Should FixCitationFound in 2-4% of dissertations

Chicago Ampersand Ban: '&' Has No Place in CMOS Citations

Found in 2-4% of dissertations using Chicago style. The Chicago Manual of Style never uses '&' in citations or reference lists — that's an APA habit you need to break.

FIX

Replace "&" with "and" in all citations.

What This Issue Is

Chicago Manual of Style is explicit: use 'and,' never '&,' between author names in all contexts. This applies to in-text parenthetical citations: (Smith and Jones, 2020), narrative citations: Smith and Jones (2020) argued..., and your reference list entries. There are no exceptions for parenthetical contexts like APA has.

This rule aligns with Chicago's broader philosophy of favoring words over symbols in formal writing. Chicago treats the ampersand as informal shorthand appropriate for business writing, titles, and brand names — but not for scholarly citations. If your text references 'Johnson & Johnson' as a company name, the ampersand stays because it's part of the name. In all other contexts, spell out 'and.'

If you're switching from APA to Chicago, the ampersand is one of the most persistent crossover errors. APA's rule of using '&' inside parentheses becomes automatic after years of coursework. A global search for '&' in your citation and reference sections will catch most instances, but also check any manually typed citations that might have slipped through.

Why Your Committee Flags It

Chicago style spells out "and" for multiple authors in both text and parenthetical citations. Using ampersands violates Chicago style conventions.

Before & After Examples

Before

(Smith & Jones, 2021)

After

(Smith and Jones, 2021)

Chicago parenthetical citations always use 'and' between authors.

Before

(Smith & Jones, 2020)

After

(Smith and Jones, 2020)

Narrative citations in Chicago also use 'and' — no context uses '&.'

Before

Smith & Jones (2020) found significant results.

After

Smith and Jones (2020) found significant results.

Chicago reference list entries use 'and' with full first names.

Before

Smith, J., & Jones, K. 2020. "Title." Journal 5(2): 10-20.

After

Smith, John, and Karen Jones. 2020. "Title." Journal 5 (2): 10-20.

Self-Check Checklist

Tap each item as you review your chapter.

Related Checks

Must Fix

Citation Format (comma required)

5-10% of dissertations

Must Fix

Et Al. Format

2-3% of dissertations

Should Fix

Number Spelling (0-100)

1-2% of dissertations

Should Fix

Ampersand Usage (& in parentheses)

2-4% of dissertations

Should Fix

Ampersand Ban (use "and")

2-4% of dissertations

Frequently Asked Questions

No. Chicago Manual of Style always uses 'and' between author names in citations and reference lists. The only time '&' appears in a Chicago paper is when it's part of a proper name (like a company or law firm name). For all author-to-author connections, use 'and.'
APA uses '&' inside parenthetical citations and in reference list entries, but 'and' in narrative text. Chicago never uses '&' in any citation context. If you're switching between styles, the ampersand rule is one of the first things to adjust.
Check that your citation style is set to 'Chicago Manual of Style (Author-Date)' or 'Chicago Manual of Style (Notes-Bibliography),' not APA. In Zotero, go to Edit > Preferences > Cite. After changing the style, refresh all citations. Manually typed citations will need to be fixed by hand.

Sources

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