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Turabian 9 Author-Date Style

Articles come in a variety of publications and article types and each type requires variations in how the reference list entry is constructed. In the examples below, the reference list entry is listed first followed by the accompanying parenthetical citation.

19.2 Scholarly Journal Articles

Turabian describes how to cite scholarly journal articles in section 19.2.  

Journal article citations included in the reference list must include the following elements:

  • Author's name listed last name, first name separated by a comma and ending with a period.
  • Year of publication ending with a period.
  • Article title, including subtitle, in quotation marks with all major words capitalized.  Separate the title from the subtitle with a colon and place a period at the end of the title inside the quotation mark.
  • Journal title, in italics with all major words capitalized, written exactly as it appears on the title page of the journal. If a sub-title is included on the title page, the sub-title should be included in the citation.  However, if the official title is an abbreviation, use the abbreviation rather than an expanded title. Do not include a period at the end of the journal title.
  • Issue information should include the volume number in arabic numerals, followed by a comma and the issue number preceded with the abbreviation no.  If there is no issue number, it should be omitted.  If there is no volume number, place the comma and issue number directly after the journal title. Before deciding there is no issue or volume number, the wise choice is to double-check the article citation in one of the library's databases.
  • Additional date information such as month or season is placed in parentheses after the issue number. If there is no additional date information, this item may be omitted.
  • Page numbers are the final element in a journal article citation.  A colon separates any additional date information from the page numbers and a period is placed at the end.

This example shows a reference list entry for a journal article containing both volume and issue number as well as month and year.

R: Stewart, Kenneth J. 2008. “Evangelicalism and Patristic Christianity: 1517 to the Present.” Evangelical Quarterly 80, no. 2 (October): 307-321.

This example is for a journal article containing only a volume number as well as season and year.

R: Aponte, Edwin, and Evelyn L. Parker. 2008. “Strangers No More: African American and Latinas/os Moving Toward Coalitions as Colleagues.” Perspectivas 12 (Fall): 61-74.

Parenthetical citations include the author's last name, year of publication, and page number. The examples below correspond to the examples previously shown.

P: (Stewart 2008, 310)

P: (Aponte and Parker 2008, 65)

Full-text Journal Articles

This example is for an article found online through one of the library's databases:

R: Ronning, John L. 2007. "The Targum of Isaiah and the Johannine Literature." Westminster Theological Journal 69, no. 2 (Fall): 247-278. EBSCOhost ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials.

P: (Ronning 2007, 250)

This example is for an online journal article found through one of the library's journal databases that has a DOI.

Note:  When using a DOI insert the text http://dx.doi.org/ before the DOI number.

R: Kelemen, Katalin, and Märta C. Johansson. 2013. "Still Neglecting the Demand that Fuels Human Trafficking: A Study Comparing the Criminal Laws and Practice of Five European States on Human Trafficking, Purchasing Sex from Trafficked Adults and from Minors." European Journal Of Crime, Criminal Law & Criminal Justice 21, no. 3/4 (July): 247-289. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/15718174-21042030.

P: (Kelemen and Johansson 2013, 258)

This example is for an article found in an online journal such as a journal only found online or an article posted to the author's website. 

R: Lederleitner, Mary Mallon. 2008. “Perspective Transformation: Application for Mission Curriculum in Churches.” Common Ground Journal 5, no. 2 (Spring): 33-43. http://www.commongroundjournal.org/volnum/v05n02.pdf.

P: (Lederleitner 2008, 39)

19.3 Magazine Articles

A magazine contains brief articles and focuses on current events and news.  Magazine articles are more likely to be written by journalists and not have bibliographic citations.  For more infomation on the difference between scholarly journal articles and magazine articles, please refer to the Scholarly Article guide listed below.

Turabian describes how to cite magazine articles in 19.3. The primary difference between citing journals and magazines is that weekly or monthly magazines are cited by date even if volume and issue number are available. 

Cite magazines by date only.  The year appears after the author's name. Additional date information, including the year, appears after the magazine title. 

R: Jackson, Chris. 2008. “Launching a Church Outward.” Ministry Today, November/December 2008.

Page numbers are not needed in the reference list citation, but parenthetical citations should include a specific page number.

P: (Jackson 2008, 33)

When an author's name is not given, Turabian indicates in section 18.3.2.3 to begin the citation with the journal title as in the following example.

R: Relevant. 2010. “Reject Apathy: Embracing Justice the Right Way.” Relevant, May/June 2010.

P: (Relevant 2010, 19)

For magazine articles found online, add the database name and provider, or URL, to the citation. 

R: Morgan, Timothy C., and Isaac Phiri. 2008. "Hunger Isn't History." Christianity Today, November, 2008. EBSCOhost Academic Search Complete.

P: (Morgan and Phiri 2008, 28)

19.4 Newspaper Articles

In section 19.4.2, Turabian indicates newspaper articles should be cited in a reference list in the same format as a magazine article. 

For newspaper articles found online include the URL or database name and provider as in the example below.

R: Chick, Kirsten. 2010. “How Bad is Gulf Oil Spill? A Global Q&A on Offshore Oil Spills.” Christian Science Monitor, May 24, 2010. EBSCOhost Newspaper Source.

As page numbers may vary between various newspaper editions, they should be omitted from parenthetical citations.

P: (Chick 2010)

In section 19.4.3 Turabian recommends citing newspaper articles by weaving citation elements into the text instead of a parenthetical citation.  Minimally include the name and date of the paper and article author as indicated in the example below. Include a full citation in your reference list.

In an article in the May 24, 210 Christian Science Monitor, Kirsten Chick indicates the gulf oil spill  . . .

19.9.2 Reviews

Book and performance reviews appear in a variety of publications.

The following components should be included in a reference list for a review:

  • The name of the reviewer followed by a period.
  • The year of publication followed by a period.
  • The words review of followed by the title of the item being reviewed and the author or originator of the item.
  • For a performance review, include the location and date of the performance.
  • The name of the journal, magazine, or newspaper where the review appeared followed by additional date and page number information according to the guidelines for the article type.

This example is for a review in a journal. Note the title in this example ends in a question mark.  Turabian notes that no punctuation should appear after a title ending in a question mark or exclamation mark.

R: Irvine, Suzanne. 2008. Review of Mend the Gap: Can the Church Reconnect the Generations? by Jason Gardner, Journal of Education & Christian Belief 12, no. 2 (Autumn): 183-184.

P: (Irvine 2008, 183)

15.4.1.3 URLs, 15.4.1.4 Commercial Databases, and 15.4.1.5 Access Dates

Turabian indicates you must always include the full publication information in addition to the URL. Turabian states to use the full URL when citing personal websites.  However, when using commercial databases such as those provided by the Jessie C. Eury Library, there are three possible options for providing the URL.

1. If a commercial database lists a recommended permanent URL for the source, use the permanent URL. Permanent URLs are available in EBSCOhost journal databases.

2. If a commercial database lists a DOI (Digital Object Identifier), Turabian indicates to use it as a DOI provides a more stable and permanent URL and is the best option.

3. If no permanent URL or DOI exists, Turabian indicates it is permissible to use the name of the database being used.

Turabian indicates to include access dates only for those items where a publication date, posting date, or last modified date is not available.  In those cases the access date is used in place of a publication date.  Turabian does note that instructors may require an access date be used and recommends recording access dates "just in case."

Note:  Do not include the database information and access date when the articles is not available in full text.  This information is not needed when a citation is found through a database and the actual article is found in the library or ordered via interlibrary loan.