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References in Research – Types, Examples and Writing Guide

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References in Research

Definition:

References in research are a list of sources that a researcher has consulted or cited while conducting their study. They are an essential component of any academic work, including research papers, theses, dissertations, and other scholarly publications.

Types of References

There are several types of references used in research, and the type of reference depends on the source of information being cited. The most common types of references include:

References to books typically include the author’s name, title of the book, publisher, publication date, and place of publication.

Example: Smith, J. (2018). The Art of Writing. Penguin Books.

Journal Articles

References to journal articles usually include the author’s name, title of the article, name of the journal, volume and issue number, page numbers, and publication date.

Example: Johnson, T. (2021). The Impact of Social Media on Mental Health. Journal of Psychology, 32(4), 87-94.

Web sources

References to web sources should include the author or organization responsible for the content, the title of the page, the URL, and the date accessed.

Example: World Health Organization. (2020). Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) advice for the public. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public

Conference Proceedings

References to conference proceedings should include the author’s name, title of the paper, name of the conference, location of the conference, date of the conference, and page numbers.

Example: Chen, S., & Li, J. (2019). The Future of AI in Education. Proceedings of the International Conference on Educational Technology, Beijing, China, July 15-17, pp. 67-78.

References to reports typically include the author or organization responsible for the report, title of the report, publication date, and publisher.

Example: United Nations. (2020). The Sustainable Development Goals Report. United Nations.

Formats of References

Some common Formates of References with their examples are as follows:

APA (American Psychological Association) Style

The APA (American Psychological Association) Style has specific guidelines for formatting references used in academic papers, articles, and books. Here are the different reference formats in APA style with examples:

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of book. Publisher.

Example : Smith, J. K. (2005). The psychology of social interaction. Wiley-Blackwell.

Journal Article

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year of publication). Title of article. Title of Journal, volume number(issue number), page numbers.

Example : Brown, L. M., Keating, J. G., & Jones, S. M. (2012). The role of social support in coping with stress among African American adolescents. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 22(1), 218-233.

Author, A. A. (Year of publication or last update). Title of page. Website name. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, December 11). COVID-19: How to protect yourself and others. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html

Magazine article

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Title of Magazine, volume number(issue number), page numbers.

Example : Smith, M. (2019, March 11). The power of positive thinking. Psychology Today, 52(3), 60-65.

Newspaper article:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day of publication). Title of article. Title of Newspaper, page numbers.

Example: Johnson, B. (2021, February 15). New study shows benefits of exercise on mental health. The New York Times, A8.

Edited book

Editor, E. E. (Ed.). (Year of publication). Title of book. Publisher.

Example : Thompson, J. P. (Ed.). (2014). Social work in the 21st century. Sage Publications.

Chapter in an edited book:

Author, A. A. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Title of book (pp. page numbers). Publisher.

Example : Johnson, K. S. (2018). The future of social work: Challenges and opportunities. In J. P. Thompson (Ed.), Social work in the 21st century (pp. 105-118). Sage Publications.

MLA (Modern Language Association) Style

The MLA (Modern Language Association) Style is a widely used style for writing academic papers and essays in the humanities. Here are the different reference formats in MLA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Smith, John. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Journal article

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal, volume number, issue number, Publication year, page numbers.

Example : Brown, Laura M., et al. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence, vol. 22, no. 1, 2012, pp. 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name, Publication date, URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC, 11 Dec. 2020, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Publication date, page numbers.

Example : Smith, Mary. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, Mar. 2019, pp. 60-65.

Newspaper article

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Publication date, page numbers.

Example : Johnson, Bob. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, 15 Feb. 2021, p. A8.

Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Thompson, John P., editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. Sage Publications, 2014.

Chapter in an edited book

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last name, Publisher, Publication year, page numbers.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, Sage Publications, 2014, pp. 105-118.

Chicago Manual of Style

The Chicago Manual of Style is a widely used style for writing academic papers, dissertations, and books in the humanities and social sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Chicago style:

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number, no. issue number (Publication year): page numbers.

Example : Brown, Laura M., John G. Keating, and Sarah M. Jones. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 22, no. 1 (2012): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name. Publication date. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. December 11, 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Publication date.

Example : Smith, Mary. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 2019.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Publication date.

Example : Johnson, Bob. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Example : Thompson, John P., ed. Social Work in the 21st Century. Sage Publications, 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last Name, page numbers. Publisher, Publication year.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, 105-118. Sage Publications, 2014.

Harvard Style

The Harvard Style, also known as the Author-Date System, is a widely used style for writing academic papers and essays in the social sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Harvard Style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Smith, John. 2005. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number (issue number): page numbers.

Example: Brown, Laura M., John G. Keating, and Sarah M. Jones. 2012. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” Journal of Research on Adolescence 22 (1): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name. URL. Accessed date.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2020. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html. Accessed April 1, 2023.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, month and date of publication.

Example : Smith, Mary. 2019. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 2019.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, month and date of publication.

Example : Johnson, Bob. 2021. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Year of publication. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Thompson, John P., ed. 2014. Social Work in the 21st Century. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of publication. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s First Name Last Name, page numbers. Place of publication: Publisher.

Example : Johnson, Karen S. 2014. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by John P. Thompson, 105-118. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Vancouver Style

The Vancouver Style, also known as the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals, is a widely used style for writing academic papers in the biomedical sciences. Here are the different reference formats in Vancouver Style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. 2nd ed. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell; 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title. Year of publication; volume number(issue number):page numbers.

Example : Brown LM, Keating JG, Jones SM. The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents. J Res Adolesc. 2012;22(1):218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Webpage. Website Name [Internet]. Publication date. [cited date]. Available from: URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others [Internet]. 2020 Dec 11. [cited 2023 Apr 1]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Title of Magazine. Year of publication; month and day of publication:page numbers.

Example : Smith M. The Power of Positive Thinking. Psychology Today. 2019 Mar 1:32-35.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Title of Newspaper. Year of publication; month and day of publication:page numbers.

Example : Johnson B. New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health. The New York Times. 2021 Feb 15:A4.

Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication.

Example: Thompson JP, editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. 1st ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Chapter. In: Editor’s Last name, First name, editor. Title of Book. Edition number. Place of publication: Publisher; Year of publication. page numbers.

Example : Johnson KS. The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities. In: Thompson JP, editor. Social Work in the 21st Century. 1st ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 2014. p. 105-118.

Turabian Style

Turabian style is a variation of the Chicago style used in academic writing, particularly in the fields of history and humanities. Here are the different reference formats in Turabian style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Smith, John K. The Psychology of Social Interaction. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2005.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number, no. issue number (Year of publication): page numbers.

Example : Brown, LM, Keating, JG, Jones, SM. “The Role of Social Support in Coping with Stress among African American Adolescents.” J Res Adolesc 22, no. 1 (2012): 218-233.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Name of Website. Publication date. Accessed date. URL.

Example : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “COVID-19: How to Protect Yourself and Others.” CDC. December 11, 2020. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention.html.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine, Month Day, Year of publication, page numbers.

Example : Smith, M. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Psychology Today, March 1, 2019, 32-35.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Title of Newspaper, Month Day, Year of publication.

Example : Johnson, B. “New Study Shows Benefits of Exercise on Mental Health.” The New York Times, February 15, 2021.

Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Thompson, JP, ed. Social Work in the 21st Century. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2014.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Chapter.” In Title of Book, edited by Editor’s Last name, First name, page numbers. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Johnson, KS. “The Future of Social Work: Challenges and Opportunities.” In Social Work in the 21st Century, edited by Thompson, JP, 105-118. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2014.

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Style

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) style is commonly used in engineering, computer science, and other technical fields. Here are the different reference formats in IEEE style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of publication.

Example : Oppenheim, A. V., & Schafer, R. W. Discrete-Time Signal Processing. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2010.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Article.” Abbreviated Journal Title, vol. number, no. issue number, pp. page numbers, Month year of publication.

