REFERENCING GUIDELINES

Dr Alexandra Cook

THE TWO KEY REASONS TO REFERENCE—THE POSITIVE STORY:

- Acknowledge others’ work (intellectual property, copyright law, plagiarism)

- Facilitate further discussion, critical assessment of others’ ideas; full and correct references make critical discussion possible.

REFERENCING OPTIONS:

I. PARENTHETICAL CITATIONS (with list of works cited/bibliography, a.k.a. author-date system):

This format is popular with publishers and scholars, as it requires less typing, and involves fewer changes when revisions are necessary. You must include a list of works cited if you choose this option.

Format of parenthetical reference placed at the end of the sentence IN your essay:

(Rousseau 1987, 40).

Format of works cited entry (placed at the END of your essay):

Book:

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. 1987. The Basic Political Writings. Trans. D.A. Cress. Indianapolis: Hackett.

Article in a journal:

Haraway, D. 1988. Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective. Feminist Studies 14 (3): 575-599.

Note: you place the year of publication immediately after the author’s name and omit quotation marks around the article title.

II. FOOTNOTES/ENDNOTES:

Format of foot/endnotes:

Book:

1. Jean-Jacques Rousseau, The Basic Political Writings, trans. D.A. Cress (Indianapolis: Hackett, 1987), 40.

Article in a journal:

1. D. Haraway, Situated Knowledges: The Science Question in Feminism and the Privilege of Partial Perspective. Feminist Studies 14/3 (1988): 575-599.

Note: best practice requires a bibliography or list of works cited in addition to the foot/endnotes.

III. INTERNET WEBSITES:

Provide URL (web address) and date of downloading. Please note: You must reference ALL internet sources that you have used in your work. The web source must be clearly linked to your work by a footnote, endnote or parenthetical reference.

IV. LECTURE NOTES:

Provide teacher’s name, course title and date of lecture (no set format).

V. NOT RECOMMENDED:

Ibid. or Op. cit. The abbreviations sound impressive, but can lead to serious errors if you add new references during revision.

VI. SPECIAL CASES:

-Revised editions of books, e.g. 2^nd, 3^rd; this information must be indicated, where it applies;

-Translators/editors: this information must be indicated;

-Newspapers: please see a good referencing guide for advice. Some guides are available online.

VII. IMPORTANT REMINDERS:

Collect and retain all relevant bibliographical information as you proceed; this will save you extra, repetitive work later on.

Failure to acknowledge your sources constitutes plagiarism, which is a serious academic offence. Therefore, when in doubt: provide a reference!