ASA Book Citations
Learn to cite sociology textbooks, social theory, and methodology guides using the American Sociological Association (ASA) style guidelines.
ASA Book Citation Format
The American Sociological Association (ASA) style uses an author-date citation system for books, with specific formatting requirements for sociological literature.
Standard Format:
Author, First Name. Year. Title of Book. City: Publisher.
Sociology Textbooks
Single Author Textbook:
Giddens, Anthony. 2023. Sociology. 9th ed. Cambridge: Polity Press.
In-text citation: Modern sociological theories continue to evolve (Giddens 2023).
Multiple Authors:
Ritzer, George and Jeffrey Stepnisky. 2023. Sociological Theory. 11th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill Education.
In-text citation: Classical and contemporary theories are comprehensively covered (Ritzer and Stepnisky 2023).
Edited Volume:
Calhoun, Craig, Joseph Gerteis, James Moody, Steven Pfaff, and Indermohan Virk, editors. 2023. Classical Sociological Theory. 4th ed. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.
In-text citation: Foundational theoretical perspectives are essential (Calhoun et al. 2023).
Social Theory and Research Methods
Research Methods Book:
Babbie, Earl Richard. 2023. The Practice of Social Research. 16th ed. Boston: Cengage Learning.
Qualitative Methods:
Charmaz, Kathy. 2023. Constructing Grounded Theory: A Practical Guide Through Qualitative Analysis. 3rd ed. London: SAGE Publications.
Social Theory Monograph:
Bourdieu, Pierre. 2023. The Logic of Practice. Translated by Richard Nice. 2nd ed. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
Book Chapters and Sections
Chapter in Edited Volume:
Collins, Patricia Hill. 2023. "Intersectionality and Social Theory." Pp. 134-158 in Contemporary Feminist Theory, edited by Ruth Wallace. 5th ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Chapter by Different Authors:
Wilson, William Julius and Richard P. Taub. 2023. "Urban Poverty and Social Isolation." Pp. 245-267 in The Urban Condition: People and Policy in the Metropolis, edited by Leonard Duhl and John Powell. 3rd ed. New York: Basic Books.
Electronic and Online Books
E-book with DOI:
Castells, Manuel. 2023. The Information Age: Economy, Society, and Culture. 2nd ed. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. doi:10.1002/9781119579526
Online Book with URL:
Putnam, Robert D. 2023. Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Simon & Schuster. Retrieved March 15, 2023 (https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Bowling-Alone/Robert-D-Putnam/9780743203043).
Open Access Publication:
Fraser, Nancy. 2023. Justice Interruptus: Critical Reflections on the "Postsocialist" Condition. New York: Routledge. Retrieved March 20, 2023 (https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781315821740).
Specialized Sociological Literature
Ethnographic Monograph:
Anderson, Elijah. 2023. Code of the Street: Decency, Violence, and the Moral Life of the Inner City. Updated ed. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
Social Policy Analysis:
Hacker, Jacob S. and Paul Pierson. 2023. Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made the Rich Richer—and Turned Its Back on the Middle Class. 2nd ed. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Comparative Sociology:
Esping-Andersen, Gøsta. 2023. The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism. 2nd ed. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
ASA Book Citation Guidelines
Author Name Format:
Use full first and last names when available. For multiple authors, list all names for up to three authors. For four or more authors, use "et al." after the first author's name in in-text citations only.
Title Formatting:
Italicize book titles and use title case capitalization. Subtitles should be separated by a colon and also italicized.
Edition Information:
Include edition information when it's not the first edition. Use abbreviations: 2nd ed., 3rd ed., etc.
Publisher Information:
Include the city of publication and publisher name. For well-known cities, state abbreviations are not necessary.
Quality Assessment for Sociology:
When selecting sociological literature, consider:
- Academic credentials and reputation of authors
- Publisher's reputation for scholarly work
- Peer review process and editorial standards
- Relevance to current sociological debates
- Methodological rigor in empirical studies
- Citation impact and influence in the field
Page Numbers for Chapters:
When citing book chapters, use "Pp." before page ranges (e.g., Pp. 134-158). This distinguishes book chapters from journal articles.
Translated Works:
For translated books, include translator information after the title: "Translated by [Name]."