Referencing skills

Content

01 Referencing
02 What academic conventions should be used for referencing source material?
03 Referencing systems
04 Footnotes and Endnotes
05 The Vancouver Style (numeric system)
06 Harvard System (author-date method) In-text referencing
07 Two or more authors of a text
08 Citing publications from the same author(s) in the same year
09 Citations from unpublished work, not yet published work
10 Citations of personal communication
11 Citations from newspaper articles
12 Citations from film, videos, DVDs, broadcasts
13 Citations from the World Wide Web
14 List of References/Bibliography
15 Reference to a book
16 Reference to chapters/articles in books
17 Reference to unpublished work
18 Reference to personal communication
19 Reference to a journal
20 Reference to newspaper articles
21 Reference to films, videos and broadcasts
22 Reference to World Wide Web
23 Difference between 'List of References' and 'Bibliography' / Task 1
24 Latin abbreviations
25 Embedding quotations in text / Task 2 / Task 3

01 Referencing

In order to demonstrate your understanding of your subject area, it is clear that you will need to do a great deal of reading around your subject. If you do not show evidence that you have read widely around your subject area, then clearly the work that you produce will be uninformed and your ideas will not be supported. Any viewpoints you may express in relation to your subject of study, therefore, will inevitably be based on your own personal (and therefore subjective and probably limited) experience. Without reference to the work of other academics/subject specialists in your field, you will have little information to support your understanding of anything.

In order to aid your understanding of any subject, then, it is essential to refer to the work of others who have contributed to the development of your field. It is important to indicate to your reader the source of a particular idea you have used in your own writing so that it will be clear to everyone where the information comes from. If you do not make this clear, then your reader may assume, wrongly, that the ideas expressed are your own.

In the case where students use original words or ideas from material without providing details of the source, they have plagiarised, which is considered to be an act of 'stealing' other peoples' words and ideas, otherwise referred to as intellectual theft.

Plagiarism is considered to be a serious academic offence and will not go unpunished. Where a student is found to have committed plagiarism, they will usually be awarded a fail for the assignment and asked to re-write it. In the most extreme case, a student may even be excluded from the programme altogether. (See the University of Essex link to plagiarism at http://www.essex.ac.uk/plagiarism/Contents.htm )

[Back to top]

02 What academic conventions should be used for referencing source material?

Unfortunately, there is no straightforward answer to this question. Each department differs in relation to the referencing conventions it adopts.

The first piece of advice which should always be followed whenever you incorporate source material into your work is to consult the Referencing Guidelines pages of your Departmental Handbook. If you adhere to the system and conventions advocated by your department, then you should find referencing a relatively straightforward process. If you are unsure about anything, ask your tutors for further clarification.

[Back to top]

03 Referencing systems

The main referencing systems which are used in academic texts are:

Footnotes and Endnotes
Vancouver Style (numeric system)
Harvard System (author-date method)

[Back to top]

04 Footnotes and Endnotes

Footnotes or endnotes are marked in your text by a number which should come at the end of a sentence and not be inserted into the middle of it.

Eg:

International students may find adapting to a British Higher Education environment especially difficult. Macqueen acknowledges this, by stressing that 'there are many who are experiencing cultural differences, homesickness and a sense of personal isolation, whilst at the same time trying to meet all the requirements of their courses'. (1) (or ¹)

The source of the quotation will be given as a footnote at the bottom of the same page, usually under a line to show that it is separate from the text on the page, eg:

Notes

Chris Macqueen, Getting Ahead in Tertiary Study, Sydney: UNSW Press, 1998, p.6

NB. If you decide to incorporate a quotation from a source into your text, check to see whether or not your department would prefer you to use single quotation marks or double quotation marks.

If endnotes are used instead of footnotes, then the information relating to the text which is numbered will appear in a separate section at the end of your essay.

With endnotes, if you refer to the same source again, then you can shorten the citation to just surname of author and just enough information for the reader to be able to reliably identify the source. Eg:

Macqueen, Getting Ahead in Tertiary Study, p.38

Footnotes and endnotes may additionally contain extra clarifications or extra detail which you feel would be helpful for your reader, but which you feel do not need to be included in your main text.

