Citation

What Is Citation?

Citation is a way to tell your readers:

• which ideas in your paper were borrowed from other sources.
• the information necessary to find each source.

Why Cite?

• To base your ideas and arguments on the work of experts.
• To help your reader understand which ideas are your own and which ideas are from other sources.
• To allow readers to look up your sources to verify your claims and learn more about the topic.
• To give others credit for their work and avoid plagiarism.
• Failing to do so, even by accident, is considered an act of academic dishonesty.

How Do I Cite?

• Know what your instructor expects
  • They may ask you to use:
    • official format guidelines of the Modern Language Association (MLA).
    • official guidelines of the American Psychological Association (APA).
    • another official format.
    • their own method.
• Provide in-text citations
  • An in-text citation is a short note in the text of your paper which:
    • immediately indicates information taken from another source.
    • refers your reader to the matching entry in a full list of your sources.
      • Example: (Barnes, 2020).
  • See MLA or APA Quick Format in this guide for details.
• Provide a list of sources
  • The list provides all the information required to locate each source noted in your in-text citations.
    • In MLA format this is called the list of Works Cited. 
    • In APA format it is called the list of References.
  • See MLA or APA Quick Format and Citation Examples in this guide for details.  
• Follow format guidelines
  • Use this guide and Purdue OWL for format rules and examples.
  • When in doubt, consult the official MLA or APA manual or ask Kalamazoo Valley Libraries for help.