What is citation?
Citation is a system by which an author provides a list of the sources (a bibliography) they used to create their work - like a research paper, a presentation, an article, or a book. Citations always follow a formal style so they can be read, understood, and followed to the original source by anyone reading the work.
How do I know what style to use?
Your syllabus or assignment should tell you what style to use. If it does not, ask your instructor what they require. Generally, certain styles are used for certain subjects:
- MLA - Humanities
- APA - Social Sciences
What's the difference between a bibliography and an "in-text" citation?
Your bibliography is the list of all the sources you used throughout your work, and it is usually found on the last page of your paper or presentation. In-text citation is noting in the body of your paper or presentation when you are using someone else's words or ideas, usually by placing their name and a date and/or page numbers in parentheses, like this: (Smith 137).
Why do we bother citing?
- Credit. When we use someone else's ideas, we want to give credit where credit is due. Otherwise, we would be plagiarizing or misrepresenting someone else's ideas as our own.
- Verification. Leaving a clear trail that a reader can follow to double-check your information means we can have more confidence that it is reliable.
- Connection. Citations connect your ideas to the ideas that helped you create your work and informed your thinking. This helps your instructor (or any other reader) understand your position and your background, and find their way to these related sources of information.
What kinds of sources do I have to cite?
- Anything that is not your own idea must be cited.
- Sources can include books, magazine articles, newspapers, journal articles, websites, blogs, videos, song lyrics, images, dictionaries, encyclopedias, personal interviews, course materials, textbooks, data, statistics, and more.
- Even if you're only using a small part of another person's work (a directly quoted sentence or phrase, for instance), you still need to cite it.
Quick Tips
- Organize your sources. Save all of the sources you use for a project in one place, such as citations and links in a document along with downloaded sources in a folder on your desktop
- Cite as you go. As you write, note in the body of your paper when you are including words or ideas from one of your sources. Even if you just note the author in parentheses (Smith) and then revisit it later to create the proper citation style, this will help you to remember where you got your information.
- Use database citation tools. Look for the citation feature in library databases or Google Scholar. The citation tool creates ready-made MLA or APA citations, but remember to check for formatting errors.