Example: Shannon, C. E. “A Mathematical Theory of Communication.” Bell System Technical Journal, vol. 27, no. 3, pp. 379-423, July 1948.

Conference paper

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Paper.” In Title of Conference Proceedings, Place of Conference, Date of Conference, pp. page numbers, Year of publication.

Example: Gupta, S., & Kumar, P. “An Improved System of Linear Discriminant Analysis for Face Recognition.” In Proceedings of the 2011 International Conference on Computer Science and Network Technology, Harbin, China, Dec. 2011, pp. 144-147.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Webpage.” Name of Website. Date of publication or last update. Accessed date. URL.

Example : National Aeronautics and Space Administration. “Apollo 11.” NASA. July 20, 1969. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/apollo11.html.

Technical report

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Report.” Name of Institution or Organization, Report number, Year of publication.

Example : Smith, J. R. “Development of a New Solar Panel Technology.” National Renewable Energy Laboratory, NREL/TP-6A20-51645, 2011.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Patent.” Patent number, Issue date.

Example : Suzuki, H. “Method of Producing Carbon Nanotubes.” US Patent 7,151,019, December 19, 2006.

Standard Title. Standard number, Publication date.

Example : IEEE Standard for Floating-Point Arithmetic. IEEE Std 754-2008, August 29, 2008

ACS (American Chemical Society) Style

ACS (American Chemical Society) style is commonly used in chemistry and related fields. Here are the different reference formats in ACS style:

Author’s Last name, First name; Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. Abbreviated Journal Title Year, Volume, Page Numbers.

Example : Wang, Y.; Zhao, X.; Cui, Y.; Ma, Y. Facile Preparation of Fe3O4/graphene Composites Using a Hydrothermal Method for High-Performance Lithium Ion Batteries. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2012, 4, 2715-2721.

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title; Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication.

Example : Carey, F. A. Organic Chemistry; McGraw-Hill: New York, 2008.

Author’s Last name, First name. Chapter Title. In Book Title; Editor’s Last name, First name, Ed.; Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication; Volume number, Chapter number, Page Numbers.

Example : Grossman, R. B. Analytical Chemistry of Aerosols. In Aerosol Measurement: Principles, Techniques, and Applications; Baron, P. A.; Willeke, K., Eds.; Wiley-Interscience: New York, 2001; Chapter 10, pp 395-424.

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Webpage. Website Name, URL (accessed date).

Example : National Institute of Standards and Technology. Atomic Spectra Database. https://www.nist.gov/pml/atomic-spectra-database (accessed April 1, 2023).

Author’s Last name, First name. Patent Number. Patent Date.

Example : Liu, Y.; Huang, H.; Chen, H.; Zhang, W. US Patent 9,999,999, December 31, 2022.

Author’s Last name, First name; Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Article. In Title of Conference Proceedings, Publisher: Place of Publication, Year of Publication; Volume Number, Page Numbers.

Example : Jia, H.; Xu, S.; Wu, Y.; Wu, Z.; Tang, Y.; Huang, X. Fast Adsorption of Organic Pollutants by Graphene Oxide. In Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology, American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2017; Volume 1, pp 223-228.

AMA (American Medical Association) Style

AMA (American Medical Association) style is commonly used in medical and scientific fields. Here are the different reference formats in AMA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Article Title. Journal Abbreviation. Year; Volume(Issue):Page Numbers.

Example : Jones, R. A.; Smith, B. C. The Role of Vitamin D in Maintaining Bone Health. JAMA. 2019;321(17):1765-1773.

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : Guyton, A. C.; Hall, J. E. Textbook of Medical Physiology. 13th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Saunders; 2015.

Author’s Last name, First name. Chapter Title. In: Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: Page Numbers.

Example: Rajakumar, K. Vitamin D and Bone Health. In: Holick, M. F., ed. Vitamin D: Physiology, Molecular Biology, and Clinical Applications. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Springer; 2010:211-222.

Author’s Last name, First name. Webpage Title. Website Name. URL. Published date. Updated date. Accessed date.

Example : National Cancer Institute. Breast Cancer Prevention (PDQ®)–Patient Version. National Cancer Institute. https://www.cancer.gov/types/breast/patient/breast-prevention-pdq. Published October 11, 2022. Accessed April 1, 2023.

Author’s Last name, First name. Conference presentation title. In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Place of Conference.

Example : Smith, J. R. Vitamin D and Bone Health: A Meta-Analysis. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research; September 20-23, 2022; San Diego, CA.

Thesis or dissertation

Author’s Last name, First name. Title of Thesis or Dissertation. Degree level [Doctoral dissertation or Master’s thesis]. University Name; Year.

Example : Wilson, S. A. The Effects of Vitamin D Supplementation on Bone Health in Postmenopausal Women [Doctoral dissertation]. University of California, Los Angeles; 2018.

ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) Style

The ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) style is commonly used in civil engineering fields. Here are the different reference formats in ASCE style:

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title, volume number, issue number (year): page numbers. DOI or URL (if available).

Example : Smith, J. R. “Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Sustainable Drainage Systems in Urban Areas.” Journal of Environmental Engineering, vol. 146, no. 3 (2020): 04020010. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EE.1943-7870.0001668.

Example : McCuen, R. H. Hydrologic Analysis and Design. 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education; 2013.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” In: Editor’s Last name, First name, ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: page numbers.

Example : Maidment, D. R. “Floodplain Management in the United States.” In: Shroder, J. F., ed. Treatise on Geomorphology. San Diego, CA: Academic Press; 2013: 447-460.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Paper Title.” In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Location. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year: page numbers.

Example: Smith, J. R. “Sustainable Drainage Systems for Urban Areas.” In: Proceedings of the ASCE International Conference on Sustainable Infrastructure; November 6-9, 2019; Los Angeles, CA. Reston, VA: American Society of Civil Engineers; 2019: 156-163.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Report Title.” Report number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. “Hurricane Sandy Coastal Risk Reduction Program, New York and New Jersey.” Report No. P-15-001. Washington, DC: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; 2015.

CSE (Council of Science Editors) Style

The CSE (Council of Science Editors) style is commonly used in the scientific and medical fields. Here are the different reference formats in CSE style:

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Article Title.” Journal Title. Year;Volume(Issue):Page numbers.

Example : Smith, J.R. “Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Sustainable Drainage Systems in Urban Areas.” Journal of Environmental Engineering. 2020;146(3):04020010.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Chapter Title.” In: Editor’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial., ed. Book Title. Edition number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year:Page numbers.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Paper Title.” In: Conference Title; Conference Date; Location. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example : Smith, J.R. “Sustainable Drainage Systems for Urban Areas.” In: Proceedings of the ASCE International Conference on Sustainable Infrastructure; November 6-9, 2019; Los Angeles, CA. Reston, VA: American Society of Civil Engineers; 2019.

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Report Title.” Report number. Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Bluebook Style

The Bluebook style is commonly used in the legal field for citing legal documents and sources. Here are the different reference formats in Bluebook style:

Case citation

Case name, volume source page (Court year).

Example : Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954).

Statute citation

Name of Act, volume source § section number (year).

Example : Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7401 (1963).

Regulation citation

Name of regulation, volume source § section number (year).

Example: Clean Air Act, 40 C.F.R. § 52.01 (2019).

Book citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. Book Title. Edition number (if applicable). Place of Publication: Publisher; Year.

Example: Smith, J.R. Legal Writing and Analysis. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Aspen Publishers; 2015.

Journal article citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Article Title.” Journal Title. Volume number (year): first page-last page.

Example: Garcia, C. “The Right to Counsel: An International Comparison.” International Journal of Legal Information. 43 (2015): 63-94.

Website citation

Author’s Last name, First Initial. Middle Initial. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed month day, year).

Example : United Nations. “Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” United Nations. https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Oxford Style

The Oxford style, also known as the Oxford referencing system or the documentary-note citation system, is commonly used in the humanities, including literature, history, and philosophy. Here are the different reference formats in Oxford style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.

