Reference List Order
Works are listed in alphabetical order in thereference list, by the first word of the reference list entry.
- Arrange entries in alphabetical order by the surname of the first author followed by the initials of the author's given name(s).
- When alphabetizing names, disregard any spaces or punctuation marks in two-word surnames. Also disregard anything in parentheses or square brackets.
If multiple works are by the same first author,
- One-author entries should be arranged by year of publication, the earliest first. References with no date precede references with dates.
Ling, C. (n.d.).
Ling, C. (2016).
Ling, C. (2019a).
Ling, C. (2019b).
- One-author entries should precede multiple-author entries beginning with the same first author, even if the multiple-author work is published earlier.
Dorsey, A. E. (2019).
Dorsey, A. E. & Kirkwood, M. (2015).
- Multiple-author entries in which all authors appear in the same order should be arranged by year of publication.
Hanks, A., & Hudson, C. S. (2017).
Hanks, A., & Hudson, C. S. (2018).
- Multiple-author entries with the same first author and different subsequent authors should be arranged alphabetically by the surname of the second author or, if the second author is the same, the surname of the third author, and so forth.
Other rules of alphabetizing include:
- When alphabetizing by title, disregard the world "A," "An," and "The."
- If a reference entry begins with "Anonymous," alphabetize it as if it were a true name.
- If first authors of different works have the same surname and different initials, arrange alphabetically by first initial(s).
- Alphabetize numerals as though they were spelled out.
