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How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography: The Annotated Bibliography

• The Annotated Bibliography
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Explanation, Process, Directions, and Examples

What is an annotated bibliography.

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and documents. Each citation is followed by a brief (usually about 150 words) descriptive and evaluative paragraph, the annotation. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.

Annotations vs. Abstracts

Abstracts are the purely descriptive summaries often found at the beginning of scholarly journal articles or in periodical indexes. Annotations are descriptive and critical; they may describe the author's point of view, authority, or clarity and appropriateness of expression.

The Process

Creating an annotated bibliography calls for the application of a variety of intellectual skills: concise exposition, succinct analysis, and informed library research.

First, locate and record citations to books, periodicals, and documents that may contain useful information and ideas on your topic. Briefly examine and review the actual items. Then choose those works that provide a variety of perspectives on your topic.

Cite the book, article, or document using the appropriate style.

Write a concise annotation that summarizes the central theme and scope of the book or article. Include one or more sentences that (a) evaluate the authority or background of the author, (b) comment on the intended audience, (c) compare or contrast this work with another you have cited, or (d) explain how this work illuminates your bibliography topic.

Critically Appraising the Book, Article, or Document

For guidance in critically appraising and analyzing the sources for your bibliography, see How to Critically Analyze Information Sources . For information on the author's background and views, ask at the reference desk for help finding appropriate biographical reference materials and book review sources.

Choosing the Correct Citation Style

Check with your instructor to find out which style is preferred for your class. Online citation guides for both the Modern Language Association (MLA) and the American Psychological Association (APA) styles are linked from the Library's Citation Management page .

Sample Annotated Bibliography Entries

The following example uses APA style ( Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7th edition, 2019) for the journal citation:

Waite, L., Goldschneider, F., & Witsberger, C. (1986). Nonfamily living and the erosion of traditional family orientations among young adults. American Sociological Review, 51 (4), 541-554. The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role attitudes as a result of nonfamily living.

This example uses MLA style ( MLA Handbook , 9th edition, 2021) for the journal citation. For additional annotation guidance from MLA, see 5.132: Annotated Bibliographies .

Waite, Linda J., et al. "Nonfamily Living and the Erosion of Traditional Family Orientations Among Young Adults." American Sociological Review, vol. 51, no. 4, 1986, pp. 541-554. The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role attitudes as a result of nonfamily living.

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How To - Use the MLA Style Guide: MLA Annotated Bibliography

• Title of source
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• Optional Elements
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• Works Cited Practice
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Annotated Bibliography

What is an annotation.

an•no•ta•tion : n. 1. The act or process of furnishing critical commentary or explanatory notes. 2. A critical or explanatory note; a commentary.

The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th ed., Houghton Mifflin, 2009.

What is an Annotated Bibliography?

A list of citations for books, articles, websites, and other materials where each citation is accompanied by a brief descriptive and evaluative statement, called an annotation .

Annotations are different from the abstracts you will find accompanying journal article citations in online databases. Abstracts are descriptive. Your annotation must extend beyond the descriptive element to include an evaluation of the book or article.

Why Annotations?

An annotated bibliography is a tool for exploring a topic of interest. The process of reading and reflecting on the materials you find in the gathering part of the research process can help you understand the topic, identify multiple perspectives, explore different methods used to investigate the topic, and give you ideas for developing the thesis for your paper.

How are Annotations Created?

• Locate and record the citations for articles, books, and other materials you will use for your paper. You need to gather enough sources to represent a range of perspectives on your topic.
• Create the citation using the MLA Handbook, Ninth Edition . Tools that can help you with this include handouts received in class and in the library.
• Write the annotation directly below the citation, indented one inch from the start of the entry.
• Consider the questions below. Keep it short but be very complete.

Questions to consider when evaluating the item and writing your annotation include:

• What education, experience and/or background does the author have which contributes to their being an authority on the topic?
• Who is the intended audience for the book or article and how does that influence the presentation of the information?
• How does this work contribute to your argument or support claims about your topic?
• What are the main conclusions of the author(s) and what evidence do they use to support them?

The MLA Handbook, Ninth Edition guidelines for an annotation are to indent the annotation one inch from the start of the entry to distinguish it from the half-inch hanging indent of the entry. The annotation is double spaced with no gap between the citation and the annotation.

Annotation should be no more than one paragraph; however, if you need several paragraphs, indent each one but do not add an extra space between paragraphs. Follow your instructor's guidelines on the length and format for your specific assignment. Below is an example of an annotated bibliography in MLA 9th edition style.

Annotated Bibliographies. University Libraries, U of Nevada Las Vegas, www.library.unlv.edu/, 2018.

• MLA 9th Edition Annotated Bibliography Template
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How to Write an Annotated Bibliography - APA Style (7th Edition)

What is an annotation, how is an annotation different from an abstract, what is an annotated bibliography, types of annotated bibliographies, descriptive or informative, analytical or critical, to get started.

An annotation is more than just a brief summary of an article, book, website, or other type of publication. An annotation should give enough information to make a reader decide whether to read the complete work. In other words, if the reader were exploring the same topic as you, is this material useful and if so, why?

While an abstract also summarizes an article, book, website, or other type of publication, it is purely descriptive. Although annotations can be descriptive, they also include distinctive features about an item. Annotations can be evaluative and critical as we will see when we look at the two major types of annotations.

An annotated bibliography is an organized list of sources (like a reference list). It differs from a straightforward bibliography in that each reference is followed by a paragraph length annotation, usually 100–200 words in length.

