5. Web documents, websites and other electronic media
The goals of a citation to an online source are to credit the author/creator and to enable the reader to find the material.
When citing Internet sources, observe the following guidelines:
- Follow previous sections for format of who (author), when (date) and what (title) elements.
- For the ‘where’ element, direct readers as closely as possible to the information; whenever possible, reference specific documents rather than the home or menu pages.
- The author of a website is usually the person or organisation responsible for the site.
- When referring to an item located within a subscription site, use the home page URL.
- A retrieval or availability statement (e.g. retrieved from …) replaces the location and name of the publisher typically provided for physical sources.
- Use ‘available from’ when the URL leads to information on how to obtain the cited material, rather than to the material itself.
- Include retrieval dates where the source material is likely to change over time.
- If the source undergoes regular revision, the date for the most recent update should be used.
- It is often appropriate to include additional information after the title of the work (similar to including an edition number for a book). Sometimes this is included as part of the title (e.g. a report number).
- The medium or format can be entered after the title (before the full stop) in square brackets.
- When using direct quotes for sources that do not provide page numbers, use the paragraph number, if possible, preceded by the abbreviation ‘para.’ (e.g. Broome & Davies, 1999, para. 5).
When you are referring to specific information from a web page or web document within the text of an assignment, you must provide an author-date citation.
- If you are mentioning the website in passing, (e.g. Comprehensive information about the University of Southern Queensland can be found at www.usq.edu.au), you do not need to include an entry in the reference list. Include the URL of the home page of the website in-text, rather than the usual author-date component.
- If you are citing specific information, create a reference following the guidelines for how to cite and reference a web page or web document.
- If you cite information from more than one page within the same website, you will need to create a separate item in your reference list for each.
| 1. WEBSITE HOME PAGE |
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a) Mentioning website in passing
b) Mentioning specific information available on the home page.
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| In-text |
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Examples:
a) Comprehensive information about the University of Southern Queensland can be found at https://www.usq.edu.au.
b) USQ offers flexible study options (USQ, 2019).
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| Reference |
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Author Surname/Organisation, Initial. (Year). Title of website. Retrieved Month Day, Year, from URL
Examples:
a) No entry in the reference list
b) University of Southern Queensland. (2019). Retrieved September 9, 2019, from https://www.usq.edu.au
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| 2. WEB PAGE |
- Use this example for pages within a website.
- Include a retrieval date if the information is likely to change over time.
- A format type can be included in square brackets after the title, if it is important to help identify the source.
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| In-text |
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(Author Surname, Year)
Example:
Project management theory … (University of Southern Queensland, 2020).
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| Reference |
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Author Surname, Initial. (Year). Title [Format]. Retrieved Month Day, Year, from URL
Example:
Sinnamon, M. (2019, May 30). More historical Toowoomba newspapers now available via Trove [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://blogs.slq.qld.gov.au/jol/2019/05/30/more-historical-toowoomba-newspapers-now-available-via-trove/
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| 3. WEB DOCUMENT |
- If there is a document number (i.e. for a report), and it is not formally a part of the title, it can be included after the title, within parentheses. Do not use italics for a document number.
- Italicise the document title when it is a stand-alone document (e.g. book or report).
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| In-text |
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(Author Surname, Year)
Example:
Many students … (Hillman, 2005).
Teacher registration … (Queensland College of Teachers, 2017).
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| Reference |
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Author Surname, Initial. (Year). Title (Report Number). Retrieved Month Day, Year, from URL
Examples:
Hillman, K. (2005). The first year experience: The transition from secondary school to university and TAFE in Australia (Research Report 40). Retrieved from https://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1043&context=lsay_research
Queensland College of Teachers. (2017). Professional boundaries: A guideline for Queensland teachers. Retrieved from https://www.qct.edu.au/pdf/Professional%20Boundaries%20-%20A%20Guideline%20for%20Queensland%20Teachers.pdf
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| 4. WIKI |
- Long topic titles can be shortened in the in-text citation.
- In-text, use double quotation marks around the Title of Wiki Topic.
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| In-text |
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(“Title of Wiki Topic,” Year)
Example:
The Pemberton arrived … (“Irish Famine Orphan Immigration,” 2014).
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| Reference |
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Title of Wiki Topic. (Year). In Title of Wiki. Retrieved Month Day, Year, from URL
Example:
Irish Famine Orphan Immigration. (2014). In PROV Wiki. Retrieved June 17, 2019, from http://wiki.prov.vic.gov.au/index.php/Irish_Famine_Orphan_Immigration
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