Example : Smith, John. The Art of Writing. New York: Penguin, 2020.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume, no. issue (year): page range.

Example: Garcia, Carlos. “The Role of Ethics in Philosophy.” Philosophy Today 67, no. 3 (2019): 53-68.

Chapter in an edited book citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title, edited by Editor’s Name, page range. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication.

Example : Lee, Mary. “Feminism in the 21st Century.” In The Oxford Handbook of Feminism, edited by Jane Smith, 51-69. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.

Author’s Last name, First name. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed day month year).

Example : Jones, David. “The Importance of Learning Languages.” Oxford Language Center. https://www.oxfordlanguagecenter.com/importance-of-learning-languages/ (accessed 3 January 2023).

Dissertation or thesis citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Dissertation/Thesis.” PhD diss., University Name, Year of Publication.

Example : Brown, Susan. “The Art of Storytelling in American Literature.” PhD diss., University of Oxford, 2020.

Newspaper article citation

Author’s Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Newspaper Title, Month Day, Year.

Example : Robinson, Andrew. “New Developments in Climate Change Research.” The Guardian, September 15, 2022.

AAA (American Anthropological Association) Style

The American Anthropological Association (AAA) style is commonly used in anthropology research papers and journals. Here are the different reference formats in AAA style:

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. Book Title. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example : Smith, John. 2019. The Anthropology of Food. New York: Routledge.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume, no. issue: page range.

Example : Garcia, Carlos. 2021. “The Role of Ethics in Anthropology.” American Anthropologist 123, no. 2: 237-251.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Chapter Title.” In Book Title, edited by Editor’s Name, page range. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example: Lee, Mary. 2018. “Feminism in Anthropology.” In The Oxford Handbook of Feminism, edited by Jane Smith, 51-69. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Page Title.” Website Title. URL (accessed day month year).

Example : Jones, David. 2020. “The Importance of Learning Languages.” Oxford Language Center. https://www.oxfordlanguagecenter.com/importance-of-learning-languages/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Title of Dissertation/Thesis.” PhD diss., University Name.

Example : Brown, Susan. 2022. “The Art of Storytelling in Anthropology.” PhD diss., University of California, Berkeley.

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Article Title.” Newspaper Title, Month Day.

Example : Robinson, Andrew. 2021. “New Developments in Anthropology Research.” The Guardian, September 15.

AIP (American Institute of Physics) Style

The American Institute of Physics (AIP) style is commonly used in physics research papers and journals. Here are the different reference formats in AIP style:

Example : Johnson, S. D. 2021. “Quantum Computing and Information.” Journal of Applied Physics 129, no. 4: 043102.

Example : Feynman, Richard. 2018. The Feynman Lectures on Physics. New York: Basic Books.

Example : Jones, David. 2020. “The Future of Quantum Computing.” In The Handbook of Physics, edited by John Smith, 125-136. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Conference proceedings citation

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. “Title of Paper.” Proceedings of Conference Name, date and location: page range. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Example : Chen, Wei. 2019. “The Applications of Nanotechnology in Solar Cells.” Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Nanotechnology, July 15-17, Tokyo, Japan: 224-229. New York: AIP Publishing.

Example : American Institute of Physics. 2022. “About AIP Publishing.” AIP Publishing. https://publishing.aip.org/about-aip-publishing/ (accessed January 3, 2023).

Patent citation

Author’s Last name, First name. Year of Publication. Patent Number.

Example : Smith, John. 2018. US Patent 9,873,644.

References Writing Guide

Here are some general guidelines for writing references:

• Follow the citation style guidelines: Different disciplines and journals may require different citation styles (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago). It is important to follow the specific guidelines for the citation style required.
• Include all necessary information : Each citation should include enough information for readers to locate the source. For example, a journal article citation should include the author(s), title of the article, journal title, volume number, issue number, page numbers, and publication year.
• Use proper formatting: Citation styles typically have specific formatting requirements for different types of sources. Make sure to follow the proper formatting for each citation.
• Order citations alphabetically: If listing multiple sources, they should be listed alphabetically by the author’s last name.
• Be consistent: Use the same citation style throughout the entire paper or project.
• Check for accuracy: Double-check all citations to ensure accuracy, including correct spelling of author names and publication information.
• Use reputable sources: When selecting sources to cite, choose reputable and authoritative sources. Avoid sources that are biased or unreliable.
• Include all sources: Make sure to include all sources used in the research, including those that were not directly quoted but still informed the work.
• Use online tools : There are online tools available (e.g., citation generators) that can help with formatting and organizing references.

Purpose of References in Research

References in research serve several purposes:

• To give credit to the original authors or sources of information used in the research. It is important to acknowledge the work of others and avoid plagiarism.
• To provide evidence for the claims made in the research. References can support the arguments, hypotheses, or conclusions presented in the research by citing relevant studies, data, or theories.
• To allow readers to find and verify the sources used in the research. References provide the necessary information for readers to locate and access the sources cited in the research, which allows them to evaluate the quality and reliability of the information presented.
• To situate the research within the broader context of the field. References can show how the research builds on or contributes to the existing body of knowledge, and can help readers to identify gaps in the literature that the research seeks to address.

Importance of References in Research

References play an important role in research for several reasons:

• Credibility : By citing authoritative sources, references lend credibility to the research and its claims. They provide evidence that the research is based on a sound foundation of knowledge and has been carefully researched.
• Avoidance of Plagiarism : References help researchers avoid plagiarism by giving credit to the original authors or sources of information. This is important for ethical reasons and also to avoid legal repercussions.
• Reproducibility : References allow others to reproduce the research by providing detailed information on the sources used. This is important for verification of the research and for others to build on the work.
• Context : References provide context for the research by situating it within the broader body of knowledge in the field. They help researchers to understand where their work fits in and how it builds on or contributes to existing knowledge.
• Evaluation : References provide a means for others to evaluate the research by allowing them to assess the quality and reliability of the sources used.

Advantages of References in Research

There are several advantages of including references in research:

• Acknowledgment of Sources: Including references gives credit to the authors or sources of information used in the research. This is important to acknowledge the original work and avoid plagiarism.
• Evidence and Support : References can provide evidence to support the arguments, hypotheses, or conclusions presented in the research. This can add credibility and strength to the research.
• Reproducibility : References provide the necessary information for others to reproduce the research. This is important for the verification of the research and for others to build on the work.
• Context : References can help to situate the research within the broader body of knowledge in the field. This helps researchers to understand where their work fits in and how it builds on or contributes to existing knowledge.
• Evaluation : Including references allows others to evaluate the research by providing a means to assess the quality and reliability of the sources used.
• Ongoing Conversation: References allow researchers to engage in ongoing conversations and debates within their fields. They can show how the research builds on or contributes to the existing body of knowledge.

About the author

Muhammad Hassan

Researcher, Academic Writer, Web developer

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Articles, Books, and . . . ? Understanding the Many Types of Information Found in Libraries

• Reference Sources

Encyclopedias

Dictionaries, almanacs and yearbooks, handbooks and manuals.

• Documents and Reports
• Non-Text Content
• Archival Materials

Reference sources are generally the place to begin your research, especially when you're starting out with an unfamiliar field. But they're also where you return when you need to look up formulas, facts, definitions, and other standard details; they tend to pack a lot of information into simple, easy-to-use packages.

Physical Media

Many reference works are available online and are accessible through links from the Library Catalog and from subject or course guides , but many valuable reference resources are still available only in print, and a few highly specialized tools are on microform or CD. Because print-only reference books are in high demand, they are kept in separate, non-circulating reference collections in most UCLA libraries.

Scholarly Sources

Reference sources are rarely peer-reviewed. In fact, because they mostly contain established, factual information, they're sometimes not even cited in academic works, unless directly quoted. Check your style manual for best guidelines.

Primary or Secondary Sources

As compilations of existing information, reference works are decisively in the category of secondary sources... to the point that some people call them tertiary sources .

