Ampersand in Citations
The style rule governing when '&' replaces 'and' between author names.
Several citation systems distinguish between parenthetical and narrative positions. APA, for instance, uses an ampersand inside parentheses — (Smith & Okoro, 2021) — and the word 'and' when the names appear in the sentence itself: Smith and Okoro (2021) argued.
The rule extends to reference lists, where APA places an ampersand before the final author, while Chicago and MLA prefer 'and' throughout. Getting this wrong is the fastest way to reveal that a bibliography was assembled from mixed sources.
The distinction is mechanical, which makes it a good final-pass check: search the document for '&' and confirm each instance is inside parentheses or in the reference list, per your chosen guide.
Common mistake: using an ampersand in a company or journal name that spells the word out, or spelling out a name that officially contains '&'. Proper nouns follow the source, not the style guide.
“Narrative: Kahneman and Tversky (1979) showed… Parenthetical: (Kahneman & Tversky, 1979)”
Keep reading the glossary
A citation family that identifies sources in text by author surname and year of publication.
Latin for 'and others' — used in citations of multi-author works.
A formal reference that lets a reader locate the source of a quote.
The list of works cited or consulted, printed at the end of a book, chapter, or article.