Why are citing and reference lists necessary?
- To acknowledge the work of other authors that you have been using in your paper
- To make it easy for the reader to find the sources you have been using and control facts.
- When you use other authors' words or ideas you have to refer to the source. Not citing correctly is the same as saying these are your own thoughts and ideas. That is plagiarism and cheating!
- Whether you rearrange or cite directly you have to refer to the source of the statement. When you use another persons' words directly the citation should be written in brackets.
Choosing reference system
There are a string of different styles for reference lists. There are two main methods: The Harvard System which uses author and year of publication, and the Vancouver System which is numerical. Many subject areas use their own styles. Ask your supervisor or teacher about choice of style.
Classifying after author and year of publication (The Harvard System)
Author and year of publication is cited in the text, i.e. (Aven 1991). The reference list is organized alphabetically.
Harvard System of Referencing Guide (Anglia Ruskin University)
Harvard System (Swinburne University of Technology)
Numerical classification (numerical styles)
When using this style you insert numbers in the text that refer to the same number in the reference list, which is organized numerically in the order the sources are used in the text.
Reference list in Vancouver Style (NTNU)
A good guide to the APA-style:
APA-standard: Bibliographies, in-text citations and quotations: Example collection (University college in Hedmark)
A good guide for writing papers:
Writing papers (NTNU)