Because Wikipedia content is anonymous and lacks a formal review process, it's not considered a "scholarly source," and most professors don't accept Wikipedia citations in papers. That said, Wikipedia does increasingly cite sources, so you can use it to lead you to sources which you can cite.

Encyclopedias attempt to provide comprehensive summaries of knowledge in either a specific field (subject encyclopedias) or "everything" (general encyclopedias). Encyclopedias are typically divided into a collection of articles on discrete topics. Academically oriented encyclopedias will often include short bibliographies, making them a good resource for identifying key books and articles on a topic.

• Online Encyclopedias
• Finding Print Encyclopedias
• Subject dictionaries: define technical terms in specific fields, sometimes in as much detail as an encyclopedia
• Bilingual dictionaries: define words in a different language
• Thesauri: provide synonyms
• Rhyming dictionariess
• Major Online Dictionaries
• Finding Dictionaries (both online and in print)
• World Almanac and Book of Facts
• Statistical Yearbooks

Both "handbook" and "manual" refer to the traditional small size of the volumes, designed to fit in one hand for ease of use. Despite this origin, many modern handbooks are quite hefty!

• Databases containing online handbooks
• Find print handbooks in the Library Catalog Search "[subject] handbooks" within Subject List.
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Citing sources: Overview

• Citation style guides

Manage your references

Use these tools to help you organize and cite your references:

• Citation Management and Writing Tools

If you have questions after consulting this guide about how to cite, please contact your advisor/professor or the writing and communication center .

Why citing is important

It's important to cite sources you used in your research for several reasons:

• To show your reader you've done proper research by listing sources you used to get your information
• To be a responsible scholar by giving credit to other researchers and acknowledging their ideas
• To avoid plagiarism by quoting words and ideas used by other authors
• To allow your reader to track down the sources you used by citing them accurately in your paper by way of footnotes, a bibliography or reference list

About citations

Citing a source means that you show, within the body of your text, that you took words, ideas, figures, images, etc. from another place.

Citations are a short way to uniquely identify a published work (e.g. book, article, chapter, web site).  They are found in bibliographies and reference lists and are also collected in article and book databases.

Citations consist of standard elements, and contain all the information necessary to identify and track down publications, including:

• author name(s)
• titles of books, articles, and journals
• date of publication
• page numbers
• volume and issue numbers (for articles)

Citations may look different, depending on what is being cited and which style was used to create them. Choose an appropriate style guide for your needs.  Here is an example of an article citation using four different citation styles.  Notice the common elements as mentioned above:

Author - R. Langer

Article Title - New Methods of Drug Delivery

Source Title - Science

Volume and issue - Vol 249, issue 4976

Publication Date - 1990

Page numbers - 1527-1533

American Chemical Society (ACS) style:

Langer, R. New Methods of Drug Delivery. Science 1990 , 249 , 1527-1533.

IEEE Style:

R. Langer, " New Methods of Drug Delivery," Science , vol. 249 , pp. 1527-1533 , SEP 28, 1990 .

American Psychological Association   (APA) style:

Langer, R. (1990) . New methods of drug delivery. Science , 249 (4976), 1527-1533.

Modern Language Association (MLA) style:

Langer, R. " New Methods of Drug Delivery." Science 249.4976 (1990) : 1527-33.

What to cite

You must cite:

• Facts, figures, ideas, or other information that is not common knowledge

Publications that must be cited include:  books, book chapters, articles, web pages, theses, etc.

Another person's exact words should be quoted and cited to show proper credit 

When in doubt, be safe and cite your source!

Avoiding plagiarism

Plagiarism occurs when you borrow another's words (or ideas) and do not acknowledge that you have done so. In this culture, we consider our words and ideas intellectual property; like a car or any other possession, we believe our words belong to us and cannot be used without our permission.

Plagiarism is a very serious offense. If it is found that you have plagiarized -- deliberately or inadvertently -- you may face serious consequences. In some instances, plagiarism has meant that students have had to leave the institutions where they were studying.

The best way to avoid plagiarism is to cite your sources - both within the body of your paper and in a bibliography of sources you used at the end of your paper.

Some useful links about plagiarism:

• MIT Academic Integrity Overview on citing sources and avoiding plagiarism at MIT.
• Avoiding Plagiarism From the MIT Writing and Communication Center.
• Plagiarism: What It is and How to Recognize and Avoid It From Indiana University's Writing Tutorial Services.
• Plagiarism- Overview A resource from Purdue University.
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• Last Updated: Jan 16, 2024 7:02 AM
• URL: https://libguides.mit.edu/citing

• USC Libraries
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Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper

• 11. Citing Sources
• Purpose of Guide
• Design Flaws to Avoid
• Independent and Dependent Variables
• Glossary of Research Terms
• Reading Research Effectively
• Narrowing a Topic Idea
• Broadening a Topic Idea
• Extending the Timeliness of a Topic Idea
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• The C.A.R.S. Model
• Background Information
• The Research Problem/Question
• Theoretical Framework
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• Evaluating Sources
• Primary Sources
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• Scholarly vs. Popular Publications
• Qualitative Methods
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• Using Non-Textual Elements
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• Common Grammar Mistakes
• Writing Concisely
• Avoiding Plagiarism
• Footnotes or Endnotes?
• Further Readings
• Generative AI and Writing
• USC Libraries Tutorials and Other Guides
• Bibliography

A citation is a formal reference to a published or unpublished source that you consulted and obtained information from while writing your research paper. It refers to a source of information that supports a factual statement, proposition, argument, or assertion or any quoted text obtained from a book, article, web site, or any other type of material . In-text citations are embedded within the body of your paper and use a shorthand notation style that refers to a complete description of the item at the end of the paper. Materials cited at the end of a paper may be listed under the heading References, Sources, Works Cited, or Bibliography. Rules on how to properly cite a source depends on the writing style manual your professor wants you to use for the class [e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago, Turabian, etc.]. Note that some disciplines have their own citation rules [e.g., law].

Citations: Overview. OASIS Writing Center, Walden University; Research and Citation. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Citing Sources. University Writing Center, Texas A&M University.

Reasons for Citing Your Sources

Reasons for Citing Sources in Your Research Paper

English scientist, Sir Isaac Newton, once wrote, "If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”* Citations support learning how to "see further" through processes of intellectual discovery, critical thinking, and applying a deliberate method of navigating through the scholarly landscape by tracking how cited works are propagated by scholars over time and the subsequent ways this leads to the devarication of new knowledge.

Listed below are specific reasons why citing sources is an important part of doing good research.

