Reference-author issues found by Mentur
Correct names, author order, separators, and uses of et al. within a reference entry.
Updated August 9, 2026
By Equipo Mentur
On this page
How to review authors
The author element identifies the person, group, or organization responsible for the work. Check surnames, initials, order, and separators within the reference.
Do not copy the abbreviated form of an in-text citation into the reference. A reference may include a longer author list and does not use et al. as a general replacement. When author and source appear duplicated, confirm whether the organization fills both roles before removing information.
The Authors in APA references guide explains individual authors, group authors, multiple authors, and missing information.
Issues Mentur may show
Find the same title shown in your report. Each explanation helps you understand the result, apply the correction, and consult the related APA rule.
Warning
Author and source information appear duplicated
What we found
In this reference, the corporate author’s name appears again as the publisher or website in the source. Within the reference list, the source tells readers where they can find the work and changes with the type of material: it may be a publisher, journal, website, repository, DOI, or URL. None of these details belongs in every reference, so first identify what kind of work was used.
How to fix it
- 1In the report, open the observation titled “Author and source information appear duplicated” and use its location or highlighted evidence to find the affected content.
- 2Review author, date, title, source, DOI or URL, retrieval date, punctuation, order, and hanging indent as applicable.
- 3Read the complete entry after the change. Confirm its punctuation and order, then check whether its author and date match the corresponding in-text citation when applicable.
It should look like this:
World Health Organization. (2023). Title of the page. https://example.comAPA criterion
APA Publication Manual, 7th ed., Chapters 9 and 10: reference entries include the information readers need to identify and retrieve each source.
Read the rule in the APA guideWarning
Et al. is not allowed in the reference
What we found
The author list in this reference is abbreviated. In the reference list, the author is the first element of each entry and may be a person or an organization. Its form and the order of multiple authors determine how the list is arranged and should match the name readers see in the in-text citation.
How to fix it
- 1In the report, open the observation titled “Et al. is not allowed in the reference” and use its location or highlighted evidence to find the affected content.
- 2List every author up to 20. For 21 or more authors, include the first 19, an ellipsis, and the final author.
- 3Read the complete entry after the change. Confirm its punctuation and order, then check whether its author and date match the corresponding in-text citation when applicable.
It should look like this:
García, A. A., Pérez, B. B., & López, C. C.APA criterion
APA Publication Manual, 7th ed., Section 9.8: the author element lists up to 20 names and uses the ellipsis format for 21 or more authors.
Read the rule in the APA guideCritical
Author format is incorrect
What we found
In this reference, the author’s name does not follow the expected APA format. In the reference list, the author is the first element of each entry and may be a person or an organization. Its form and the order of multiple authors determine how the list is arranged and should match the name readers see in the in-text citation.
How to fix it
- 1In the report, open the observation titled “Author format is incorrect” and use its location or highlighted evidence to find the affected content.
- 2Write the surname first, followed by initials with periods and spaces. Example: García, J. A.
- 3Read the complete entry after the change. Confirm its punctuation and order, then check whether its author and date match the corresponding in-text citation when applicable.
It should look like this:
García, J. A.APA criterion
APA Publication Manual, 7th ed., Chapters 9 and 10: reference entries include the information readers need to identify and retrieve each source.
Read the rule in the APA guideWarning
Author list has incorrect formatting
What we found
The authors in this reference are not separated correctly. In the reference list, the author is the first element of each entry and may be a person or an organization. Its form and the order of multiple authors determine how the list is arranged and should match the name readers see in the in-text citation.
How to fix it
- 1In the report, open the observation titled “Author list has incorrect formatting” and use its location or highlighted evidence to find the affected content.
- 2For two to 20 authors, list every name and place an ampersand before the final author. For 21 or more, list the first 19, an ellipsis, and the final author without an ampersand.
- 3Read the complete entry after the change. Confirm its punctuation and order, then check whether its author and date match the corresponding in-text citation when applicable.
It should look like this:
García, A. A., Pérez, B. B., & López, C. C.APA criterion
APA Publication Manual, 7th ed., Section 9.8: list up to 20 authors; for 21 or more, retain the first 19 and the final author.
Read the rule in the APA guide
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