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Citing Sources

 

Why Cite?

• Improper citation affects your grade!
• Give credit to the people whose ideas you used in your research.
• Anyone reading your paper will have accurate references for future study.
• Failure to cite your sources constitutes plagiarism.

 

How to Cite

Different disciplines rely on different citation methods. Which should you use? Ask each of your instructors which style they prefer. If they have no preference, you can use any or follow these guidelines:

APA: psychology, education, nursing, social sciences

MLA: literature, arts, humanities

Turabian: history; can be used with all subjects

Other Styles: CBU Writing Center has information on additional citation styles

RefWorks: RefWorks can generate bibliographies in hundreds of citation styles. See the RefWorks information page.

 

Two Steps to Citing Sources

1. Cite within the text of your paper with either parenthetical references or footnotes. Provide the exact page number of the passage you're citing, so anyone reading your paper can go back and find the same source information.
   
   
2. Provide a comprehensive list of all the works you cited. This is called a Works Cited Page or Bibliography, depending on which citation style you use. Order items alphabetically by author's last name.

See style manuals (kept on Reserve in Plough Library) for material not covered here.