Personal communication is used when the source is not able to be accessed by the reader. Sources may include email, text messages, private letters or discussion groups. Personal communication is cited in text only (American Psychological Association, 2020).
In-text citation
A. Author, personal communication, Month day, Year)
A. Author (personal communication, Month day, Year)
J. Smith (personal communication, November 22, 2019)
(J. Smith, personal communication, November 22, 2019)
Reference List
Most personal communications are not retrievable by the reader and are not included in the reference list. In cases where personal communication is retrievable in an archive (eg. personal letters in a repository, private collection, or archive) they should be referenced as archival materials and are not considered personal communication. For more information and examples of how to reference archived material go to https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/archival