Generally speaking, direct quotations should be exactly the same as the original text. However, minor changes are allowed. It is acceptable to:
- Change the first letter of a sentence into an uppercase or a lowercase letter.
- Change punctuation marks at the end of a sentence.
- Insert the word [sic], italicized and bracketed, immediately following an error in the quotation;
- Omit parts of the text. Use three spaced ellipsis points to replace the omitted words in a sentence:
Rosenbaum (2023) predicted that “restrained eaters confronted with diet products and slim images . . . will be reminded of their restricted eating behavior and eat less” (p. 273).
When omitting text between sentences, put the three spaced ellipsis points after the period at the end of the preceding sentence:
The run-up to burnout can take years: “stress becomes negative, resulting in strain. . . . Typically, burned-out patients are 40+” (Mattingly, 2019, p. 165).
- Emphasize one or more word(s) by using italics and inserting [emphasis added] after the word(s) in question.
Thompson (2021) stated that “the behaviors were never exhibited again [emphasis added], even when real drugs were administered” (p. 817).
- Insert text within square brackets to fit the syntax of your sentence, or for clarification:
Previous research found that “parents’ education and occupational status were strong predictors of the amount of time [school-age] children spent watching television” (Camphuyzen & Taylor, 2020, p. 248).
