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Citation: APA Style 7th ed.

Using Information

Why do we cite sources?

There are many reasons why it is important to cite the resources that you consult when researching a paper. The most important of these are:

  • Shows which author's works you have used by either quoting or using their ideas
  • Provides a way for others to look up your sources
  • Shows your research
  • Helps prevent plagiarism

What is copyright?

Copyright grants a set of exclusive rights to creators, which means that no one else can copy, distribute, perform, adapt or otherwise use the work in violation of those exclusive rights. This gives creators the means to control the use of their works by others, thereby incentivizing them to create new works in the first place.

The person who controls the rights, however, may not always be the author. It is important to understand who controls the exclusive rights granted by copyright in order to understand who has authority to grant permissions to others to reuse the work.

Avoiding plagiarism

"To represent oneself as the author of some work that is in fact the work of someone else is to plagiarize. Plagiarism may include the 'passing off' of the form of the work—for example, the exact words of a piece of writing—or the intellectual content, or both" (Pickering).

Plagiarizing, whether intentional or by accident, is a violation of the Intellectual Property Policy in the Student Handbook page 60 .

Strategies for Avoiding Plagiarism

  • Never copy and paste material into your work.
  • Learn to properly quote or paraphrase others' work in your writing (see tabs in the box).
  • Cite your sources using the style recommend by your professor (see style box below).

Learn More about Plagiarism

Using quotes and in text citations

Remember, if you use someone else's ideas and/or quote their words you must give them credit.

MLA Style: "The in-text citation in your text makes clear to your reader what you took from a source and where in the source you found the information" (Bullock 112).

APA Style: "The in-text citation in your text makes clear to your reader what you took from a source and where in the source you found the information" (Bullock, 2018, p. 112).

Turabian: "The in-text citation in your text makes clear to your reader what you took from a source and where in the source you found the information."1

  • Turabian: Add entry at the bottom of the same page that the quote appears.

Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing uses the key ideas from other sources, but these ideas are put in your own words. Because the idea is the source's, you still should cite the source with a proper citation.

  • Use as few words from the original source without changing the meaning of the original text
  • Make sure you understand the original text
  • Write your paraphrase without looking at the original text
  • Compare your paraphrase with the original to check the meaning
  • If you used phrases from the original, use quotation marks for the phrase
  • Use the proper in text citation for the style of your paper
  • Cite it as you would a quotation

For more information:

Plagiarism.org

 

What Needs to be Cited?

Why You Need to Cite Sources

Why do I need to cite my sources?

  • Gives credit to authors whose words or ideas you have used
  • "Provides a trail by which others can locate the materials you consulted
  • Provides evidence of your research
  • Properly citing materials is one strategy to help you avoid plagiarizing" 

          Source:  Why citations matter. (n.d.)  http://library.uvm.edu/guides/citation/why.php