Documentation

Preparing a CSE list of references

Page contents:

Directory to CSE-style references
Books
Periodicals
Digital sources

The citations in the text of an essay correspond to items on a list titled References, which starts on a new page at the end of the essay. Continue to number the pages consecutively, center the title References one inch from the top of the page, and double-space before beginning the first entry. Start each entry flush left and indent subsequent lines one-quarter inch.

The order of the entries depends on which format you follow:

Citation-sequence format: number and list the references in the order the references are first cited in the text.
Citation-name format: list and number the references in alphabetical order.
Name-year format: list the references, unnumbered, in alphabetical order.

In the following examples, you will see that both the citation-sequence and citation-name formats call for listing the date after the publisher’s name in references for books and after the periodical name in references for articles. The name-year format calls for listing the date immediately after the author’s name in any kind of reference.

CSE style also specifies the treatment and placement of the following basic elements in the list of references:

Author. List all authors last name first, and use only initials for first and middle names. Do not place a comma after the author’s last name, and do not place periods after or spaces between the initials. Use a period after the last initial of the last author listed.
Title. Do not italicize titles and subtitles of books and titles of periodicals. Do not enclose titles of articles in quotation marks. For books and articles, capitalize only the first word of the title and any proper nouns or proper adjectives. Abbreviate and capitalize all major words in a periodical title.

As you refer to these examples, pay attention to how publication information (publishers for books, details about periodicals for articles) and other specific elements are styled and punctuated.

Books

Directory to CSE-style references

For the basic format for citing a print book in your project, consult the source map.

1. One author

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

1. Buchanan M. Nexus: small worlds and the groundbreaking theory of networks. New York (NY): Norton; 2003.

NAME-YEAR

Buchanan M. 2003. Nexus: small worlds and the groundbreaking theory of networks. New York (NY): Norton.

2. Two or more authors

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

2. Wojciechowski BW, Rice NM. Experimental methods in kinetic studies. 2nd ed. St. Louis (MO): Elsevier Science; 2003.

NAME-YEAR

Wojciechowski BW, Rice NM. 2003. Experimental methods in kinetic studies. 2nd ed. St. Louis (MO): Elsevier Science.

3. Organization as author

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

3. World Health Organization. The world health report 2002: reducing risks, promoting healthy life. Geneva (Switzerland): The Organization; 2002.

Place the organization’s abbreviation at the beginning of the name-year entry, and use the abbreviation in the corresponding in-text citation. Alphabetize the entry by the first word of the full name, not by the abbreviation.

NAME-YEAR

[WHO] World Health Organization. 2002. The world health report 2002: reducing risks, promoting healthy life. Geneva (Switzerland): The Organization.

4. Book prepared by editor(s)

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

4. Torrence ME, Isaacson RE, editors. Microbial food safety in animal agriculture: current topics. Ames (IA): Iowa State University Press; 2003.

NAME-YEAR

Torrence ME, Isaacson RE, editors. 2003. Microbial safety in animal agriculture: current topics. Ames (IA): Iowa State University Press.

5. Section of a book with an editor

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

5. Kawamura A. Plankton. In: Perrin MF, Wursig B, Thewissen JGM, editors. Encyclopedia of marine mammals. San Diego (CA): Academic Press; 2002. p. 939–942.

NAME-YEAR

Kawamura A. 2002. Plankton. In: Perrin MF, Wursig B, Thewissen JGM, editors. Encyclopedia of marine mammals. San Diego (CA): Academic Press. p. 939–942.

6. Chapter of a book

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

6. Honigsbaum M. The fever trail: in search of the cure for malaria. New York (NY): Picador; 2003. Chapter 2, The cure; p. 19–38.

NAME-YEAR

Honigsbaum M. 2003. The fever trail: in search of the cure for malaria. New York (NY): Picador. Chapter 2, The cure; p. 19–38.

7. Paper or abstract in conference proceedings

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

7. Gutierrez AP. Integrating biological and environmental factors in crop system models [abstract]. In: Integrated Biological Systems Conference; 2003 Apr 14–16; San Antonio, TX. Beaumont (TX): Agroeconomics Research Group; 2003. p. 14–15.

NAME-YEAR

Gutierrez AP. 2003. Integrating biological and environmental factors in crop system models [abstract]. In: Integrated Biological Systems Conference; 2003 Apr 14–16; San Antonio, TX. Beaumont (TX): Agroeconomics Research Group. p. 14–15.

Periodicals

Directory to CSE-style references

Provide volume and issue numbers for journals. For magazines, include the month and year or the month, day, and year. For newspaper articles, include the section designation and column number, if any, and the date. For all periodicals, give inclusive page numbers. For rules on abbreviating journal titles, consult the CSE manual or ask an instructor.