Depending on the assignment, an annotated bibliography might have different purposes:

• Provide a literature review on a particular subject
• Help to formulate a thesis on a subject
• Demonstrate the research you have performed on a particular subject
• Provide examples of major sources of information available on a topic
• Describe items that other researchers may find of interest on a topic

There are two major types of annotated bibliographies:

A descriptive or informative annotated bibliography describes or summarizes a source as does an abstract; it describes why the source is useful for researching a particular topic or question and its distinctive features. In addition, it describes the author's main arguments and conclusions without evaluating what the author says or concludes.

For example:

McKinnon, A. (2019). Lessons learned in year one of business.  Journal of Legal Nurse Consulting ,  30 (4), 26–28. This article describes some of the difficulties many nurses experience when transitioning from nursing to a legal nurse consulting business. Pointing out issues of work-life balance, as well as the differences of working for someone else versus working for yourself, the author offers their personal experience as a learning tool. The process of becoming an entrepreneur is not often discussed in relation to nursing, and rarely delves into only the first year of starting a new business. Time management, maintaining an existing job, decision-making, and knowing yourself in order to market yourself are discussed with some detail. The author goes on to describe how important both the nursing professional community will be to a new business, and the importance of mentorship as both the mentee and mentor in individual success that can be found through professional connections. The article’s focus on practical advice for nurses seeking to start their own business does not detract from the advice about universal struggles of entrepreneurship makes this an article of interest to a wide-ranging audience.

An analytical or critical annotation not only summarizes the material, it analyzes what is being said. It examines the strengths and weaknesses of what is presented as well as describing the applicability of the author's conclusions to the research being conducted.

Analytical or critical annotations will most likely be required when writing for a college-level course.

McKinnon, A. (2019). Lessons learned in year one of business.  Journal of Legal Nurse Consulting ,  30 (4), 26–28. This article describes some of the difficulty many nurses experience when transitioning from nursing to a nurse consulting business. While the article focuses on issues of work-life balance, the differences of working for someone else versus working for yourself, marketing, and other business issues the author’s offer of only their personal experience is brief with few or no alternative solutions provided. There is no mention throughout the article of making use of other research about starting a new business and being successful. While relying on the anecdotal advice for their list of issues, the author does reference other business resources such as the Small Business Administration to help with business planning and professional organizations that can help with mentorships. The article is a good resource for those wanting to start their own legal nurse consulting business, a good first advice article even. However, entrepreneurs should also use more business research studies focused on starting a new business, with strategies against known or expected pitfalls and issues new businesses face, and for help on topics the author did not touch in this abbreviated list of lessons learned.

Now you are ready to begin writing your own annotated bibliography.

• Choose your sources - Before writing your annotated bibliography, you must choose your sources. This involves doing research much like for any other project. Locate records to materials that may apply to your topic.
• Review the items - Then review the actual items and choose those that provide a wide variety of perspectives on your topic. Article abstracts are helpful in this process.
• The purpose of the work
• A summary of its content
• Information about the author(s)
• For what type of audience the work is written
• Its relevance to the topic
• Any special or unique features about the material
• Research methodology
• The strengths, weaknesses or biases in the material

Annotated bibliographies may be arranged alphabetically or chronologically, check with your instructor to see what he or she prefers.

Please see the  APA Examples page  for more information on citing in APA style.

• Last Updated: Aug 8, 2023 11:27 AM
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Research Guide: Citations

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MLA Annotated Bibliographies

• Example MLA Annotated Bibliography
• Additional Examples & Explanations from Other Websites
• MLA Guidelines for Annotated Bibliographies

Taylor, Lou. "Dress." New Dictionary of the History of Ideas , edited by Maryanne C. Horowitz, Charles Scribner's Sons, 2005, pp. 596-605.

      "Dress," by Lou Taylor, provides an historic, theoretical, and cultural overview of the academic study of dress. Though an academic reference book article and not an in-depth study, "Dress" offers a clear and insightful explanation of how clothing provides a window into history: namely that the clothing one wears reflects one's individual and group identity. In other words, the study of dress offers insight into what's sacred in a society; generational differences; occupation, economic and vocational status in a society; ethnicity, community, nationality and racial identification; gender and sexuality; and individual values.                                                                       While Taylor's focus is outside of the US, his discussion is highly relevant to the study of dress in any context. I will use the analysis to support my analysis of 1970s counter-culture fashion.

• Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL): Annotated Bibliographies Need more information or an example of what an annotation looks like? Check out the info from Purdue's Online Writing Lab.
• Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL): Annotated Bibliography Samples Need more information or an example of what an annotation looks like? Check out the info from Purdue's Online Writing Lab.
• Cornell University Library: How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography

MLA specific guidelines for annotated bibliographies:

• Style the source as would in your works cited list
• Indent the annotation an inch from the start of the entry
• Comprehensive history of American foreign policy, with discussion of current policy issues and potential future concerns.
• The book provides a comprehensive history of American foreign policy as well as discusses current policy issues and potential future concerns.
• Annotations should generally be no more than one paragraph
• If annotations require more than one paragraph, ident each one but no not add an extra space between paragraphs
• The list of annotated bibliographies should be title Annotated Bibliography or Annotated List of Works Cited
• Annotated bibliographies are generally organized alphabetically by author or title (like a normal works cited list) but can also be organized by publication date or subject depending on your instructor's guidelines

What is an Annotated Bibliography?

Definitions.

A Bibliography is a list of the sources you used to research your topic.

An Annotated Bibliography includes a citation and a short summary/analysis (called an “annotation”) for each source. 

Follow your instructor's specific guidelines for the length and content of your annotated bibliography.

A common structure for the annotation is:

Summary: Include answers to some of these questions:

• what type of source is this? (book, article…etc.)
• what is this source about? – a brief summary
• what topic(s) does it cover?  how extensive is its coverage?
• what are its main arguments or themes?

