find in a book or academic journal?”

Check that the information is reliable and accurate.
Check:

  • Who wrote the information? Do they have relevant qualifications? Have they written other material on the subject? Do they have a bias?
  • When was the information published? Is it current enough for your needs?
  • Why was the information put on the web? Is it selling or promoting something? Is it biased?

In text citations

Example:

First citation:

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE, 2020) states that...
OR
...(National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), 2020).

Subsequent citations:

NICE (2020) states that...
OR
...(NICE, 2020).

Note: A good tip if you are going to use the same citation a few times in your assignment is to use acronyms.  You must explain the acronym in full the first time you use it, followed by the acronym so it is clear to your lecturer what is stands for.

Reference list

Author. (Year). Title. Retrieved from URL
OR
Author. (Year). Title. Retrieved Month day, year, from URL

Examples:

American Psychological Association. (2019). APA style blog: 6th edition archive. Retrieved June 2, 2020, from https://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/apa-style-blog-6th-edition-archive.html?_ga=2.92688349.1180441710.1591112047-1187154830.1589217496

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. (2020). Type 2 diabetes in adults: Management. Retrieved from https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng28 

Note: Only include the date the information was retrieved if the website is likely to change frequently. The author of a website is usually a corporate author. However if you are citing a specific document on a website there may be personal authors.