Lafayette College Library

If you find the full text of an article in a database like Academic OneFile or LexisNexis Academic, cite it as you would an article from a print journal but include additional information about the electronic source.

MLA style for journal articles from databases

Author. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume number.issue number (publication year): page numbers. Database name. Web. Date of access.

Examples in MLA style:

Cohn, Jeffrey P. “Understanding Sea Otters.” Bioscience 48 (1998): 151+. Academic OneFile. Web. 24 February 2006.

APA style for journal articles from databases

Author (date of publication). Title of article. Journal title, volume number (issue number), page numbers when available. Retrieved date of access, from name of database.

Example in APA style:

Cohn, J. P. (1998). Understanding sea otters. Bioscience, 48. Retrieved 24 February 2006, from Academic OneFile.

Chicago's Notes & Bibliography style for journal articles from databases

Author. “Article Title.” Journal title volume number, no. issue number (date of publication). URL for database home page (date accessed).

Example:

Thomas, Trevor M. “Wales: Land of Mines and Quarries.” Geographical Review 46, no. 1 (1956). http://www.jstor.org/ (accessed May 15, 2008).

Chicago's Author-Date system for journal articles from databases

Author. Year of publication. Article title. Journal title volume number, no. issue number (month of publication), URL for database homepage (date accessed).

Example:

Warr, M., and C. G. Ellison. 2000. Rethinking social reactions to crime: Personal and altruistic fear in family households. American Journal of Sociology 106, no. 3 (November), http://www.jstor.org/ (accessed May 15, 2008).

A note about URLs

When citing articles from databases, it's sufficient to use the URL for the database home page, rather than the URL for the individual article, which may be exceedingly long. The home page URLs that can be used in bibliographies for the three databases most frequently cited at Lafayette are:

• Academic OneFile:
  http://find.galegroup.com/itx/?prodId=AONE&userGroupName=east55695
• LexisNexis Academic:
  http://www.lexisnexis.com/us/lnacademic/
• JSTOR:
  http://www.jstor.org/

A note about page numbers

Academic OneFile provides only the first page number of an article followed by the length of the article in parentheses, e.g., p. 151(5). For articles longer than one page, do not try to guess the page numbers for the remainder of the article because it may not appear on continuous pages. Instead, for references in MLA style, provide the initial page number followed by a plus sign. For references in APA and Chicago style, omit the page numbers when you do not know the numbers for all pages of the article.

For more information

For more detailed information and examples, consult the sources listed below.

Online! Citation styles from Online! A Reference Guide to Using Internet Sources by Andrew Harnack and Eugene Kleppinger.

Columbia Guide to Online Style by Janice R. Walker and Todd Taylor.
Skillman Ref PN171 .F56 W35

MLA Style
MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (7th ed.), pp. 192ff. Skillman Ref Desk LB 2639 .G53 2009

APA Style
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.), pp. 268-281. Skillman Ref Desk BF 76.7 .P83 2001

APA Style: Electronic References from the American Psychological Association.

Chicago Style
Chicago-Style Citation Quick Guide from the Chicago Manual of Style Online.

Chicago Manual of Style (15th ed.), chapter 17, various pages. Skillman Ref Desk Z253 .U69 2003