Analysis: Include answers to some of these questions:

• why did you choose this source?
• in what ways is it an authoritative and credible source for your purposes?
• how is it helpful for your project or how does it shape your argument?
• how does it fit in with the rest of your research?

Quick Guide - MLA

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Access online tutorials using the links below:

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Writing an Annotated Bibliography

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Here's an example of an entry from an annotated bibliography, with the citation of the book in Chicago style and a brief description of the book:

Garrow, David J. Protest at Selma: Martin Luther King and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 . New Haven: Yale University Press, 1978.

Garrow describes how the strategy of protest employed by Martin Luther King, Jr., and SCLC at Selma influenced the emergence of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He contends that the choice of Selma as a site for civil rights protests and the specific tactics that SCLC adopted in Selma were part of a plan to force the introduction and passage of national voting rights legislation. The foremost consideration in this campaign was the need to elicit "unprovoked white violence aimed at peaceful and unresisting civil rights demonstrators." Garrow argues that at Selma "a strategy that bordered on nonviolent provocation supplanted the earlier belief in nonviolent persuasion." SCLC correctly assumed that police violence would generate national media coverage and this, in turn, would stimulate reactions "throughout the country, and especially Washington," leading to pressure for federal voting rights legislation.

(Example from: The Civil Rights Movement: References and Resources , by Paul T. Murray. New York: G.K. Hall & Co., 1993.)

Dunnow, I. "Predictors of Young Adult Voting Behavior; the Beavis and Butthead' Experience." Annals of Antipathy 30.1 (1995): 57-98. I.

Dunnow's humorous satire of young voters also includes considerable research. Included are results of four surveys of first time voters conducted during the 1990s. Dunnow's tongue-in-cheek approach to developing his article entertains but doesn't distract the reader from the issues covered in the article.

(Example from: UNF LibGuide Creating an Annotated Bibliography )

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APA Annotated Bibliography Format

The American Psychological Association states that your instructor should set the guidelines for your annotated bibliography, but does ask that the list be formatted according to their standard reference page rules (see Section 9.51 of the  Publication Manual ). Since there are no set rules for creating one, you may be wondering how to create an annotated APA bibliography. If your teacher or professor requests one, don’t worry, here are our recommendations:

• Make sure you create your references according to APA’s guidelines. If you need some help, here’s a great  APA citation website , which shows how to create references for electronic sources. We also have a page on developing a reference for an  APA journal . Need other source types? Check out the other helpful pages on EasyBib.com.
• Annotations should be kept short and are usually not more than one paragraph.
• For more information on writing an annotation, visit the general  annotated bibliography guide .

Here’s a run-through of everything this page includes:

• Quick APA formatting guidelines

Annotation example

Visual example, using the easybib annotation tool, troubleshooting, quick  apa  formatting guidelines:.

• Use 1-inch page margins on all sides.
• The entire page should be double-spaced.
• Title your page, “Annotated Bibliography”. Center and bold it.
• Left-align references. If a reference runs over more than one line, any line(s) that comes after the first should be indented a ½ inch from the left margin.
• Organize your references alphabetically by the first word in the reference. (See further details in this  APA Reference Page  guide).
• Add the annotations on the line right after their corresponding reference.
• Indent annotations ½ inch from the left margin.
• Include a page number in the upper right corner; if this is a professional paper, it should be a running head.

For an annotated bibliography APA example, we’re using the same description as above. The only thing we’re going to change is the structure of the reference. For an APA bibliography, the reference needs to be an  APA citation , and the description can be formed the same way as above.

Here’s what the  APA book citation  for  The Elements of Eloquence: Secrets of the Perfect Turn of Phrase  looks like:

Forsyth, M. (2014).  The elements of eloquence: Secrets of the perfect turn of phrase.  Penguin Books.

The author, Mark Forsyth, examines the rhetorical devices used in the English language, analyzing the patterns and formats that create memorable quotes. He traces the history of rhetoric to the Ancient Greeks, and provides an abridged timeline, following their use and evolution through to modern day. The author also explores the broader subject of persuasion and maps out the role that the figures of rhetoric play in it. In all, he examines over thirty devices, dissecting notable passages and phrases from pop music, the plays of William Shakespeare, the Bible, and more to explore the figures of rhetoric at work within each of them. Thorough definitions accompany this examination of structure to demonstrate how these formulas have been used to generate famously memorable expressions as well as how to reproduce their effects.

The EasyBib citation generator has an annotation tool that can help you easily add your annotation to a citation.

• To do this, begin creating a citation in the EasyBib citation generator. Already have a citation on EasyBib.com? Go to the citation, open your citation options and select “Edit citation.”
• Once you get to the citation form (where you review found information), scroll to the bottom until you see the sections “More options.”
• Under that section, click on the “Add annotation” link to open the annotation box.
• Copy and paste your annotation into the box.
• Complete your citation.
• Your annotation will automatically be included and formatted with your citation. You can copy and paste directly into your paper!

Again, even though the APA style does not support the creation of bibliographies that include annotations, many schools and professors expect their students to include summaries or commentary alongside their citations in APA style.

Solution #1: How to write an annotation

Annotations are brief paragraph summaries of your source and may include details about how you plan to use the information in your paper, or the quality of information in your source. Take these steps:

• Read through the source.
• Identify the main thesis theme of the source then consider how you would summarize the article and its purpose in one sentence.
• Evaluate the source. Is the author(s) qualified? Is the source and its arguments credible? Well-written? Why or why not?
• How does the source relate to your paper?
• Write your annotation based on the above steps. Choose only the points that would most help you or your reader gain an understanding of the source and its significance.

Here are writing tips:

• Avoid describing every event, statistic, or detail that occurs in your source.
• Focus on details that are relevant to your topic or your paper. Help the reader understand why the source was selected and is importance.
• Think about how the information impacts your perspective, how it contributes to your topic, and the effect on your overall paper.

