Research Guide: Citations

Images, Charts, Tables, Graphs - APA

Images, Charts, Tables, Graphs Inserted into Essays & Presentations

You are required to cite images that you insert into essays and visual presentations.
Note: For artificial intelligence-created images, see: Images Generated by an AI Tool 

In the body of the essay or in a visual presentation:

  • Above the image:
    • Include the bolded word Figure and the number of the figure (you would need to number any subsequent figures sequentially in your paper)
    • Include the title of the image in title-case italics.  If the image does not have a given title, give your own short description of the image where you would normally put the title.
  • Below the image:
    • Include this word in italics: Note.
    • Include citation information in this format (note that this is a different format than the formal APA citation that you include on the References page):
      • for webpages:
        • Title of Webpage in Italics and Title Case, by A. Author and B. Author, year, Site Name (URL). Copyright Year by Name of Copyright Holder
      • for articles:
        • “Title of Article in Title Case” by A. Author and B. Author, year, Title of Periodical, Volume(Issue), p. xx (DOI or URL). Copyright Year by Name of Copyright Holder.
Example:

Figure 1

More Farmers in Peru Have Stopped Planting Coca, Opting for Cacao and Coffee

More Farmers in Peru Have Stopped Planting Coca, Opting for Cacao and Coffee

Note. From Peruvian Prosperity: From Coca Farmer to Chocolate Maker, by N. Guitierrez, 2016, USAID (https://www.usaid.gov/results-data/success-stories/coca-farmer-chocolate-maker). Copyright 2016 by USAID.

 

On the References page:
  • include the entire formal APA citation for the source
    Example:

    USAID. (2016, September). Peruvian prosperity: From coca farmer to chocolate maker. https://www.usaid.gov/results-data/success-stories/coca-farmer-chocolate-maker

 

Images, Charts, Tables, Graphs Not Inserted but Referred to into Essays & Presentations

If you refer to information from an image, chart, table or graph, but do not insert it in your essay or presentation, create a citation both in-text and on your Reference list.

If the information is part of another format, for example a book, magazine article, encyclopedia, etc., cite the work it came from.

  • Example: if information came from a table in an article in National Geographic magazine, you would cite the entire article.
  • Example citation: Image from a Website

If you are only making a passing reference to a well known image, you would not have to cite it, e.g. describing someone as having a Mona Lisa smile.

 

Verbal Citations in Speeches and Presentations

Are you speaking during your presentation and need to cite sources verbally?  Check out these tips:

Additional Resources

Quick Guide - APA

Quick Guide - APA Citation Style