Eg:

It may still be difficult for tutors to identify instances of plagiarism in students' work. ²

Notes

However, most universities nowadays are investing in increasingly sophisticated computer software which can be used by academic staff to successfully detect plagiarism.

If your work is divided into separate sections or chapters (for example in dissertation and thesis writing), then for every new section you need to start with (1) again.

[Back to top]

05 The Vancouver Style (numeric system)

This referencing system also uses numbers to indicate sections of text where the author has incorporated source material. The numbers relate to a list of references at the end of the text which correspond with the numerical order of the marked sections.

Eg:

As well as trying to adapt to a new cultural environment, many international students may find it difficult to adjust to a new academic environment. This is particularly the case if the student's own education system is very different from the British Higher Education system. This lack of familiarity with academic norms used in Britain may cause confusion and may lead to misunderstandings on the part of some international students.²

The lack of awareness of academic conventions used in British academic institutions has led to the observation that international students are particularly likely to be 'persistent plagiarisers'³, usually because they are simply unaware of the fact that using the words or ideas of other writers in their own work must be acknowledged.

List of References

(1)

Macqueen, C (1998) Getting Ahead in Tertiary Study Sydney: UNSW Press

(2)

Hall, B (2004) Online at: http: //www.bournemouth.ac.uk/centre-for-academic-practice/Plagiarism%20and%20International%20Students.doc Accessed 30 June 2006

(3)

Park, C (2003) In Other (People's) Words: plagiarism by university students--literature and lessons. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 28 (5), 471-489.

[Back to top]

06 Harvard System (author-date method) In-text referencing

The Harvard system differs from both footnotes/endnotes and the Vancouver systems detailed above, in that it does not use numbers to reference incorporation of source material. Instead, the author's surname and date of publication of material (plus optional page numbers) are given in brackets after the citation. The same format is used for books, journals, dissertations and theses (see below for further examples of categories of source materials).

Eg:

'There are many who are experiencing cultural differences, homesickness and a sense of personal isolation, whilst at the same time trying to meet all the requirements of their courses' (Macqueen, 1998: 6).

NB:

If a quotation extends over more than one page, then this should be acknowledged.

Eg:

'Procrastination, or the inability to maintain focus is also often a measure of stress, as is loss of appetite, changes in sleep patterns and persistent low-grade physical illness.' (Macqueen, 1998: 6-7)

If the author's name is used in the text, then only the date should be included in brackets.

Eg:

Macqueen (1998: 6) acknowledges this, by stressing that 'there are many who are experiencing cultural differences, homesickness and a sense of personal isolation, whilst at the same time trying to meet all the requirements of their courses'.

[Back to top]

07 Two or more authors of a text

Where there are two authors, then both names should be given in the same order as the original, NOT alphabetically according to the first initial of the surnames:

Eg:

According to Zeno and Adams (2002), students need to be taught how to take notes in lectures.

Or:

Students should be trained in note-taking for lectures (Zeno & Adams, 2002).

If more than two people have authored the source, then you can use the Latin abbreviation 'et al', (et alia - 'and others') instead of including every name:

Eg:

Zeno et al (2003) believe that international students will undoubtedly face greater challenges than home students.

Or:

It is widely believed that international students will encounter more difficulties than home students (Zeno et al, 2003).

In your bibliography, however, you should provide the names of EVERY co-author of the material.

[Back to top]

08 Citing publications from the same author(s) in the same year

If more than one text has been published by the same author(s) in the same year, then you should distinguish between them using lower case letters following the year of publication.

Eg:

Zeno (1999a; 1999b) stresses the importance of reflection in the learning process.

