How do I cite something with no page numbers?

Question

I am in the process of writing a paper, and I have a few sources from databases where the page numbers are written as n.p. How do I properly parenthetically cite this in my paper? Can I just put (Author n.p.)? I need help!

Answer 1

You need to let us know which citation style your teacher is requiring. If it's MLA, then you do not put in page numbers if the source does not have them.

Example:

According to Smith, "Forty percent of left-handed people die before the age of forty." (This is correct because you mentioned the author's name in a signal phrase and there are no page numbers.)

Many left handed people might be shocked to know that "Forty percent of left-handed people die before the age of forty" (Smith). (This is correct because you HAVEN'T named the author in a signal phrase and there are no page numbers.)

If your teacher requires some thing other than MLA (APA, Chicago), you can find answers at http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/ or (for APA) http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/ .

P.S. I totally made up this statistic! As far as I know, left-handed people are capable of living perfectly normal, long lives. :)