• Shows the reader where to find more information . Citations help readers expand their understanding and knowledge about the issues being investigated. One of the most effective strategies for locating authoritative, relevant sources about a research problem is to review materials cited in studies published by other authors. In this way, the sources you cite help the reader identify where to go to examine the topic in more depth and detail.
• Increases your credibility as an author . Citations to the words, ideas, and arguments of scholars demonstrates that you have conducted a thorough review of the literature and, therefore, you are reporting your research results or proposing recommended courses of action from an informed and critically engaged perspective. Your citations offer evidence that you effectively contemplated, evaluated, and synthesized sources of information in relation to your conceptualization of the research problem.
• Illustrates the non-linear and contested nature of knowledge creation . The sources you cite show the reader how you characterized the dynamics of prior knowledge creation relevant to the research problem and how you managed to effectively identify the contested relationships between problems and solutions proposed among scholars. Citations don't just list materials used in your study, they tell a story about how prior knowledge-making emerged from a constant state of creation, renewal, and transformation.
• Reinforces your arguments . Sources cited in your paper provide the evidence that readers need to determine that you properly addressed the “So What?” question. This refers to whether you considered the relevance and significance of the research problem, its implications applied to creating new knowledge, and its importance for improving practice. In this way, citations draw attention to and support the legitimacy and originality of your own ideas.
• Demonstrates that you "listened" to relevant conversations among scholars before joining in . Your citations tell the reader where you developed an understanding of the debates among scholars. They show how you educated yourself about ongoing conversations taking place within relevant communities of researchers before inserting your own ideas and arguments. In peer-reviewed scholarship, most of these conversations emerge within books, research reports, journal articles, and other cited works.
• Delineates alternative approaches to explaining the research problem . If you disagree with prior research assumptions or you believe that a topic has been understudied or you find that there is a gap in how scholars have understood a problem, your citations serve as the source materials from which to analyze and present an alternative viewpoint or to assert that a different course of action should be pursued. In short, the materials you cite serve as the means by which to argue persuasively against long-standing assumptions propagated in prior studies.
• Helps the reader understand contextual aspects of your research . Cited sources help readers understand the specific circumstances, conditions, and settings of the problem being investigated and, by extension, how your arguments can be fully understood and assessed. Citations place your line of reasoning within a specific contextualized framework based on how others have studied the problem and how you interpreted their findings in support of your overall research objectives.
• Frames the development of concepts and ideas within the literature . No topic in the social and behavioral sciences rests in isolation from research that has taken place in the past. Your citations help the reader understand the growth and transformation of the theoretical assumptions, key concepts, and systematic inquiries that emerged prior to your engagement with the research problem.
• Underscores what sources were most important to you . Your citations represent a set of choices made about what you determined to be the most important sources for understanding the topic. They not only list what you discovered, but why it matters and how the materials you chose to cite fit within the broader context of your research design and arguments. As part of an overall assessment of the study’s validity and reliability , the choices you make also helps the reader determine what research may have been excluded.
• Provides evidence of interdisciplinary thinking . An important principle of good research is to extend your review of the literature beyond the predominant disciplinary space where scholars have examined a topic. Citations provide evidence that you have integrated epistemological arguments, observations, and/or the methodological strategies from other disciplines into your paper, thereby demonstrating that you understand the complex, interconnected nature of contemporary research problems.
• Supports critical thinking and independent learning . Evaluating the authenticity, reliability, validity, and originality of prior research is an act of interpretation and introspective reasoning applied to assessing whether a source of information will contribute to understanding the problem in ways that are persuasive and align with your overall research objectives. Reviewing and citing prior studies represents a deliberate act of critically scrutinizing each source as part of your overall assessment of how scholars have confronted the research problem.
• Honors the achievements of others . As Susan Blum recently noted,** citations not only identify sources used, they acknowledge the achievements of scholars within the larger network of research about the topic. Citing sources is a normative act of professionalism within academe and a way to highlight and recognize the work of scholars who likely do not obtain any tangible benefits or monetary value from their research endeavors.

*Vernon. Jamie L. "On the Shoulder of Giants." American Scientist 105 (July-August 2017): 194.

**Blum, Susan D. "In Defense of the Morality of Citation.” Inside Higher Ed , January 29, 2024.

Aksnes, Dag W., Liv Langfeldt, and Paul Wouters. "Citations, Citation Indicators, and Research Quality: An Overview of Basic Concepts and Theories." Sage Open 9 (January-March 2019): https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244019829575; Blum, Susan Debra. My Word!: Plagiarism and College Culture . Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2009; Bretag, Tracey., editor. Handbook of Academic Integrity . Singapore: Springer Singapore, 2020; Ballenger, Bruce P. The Curious Researcher: A Guide to Writing Research Papers . 7th edition. Boston, MA: Pearson, 2012; D'Angelo, Barbara J. "Using Source Analysis to Promote Critical Thinking." Research Strategies 18 (Winter 2001): 303-309; Mauer, Barry and John Venecek. “Scholarship as Conversation.” Strategies for Conducting Literary Research, University of Central Florida, 2021; Why Cite? Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning, Yale University; Citing Information. The Writing Center. University of North Carolina; Harvard Guide to Using Sources. Harvard College Writing Program. Harvard University; Newton, Philip. "Academic Integrity: A Quantitative Study of Confidence and Understanding in Students at the Start of Their Higher Education."  Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education 41 (2016): 482-497; Referencing More Effectively. Academic Skills Centre. University of Canberra; Using Sources. Yale College Writing Center. Yale University; Vosburgh, Richard M. "Closing the Academic-practitioner Gap: Research Must Answer the “SO WHAT” Question." H uman Resource Management Review 32 (March 2022): 100633; When and Why to Cite Sources. Information Literacy Playlists, SUNY, Albany Libraries.

Structure and Writing Style

Referencing your sources means systematically showing what information or ideas you acquired from another author’s work, and identifying where that information come from . You must cite research in order to do research, but at the same time, you must delineate what are your original thoughts and ideas and what are the thoughts and ideas of others. Citations help achieve this. Procedures used to cite sources vary among different fields of study. If not outlined in your course syllabus or writing assignment, always speak with your professor about what writing style for citing sources should be used for the class because it is important to fully understand the citation style to be used in your paper, and to apply it consistently. If your professor defers and tells you to "choose whatever you want, just be consistent," then choose the citation style you are most familiar with or that is appropriate to your major [e.g., use Chicago style if its a history class; use APA if its an education course; use MLA if it is literature or a general writing course].

GENERAL GUIDELINES

1. Are there any reasons I should avoid referencing other people's work? No. If placed in the proper context, r eferencing other people's research is never an indication that your work is substandard or lacks originality. In fact, the opposite is true. If you write your paper without adequate references to previous studies, you are signaling to the reader that you are not familiar with the literature on the topic, thereby, undermining the validity of your study and your credibility as a researcher. Including references in academic writing is one of the most important ways to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of how the research problem has been addressed. It is the intellectual packaging around which you present your thoughts and ideas to the reader.

2. What should I do if I find out that my great idea has already been studied by another researcher? It can be frustrating to come up with what you believe is a great topic only to find that it's already been thoroughly studied. However, do not become frustrated by this. You can acknowledge the prior research by writing in the text of your paper [see also Smith, 2002], then citing the complete source in your list of references. Use the discovery of prior studies as an opportunity to demonstrate the significance of the problem being investigated and, if applicable, as a means of delineating your analysis from those of others [e.g., the prior study is ten years old and doesn't take into account new variables]. Strategies for responding to prior research can include: stating how your study updates previous understandings about the topic, offering a new or different perspective, applying a different or innovative method of data gathering, and/or describing a new set of insights, guidelines, recommendations, best practices, or working solutions.

3. What should I do if I want to use an adapted version of someone else's work? You still must cite the original work. For example, maybe you are using a table of statistics from a journal article published in 1996 by author Smith, but you have altered or added new data to it. Reference the revised chart, such as, [adapted from Smith, 1996], then cite the complete source in your list of references. You can also use other terms in order to specify the exact relationship between the original source and the version you have presented, such as, "based on data from Smith [1996]...," or "summarized from Smith [1996]...." Citing the original source helps the reader locate where the information was first presented and under what context it was used as well as to evaluate how effectively you applied it to your own research.

4. What should I do if several authors have published very similar information or ideas? You can indicate that the idea or information can be found in the works of others by stating something similar to the following example: "Though many scholars have applied rational choice theory to understanding economic relations among nations [Smith, 1989; Jones, 1991; Johnson, 1994; Anderson, 2003], little attention has been given to applying the theory to examining the influence of non-governmental organizations in a globalized economy." If you only reference one author or only the most recent study, then your readers may assume that only one author has published on this topic, or more likely, they will conclude that you have not conducted a thorough literature review. Referencing all relevant authors of prior studies gives your readers a clear idea of the breadth of analysis you conducted in preparing to study the research problem. If there has been a significant number of prior studies on the topic, describe the most comprehensive and recent works because they will presumably discuss and reference the older studies. However, note in your review of the literature that there has been significant scholarship devoted to the topic so the reader knows that you are aware of the numerous prior studies.

5. What if I find exactly what I want to say in the writing of another researcher? In the social sciences, the rationale in duplicating prior research is generally governed by the passage of time, changing circumstances or conditions, or the emergence of variables that necessitate a new investigation . If someone else has recently conducted a thorough investigation of precisely the same research problem that you intend to study, then you likely will have to revise your topic, or at the very least, review this literature to identify something new to say about the problem. However, if it is someone else's particularly succinct expression, but it fits perfectly with what you are trying to say, then you can quote from the author directly, referencing the source. Identifying an author who has made the exact same point that you want to make can be an opportunity to add legitimacy to, as well as reinforce the significance of, the research problem you are investigating. The key is to build on that idea in new and innovative ways. If you are not sure how to do this, consult with a librarian .