In your list of references you should give the full details of the materials referred to in alphabetical order:

Eg:

Eg: Zeno, C. (1999a) Learning Now. Essex: Essex UP
Zeno, C. (1999b) Making the Most of your Time at University. Essex: Essex UP

[Back to top]

09 Citations from unpublished work, not yet published work

If you have included a citation from unpublished work, including dissertations or theses, not yet published work, or personal communication, then your citation should contain the following elements:

Eg:

It is possible to act and reflect at the same time (Smith, unpublished work).

It is possible to act and reflect at the same time (Smith, forthcoming).

[Back to top]

10 Citations of personal communication

It is possible to act and reflect at the same time (Smith, personal communication).

[Back to top]

11 Citations from newspaper articles

If there is an author's name for the article, then the author's name, date and year of publication of the article should be given in the text.

Eg:

'Plans to axe the research assessment exercise (RAE) after 2008 have prompted a vigorous debate about how to judge the best research - the work that gets the funding.' (McCabe and Smith, June 27, 2006)

Where no author's name is apparent, then the name of newspaper and the date and year of publication of the article should be given.

[Back to top]

12 Citations from film, videos, DVDs, broadcasts

Most material is normally produced by a transmitting organisation. When citing this type of material, then, you will need to give the details of the organisation responsible for the production of the material and the date.

Eg:

'In 1761, a Scot named James Macpherson published what he claimed were the collected works of a poet named Ossian, written more than 1,000 years ago and providing Scotland with an epic to rival Homer's Iliad.' (British Broadcasting Corporation, 2006)

[Back to top]

13 Citations from the World Wide Web

There still appears to be no real consensus about referencing sources from the Internet. As with every other case, please refer to your Departmental Handbook and tutors, or check the departmental pages, to see whether or not you are following the preferred format. However, here is some general guidance.

If there is an author's name and date of article on the web page, then reference in-text as you would for most other references:

Eg:

'The data drawn from a variety of sources does tend to indicate that no system of higher education is immune.' (Hart & Friesner, 2004).

If no author's name is given and no date provided, then your reference will take either the first or second format below (again, please check with your Department about their preference):

Title of web page + n.d. (no date)

Eg:

'Football has replaced religion in modern day society in Britain (Football mania, n.d.)

The problem with this format is that sometimes the title of the webpage can be extremely long and can be cumbersome to use in-text. In this case, it would be worthwhile shortening it slightly.

Eg:

If the original title was 'Plagiarism and Poor Academic Practice - A Threat to the Extension of e-Learning in Higher Education?', then you might shorten it to: (Plagiarism and Poor Academic Practice., n.d.)

First part of URL address (eg http://www.bbc.co.uk n.d.)

The problem with the second format is that if you choose to incorporate source material from more than one page on the general website (for example there are hundreds of web pages on the general BBC website), then you will also have to include small case letters for each individual reference:

Eg:

(http://www.bbc.co.uk a, n.d., http://www.bbc.co.uk b, 1999 and http://www.bbc.co.uk c, n.d.)

[Back to top]

14 List of References/Bibliography

In the Harvard System, individual entries in the List of References are given in alphabetical order according to the first letter of the surname.

[Back to top]

15 Reference to a book

Author's/authors' surname(s) and initials (every author must be included in your List of References)
Year (in brackets)
Title (in italics and title case)
Edition (if not the first edition) (you do not need to include details of reprints)
Place of publication
Publisher

Eg:

Fairbairn, G J and Winch, C (1996) Reading, Writing and Reasoning: A Guide for Students 2nd ed. Maidenhead. OUP

Fry, H, Ketteridge, S and Marshall S (1999) A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. London. Kogan Page

Macqueen, C (1998) Getting Ahead in Tertiary Study. Sydney. UNSW Press

NB. Some users of the Harvard System prefer to punctuate initials when referencing names. It is worth checking this with your department.

[Back to top]

16 Reference to chapters/articles in books

Eg:

Fry H, Ketteridge S and Marshall S (1999) Understanding Student Learning. In Fry H, Ketteridge S and Marshall S (eds) A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: Enhancing Academic Practice. London: Kogan Page. 21-40

This tells the reader that the chapter referred to is entitled 'Understanding Student Learning', it is authored by Fry, Ketteridge and Marshall in a book entitled 'A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education'. The book is edited by Fry, Ketteridge and Marshall and the page numbers of the chapter, 21-40, are indicated at the end.

