User Guide – Citation

INDEX: [What is citation?] [What citation methods should I use?]

[Citation manuals & suggested internet resources] [Avoiding plagiarism]

What is citation?

Citation is a method for creating, “a written reference to a specific work or portion of a work (book, article, dissertation, report, musical composition, etc.) produced by a particular author, editor, composer, etc., clearly identifying the document in which the work is to be found.”[1] Citation methods, when followed correctly, allow for other researchers to follow in your footsteps and allow you to avoid plagiarism. Acts of plagiarism can have dire consequences for the college student resulting in a failing grade for the work, a filing grade for the course, or even expulsion. Citation should be taken seriously.

Plagiarism: “Copying or closely imitating the work of another writer, composer, etc., without permission and with the intention of passing the results off as original work.”[2]

What citation methods should I use?

For the student, first choice for citation format is always to defer to the preference of the instructor and the parameters of the assignment. After that, the conventions of the subject or field should take priority.

• Arts & Humanities: MLA
• Biomedical Sciences: AMA
• Multipurpose: Turabian
• Legal: Bluebook
• Social Sciences: APA

Citation manuals & suggested internet resources

Listed below are some common citation methods used at undergraduate institutions and resources for using them.

AMA

Print

• American Medical Association Manual of Style, 9^th edition (1998)

Online

• AMA, reference citation: (http://www.liu.edu/cwis/cwp/library/workshop/citama.htm)
• AMA, in-text citation: (http://www.ajph.org/misc/ama_references.shtml)

APA

Print

• Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5^th edition (2001)

Online

• APA, reference citation: (http://www.liu.edu/cwis/CWP/library/workshop/citapa.htm)
• APA, in-text citation: (http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_apa.html)

Bluebook

Print

• The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation, 18^th Edition (2005)

Online

• Basic Legal Citation: (http://www.law.cornell.edu/citation/)

MLA

Print

• MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th edition (2003)

Online

• MLA, reference citation (http://www.liu.edu/cwis/CWP/library/workshop/citmla.htm)
• MLA, in-text citation (http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_mla.html)

Turabian

Print

• A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 6th edition (1996)

Online

• Turabian, reference citation (http://www.liu.edu/cwis/CWP/library/workshop/cittur.htm)
• Turabian, in-text citation (http://www.lib.ohio-state.edu/sites/guides/turabiangd.html)

Citation Machines

These web tools create citations for you. Always double check their results.

• Citation Machine (http://pinetlibrary.com/cm/index.php)
• KnightCite (http://webapps.calvin.edu/knightcite/index.php)
• NoodleTools (http://www.noodletools.com/)
• Ottobib.com (http://www.ottobib.com/)
• StudentABC (http://www.studentabc.com/citation_machine)

Avoiding plagiarism

• Avoiding Plagiarism (http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_plagiar.html)
• How to Avoid Plagiarism (http://www.northwestern.edu/uacc/plagiar.html)
• How to Recognize Plagiarism [self test] (http://www.indiana.edu/~istd/test.html)

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[1] Reitz, Joan M. ODLIS — Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science. Libraries Unlimited. http://lu.com/odlis/ (9 May 2006).

[2] Ibid