Annotated paragraph example:

Solution #2: How to correctly format an annotation with multiple paragraphs

• Indent the entire annotated paragraph at ½ of an inch. When done correctly, the left edge of the annotated paragraph will look entirely straight, as in the first example below.
• If there are multiple paragraphs, follow step one but use a second 0.5-inch indention on the second and following paragraphs.
• Avoid indenting the paragraph at 0.5 inch like a regular essay paragraph, as shown in the third example.

Single annotated paragraph example:

Multiple annotated paragraphs example:

In his novel, “A True Story of John Doe,” Samuel Smith outlines his life through the eyes of a fictional character. His recollection outlines the immigrant experience and demonstrates how modern life in England came to be.

          Chapters two and three outline the novelty of moving to a new location by describing the eventual progression to culture shock. Smith describes life as beautiful and wonderous in chapter two by emphasizing sensory experiences. However, in chapter three, he slowly gains awareness of the differences between his current and previous lives and of how the locals treat him. Smith nullifies the sensory experiences and, instead, focuses on the depth of the human emotion. I intend to use this source to compare to my own experience as an immigrant.

APA Formatting Guide

APA Formatting

• Annotated Bibliography
• Block Quotes
• et al Usage
• In-text Citations
• Multiple Authors
• Paraphrasing
• Page Numbers
• Parenthetical Citations
• Reference Page
• Sample Paper
• APA 7 Updates
• View APA Guide

Citation Examples

• Book Chapter
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Website (no author)
• View all APA Examples

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To create an annotated APA bibliography, follow the below recommendations:

• Order your reference entries in alphabetical order similar to how you would order entries in the reference list.
• If you want to add an annotation to an entry, add it as a new paragraph below the reference entry. The entire annotation is indented 0.5 inches from the left margin.

For example:

Lim, L. (2014). Ideology, rationality and reproduction in education: A critical discourse analysis. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 35 (1), 61–76. https://doi.org/10.1080/01596306.2012.739467 Lim focuses on issues of power and ideology dominant in curricular discourses of rationality to study a discourse analysis of the goals of one of the most important curricula in the teaching of thinking. He proves that political and class commitments are reproduced in the forms of thinking that are valued in societies. Through his research, Lim asserts that such curricula engage in creating our understanding of what thinking and rationality are.

To format an annotated bibliography in APA, follow the recommendations given below:

• Set the left, right, top, and bottom margins as 1 inch.
• Use double-line spacing.
• Title the page “Annotated Bibliography.” Set it in bold.
• The title should be aligned to the center of the page.
• As you format reference entries, left-align all references in the annotated bibliography section. If any entry runs over more than a line, indent the subsequent lines 0.5 inches from the left margin.
• Arrange all reference entries alphabetically according to the surname of the authors.
• Provide your annotations below the reference entry for which you want to give your annotation. Indent annotations 0.5 inches from the left margin.

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Annotated Bibliographies

What Is An Annotated Bibliography?

What is an annotated bibliography.

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations (references) to books, articles, and documents followed by a brief summary, analysis or evaluation, usually between 100-300 words, of the sources that are cited in the paper.  This summary provides a description of the contents of the source and may also include evaluative comments, such as the relevance, accuracy and quality of the source.  These summaries are known as annotations. 

• Annotated bibliographies are completed before a paper is written
• They can be stand-along assignments
• They can be used as a reference tool as a person works on their paper

Annotations vs. Abstracts

Abstracts are the descriptive summaries of article contents found at the beginning of scholarly journal articles that are written by the article author(s) or editor. Their purpose is to inform a reader about the topic, methodology, results and conclusion of the research of the article's author(s).  The summaries are provided so that a researcher can determine whether or not the article may have information of interest to them.  Abstracts do not serve an evaluative purpose.

Annotations found in bibliographies are evaluations of sources cited in a paper.  They describe a work, but also critique the source by examining the author’s point of view, the strengths and weakness of the research or article hypothesis or how well the author presented their research or findings.

How to write an annotated bibliography

The creation of an annotated bibliography is a three-step process. It starts with finding and evaluating sources for your paper. Next is choosing the type or category of annotation, then writing the annotation for each different source. The final step is to choose a citation style for the bibliography.

Types of Annotated Bibliographies

Types of Annotations

Annotations come in different types, the one to use depends on the instructor’s assignment.  Annotations can be descriptive, a summary, or an  evaluation or a combination of descriptive and evaluation.

Descriptive/Summarizing Annotations

There are two kinds of descriptive or summarizing annotations, informative or indicative, depending on what is most important for a reader to learn about a source.  Descriptive/summarizing annotations provide a brief overview or summary of the source. This can include a description of the contents and a statement of the main argument or position of the article as well as a summary of the main points.  It may also describe why the source would be useful for the paper’s topic or question. 

Indicative annotations provide a quick overview of the source, the kinds of questions/topics/issues or main points that are addressed by the source, but do not include information from the argument or position itself.

Informative annotations, like indicative annotations, provide a brief summary of the source.   In addition, an informative annotation identifies the hypothesis, results, and conclusions presented by the source.  When appropriate, they describe the author’s methodology or approach to the topic under discussion.  However, they do not provide information about the sources usefulness to the paper or contains analytical or critical information about the source’s quality. 

Evaluative Annotations (also known as critical or analytical)

Evaluative annotations go beyond just summarizing the source and listing out it’s key points, but also analyzes the content. It looks at the strengths and weaknesses of the article’s argument, the reliability of the presented information as well as any biases of the author. It talks about how the source may be useful to a particular field of study or the person’s research project.

