Do I have to write out a citation every time I use a source?
Answer
Do not repeat the year for narrative in-text citations the second and subsequent times they appear in a single paragraph. For example:
According to Richter (2018), the cat was let out of the bag. As Richter notes, "to a much greater extent, the cat preferred boxes" (p. 3).
Include the year in the first narrative citation in a new paragraph.
Do include the full citation (Author, Date) for all parenthetical citations, even if the same source is being mentioned several times in a paragraph. For example:
The cat was let out of the bag (Richter, 2018). Evidence indicates that "to a much greater extent, the cat preferred boxes" (Richter, 2018, p. 3).
If multiple works by the same author or authors are cited, include the date in every in-text citation (both narrative and parenthetical) to ensure that the reader knows which work you are referring to. For example:
Smith and Jones (2014) and Smith and Jones (2016) recommend that boxes be used to create cat castles. As Smith and Jones (2016) note, supplication of this nature can help to improve human-house cat relationships, since domesticated house cats are in fact descendants of lions.
Tips:
For more information, check out the APA Style Website entry on the Author-Date Citation System.