AMA Style Citations and Bibliography Format

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AMA Style Citations and Bibliography Format

When writing a paper with AMA style citations and bibliography format for an educational institution, it is necessary to follow a certain procedure and format for citing the references used.  In many cases, the instructor will specify the type of format that is to be used for a particular report.  If not, one can assume that the proper format is the AMA style if the article is to be written on a topic that is related to health, medicine, or the biological sciences.

There are several formatting rules that must be adhered to when utilizing the AMA style of citation and bibliography format.  For example, the items that are cited with this format must be listed numerically and they are listed in the order that they are cited within the text.  Similarly, there are times when italics may be used when utilizing the AMA format, though this may not be possible when using a typewriter.  If this is the case, the items that should be italicized should be underlined instead.

When citing a work used in the report, there are specific formats to be used with writing author names, locations, titles of works, and more.  When writing an author's name, for example, the writer must write the author's last name first and then use initials for the author's first and second names.  No spaces should be placed between these initials.  Similarly, the writer should include only up to six authors for a particular piece.  If the piece has more than six authors, the writer should only list the first three authors and then follow this information with the words "et al" to signify that there are additional authors.  If the work does not provide an author's name, the writer will start with the title instead when citing the work.  

When citing a book, the writer needs t include some very specific information.  For example, there should be an edition statement included in this citation.  If it is the third edition of the work, this would be written as 3rd ed.  if it is a revised edition, this would be written as Rev ed.  Regardless of the edition, this information should be written between the title and the place where the work was published.  It should be noted, however, that it is not necessary to include this type of notation if it is the first edition.

When writing the place where the work was published, the writer should use abbreviations when naming the state.  It is not necessary, however, to include postal codes when listing states.

If citing a journal, the writer must abbreviate the titles as shown within the Index Medicus.  If the journal does not continuously paginate, it is also necessary to include the month and the day of its publication.

Websites can also be tricky to properly cite in an AMA style reference project.  Nonetheless, the writer must find the name of the webpage and must also keep track of the date on which the page was accessed.  The name of the site and the name of the person that authored the webpage's content must also be recorded.

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