APA 7th Edition is the most commonly used referencing style here at the University of Portsmouth. Below you will find general guidance on how to reference and cite using APA 7th Edition, as well as examples for the specific sources you are likely to use in your assignments. 

Your department or lecturer may prefer you to reference sources differently from the guidance given here. Always follow the requirements of your department or lecturer. 

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We advise all students to check the University guidance on using AI regularly, and particularly before submitting your work, so that you are are aware of the most up to date advice prior to using AI in your initial thinking or assignment. There is also guidance for University Staff on using AI in teaching and assessment. In additon the Library has created a set of webpages to help you develop your AI literacy. 

AI software is a rapidly expanding area and we will be adding more examples to this section as we identify which ones are most popular. Currently you should adapt the example for ChatGPT below as it can be used as a template for any generative AI software.

This advice was updated 1st November 2023

Artificial Intelligence (AI), such as ChatGPT, can be used as a tool to help assist and inform the initial development of your writing and other outputs but it is not a replacement for your own critical thinking and analysis. Your final assignment must be your own work. You should never just copy from an AI generator in whole or in part, and you should clearly indicate where AI-generated material has been used.

 

Content generated by AI software is an evolving field, and APA's official advice is still being developed and debated. The following advice is interim advice and is subject to change. Please check before submitting your work to see if the advice here has altered.

 

APA now advises that ChatGPT should be referenced in the same way as an algorithm and should be included in the reference list using the format below:  

 

ChatGPT conversation using a shared link 

ChatGPT now allows users to generate a unique shared link to a ChatGPT conversation, which can be included in your reference. ChatGPT provide guidance on how to generate a shared link. Please read this information carefully, especially the sections on how your conversation can be used by others. As your conversation will be available to anyone with the shared link you should not share sensitive or personal information. 

A shared link is a snapshot of that entire conversation up to the point it is being shared. This means if there are many prompts/responses in the conversation, all of them will be included. Once a shared link is created for a specific conversation or message, it will not include any future messages added to the conversation after the link was generated. This means that if you continue the conversation after creating the shared link, those additional messages will not be visible through the shared link unless you delete the link and regenerate it. 

If you delete the ChatGPT conversation, the shared link in your reference will no longer work. 

You should use a shared link in your reference unless your conversation includes sensitive information.

 
Reference List 

Author. (Year of the version used.). Title (Version number) [Large language model]. Shared Link 

OpenAI. (2023, October 23). ChatGPT (Sep 25, 2023 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/share/568554f1-5198-4ee7-af86-8ef3f7d364dc

The version number/date can be found at the bottom of the ChatGPT screen.

 
In-text Citation 

You should include the prompt you used in your text to provide your reader with additional context. 

When prompted with “What are the themes in Jane Eyre?” the ChatGPT-generated text indicated that morality is a major theme suggesting that "Jane's strong moral compass and her commitment to living according to her principles are evident throughout the novel" (OpenAI, 2023).

 

 

ChatGPT conversation without a shared link

If your ChatGPT conversation contains sensitive information that you are not happy to share via a public link you can use the homepage URL instead.

 
Reference List 

Author. (Year of the version used.). Title (Version number) [Large language model]. URL 

OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Sep 25, 2023 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com

 
In-text Citation 

If you are not linking to the text of your ChatGPT conversation via a shared link then APA suggests including the full ChatGPT transcript as an Appendix to your assignment. Please check with your lecturer to see if they wish you to do this. 


ChatGPT was prompted to "determine three prominent themes in Emily Dickinson's poetry", and identified "love, death and religion" as the most touched on themes of her work (OpenAI, 2023; see Appendix A for the full transcript).

 

Images produced using an AI tool

To include the image in your work, follow the same formatting guidance as for any other image. Below the image provide a caption that explains that the work was generated using an AI tool, and what prompt was used. No reference list entry is required for an image that you have produced using an AI tool.

For example:

 

Figure 1

 

An AI-generated image of a restaurant.

figure image

Note. Image generated using Ideogram.ai from the prompt: A photo of a busy restaurant with views of the sea. The room is filled with wooden tables and chairs. There's a bar in the corner. The walls are adorned with modern lights and abstract artwork. The ceiling has exposed wooden beams. The lighting is warm and soft. 
 

 

AI-generated images reproduced in a published source

If you use AI-generated images reproduced in a published source (e.g. a newspaper article), follow the formatting guidance for an image and include an in-text citation to the source in the Note. 

Include the published source in your reference list using the guidelines for the relevant source type.

It may be helpful for you to state that the image is AI-generated in the caption and/or note.

For example:

 

Figure 1

 

Jason Allen’s AI-generated work, Théâtre D’opéra Spatial

(image)

Note. From Roose, 2022.

 

The reference list entry for this would be:

Roose, K. (2022, September 2). An A.I.-generated picture won an art prize. Artists aren’t happy. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/02/technology/ai-artificial-intelligence-artists.html

If a published source attributes AI as the author, you should treat the source as having no author. 

If a combination of human and AI authors are given, use only the human authors in the reference and citation. You do not need to additionally state that AI was also used, as the human authors are currently held responsible for the content.