It sounds like you are talking about the citation formatters that you'll find in some databases. For example, if you are using LibSearch or any of the EBSCOhost databases, there is a cite icon that will help you format the citations in APA style.
Here are instructions for LibSearch and the EBSCOhost databases:
- Do a search.
- From the results page, click the title of the item you want to cite.
- In the full record, look for the cite icon under "tools" on the right.
- Click the cite icon and look for the APA citation.
Be sure to double check the citation to make sure it's correct. Automatically formatted citations sometimes have errors. See it circled in the example below:
