APA (American Psychological Association) 7th is an author-date referencing style where you have an in-text citation and a related entry in a reference list at the end of your document.

APA 7th - e-mails or personal communications

Personal communications e.g., emails, text messages, online chats, memos, letters, personal interviews, telephone conversations, live speeches, and unrecorded classroom lectures are not retrievable and therefore are not included in the reference list. They only appear in the text.

Do not include personal communication in your reference list.

Personal communication may be letters, memos, some electronic communications (e.g., emails or messages from non-archived discussion groups or bulletin boards), personal interviews, telephone conversations and lectures. Cite personal communications in the text only; they are not included in the reference list. 

In the body of your text you need the following: Initials and Surname of communicator, and provide an exact a date as possible.

 Format:

Author (personal communication, Month Day, Year).

Example:

• ... in a recent e-mail conversation (A. D. Smith, personal communication, August 15, 2017). 

• In a lecture, K. Brown (personal communication, April 4, 2017) suggested that history ...  

When citing Indigenous oral traditions and traditional knowledge, if the information has been recorded or is recoverable (e.g., a book, published interview, video, etc.), use the appropriate referencing type and cite it in the text and in the reference list, as a YouTube video, etc.

If you spoke to an Indigenous person and the information is not recorded or recoverable (and they were not your research participant), treat it as a personal communication, and only include it in the text, not in the reference list, but add additional information (persons full name, indigenous group, location, personal communication, date/date range you conversed with them).

Format:

Author (iwi (tribe, nation, the person belongs to), where they live (city, country), personal communication, Month Day, Year).

Example:

• We spoke with researcher, Manuhiri Huatahi (Ngāti Kauwhata, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, lives in Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa, personal communication, January 12, 2022) about liasing with Māori academics.

• ... when researching (Manuhiri Huatahi, Ngāti Kauwhata, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, lives in Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa).

Note. Ensure the person agrees to their name, iwi, and preferred name for the city (e.g., Tāmaki Makaurau or Auckland) and country (e.g., Aotearoa or New Zealand) being included in your writing and confirm that the information you are presenting is accurate and appropriate.

For more information see the APA 7th manual, pp. 142-145, 260-261.

If you are an Indigenous person and are sharing your own experiences/knowledge, do not use personal communication or provide a reference list entry, just describe yourself in the text (e.g., what iwi/nation you belong to, and where you live).

See also: Multiple works by the same author, Similar information from multiple works, One source quoted in another

An example paragraph

See also: more on paraphrasing ...

Direct quotes of less than 40 words require quotation marks and the page number/s.

• A. D. Smith (personal communication, August 15, 2017) observed that "students perform better when rested".
• Research suggests that "history repeats itself" (K. Brown, personal communication, April 4, 2017).

See also: more on quoting, including long quotes ...

This material is based on the Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (2020). For further information, please consult the manual directly.