Properly citing interviews in APA style ensures academic integrity and allows readers to trace your sources. This guide explains how to format personal and published interviews, emphasizing accuracy and consistency.
Documenting each interview in your reference list and in-text citations supports transparent research practices and strengthens the credibility of your work.
| Interview Type | In-Text Citation | Reference List Entry | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Interview | (Last name, Initials, year, month day) | Last name, Initials. (Year, Month Day). Personal interview [Optional: Description]. | Not included in reference list unless permitted by instructor or publisher. |
| Published Interview | (Last name, Initials, year) | Last name, Initials. (Year). Title of interview. In Publication Title, volume(issue), pages. Publisher. URL | Treat as a standard source; italicize publication and interview titles as required. |
| Published Interview with No Author | (Title, year) | Title of interview. (Year). Publication Title, volume(issue), pages. Publisher. URL | Alphabetize by title; use quoted marks for article/interview titles. |
| Transcript Available Online | (Last name, Initials, year) | Last name, Initials. (Year). Title of transcript. Website Name. URL | Include retrieval details if access may change over time. |
APA Personal Interview Citation Rules
When and How to Cite Personal Interviews
Citing interviews you conducted yourself follows a simplified format in APA. Because these interviews are not recoverable by readers, they appear only in the text, not in the reference list.
Use the interviewer’s last name and known initial(s), followed by the year and the specific date of the interview. This level of detail allows others to verify the timing of your source when needed.
APA Published Interview Citation Rules
Citing Published and Print Interviews
When an interview appears in a book, journal, magazine, or newspaper, treat it as a standard source. Provide the interviewee’s name as the author, the year, the interview title in sentence case, and the publication details.
Include the URL for online versions and use page numbers or timestamps when available to guide readers to the exact location of the material.
APA Reference List Format for Interviews
Formatting Recoverable Interview Sources
In your reference list, format interviews according to APA source type guidelines. Published interviews follow formats similar to articles or chapters, while personal interviews are omitted unless your institution or publisher requests them.
Double-check capitalization, italics, and punctuation, as these elements vary by source type and can affect the readability and professionalism of your citations.
Mastering APA Interview Documentation
- Distinguish clearly between personal and published interviews in your documentation.
- Use in-text citations for personal interviews, including name, year, and exact date.
- Format published interviews as recoverable sources in the reference list with full publication details.
- Verify capitalization, italics, and punctuation to ensure professional presentation.
- Prioritize page numbers or timestamps to help readers locate specific content.
- Follow institutional or publisher guidelines if they differ from standard APA practice.
FAQ
Reader questions
How do I cite an interview I conducted myself in APA?
In text, provide the interviewer’s last name, initials, year, and exact date in parentheses, for example (Smith, J. A., 2023, October 12). Do not include personal interviews in your reference list.
How should I format a published interview in the reference list?
List the interviewee as author, followed by the year, interview title in sentence case, publication title in italics, volume and issue numbers, page range or timestamp, and the URL if available.
What if the interview has no listed author or interviewer?
Use the interview title as the author in both the in-text citation and the reference list, and alphabetize the entry by the first significant word of the title. Treat them as recoverable online sources; include the host or producer if relevant, the year, episode or timestamp, the platform, and the URL, adjusting format based on your specific source details.