Combination Annotations

Combination annotations “combine” aspects from indicative/informative and evaluative annotations and are the most common category of annotated bibliography.  Combination annotations include one to two sentences summarizing or describing content, in addition to one or more sentences providing an critical evaluation.

Writing Style for Annotations

Annotations typically follow three specific formats depending on how long they are.

• Phrases – Short phrases providing the information in a quick, concise manner.
• Sentences – Complete sentences with proper punctuation and grammar, but are short and concise.
• Paragraphs – Longer annotations break the information out into different paragraphs. This format is very effective for combination annotations.

To sum it up:

An annotation may include the following information:

• A brief summary or overview of the source content
• The source’s strengths and weaknesses in presenting the argument or position
• Its conclusions
• Why the source is relevant in to field of study of the paper
• Its relationships to other studies in the field
• An evaluation of the research methodology (if applicable)
• Information about the author’s background and potential biases
• Conclusions about the usefulness of the source for the paper

Critically Analyzing Articles

In order to write an annotation for a paper source, you need to first read and then critically analyze it:

• Try to identify the topic of the source -- what is it about and is it clearly stated.
• See if you can identify the purpose of the author(s) in doing the research or writing about the topic. Is it to survey and summarize research on a topic?  Is the author(s) presenting an argument based on previous research, or refuting previously published research?
• Identify the research methods used and try to identify whether they appear to be suitable or not for the stated purpose of the research.  
• Was the research reported in a consistent or clear manner?  Or, was the author's argument/position presented in a consistent or convincing manner? Did the author(s) fail to acknowledge and explain any limitations?
• Was the logic of the research/argument claims properly supported with convincing evidence/analysis/data? Did you spot any fallacies?
• Check whether the author(s) refers to other research and if similar studies have been done. 
• If illustrations or charts are used, are they effective in presenting information?
• Analyze the sources that were used by the author(s). Did the author(s) miss any important studies they should have considered?
• Your opinion of the source -- do you agree with or are convinced of the findings?  
• Your estimation of the source’s contribution to knowledge and its implications or applications to the field of study.

Worksheet for Taking Notes for Critical Analysis of Sources/Articles

Additional Resources:

Hofmann, B., Magelssen, M. In pursuit of goodness in bioethics: analysis of an exemplary article. BMC Med Ethics 19, 60 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12910-018-0299-9

Jansen, M., & Ellerton, P. (2018). How to read an ethics paper. Journal of Medical Ethics, 44(12), 810-813.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/medethics-2018-104997

Research & Learning Services, Olin Library, Cornell University Library  Critically Analyzing Information Sources: Critical Appraisal and Analysis

Formatting An Annotated Bibliography

How do I format my annotated bibliography?

An annotated bibliography entry consists of two components: the Citation and the Annotation.

The citation should be formatted in the bibliographic style that your instructor has requested for the paper. Some common citation styles include APA, MLA, and Chicago. For more information on citation styles, see Writing Guides, Style Manuals and the Publication Process in the Biological & Health Sciences .

Many databases (e.g., PubMed, Academic Search Premier, Library Search on library homepage, and Google Scholar) offer the option of creating your references in various citation styles. 

Look for the "cite" link -- see examples for the following resources:

University of Minnesota Library Search

Google Scholar

Sample Annotated Bibliography Entries

An example of an Evaluative Annotation , APA style (7th ed). (sample from University Libraries, University of Nevada ).

APA does not have specific formatting rules for annotations, just for the citation and bibliography.

Maak, T. (2007). Responsible leadership, stakeholder engagement, and the emergence of social capital. Journal of Business Ethics, 74, 329-343.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-007-9510-5

This article focuses on the role of social capital in responsible leadership. It looks at both the social networks that a leader builds within an organization, and the links that a leader creates with external stakeholders. Maak’s main aim with this article seems to be to persuade people of the importance of continued research into the abilities that a leader requires and how they can be acquired. The focus on the world of multinational business means that for readers outside this world many of the conclusions seem rather obvious (be part of the solution not part of the problem). In spite of this, the article provides useful background information on the topic of responsible leadership and definitions of social capital which are relevant to an analysis of a public servant.

An example of an Evaluative Annotation , MLA Style (10th ed), (sample from Columbia College, Vancouver, Canada )

MLA style requires double-spacing (not shown here) and paragraph indentations.

London, Herbert. “Five Myths of the Television Age.” Television Quarterly, vol. 10, no. 1, Mar. 1982, pp. 81-69.

     Herbert London, the Dean of Journalism at New York University and author of several books and articles, explains how television contradicts five commonly believed ideas. He uses specific examples of events seen on television, such as the assassination of John Kennedy, to illustrate his points. His examples have been selected to contradict such truisms as: “seeing is believing”; “a picture is worth a thousand words”; and “satisfaction is its own reward.” London uses logical arguments to support his ideas which are his personal opinion. He does not refer to any previous works on the topic. London’s style and vocabulary would make the article of interest to any reader. The article clearly illustrates London’s points, but does not explore their implications leaving the reader with many unanswered questions.

Additional Resources

University Libraries Tutorial --  Tutorial: What are citations?  Completing this tutorial you will:

• Understand what citations are
• Recognize why they are important
• Create and use citations in your papers and other scholarly work

University of Minnesota Resources

Beatty, L., & Cochran, C. (2020). Writing the annotated bibliography : A guide for students & researchers . New York, NY: Routledge. [ebook] 

Efron, S., Ravid, R., & ProQuest. (2019). Writing the literature review : A practical guide . New York: The Guilford Press. [ebook -- see Chapter 6 on Evaluating Research Articles] 

Center for Writing: Student Writing Support

• Critical reading strategies
• Common Writing Projects (includes resources for literature reviews & analyzing research articles)

Resources from Other Libraries

Annotated Bibliographies (The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)

Writing An Annotated Bibliography (University of Toronto)

Annotated Bibliographies (Purdue Writing Lab, Purdue University)

Annotated Bibliography (UNSW Sydney)

What is an annotated bibliography? (Santiago Canyon College Library): Oct 17, 2017. 3:47 min.