If you are referring to a work already cited in full elsewhere in your list of references, then you do not need to provide full details:

Eg:

Fry H, Ketteridge S and Marshall S (1999) 'Understanding Student Learning', in Fry, Ketteridge and Marshall pp. 21-40

[Back to top]

17 Reference to unpublished work

If you have included a citation from a dissertation or thesis or other unpublished material, then your reference should include the following:

Author(s)' surname(s) and initials
Year (in brackets - if known)
Title of unpublished work (in title case)
In brackets the phrase 'unpublished work' or (unpublished PhD thesis etc)
Any other relevant details, eg name of university

Eg:

Smith, J (2006) The Diary of a Lecturer (unpublished work)

Or:

Smith, J (2004) The role of reflection in learning and teaching. (unpublished PhD Thesis) University of Essex

[Back to top]

18 Reference to personal communication

Author(s)' surname(s) and initials
Year and date in brackets
In brackets the phrase 'personal communication'

Eg:

Brown, I (5 July 2006) (personal communication)

[Back to top]

19 Reference to a journal

Author(s)' surname(s) and initials
Year (in brackets)
Title of article (in sentence case)
Title of journal (in italics and title case)
Volume number (in bold)
Issue number (if relevant, in brackets)
Page numbers of the article

Eg:

Park, C (2003) In Other (People's) Words: plagiarism by university students-literature and lessons. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 28 (5): 471-489.

[Back to top]

20 Reference to newspaper articles

Author(s)' name(s) and initials
Date and year (in brackets)
Title of article (in sentence case)
Title of newspaper (in italics and title case)
Page number

Eg:

McCabe, MM and Smith, B (June 27, 2006) The way the money goes. The Guardian. 11

If no author(s)' name(s) is/are given, then follow the alternative order:

Title of newspaper
Date and year (in brackets)
Title of article (in sentence case)
Page number

Eg:

The Colchester Times (5 July 2006) Essex University students break all records. 5

[Back to top]

21 Reference to films, videos and broadcasts

Name of producer/production team
Year (in brackets)
Title of production (in italics and title case)
Place of production if known
Name of production company
In brackets include as appropriate 'video', 'film' or full details of transmission

Eg:

British Broadcasting Corporation (2006) The Great Ossian Hoax - McCall Smith Investigates. British Broadcasting Corporation (Transmitted on BBC4 Television on 3 July and Sunday 9 July)

[Back to top]

22 Reference to World Wide Web

Author(s)' surnames and initials (if given, if not you would put the title of web page first or full URL address according to how you have referenced in-text (see point 12 above))
Date (if given, in brackets, if not, then 'n.d.' (= no date), in brackets)
Title of web page
'Online at:'
Full URL address
'Accessed' + date you found it

Eg:

Hart M & Friesner T (2004) Plagiarism and Poor Academic Practice - A Threat to the Extension of e-Learning in Higher Education? Online at: http://ejel.org/volume-2/vol2-issue1/issue1-art25-hart-friesner.pdf Accessed 2 July 2006

Or:

Football mania, (n.d.) Online at: http://www.footballersanonymous.com/centre-for- fanatics%40and%40beautifulgame.doc Accessed 3 July 2006

Or:

"http://www.footballersanonymous.com/centre-fo-fanatics%40and%40beautifulgame.doc" (n.d.) Accessed 3 July 2006

Whichever format you use, you must be consistent in your in-text referencing and your List of References.

[Back to top]

23 Difference between 'List of References' and 'Bibliography'

A List of References should include a full, detailed list of all the material you have referred to in your writing. Confusingly, however, a List of References is also commonly referred to as a Bibliography. Strictly speaking, a Bibliography is a list of materials which you have consulted in the course of your writing, but not necessarily referred to in your text. Once again, check with your Department to ensure you follow the preferred convention and terminology.