6. Should I cite a source even if it was published long ago? Any source used in writing your paper should be cited, regardless of when it was written. However, in building a case for understanding prior research about your topic, it is generally true that you should focus on citing more recently published studies because they presumably have built upon the research of older studies. When referencing prior studies, use the research problem as your guide when considering what to cite. If a study from forty years ago investigated the same topic, it probably should be examined and considered in your list of references because the research may have been foundational or groundbreaking at the time, even if its findings are no longer relevant to current conditions or reflect current thinking [one way to determine if a study is foundational or groundbreaking is to examine how often it has been cited in recent studies using the "Cited by" feature of Google Scholar ]. However, if an older study only relates to the research problem tangentially or it has not been cited in recent studies, then it may be more appropriate to list it under further readings .

NOTE:   In any academic writing, you are required to identify which ideas, facts, thoughts, concepts, or declarative statements are yours and which are derived from the research of others. The only exception to this rule is information that is considered to be a commonly known fact [e.g., "George Washington was the first president of the United States"] or a statement that is self-evident [e.g., "Australia is a country in the Global South"]. Appreciate, however, that any "commonly known fact" is culturally constructed and shaped by social and aesthetical biases . If you are in doubt about whether or not a fact is considered to be widely understood knowledge, provide a supporting citation, or, ask your professor for clarification about how the statement should be cited.

Ballenger, Bruce P. The Curious Researcher: A Guide to Writing Research Papers . 7th edition. Boston, MA: Pearson, 2012; Blum, Susan Debra. My Word!: Plagiarism and College Culture . Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2009; Bretag, Tracey., editor. Handbook of Academic Integrity . Singapore: Springer Singapore, 2020; Carlock, Janine. Developing Information Literacy Skills: A Guide to Finding, Evaluating, and Citing Sources . Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 2020; Harvard Guide to Using Sources. Harvard College Writing Program. Harvard University; How to Cite Other Sources in Your Paper. The Structure, Format, Content, and Style of a Journal-Style Scientific Paper. Department of Biology. Bates College; Lunsford, Andrea A. and Robert Connors; The St. Martin's Handbook . New York: St. Martin's Press, 1989; Mills, Elizabeth Shown. Evidence Explained: Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace . 3rd edition. Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2015; Research and Citation Resources. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Writing Tutorial Services, Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning. Indiana University; Why Cite? Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning, Yale Univeraity.

Other Citation Research Guides

The following USC Libraries research guide can help you properly cite sources in your research paper:

• Citation Guide

The following USC Libraries research guide offers basic information on using images and media in research:

Listed below are particularly well-done and comprehensive websites that provide specific examples of how to cite sources under different style guidelines.

• Purdue University Online Writing Lab
• Southern Cross University Harvard Referencing Style
• University of Wisconsin Writing Center

This is a useful guide concerning how to properly cite images in your research paper.

• Colgate Visual Resources Library, Citing Images

This guide provides good information on the act of citation analysis, whereby you count the number of times a published work is cited by other works in order to measure the impact of a publication or author.

Measuring Your Impact: Impact Factor, Citation Analysis, and other Metrics: Citation Analysis [Sandy De Groote, University of Illinois, Chicago]

Automatic Citation Generators

The links below lead to systems where you can type in your information and have a citation compiled for you. Note that these systems are not foolproof so it is important that you verify that the citation is correct and check your spelling, capitalization, etc. However, they can be useful in creating basic types of citations, particularly for online sources.

• BibMe -- APA, MLA, Chicago, and Turabian styles
• DocsCite -- for citing government publications in APA or MLA formats
• EasyBib -- APA, MLA, and Chicago styles
• Son of Citation Machine -- APA, MLA, Chicago, and Turabian styles

NOTE:   Many companies that create the research databases the USC Libraries subscribe to, such as ProQuest , include built-in citation generators that help take the guesswork out of how to properly cite a work. When available, you should always utilize these features because they not only generate a citation to the source [e.g., a journal article], but include information about where you accessed the source [e.g., the database].

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APA Style 7th Edition

• Student Paper
• Professional Paper
• In-Text Citations
• Reference Citations
• Additional Resources

Audio Recording

Album  • Track   • Radio   • Spoken Word

See also Podcasts .

Needed Information

• If no artist, author, or speaker is listed move the title of the work of art into the place of the author (before the date).
• If there is no date associated with the work use the designation 'n.d.' in place of the date
• If the work is untitled, in square brackets give a description of the work
• Type of work - album, song, audiobook, audio track, interview, speech audio recording
• Label, publisher, website, content holder
• If the item is in physical format give the location (generally city, state, nation)
• If the item is online give the URL

Barnum, P. T. (2011). The art of money getting [Audiobook]. LibriVox. (Original work published in 1880) https://librivox.org/the-art-of-money-getting-by-p-t-barnum/

Bob Marley and the Wailers. (1984). Legend [Album]. Island; Tuff Gong.

Brown, B. (2018). Dare to lead: Brave work, tough conversations, whole hearts [Audiobook]. Random House Audio.

Mozart, W. A. (2008). Mozart: The symphonies [Album recorded by the Prague Chamber Orchestra]. Telarc. (Original works composed 1764-1778)

Panrucker, S. (2015). Hello my name is Simon Panrucker [Album]. Free Music Archive. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Simon_Panrucker/Hello_My_Name_Is_Simon_Panrucker

van Schalkwyk, W. (Pianist), & Faganel, G. (Cellist). (2018, February 7). Faculty recital [Album]. University of Northern Colorado.

Verdi, G. (2015). Requiem mass [Album recorded by the UNC Symphony Orchestra & Choirs]. University of Northern Colorado. (Original work composed ca. 1874)

Wonder, S. (1976). Songs in the key of life [Album]. Tamla.

Beyoncé. (2020). Black parade [Song]. Park; Columbia.

Creedence Clearwater Revival. (1969). Fortunate son [Song]. On Willy and the poor boys . Fantasy.

Manson, M. (2016). The tyranny of exceptionalism [Audio track] . In The subtle art of not giving a f*ck: A counterintuitive approach to living a good life . HarperCollins; Blackstone Audio.

Roberts, D. (2021). Race [Audio track]. In N. Hannah-Jones, C. Roper, I. Silverman, & J. Silverstein (Eds.), The 1619 project . One World.

Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra. (1953). Mi prieta [Song]. On Mambo . Mercury; Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/lp_mambo_xavier-cugat-and-his-orchestra

Coates, E. J. (2019, August 20). Audio recording of interview with Elaine J. Coates [Interview]. University of Maryland Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives. https://archives.lib.umd.edu/repositories/2/digital_objects/18120

Saunders, V. (1990, December 1). The living memory of the Jewish community: Saunders, Vernon (Part 3) [Interview]. British Library Sounds. https://sounds.bl.uk/Oral-history/Jewish-Holocaust-survivors/021M-C0410X0101XX-0300V0

Scroggins, B. (n.d.). Bessie Scroggins [Interview]. University of Northern Colorado, Archives & Special Collections @ Digital UNC. https://digarch.unco.edu/islandora/object/cogru:4095

Wynne, S. W. (1931, November 30). Diet and health with Dr. Shirley W. Wynne, health commissioner [Interview]. WYNC, NYPR Archive Collections. https://www.wnyc.org/story/1140-a-m-diet-and-health-dr-shirley-w-wynne-health-commissioner

Gore, K. (2000). [Kristen Gore, daughter of Tipper Gore, gives a speech about her mother] [Speech audio recording]. Michigan State University Libraries, East Lansing, MI, United States.

