Crafting Your Reference List Entry
Tip: Many of the elements included in the general interview reference template won’t be available for every source. Only include the information that’s available or applicable to your source and leave the rest out. There’s no need to indicate in any way that certain elements were unavailable.
Harvard General Interview Template
How To Cite An Interview In Apa
In APA citation, the interviews that you perform yourself have a different format as compared to published interviews. When citing the latter, the standard format of the source that it was published is to be followed. On the other hand, your own interview that is not accessible to the reader should not be added in the reference list. It is instead cited in the text as a personal communication.
Citing A Published Interview
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Quoting Your Research Participants
If your research methodology involved conducting formal interviews with participants, transcripts of these interviews are typically included in an appendix. You dont need citations when quoting your research participants just mention where the transcripts can be found.
This only needs to be mentioned once dont refer to the appendix every time you quote from it. Similar advice applies to surveys.
How To Cite An Interview You Conducted On Your Own

Unpublished or personal interviews are interviews conducted by yourself. You must indicate where the information can be found. In this case, you are supposed to add the name of the interview and interviewee. Also, it is crucial to indicate the descriptor personal interview as well as the date the interview occurred.
Key to note when learning how to cite an own interview that you have conducted cannot be put in the reference list. This is due to the fact that it cant be retrieved by your readers. The manner in which you will refer in the text will depend on if you will include the interview transcript in the appendix. An example of how to cite an interview that is unpublished would look like this:
Vernie, Murray. Personal Interview. 23 March 2021.
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Creating Apa Citation For A Personal Interview
You may have questions about how you cite an interview you conducted in APA style. This is rather simple.You should list the name of a person , then, specify date and type of interview.Hover over this example to get a better idea. Or you can always pay people to do your homework and avoid any possible trouble.
Accurate Mla 8 Interview Citation Style
Knowing how to quote an interview in MLA can come in handy. Using personal or published interviews is a good way to give your readers a direct link to the mind of your subject. You can direct your questions to help guide your project and develop your thesis. Cite your sources in MLA format accurately so researchers can readily access your reference material.
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Solution #: How To Cite A Text Message Or Personal Email In Apa
Personal emails or text messages are considered forms of personal communication. Since they are unpublished and cannot be accessed by anyone else, they should not be included on the reference sheet. An in-text citation should be made indicating that it was obtained through personal communication, including the persons name and the date that the communication happened.
Structure:
Example:
Interview Published As An Online Article
In-text citation, parenthetical example:In-text citation, narrative example:Reference list entry example:
MacInnes, P. . Ellie Simmonds: Ive found the expectations harder as Ive got older. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/aug/24/ellie-simmonds-expectations-tokyo-paralympics-interview
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Before You Do An Interview
There are some things that you should consider before you reach out to an expert for an interview. First and foremost, do not interview someone about the information that is easily available in . You are responsible for conducting your own background research on a topic.
Once you have done a thorough literature review and it becomes clear that there are knowledge gaps in the information that is publicly available, then consider reaching out to an expert for additional insight.
Next, you should always approach the interview subject respectfully.
- Be observant of their time constraints
- Be willing to conduct the interview on the subjects schedule
- Conduct the interview in the manner that best suits the subjects needs, whether it is by phone, interview, or text
- Have your questions prepared in advance
- Send a follow-up note or email thanking them for their time
How To Cite An Unpublished Interview
Unpublished interviews are normally only cited in the text or in notes, but if you include an unpublished interview in your bibliography, the citation should include the name of the interviewee, the interviewer, some identifying information if necessary or appropriate, the place and date of the interview, and where a transcript or recording is available .
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How Do I Cite An Interview Published In A Collection Of Interviews If The Interview Was Conducted By The Books Author
Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook.
Follow the MLA format template. List the interviewee as the author, followed by the title of the chapter in which the interview appears. List the title of the book as the title of the container and the author of the book as an other contributor. Then list the publication details and the page range for the chapter:
Bechdel, Alison. Alison Bechdel . Outside the Box: Interviews with Contemporary Cartoonists, by Hillary L. Chute, U of Chicago P, 2014, pp. 15576.
Note that this example is an exception to our guidelines for citing a chapter in a book by one author. You would normally create an entry only for the book, not for an individual chapter. But since, by convention, the interviewee is considered the author of an interview, the chapter containing the interview is cited separately. If, however, you cite several interviews in the book and your discussion focuses on the work of the interviewer, then you might create an entry for the book as a whole and key your in-text citations for the interviews to it.
How Do I Cite A Personal Interview That Occurred On More Than One Day