Writing an annotated bibliography (EasyBib.com) Oct 22, 2020. 4:53 min.

Creating an annotated bibliography (Laurier University Library, Waterloo, Ontario)/ Apr 3, 2019, 3:32 min.

How to create an annotated bibliography: MLA (JamesTheDLC) Oct 23, 2019. 3:03 min.

Citing Sources

Introduction

Citations are brief notations in the body of a research paper that point to a source in the bibliography or references cited section.

If your paper quotes, paraphrases, summarizes the work of someone else, you need to use citations.

Citation style guides such as APA, Chicago and MLA provide detailed instructions on how citations and bibliographies should be formatted.

Health Sciences Research Toolkit

Resources, tips, and guidelines to help you through the research process., finding information.

Library Research Checklist Helpful hints for starting a library research project.

Search Strategy Checklist and Tips Helpful tips on how to develop a literature search strategy.

Boolean Operators: A Cheat Sheet Boolean logic (named after mathematician George Boole) is a system of logic to designed to yield optimal search results. The Boolean operators, AND, OR, and NOT, help you construct a logical search. Boolean operators act on sets -- groups of records containing a particular word or concept.

Literature Searching Overview and tips on how to conduct a literature search.

Health Statistics and Data Sources Health related statistics and data sources are increasingly available on the Internet. They can be found already neatly packaged, or as raw data sets. The most reliable data comes from governmental sources or health-care professional organizations.

Evaluating Information

Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Sources in the Health Sciences Understand what are considered primary, secondary and tertiary sources.

Scholarly vs Popular Journals/Magazines How to determine what are scholarly journals vs trade or popular magazines.

Identifying Peer-Reviewed Journals A “peer-reviewed” or “refereed” journal is one in which the articles it contains have been examined by people with credentials in the article’s field of study before it is published.

Evaluating Web  Resources When searching for information on the Internet, it is important to be aware of the quality of the information being presented to you. Keep in mind that anyone can host a web site. To be sure that the information you are looking at is credible and of value.

Conducting Research Through An Anti-Racism Lens This guide is for students, staff, and faculty who are incorporating an anti-racist lens at all stages of the research life cycle.

Understanding Research Study Designs Covers case studies, randomized control trials, systematic reviews and meta-analysis.

Qualitative Studies Overview of what is a qualitative study and how to recognize, find and critically appraise.

Writing and Publishing

Citing Sources Citations are brief notations in the body of a research paper that point to a source in the bibliography or references cited section.

Structure of a Research Paper Reports of research studies usually follow the IMRAD format. IMRAD (Introduction, Methods, Results, [and] Discussion) is a mnemonic for the major components of a scientific paper. These elements are included in the overall structure of a research paper.

Top Reasons for Non-Acceptance of Scientific Articles Avoid these mistakes when preparing an article for publication.

Annotated Bibliographies Guide on how to create an annotated bibliography.

Writing guides, Style Manuals and the Publication Process in the Biological and Health Sciences Style manuals, citation guides as well as information on public access policies, copyright and plagiarism.

Write an Annotated Bibliography

• Components of the Annotation

Example 1: MLA style

Example 2: apa style, example 3: chicago style, ask us: chat, email, visit or call.

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When using MLA Style, the information should be presented as follows:

• indented 1-inch from the left margin
• double-spaced within the annotations and between entries
• all subsequent lines of the annotation should be indented a further ½ inch

In the following example, the critical comments are highlighted in bold text.

Fisher, Alexander J. “Paul Hindemith, Gottfried Benn, and the Defense of the Autonomy of Art in the Late Weimar Republic.” Hispanic Journal of  Behavioral Sciences 28 (1999): 11-53.

A useful but uneven article suggesting that Hindemith’s desire to collaborate with Brecht and Benn was motivated by his desire to maintain the artistic autonomy of music against its appropriation by various social agendas ( Lehrstück and Lindberghflug as a reaction to the cultural conservatism of the Jugendmusikbewegung ; Das Unaufhörliche as a reaction to Brecht’s socialism). Hindemith’s incomplete understanding of the collaborators’ agendas may not have been entirely his fault, as Brecht’s thought was undergoing radicalization during and after the collaborations; Benn’s nihilism was much less known by the reading public than was his stance on art, and his susceptibility to Nazi ideology apparent only in retrospect.  All this is correct up to a point; however, the article falters, as did Hindemith , by failing to acknowledge or challenge the leftist critique that artistic autonomy itself entails a socio-political agenda.  Perhaps this explains Fisher’s account of Hindemith’s attempt to achieve a modus vivendi with the Nazis, which includes the obligatory citations from the Mathis libretto, but is disturbing for being offered (in stark contrast to his analyses of the Brecht and Benn collaborations) almost entirely without commentary, let alone critical evaluation.

Source of the example:

Luttman, Stephen, Paul Hindemith: A Guide to Research (New York: Routledge, 2005).

The APA Publication Manual does not provide formal guidelines for annotated bibliographies, but it suggests that the following layout would fit well in a paper otherwise formatted in APA style.

• double-spacing
• hanging indents for the second and following lines of the citation
• a space between the citation and the annotation
• all of the lines in the annotation must be indented two more spaces than the hanging indent 

In the following example, the critical comments, which focus on methodological questions and usefulness, are highlighted in bold text.

Thompson, L. (1992). Feminist methodology for family studies. Journal of Marriage and the Family , 54, 3-18.

