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 Reasons for and Requirements of Citation

• Kate L. Turabian’s Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, eight edition, gives the following reasons for and requirements of citation.
• Reasons for Citation
  • To give credit

“Research is hard work. Some who do it well receive concrete rewards – money, promotions, good grades, degrees, and so on. But no less important is recognition, the pride and prestige of seeing one’s name associated with knowledge that others value and use. In fact, for some researchers that is the only reward. So when you cite the work of another, you give that writer the recognition he or she has earned.”

• To assure readers about the accuracy of your facts

“Researchers cite sources to be fair to other researchers but also to earn their readers’ trust. It is not enough to get the facts right. You must also tell readers the source of the facts so that they can judge their reliability, even check them if they wish. Readers do not trust a source they do not know and cannot find. If they do not trust your facts, they will not trust your argument. You establish the first link in that chain of trust by citing your sources fully, accurately, and appropriately.”

• To show readers the research tradition that informs your work

“Researchers cite sources whose data they use, but they also cite work that they extend, support, contradict, or correct. These citations help readers not only understand your specific project but connect to other research in your field.”

• To help readers follow or extend your research

“Many readers use sources cited in a research paper not to check its reliability but to pursue their own work. So your citations help others not only to follow your footsteps but to strike out in new directions.”

• Requirements of Citation
  • Situations requiring citations
    • When you quote exact words from a source
    • When you paraphrase ideas that are associated with a specific source, even if you don’t quote exact words from it
    • When you use any idea, data, or method attributable to any source you consulted
  • Information required in citations must answer the following questions:

    • Who wrote, edited, or translated the text (sometimes all three)?

    • What data identify the text? Includes title and subtitle of the work; title of the journal, collection, or series it appears in, as well as volume number, edition number, or other identifying information; and, page numbers or other locating information if the reference is to a specific part (e.g. chapter) of a larger text.

    • Who published the text and when? Includes the name of the publisher, place and date of publication; or, an indication that the document has not been published.

    • Where can the text be found? For a source obtained online, this includes URL or the name of a commercial database.

Avoiding Plagiarism

• The Online Dictionary of Library and Information Science (2017) defines plagiarism as “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.”

• APA (2010) defines plagiarism as the “practice of claiming credit for the words, ideas, and concepts of others.”

• Booth, Colomb and Williams (2008) said this about plagiarism: “the worst mistake a researcher can make: you lead readers to think that you’re trying to pass off as your own the work of another writer.”

• How to avoid plagiarism?
  • Follow these guidelines adapted from The Craft of Research, third edition, by Booth et al. (2008), pp. 192-195.
    • Cite the source of every quotation, paraphrase, or summary
    • Signal every quotation, even when you cite its source
    • Don’t paraphrase too closely
    • Usually cite a source for ideas not your own
    • Don’t plead ignorance, misunderstanding, or innocent intentions

• “To avoid charges of plagiarism, take careful notes as you research to keep track of your sources and cite those sources…” (APA, 2010).

• Give credit where credit is due.