Note: This post relates to content in the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. For up-to-date guidance, see the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook.
To cite a personal interview that occurred on more than one day, begin by following the MLA format template. In general, treat the person being interviewed as the author. Then follow the guidelines on pages 2829 of the MLA Handbook and include the description interview as the Title of source element. You may list the interviewers name as an Other contributor after the description. In the Publication date slot, treat the dates of the interview as a range if they are consecutive:
Cohen, Allan. Interview. Conducted by Christine Stevens, 24-25 May 2016.
If the dates are not consecutive, treat them as a series:
Doe, Jane. Interview. Conducted by John Smith, 3 and 6 Aug. 2017.
Doe, John. Interview. Conducted by Jorge Menocal, 2, 3, and 7 Sept. 2016.
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Interview In A Journal
For an interview published in an academic journal, you need to include the journal name, volume and number, the date or year, and the page range. If you accessed the interview on an online database, include the name of the database and the DOI or stable URL.
SignsJSTOR
Read more about MLA journal citations.
How To Cite An Interview In An Apa Reference Page
Now, we will cover how to cite an interview on the APA reference page. Please note that only published ones, like those found on websites or in magazines, can be placed on your Reference page because they can be easily retrieved by readers.When it comes to citing an interview, it largely depends on the format that it was conducted in. For example, if it was a podcast conference, then you would cite it like you would a podcast.However, if you are not sure how to cite an interview on an APA reference page, there are a few things that you can do to make sure you have all information. Include as many of these as possible.Source should contain the following:
Let’s take a look at an example of citing a magazine.
These are some basic elements that you should look for when you are citing an interview. Now, we will discuss how to cite other kinds.
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When To Use An Interview
There are a number of reasons why you might want to conduct an interview to gather information for your paper.
Some reasons you might want to use an interview:
- You have further questions that you want to ask an expert or researcher
- The written information on a topic is scant
- An expert is able to offer specific insights that you cannot find elsewhere
How To Cite A Website Interview In Apa
When you are making an APA citation for an online interview, there are a few things writers should keep in mind.Because this is a published interview, you should mention the name of an author – last name and first initial. Then, a year of publication, month, and day it was made. After that, include the title of your web page in italics, then cite name, its URL. Also, don’t forget about the right capitalization. For fast conversion, you can use Case Converter.Lets look at the example below.
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Radio Interview Recording In A Digital Archive
When referencing an interview that is housed in a digital or a physical archive, you must credit the interviewee as the author.
In-text citation, parenthetical example:
In-text citation, narrative example:
Reference list entry examples:
Krashen, S. . The basics of writing . USC Archive University of Southern California. https://libraries.usc.edu/locations/special-collections-department/university-archives
Heres a quick video overview of how to cite an interview in APA:
Interview From A Research Participant
Quotations from a research participant are from your original research therefore, they are not included in the reference list or treated as personal communications. When citing a direct quotation from a participants interview, indicate in the text that the quotation is coming from a participant.
In-text example:
Participant Steven described his experience at the company as difficult but rewarding.
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How To Cite An Interview In Apa Style
Published on November 6, 2020 by Jack Caulfield. Revised on June 17, 2022.
APA 7th edition
In APA Style, published interviews are cited in a different format from interviews you conducted yourself.
An interview you conducted yourself that cant be accessed by the reader should not be included in the reference list. Instead, its cited as a personal communication in the text.
To cite a published interview, follow the standard format for the source type it was published in .
Citing An Interview In Mla Style

In an MLA Works Cited entry for an interview published in a newspaper, you list the interviewee in the author element. Clarify who conducted the interview after the title, and use the interviewees name in the MLA in-text citation.
MLA format | Interviewee last name, First name. Interview Title. Interview by Interviewer first name Last name. Newspaper Name, Day Month Year, URL. or p. Page number. |
---|
1. Kazuo Ishiguro: AI, Gene-Editing, Big Data I Worry We Are Not in Control of These Things Any More,’ interview by Lisa Allardice, Guardian, February 20, 2021, https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/feb/20/kazuo-ishiguro-klara-and-the-sun-interview.
2. Ishiguro, AI, Gene-Editing, Big Data. |
For interviews published in other source types, follow the relevant format , always listing the interviewee as the author.
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How To Cite In
An APA citation for personal interview has a strict guideline. Everyone should follow it when it comes to making sure it is cited correctly. A personal interview is more of an intangible thing: it isn’t published so readers can’t pull it up to see it themselves. Telephone conversations, text messages, and social media messages. All of these fall under this umbrella term.Because you cannot publish these for readers to see, they cannot be listed in your Reference Page, and so should be included only in in-text citations where they appear.In this case, what should be included in parenthesis after paraphrased or quoted material? It’s simple: just write the first initial of the first name, followed by the last name of an interviewee. Then add some words like “personal communication” and its date.Let’s look at an example below.
Citing Personal Communications In Mla Referencing
Personal communications include letters, emails, and personal interviews. And while these are not conventional academic sources, you may need to cite one on occasion .
To cite them in the main text of an essay, MLA requires you to either:
- Mention the name of the person who sent it or the interviewee in the text.
- Add the surname of the sender/interviewee in brackets.
So, for instance, we could cite an email in the text in either fashion:
In an email, Dr. Rochester claimed his research had been inconclusive.
The team leader considered the research inconclusive .
It simply depends on which style works best in context! If youre citing more than one personal communication from the same person, moreover, make sure to include a title in each citation .
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How To Note The Type Of Interview
The APA offers some guidelines for how to handle different types of interviews:
- Personal interviews: Whether your interview was conducted in person or via text or telephone, you should cite the information as a personal communication.
- Emails: Because emails are not retrievable by other readers, the APA considers these as personal communications. They should be cited only in-text just as other interview sources and should not be included in your reference list.
- Class lectures: Like emails, information taken from a class lecture, guest lecture, or group discussion cannot be accessed by other readers, so it should be cited as personal communication.
- Research interviews: If you are interviewing a research subject, you will need to preserve the participants anonymity for ethical reasons. When referring to a specific participant, whether by summarizing their results or directly quoting their comments, you should be careful to avoid providing any identifying information. You might simply state that the individual is a participant or you might refer to them by non-identifying letters or nicknames .
Why Interview Citations Are Important
In any writing project you undertake, its incredibly important to cite all relevant sources that youve referenced in that project. Failing to attribute a fact or statement to the appropriate source is not just unprofessional and unethical it also can get you in trouble at work, or could be a violation of your schools academic integrity policy. Proper citation of all your reference sources can help you avoid all that.
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