Research methodology encompasses agenda, epistemology, ethics, and methods. Thompson illustrates each of these aspects of methodology with feminist examples from family studies. In so doing, she moves the literature of feminist research beyond the debate of qualitative versus quantitative methods. This article can be assigned to students regardless of whether they are using a feminist perspective in order to assist them in clarifying for themselves how they are addressing these aspects of methodology in their own research.

Humble, Áine M., et al., “Feminism and Mentoring of Graduate Students,” Family Relations 55 (January 2006): 2.

Chicago Style has two systems of formatting the actual citation (but not the annotation), depending on whether you use notes (footnotes/endnotes) or the author-date system.  Be sure to check the 16th edition of The Chicago Manual of Style on Chicago referencing style to find out the differences.

This example follows Chicago’s “notes and bibliography” citation style.

• single-spacing
• a hanging indent after the first line of the citation
• the rest of the annotation continues on with the same hanging indent

In the following example, the bolded text in the second sentence indicates the writer's analysis of the rhetorical methods used in the source.

Sedgewick, R. “The Proper Sphere and Influence of Women in Christian Society [1856].” In T he Proper Sphere: Woman’s Place in Canadian Society , edited by R. Cook and W. Mitchinson, 8–34. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1976.

This is the text of a November 1856 speech that Reverend Robert Sedgewick delivered at the Halifax YMCA. Focusing on the biblical debate that women are meant to be the help-meets of men, Sedgewick relies on ridicule, sarcasm and fear-mongering to argue that it is in the best interest of society to restrict women from courses of education that would take them outside of the home. This speech serves as an excellent example of the tactics and rhetoric employed by those opposed to equality in educational and professional opportunities. 

Wilson, Mary, “Women and Domestic Science. University-Based Education in North America: An Annotated Bibliography” (unpublished essay, University of Toronto, 2004).

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Entries in an annotated bibliography have two parts; a citation for each book, article, website, video, or other information source that you are consulting, and an evaluation of the source's content. Often this means more than a synopsis of the information provided, but some critical analysis of how useful the source is for your project and soundness of the argument made by the author. 

Here is an example of an annotated bibliography entry for a journal article from the Cornell University Libraries *:

Here are some more resources that discuss writing an annotated bibliography:

• How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography from the Cornell University Libraries 
• Annotated Bibliographies from The Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison
• Annotated Bibliographies from the Online Writing Lab from Purdue University

*Reproduced with permission of Olin Library Reference, Research & Learning Services, Cornell University Library, Ithaca, NY, USA

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• Chicago Style

How to Write an Annotated Bibliography in Chicago/Turabian Style

Published on October 15, 2019 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on April 9, 2024.

While a standard Chicago style bibliography provides publication details of your sources, an annotated bibliography also provides a summary (and often an evaluation) of each source.

Turabian style , a version of Chicago style specifically designed for students and researchers, provides formatting guidelines for an annotated bibliography. A typical entry might look like this:

Kenny, Anthony. A New History of Western Philosophy: In Four Parts . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010.

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Table of contents

How to write annotations, how to format an annotated bibliography.

The purpose of annotations is to give the reader relevant information about each source you have consulted. There are two main types of annotation.

Descriptive annotations simply describe your sources, briefly summarizing their arguments and ideas . They are useful for keeping a record of your reading and giving a quick overview of sources related to your topic. 

Evaluative annotations go into more detail and provide your own perspective on each source. For example, you may evaluate your sources by:

• assessing the strength of the author’s arguments.
• describing the ways in which the source is helpful or unhelpful to your own research.
• evaluating the evidence presented in the source, discussing the credibility .

Check the requirements of your assignment to find out whether you need to write descriptive or evaluative annotations.

How long should annotations be?

Annotations can vary in length according to the approach taken and the length of the source. You may write a couple of sentences describing the argument of an essay, or several paragraphs summarizing and evaluating a book .

A good guideline is to aim for 50 to 200 words for each source. Consult your instructor to check how long your annotated bibliography should be and how many sources you need to include.

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Professional editors proofread and edit your paper by focusing on:

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Each entry starts with a Chicago style citation , which gives full publication details of the source. The citation is formatted the same as a normal bibliography entry:

• Single-spaced
• Each line after the first indented ( hanging indent )
• Organized in alphabetical order by author last name

The annotation appears on a new line directly after the source citation. The whole annotation is indented, to make it clear when the annotation ends and a new source appears.

According to Turabian guidelines, annotations should be formatted the same as the main text of any paper:

• Double-spaced
• Left-aligned
• Indent the first line of each new paragraph

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Caulfield, J. (2024, April 09). How to Write an Annotated Bibliography in Chicago/Turabian Style. Scribbr. Retrieved July 8, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/chicago-style/chicago-annotated-bibliography/

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APA Style, 7th Edition

• Sample Papers & How to Videos
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• Edition of Books Other than First Edition
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Annotations

An  annotated bibliography  is a list of citations for various books, articles, and other sources on a topic. The annotated bibliography looks like a References page but includes an annotation after each source cited. An annotation is a short summary and/or critical evaluation of a source. Annotated bibliographies can be part of a larger research project, or can be a stand-alone report in itself.

Types of Annotations

 A  summary annotation  describes the source by answering the following questions: who wrote the document, what does the document discuss, when and where was the document written, why was the document produced, and how was it provided to the public. The focus is on description. 

 An  evaluative annotation  includes a summary as listed above but also critically assesses the work for accuracy, relevance, and quality. Evaluative annotations can help you learn about your topic, develop a thesis statement, decide if a specific source will be useful for your assignment, and determine if there is enough valid information available to complete your project. The focus is on description and evaluation.

