Citations are the references given to the original source of the work adopted in any project. Apart from giving due credit to the original author for their work, citation also increases the credibility of the thesis. However, with a large number of citation formats and varied orientations of institutes, scholars and magazines for a specific format, it is essential to understand a general protocol used for citations. This article is aimed at discovering how to use citations fearlessly.
When to use citations:
⚫ Adding a quotation:
When
a statement or idea is quoted as it is from the original work, citation to the work is required. If multiple quotations are made from the single source at different locations, a citation should be added separately at each location. These quotations should be enclosed in quotation marks.
⚫ Paraphrased content:
When a certain idea is adopted from a different author but expressed in our own words, it is known as paraphrased content. Citation of paraphrased content is mandatory to distinguish it from our own.
⚫ Adopting any form of data:
Any Data in the form of tables, statistics, pictures, facts or otherwise should be cited to the source it is taken from.
⚫ Summarising:
A summary is a short explanation of an author’s work or idea in our own words. Although it is not adopted as it is from the original work, citation of such summary is mandatory.
More information of the above can be found in the following link: https://www.princeton.edu/pr/pub/integrity/pages/cite/
Basic information to be included in citation:
1. Name of the author:
complete name of the author or initials followed by the surname. In case of more than one authors, mention of one author followed by the suffix et. al. is sufficient.
2. Title of the work:
the complete title of the work enclosed in quotation marks.
3. Name of the publication:
name of the publication in which the work was featured.
4. Date when the work was
published: date of publication of the work in the journal. If the exact date is not available, mentioning the month and year would suffice.
5. Additional information:
other details such as the volume in which the work was featured, page numbers, date and time when the work was accessed could also be included.
Following video gives a better idea of how to use citations fearlessly:
Basic format to cite various sources:
1. To site a research paper:
2. To cite a book:
3. cite a website:
4. To cite an image, table or another source:
Since different institutes, guides or journals are oriented towards a specific citation format, it is important to know which format to follow. Some commonly accepted ones being, APA format, Harvard format, etc.