Sources with no page numbers
Answer
In most cases, you should pinpoint the location in a document that you are quoting or paraphrasing with a page number or reference point. However, there are exceptions to this. You will not need a page number or reference point if:
- You are summarising a whole document or large proportion of it. or an overarching argument that is providing the structure for what the document is discussing
- The document is one page long, or is a short webpage
If neither of these is true, but there are no page numbers, you can use the following:
Location codes, progress percentages, or section numbers
These are often found in books downloaded to e-readers (such as Amazon Kindles) and in some online e-book readers. They can be used in place of page numbers in in-text citation as long as you use the appropritate reference list guidance to indicate that this is the type of e-book you have used.*
Examples
(Austen, 2008, loc 2433)
(Sanghera, 2015, 64%)
(Douglas, 2016, s.5 p.3)
Headings and paragraph numbers
Use these when you are referencing a long online document, such as an online journal article, where there are no other page numbers or reference points available. You may need to use both a heading and a paragraph number if the section your quote or paraphrase is from has more than 3 or 4 paragraphs.
Examples
(Patel and Amin, 2020, 'Introduction')
(Webster, 2014, para.23)
(Sweeney, 2001, 'Interventions', para.16)
* See the reference lists: guide and examples for "E-book downloaded to an e-reader" or "Book read or downloaded in an accessible format from RNIB Bookshare" for help creating these reference list entries.