8. Article in a journal

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

8. Mahmud K, Vance ML. Human growth hormone and aging. New Engl J Med. 2003;348(2):2256–2257.

NAME-YEAR

Mahmud K, Vance ML. 2003. Human growth hormone and aging. New Engl J Med. 348(2):2256–2257.

9. Article in a weekly journal

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

9. Holden C. Future brightening for depression treatments. Science. 2003 Oct 31:810–813.

NAME-YEAR

Holden C. 2003. Future brightening for depression treatments. Science. Oct 31:810–813.

10. Article in a magazine

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

10. Livio M. Moving right along: the accelerating universe holds secrets to dark energy, the Big Bang, and the ultimate beauty of nature. Astronomy. 2002 Jul:34–39.

NAME-YEAR

Livio M. 2002 Jul. Moving right along: the accelerating universe holds secrets to dark energy, the Big Bang, and the ultimate beauty of nature. Astronomy. 34–39.

11. Article in a newspaper

CITATION-SEQUENCE AND CITATION-NAME

11. Kolata G. Bone diagnosis gives new data but no answers. New York Times (National Ed.). 2003 Sep 28;Sect. 1:1 (col. 1).

NAME-YEAR

Kolata G. 2003 Sep 28. Bone diagnosis gives new data but no answers. New York Times (National Ed.). Sect. 1:1 (col. 1).

Digital sources

Directory to CSE-style references

These examples use the citation-sequence or citation-name system. To adapt them to the name-year system, delete the note number and place the update date immediately after the author’s name.

The basic entry for most sources accessed through the Internet should include the following elements:

Author. Give the author’s name, if available, last name first, followed by the initial(s) and a period.
Title. For book, journal, and article titles, follow the style for print materials. For all other types of electronic material, reproduce the title that appears on the screen.
Description. Identify sources such as images, infographics, podcasts, videos, blogs, and social media posts with descriptive words in brackets: [infographic], [video], [podcast, episode 12].
Place of publication. For online books and websites, include the place of publication as you would for print sources.
Publisher. For material other than journal articles from websites and online databases, include the individual or organization that produces or sponsors the site. If no publisher can be determined, use the words publisher unknown in brackets.
Dates. Cite three important dates, if possible: either the date that the publication was placed on the Internet or the copyright date; the most recent date of any update or revision; and the date that the publication was accessed by you.
Page, document, volume, and issue numbers. When citing a portion of a larger work or site, list the inclusive page numbers or document numbers of the specific item being cited. For journals or journal articles, include volume and issue numbers. If exact page numbers are not available, include in brackets the approximate length in computer screens, paragraphs, or bytes: [2 screens], [10 paragraphs], [332K bytes].
Address. Include the URL or other electronic address, followed by a period.

12. Material from an online database

For the basic format for citing an article from a database, see the source map. (Because CSE does not provide guidelines for citing an article from an online database, this model has been adapted from CSE guidelines for citing an online journal article.)

12. Shilts E. Water wanderers. Can Geographic. 2002 [accessed 2014 Jan 27];122(3):72–77. Academic Search Premier. http://www.ebscohost.com/ Document No.: 6626534.

13. Article in an online journal

13. Perez P, Calonge TM. Yeast protein kinase C. J Biochem. 2002 Oct [accessed 2014 Nov 3];132(4):513–517. http://edpex104.bcasj.or.jp/jb-pdf/132-4/jb132-4-513.pdf.

14. Article in an online newspaper

14. Brody JE. Reasons, and remedies, for morning sickness. New York Times. 2004 Apr 27 [accessed 2014 Apr 30]. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/27/health/27BROD.html.

15. Online book

15. Patrick TS, Allison JR, Krakow GA. Protected plants of Georgia. Social Circle (GA): Georgia Department of Natural Resources; c1995 [accessed 2014 Dec 3]. http://www.georgiawildlife.com/content/displaycontent.asp?txtDocument=89&txtPage=9.

To cite a portion of an online book, give the name of the part after the publication information: Chapter 6, Encouraging germination. See model 6.

16. Website

16. Geology and public policy. Boulder (CO): Geological Society of America; c2010 [updated 2010 Jun 3; accessed 2014 Sep 19]. http://www.geosociety.org/geopolicy.htm.

17. Government website

17. Health disparities: reducing health disparities in cancer. Atlanta (GA): Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US); 2010 [updated 2010 Apr 5; accessed 2014 May 1]. http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/healthdisparities/basic_info/disparities.htm.