[Back to top]

24 Latin abbreviations

Where you have already referred to a source, then you can avoid repeating the same information twice by using the Latin abbreviation 'op.cit' (opere citato, 'from the work cited'). This abbreviation is used when you are referring to a work already mentioned which is not the most recently used citation.

Eg:

According to Zeno and Adams (2002: 34), students need to be taught how to take notes in lectures. The ability to take effective notes, together with many other academic study skills may be especially difficult for international students to master, since, 'There are many who are experiencing cultural differences, homesickness and a sense of personal isolation, whilst at the same time trying to meet all the requirements of their courses' (Macqueen, 1998: 6). These problems are also acknowledged by Zeno and Adams (op. cit.), who believe that international students will undoubtedly face greater challenges than home students.

A different abbreviation can be used in the same way, but this time it indicates that the source referred to is the same as the source used in the reference which immediately preceded it. This abbreviation is 'ibid' (an abbreviation of ibidem, 'in the same place').

Eg:

According to Zeno and Adams (2002: 34), students need to be taught how to take notes in lectures.

Note-taking is often a neglected skill in Higher Education (ibid: 30).

Here 'ibid' shows that the source is the same as the one immediately preceding it, i.e. Zeno and Adams 2002 again, the only difference is that the page number is not the same.

If you find that there is a typographic error in an extract of text that you would like to quote from, or if the original typeface has been changed in some way from the rest of the format of the text, then you must copy down exactly from the original and leave in any original mistake or particular formatting in your quotation, but use the Latin abbreviation [sic] ('in the same way', 'as it was') in italics and in square brackets.

Eg:

'Facts are learned outwith [sic] a meaningful framework' (Fry et al, 1999: 30).

Source: Fry H, Ketteridge S and Marshall S (1999) Understanding Student Learning. In Fry H, Ketteridge S and Marshall S (eds) A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: Enhancing Academic Practice. London: Kogan Page. 21-40

[Back to top]

25 Embedding quotations in text

Quotations need to be carefully incorporated into your text. They must be accurately copied but must fit into the grammatical structure of your sentences and they must make sense within the context.

Sometimes it may be necessary to omit part of a sentence or change a few words. If you feel it would be appropriate to do this, then you must apply some special conventions.

If you decide to omit part of a sentence, then you must insert three dots (called ellipsis) in place of the original words.

Eg:

An appreciation of experiential learning is necessary to underpin many of the different types of teaching activity discussed elsewhere in this book, including work-based learning, teaching laboratory and practical work, action learning, role play and many types of small group teaching.

Here it clearly wouldn't be appropriate to leave in the expression 'discussed elsewhere in this book' if you intend to incorporate this extract as a quotation into your own essay. Hence, your quotation would be as follows:

An appreciation of experiential learning is necessary to underpin many . different types of teaching activity., including work-based learning, teaching laboratory and practical work, action learning, role play and many types of small group teaching.

In the above example, the author has used bold typeface to highlight examples of teaching activity. To make it perfectly clear to the reader that the words in bold have been copied from the original source, you may wish to draw attention to this in your reference:

(Fry et al, 1999: 30, emphases in original)

If you decide to modify any of the text to add your own emphases, then you must indicate this to the reader.

Eg:

Experiential learning is based on the notion that ideas are not fixed, or unchangeable elements of thought but are formed and re-formed through 'experience'.

(Fry et al, 1999: 26, my emphasis in italics)

If you need to add any extra words to the original text, e.g. for the purposes of clarity, then you must use square brackets [ ].

Eg:

All four stages of the process are necessary for effective learning to be achieved.

(Fry et al, 1999: 27).

If you were to use the above sentence as a quotation in your work, then without clarification of the 'four stages' mentioned, your reader would be confused. It might, therefore, be useful to explain what the four stages are:

Eg:

All four stages of the process [i.e. concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization and active experimentation] are necessary for effective learning to be achieved.

(Fry et al, 1999: 27).

[Back to top]

Authored by: Jane McDonnell, Learning and Teaching Unit