Writing an Evaluative Annotation

• Cite the source using APA style.
• Describe the main ideas, arguments, themes, theses, or methodology, and identify the intended audience.
• Explain the author’s expertise, point of view, and any bias he/she may have.
• Compare to other sources on the same topic that you have also cited to show similarities and differences.
• Explain why each source is useful for your research topic and how it relates to your topic.
• Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each source.
• Identify the observations or conclusions of the author. 

Basic Tips on Writing & Formatting

• Each annotation should be one paragraph, between three to six sentences long (about 150- 200 words).
• Start with the same format as a regular References list.
• All lines should be double-spaced. Do not add an extra line between the citations.
• If your list of citations is especially long, you can organize it by topic.
• Try to be objective, and give explanations if you state any opinions.
• Use the third person (e.g., he, she, the author) instead of the first person (e.g., I, my, me)

Annotated bibliographies are formated in the method below.

Use a hanging indent for any references that are longer than one line.

The text of the annotation (where you explain who wrote the article, what they found, and why it is relevant to your paper) goes in a paragraph that has been indented directly below the reference entry. 

Johnston, M.P. (2013). School librarian & technology specialist: Partnership for effective technology integration. Knowledge Quest , 42 (1), 70-75.

Written by an assistant professor of library and information science and based on her personal experience, observations, and evidence-based research, this article attempts to cement the necessity for open communication between the school librarian and technology specialist. A cohesive relationship with mutual support proves to be a better way for the educational world to navigate the productive use of technology. If librarians and technology specialists are at odds within a school, then the only ones that suffer are the teachers and the students. A cohesive team of media specialists can better serve the school while teaching and integrating new technology in the classroom. Productivity for media specialists, both librarians, and technology specialists, also demands working cohesively with classroom teachers since many need assistance with technology integration. Open communication and consideration are integral to this process and only when these two factors happen in tandem can a school fully realize the possibilities inherent in technology. 

Moreillon, J., (2013). Leadership: Teaching digital citizenship . School Library Monthly , 30 (1), 26-27.

Written by an assistant professor of library and information studies in Texas, this article focuses on digital citizenship. The information, from the author’s personal observations and through discussions with colleagues, highlights the tools librarians currently use to increase their digital clout and technological presence within a school setting and recommends other tools that are potentially available. The author surmises that teaching digital citizenship purposefully helps integrate the correct use of technology while following standards set by the Common Core State Standards. Being advocates for teaching staff and students about digital citizenship acutely brings to focus the need for informed library specialists and the need for adequate technology resources. The author recommends fostering a proactive community in order to help students and staff become informed digital citizens prepared to navigate the wide world of technology.

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Annotated Bibliography Breakdown

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Stem Cell Research: An Annotated Bibliography

Holland, Suzanne. The Human Embryonic Stem Cell Debate: Science, Ethics, and Public Policy . Boston: MIT P, 2001.

This is the annotation of the above source, which is formatted according to MLA 2016 (8 th ed.) guidelines for the bibliographic information listed above. If one were really writing an annotation for this source, one would offer a brief summary of what this book says about stem cell research.

After a brief summary, it would be appropriate to assess this source and offer some criticisms of it. Does it seem like a reliable and current source? Why? Is the research biased or objective? Are the facts well documented? Who is the author? Is she qualified in this subject? Is this source scholarly, popular, some of both?

The length of your annotation will depend on the assignment or on the purpose of your annotated bibliography. After summarizing and assessing, you can now reflect on this source. How does it fit into your research? Is this a helpful resource? Too scholarly? Not scholarly enough? Too general/specific? Since "stem cell research" is a very broad topic, has this source helped you to narrow your topic?

Senior, K. "Extending the Ethical Boundaries of Stem Cell Research." Trends in Molecular Medicine , vol. 7, 2001, pp. 5-6.

Not all annotations have to be the same length. For example, this source is a very short scholarly article. It may only take a sentence or two to summarize. Even if you are using a book, you should only focus on the sections that relate to your topic.

Not all annotated bibliographies assess and reflect; some merely summarize. That may not be the most helpful for you, but, if this is an assignment, you should always ask your instructor for specific guidelines.

Wallace, Kelly. "Bush Stands Pat on Stem Cell Policy." CNN . 13 Aug. 2001.

Using a variety of sources can help give you a broader picture of what is being said about your topic. You may want to investigate how scholarly sources are treating this topic differently than more popular sources. But again, if your assignment is to only use scholarly sources, then you will probably want to avoid magazines and popular web sites.

The bibliographic information above is proper MLA format (use whatever style is appropriate in your field) and the annotations are in paragraph form. Note also that the entries are alphabetized by the first word in the bibliographic entry. If you are writing an annotated bibliography with many sources, it may be helpful to divide the sources into categories. For example, if putting together an extensive annotated bibliography for stem cell research, it might be best to divide the sources into categories such as ethical concerns, scholarly analyses, and political ramifications.

For more examples, a quick search at a library or even on the Internet should produce several examples of annotated bibliographies in your area.

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Annotated bibliographies, where do i start, examples & tutorials of how to write an annotated bibliography, video tutorial.

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• Document Summary Template A good way to begin an annotated bibliography is to write up a document summary for each item. A document summary is not an annotated bibliography, but it is a great way to get yourself writing when you don't know where to start.
• Sample Annotated Bibliography This file shows one source from an annotated bibliography with annotation to show you what is typically required for each piece of the puzzle.
• Annotated Bibliographies video A video tutorial on writing annotated bibliographies from the University of Maryland Global Campus.
• Purdue OWL Example An example of a finished annotated bibliography from the OWL.
• Purdue OWL Samples Additional annotated bibliography examples in various citation styles.

Video Tutorial created by Luther Rice College & Seminary

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