Harding, W. G. (1920). National and Americanism [Speech audio recording]. Library of Congress. https://www.loc.gov/item/2004650664/

Poehler, A. (2011, May 26). Harvard University class day commencement address [Speech audio recording]. American Rhetoric. https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/amypoehlerharvardcommencement.htm

Ruth, G. H., Jr. (1947, April 27). Dying Babe Ruth addresses fans [Speech audio recording]. History. https://www.history.com/speeches/dying-babe-ruth-addresses-fans

Truman, H. S. (1934, July 28). Judge Harry S. Truman Speech, Springfield, Missouri (SR84-1) [Speech audio recording]. Harry S. Truman Library & Museum, Independence, MO, United States.

When discussing an entire blog in your paper (and not indicating a specific idea, fact, or document) it is acceptable to simply include the URL of the website in parentheses within your writing.  If you are referring to a specific piece of information or directly quoting information on a blog, a text and reference citation are required .

The blog  Just a Colorado Gal  (http://www.justacoloradogal.com/) covers not only hiking gear, routes, basics, and specifics, but also follow’s the life of the blogger.

Authors of academic papers can find useful tips and answers to APA questions not covered in the  Publication Manual  on the  APA Style Blog  (http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/).

With the tag line 'writer. professor. part-time hippie.' the  Stacia L. Brown  blog (http://stacialbrown.com/) offers readers current news topics with a human element and a humane eye.

Adventures of a Labor Nurse: The Highs and Lows of Labor and Delivery  blog (http://adventuresofalabornurse.com/) looks at the nursing profession and the people with humor and grace.

Information Needed

• Date of Post (Year, Month Day)
• Title of Post
• Title of Blog

Hoffman, C. (2022, March 3). Your wif-fi is in Google and Microsoft's databases: Should you care? How-To Geek .  https://www.howtogeek.com/788837/your-wi-fi-info-is-in-google-and-microsofts-databases-should-you-care/

McAdoo, T. (2020, March 16). How to create an APA Style reference for a canceled conference presentation. APA Style.   https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/canceled-conferences

Our fave podcasts + audio books for holiday travel. (2019, November 19). Love Sweat Fitness.   https://lovesweatfitness.com/our-fave-podcasts-audio-books-for-holiday-travel/

Comment on Blog Entry

• Author screenname/username or proper name
• Date of comment (Year, Month Day)
• Title of comment or first 20 words of comment
• Title of blog

Azavedo, M. (2021, March 2). Your approach excites me, is what I too do. I really want to get my hands on the book you [Comment on the article “Creative writing for social research”]. The Research Whisperer. https://researchwhisperer.org/2021/03/02/creative-writing-for-social-research/

Jonathan. (2013, January 6). It’s not that work is less important, but that you can get it done efficiently, the right way [Comment on the article “Do you have an overwork problem?”]. Get a life, PhD. http://getalifephd.blogspot.com/2013/01/do-you-have-overwork-problem.html

Woshiernog. (2022, March 16). Why are people so gung-ho about talking about sexual things to K-3 rd graders and hiding those thing from the student parents? [Comment on the article “Marvel Studio denounces ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill as Disney employees plan walkout”]. Gizmodo. https://gizmodo.com/marvel-studios-disney-florida-lgbtq-bill-backlash-1848660759

Authored Book • Edited Book   • Anthology   • Book Edition   • eBook with DOI   • eBook from Library Dat abase   • Other eBooks

If citing only a chapter from an edited book, see examples for chapters in edited books .

• Author(s) or editor(s)
• Year of publication
• Title of book
• Publisher Name (if the author and the publisher is the same, omit the publisher)
• If not the first edition of a book: Edition number
• If part of a multi-volume set: Volume number
• If an ebook: DOI or URL, unless ebook is from library database

Authored Book

Cabaniss, A. (1970). Liturgy and literature: Selected Essays . University of Alabama Press.

Chandler, D., & Werther, W. B., Jr. (2014). Strategic corporate social responsibility: Stakeholders, globalization, and sustainable value creation (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.

Rhodes, C. (2020). Disturbing business ethics: Emmanuel Levinas and the politics of organization . Routledge.

Edited Book

Felker, G. M., & Mann, D. L. (Eds.). (2020). Heart failure: A companion to Braunwald's heart disease . Elsevier.

Garnett, S., Latch, P., Lindenmayer, D., & Woinarski, J. (Eds.). (2018). Recovering threatened species: A book of hope . CSIRO Publishing.

Pappas, G., & Guajardo, M. (Eds.). (1993). Colorado Hispanics: A report of selected social concerns .    Latin American Research and Service Agency.

125th anniversary anthology, 1839-1964: A sampling of reading tastes from the lists of an American publisher with a brief historical commentary. (1964). Dodd, Mead & Co.

Garnett, R., Valle'e, L., & Brandl, A. (Eds.). (1902). The universal anthology: A collection of the best literature, ancient, medieval and modern, with biographical and explanatory notes (Westminster Ed., Vol. 33). Merrill & Baker.

Gates, H. L., Jr., & Smith, V. (Eds.). (2014). The Norton anthology of African American literature (3rd ed., Vol. 2). W. W. Norton & Company.

Book Edition

Finkelnburg, W. (1964). Structure of matter (W. Finkenburg & O. Matossi-Riechmeier, Trans., 9th/10th ed.). Springer.

Reid, A., Tu, S., Port, K. L. (2018). Fundamentals of United States intellectual property law: Copyright, patent, and trademark (6th ed.). Kluwer Law International.

Turekian, K. K. (2010). Marine chemistry and geochemistry: A derivative of encyclopedia of ocean sciences (2nd ed.). Academic Press.

eBook with DOI

Goldman, M. B., Troisi, R., & Rexrode, K. M. (2013). Women and health (2nd ed.). Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/C2009-0-01962-X

Jones, P., Miles, D., & Gopalkrishnan, N. (2019). Intercultural learning: Critical preparation for international student travel. UTS ePRESS. https://doi.org/10.5130/978-0-9945039-9-2

Kersten, F. (1997). Galileo and the 'invention' of opera: A study in the phenomenology of consciousness . Springer: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8931-4

eBook from Library Database

Other eBooks (no DOI, not from a library database)

Curnow, K. (2018). The bright continent: African art history . MSL Academic Endeavors.  https://pressbooks.ulib.csuohio.edu/bright-continent/

Doyle, G. R., & McCuthcheon, J. A. (2015). Clinical procedures for safer patient care . British Columbia Institute of Technology.  https://opentextbc.ca/clinicalskills/

Vatsyayana. (2009). The kama sutra of Vatsyayana: Translated from the Sanscrit in seven parts with preface, introduction and concluding remarks (S. P. Bhide, R. F. Burton, & B. Indrajit, Trans.). Project Gutenberg.  (Original work published in 1883)  https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/27827

Book Chapter ♦ Reference Work Entry

Book Chapter • Handbook Section/Chapter  •  Dictionary Entry   • Encyclopedia Entry  • Wikipedia Entry

Generally, only cite book chapters when the book has editors and chapters are by different authors or groups of authors. When citing a book with authors but no editors, cite the whole book in the reference list and, if appropriate, give the chapter number in the text citation.

• Chapter author(s) 
• Title of chapter, section, or author
• Book editor(s)
• Page numbers of chapter, section, or author

For information of when to use a DOI, URL, or neither, see the Book section.

Edited Book Chapter

Fasina, A. (2015). Case 3: Altered mental status. In Y. Okuda & B. P. Nelson (Eds.), Emergency medicine oral board review illustrated (2nd ed., pp. 47-50). Cambridge University Press. https://amzn.to/2yFID2P

Pegoraro, A., Scott, O., & Burch, L. M. (2017). Strategic use of Facebook to build brand awareness: A case study of two national sport organizations. In Information Resources Management Association (Ed.), Sports, media, marketing, and management: Breakthroughs in research and practice (pp. 97-118). IGI Global. 

Handbook Section/Chapter

Lin, W. (2020). Participatory geographic information systems in visual research. In L. Pauwels & D. Mannay (Eds)., The SAGE handbook of visual research methods (2nd ed., pp. 173-185). SAGE Publications. 

