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)
(J. Smith, personal communication, November 22, 2019)
A. Author (personal communication, Month day, Year)
J. Smith (personal communication, November 22, 2019)
Reference List
In cases where personal communication is retrievable in an archive (eg. personal letters in a repository, private collection, or archive) reference as archival materials. For more information and examples of how to reference archived material go to https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/archival