MLA - scholarly journal article

Formats (Electronic)

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers. Name of Database, doi:Digital Object Identifier.

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers. Name of Database, dx.doi.org/10.xxxxxxx.

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers. Name of Database, URL.

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers. Publisher or Sponsor of the Site, URL.

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication. Publisher or Sponsor of the site, URL.

Include the DOI number (Digital Object Identifier), if the article has one, and add the name of the database where applicable. The DOI resolver can be used to find a DOI from the citation details if it is not given on the publication. If there is no DOI assigned, MLA 8 recommends adding the URL, even though it may change, as it may still be possible to find the source from an outdated URL. Use a permalink if possible and omit http://www.

Format (Print)

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers.

Examples

Langhamer, Claire. "Love and Courtship in Mid-Twentieth-Century England." Historical Journal, vol. 50, no. 1, 2007, pp. 173-196. ProQuest, doi:10.1017/S0018246X06005966.

Wheelis, Mark. "Investigating Disease Outbreaks Under a Protocol to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention." Emerging Infectious Diseases, vol. 6, no. 6, 2000, pp. 595-600. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/6/6/00-0607_article. 

Dare, Tim. "Lawyers, Ethics, and to Kill a Mockingbird." Philosophy and Literature, vol. 25, no. 1, 2001, pp. 127-141.

Reverse the order of the first author's name. Place a comma preceding an ‘and’ before the second author's name.

Format

Author One, and Author Two. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers.

Example

Dickie, John, and Geraldine McDonald. "Literacy in Church and Family Sites through the Eyes of Samoan Children in New Zealand." Literacy, vol. 45, no. 1, 2011, pp. 25-31.

See One Author above for Formats (Electronic and Print)

Include only the first author's name, followed by ‘et al.’

Format

Author One, et al. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume. no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers.

Example

Bingham, Tricia, et al. "Paint Me a Picture: Translating Academic Integrity Policies and Regulations into Visual Content for an Online Course." International Journal for Educational Integrity, vol. 12, no. 1, 2016, pp. 1-13.

See One Author above for Formats (Electronic and Print)

Include the DOI number (Digital Object Identifier), if the article has one, and add the name of the database. The DOI resolver can be used to find a DOI from the citation details if it is not given on the publication. If there is no DOI assigned, MLA 8 recommends adding the URL, even though it may change, as it may still be possible to find the source from an outdated URL. Use a permalink if possible and omit http://www.

Format

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers. Name of Database, doi:Digital Object Identifier.

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers. Name of Database, dx.doi.org/10.xxxxxxx.

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers. Name of Database, URL.

Example

Langhamer, Claire. "Love and Courtship in Mid-Twentieth-Century England." Historical Journal, vol. 50, no. 1, 2007, pp. 173-196. ProQuest, doi:10.1017/S0018246X06005966.

MLA 8 recommends adding the URL, even though it may change, as it may still be possible to find the source from an outdated URL. Use a permalink if possible and omit http://www.

Note: If the journal is an online version of a print publication, include the page numbers of the article you are citing. If it is only available online, it may not have page numbers.

Format

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication, pp. page numbers. Publisher or Sponsor of the Site, URL.

Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication, vol. volume, no. issue, year of publication. Publisher or Sponsor of the site, URL.

Examples

Wheelis, Mark. "Investigating Disease Outbreaks Under a Protocol to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention." Emerging Infectious Diseases, vol. 6, no. 6, 2000, pp. 595-600. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/6/6/00-0607_article.

Delahunt, John W., et al. "Specialist Services for Management of Individuals Identifying as Transgender in New Zealand." The New Zealand Medical Journal (Online), vol. 129, 2016. The New Zealand Medical Journal, nzma.org.nz/journal/read-the-journal/all-issues/2010-2019/2016/vol-129-no-1434-6-may-2016/6882.

• ... it was the case as shown in a recent study (Dare 131). His other finding was that pass rates increased (139).
• In a recent study, Dare showed that this was indeed the case (131). His other finding was that pass rates increased (139).

• A recent study showed that learning in pairs had a positive effect (Dickie and McDonald 26). Another positive outcome was that students were more engaged (31).
• In a recent study, Dickie and McDonald showed that learning in pairs had a positive effect (26). Another positive outcome was that students were more engaged (31).

When the work has three or more authors, either cite all names as they appear in the article, or only the first author, followed by et al.

• A recent study showed that the use of illustrations helped students to understand abstract concepts more readily (Bingham et al. 7). Another finding was that the students were more engaged (11).
• In a recent study, Bingham et al. showed that the use of illustrations helped students to understand abstract concepts more readily (7). Another finding was that the students were more engaged (11).

Page numbering may not be a feature of online journals, therefore it may pay to include more explicit numbering to guide the reader to the correct section. This might take the form of sections (sec.), chapter (ch.), part (pt.) or paragraph (par.). See also abbreviations.

• ... it was the case in a recent study (Brown sec. 2; par. 5).
• ... it was the case in Smith's recent study (pars. 18-19).
• ... it was the case in his latest findings (Kirkbride "Conclusion"; par. 9).