For online reference works that are continuously updated , such as the online version of the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the publication date should be recorded as n.d. (no date) and the date you looked at the online article is placed before the URL in the citation.

• Dictionary entry examples: #1 and #2
• Encyclopedia entry examples: #1 and #3

Even some more 'official' dictionaries and encyclopedias are updated in an on-going basis and should follow the rule above. For instance, the first example under Encyclopedias is called a 'living edition' even though it has a DOI, ISBN, and publisher. Therefore, the citation requires that 'no date' be indicated in the publication date and retrieval information is included before the URL.

Because Wikipedia keeps copies of each version of each article, do not use 'no date' in place of the publication date, nor include retrieval date information. 

Dictionary Entry

Encyclopedia Entry

Reynolds, C. R., Vannest, K. J., & Fletcher-Janzen, E. (2014). Visual-motor and visual-perceptual problems.  In Encyclopedia of special education, Vol. 4: A reference for the education of children, adolescents, and adults with disabilities and other exceptional individuals (4th ed., pp. 2727-2728). Wiley. 

Wikipedia Entry

To find the date of the article you wish to cite, click on " View History " in the top, right-hand corner of the Wikipedia page, and select the most current version of the article by clicking on the most current date. The URL will now have a series of numbers at the end, indicating an archived version of the Wikipedia article that gives reference to the exact version of the article you accessed.

• Title of systematic review

Foxcroft, D. R., Moreira, M. T., Almeida Santimano, N. M. L., & Smith, L. A. (2015). Social norms information for alcohol misuse in university and college students. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews . https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD006748.pub4

Molyneaux, E., Howard, L. M., McGeown, H. R., Karia, A. M., & Trevillion, K. (2014). Antidepressant treatment for postnatal depression. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews . https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD002018.pub2

Pellicori, P., Doolub, G., Wong, C. M., Lee, K. S., Mangion, K., Ahmad, M., Berry, C., Squire, I., Lambiase, P. D., Lyon, A., McConnachie, A., Taylor, R. S., & Cleland, J. G. F. (2021). COVID-19 and its cardiovascular effects: A systematic review of prevalence studies. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews . https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD013879

If citing a canceled presentation or a conference that was planned for in-person attendance but changed to virtual, see the APA Blog article How to Create an APA Style Reference for a Canceled Conference Presentation . 

• Presenter(s)
• Dates of conference (generally Year, Month Day-Day)
• Title of session
• Type of session (Conference session, Paper presentation, Poster presentation, Plenary session, Keynote, Workshop, etc.)
• Name of conference
• Generally City, State, Nation or equivalent
• If a completely virtual conference, do not include a location
• URL (if available)

Conference Session - In-Person or Hybrid Conference

Blackman, C., Fore, I., & Skinner, K. (2016, May 16-19). A new dimension for team science – individual and system elements in collaboration [Workshop]. Science of Team Science (SciTS) 2016 Conference. https://bit.ly/3Il0gmn

Gustetic, J. (2019, September 21-24). Opening session [Keynote]. 2019 ASTC Annual Conference. Toronto, Ontario, Canada. https://www.astc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/2019ASTCAnnualConferenceProgram.pdf

Radford, M. L., Kitzie, V., Mikitish, S., Floegel, D., & Silipigni Connaway, L. (2019, April 10-13). Trending now: Recasting services to support scholarly identity work [Paper presentation]. ACRL 2019. Cleveland, OH, United States. https://www.ala.org/acrl/sites/ala.org.acrl/files/content/conferences/confsandpreconfs/2019/acrl2019_program.pdf

Sablan, J., Edwards, K., Wiles, L. J., Guillen, C., & Bai, Z. (2018, March 3-7). Collaboration across units: Lessons shared in support of undergraduate and graduate student transitional experiences [Poster presentation]. 2018 NASPA Annual Conference. Philadelphia, PA, United States. https://conference.naspa.org/images/uploads/2018-NASPA-book-web.pdf

Smith, K. (2016, June 6-7). Libraries & copyright: The past and present [Conference session]. Kraemer Copyright Conference. Colorado Springs, CO, United States. https://copyright.uccs.edu/kraemerconference/archives/sessions2016

Conference Session - Virtual Only Conference

Chow, K. (2022, January 31-February). Propelling Java at Alibaba scale [Plenary session]. CMG IMPACT 2022. https://cmgimpact.com/schedule2022/

Hacker, D. (2022, February 24-25). Deprived at both ends: Women under secular and religious family law [Keynote]. Fifth International Conference on the Future of Women. https://futurewomenconference.com/#

Many, A., Parks, J., Zaback, K., & Zinth, J. (2021, October 18-19). Building OER capacity in the Midwest: Supporting grassroots efforts and statewide collaboration [Conference session]. Open Education Conference. https://opened21.sched.com/

Ybarra, J., Anderson, J., & Karr, S. (2021, April 18). The mediating role of self-efficacy on the math anxiety-performance relationship [Poster presentation]. University of Northern Colorado Research Day 2021. https://www.unco.edu/honors-scholars-leadership/aew/researchdayposters.aspx

• Year of publication/year of posting/year of release
• Title of data set
• Version number, if given
• DOI or URL, if an online data set

Bywater-Reyes, S., Diehl, R. M., & Wilcox, A. C. (2018). T he influence of a vegetated bar on channel-bend flow dynamics (no. 5) [Data set]. University of Northern Colorado, Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC. https://digscholarship.unco.edu/esd_data_2018/16/

Doornwaard, S. M., ter Bogt, T. F. M., Reitz, E., & van den Eijnden, R. J. J. M. (2016). Sex-related online behaviors, perceived peer norms and adolescents’ experience with sexual behavior: Testing an integrative model [Data set]. Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.96bc0

National Center for State Courts. (1984). Criminal case processing in metropolitan courts, 1976 [Data set]. University of Michigan, Institute for Social Research.

National Oceanographic Data Center. (1988). Environmental buoy data [Data set]. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Pastor, D., Patterson, C., & Goldberg, A. (2021). Anticipated future political participation: A college student sample (Version 1) [Data set, code book, and instrument]. ICPSR. https://www.openicpsr.org/openicpsr/project/134261

A digital object identifier (DOI) is an alphanumeric code that is assigned to content to provide a persistent identifier (like a social security number for articles and chapters and other content). A DOI acts as a locator - helping individuals find articles and chapters cited in bibliographies. DOIs are preferable to URLs because even if the URL for an article breaks in the future, the DOI will remain constant.

DOIs and APA Style

In APA-style reference citations, always express the DOI as a URL ( see below ). This may sound confusing (after all, DOIs different than URLS), but expressing a DOI as a URL allows readers to more easily access the document you cited. DOIs are commonly seen on born-digital content, but may also be included in the print version of content. DOIs always begin with 10; however, a DOI can be expressed as a URL, where https://doi.org/ appears in front of the DOI. If you find a DOI on a source you are citing that does not include https://doi.org/ as a prefix, add it to the DOI for the APA citation. It is best to copy and paste the DOI from digital content to your bibliography so that there are no transcription errors - but don't forget to change the font and font size to match the rest of your paper!  

DOI without URL prefix 10.1111/j.1471-8847.2007.00193.x

same DOI with URL prefix added https://doi.org/ 10.1111/j.1471-8847.2007.00193.x

1. The DOI should be listed on the first page of a journal article . It is sometimes more difficult to find a DOI on a book or book chapter – check the title page verso .  The DOI may or may not be prefaced with the letters DOI.

DOI on the Article First Page - Example 1    DOI on the Article First Page - Example 2   

2. DOIs are often included in database records .  Thus, when searching a library database like Academic Search Premier, SpringerLink, or Summon, if a DOI is assigned to an article, book, or book chapter, the DOI will be included in the database record.

DOI in a Database Record - Example 1 DOI in a Database Record - Example 2

3. DOIs may also be found in the bibliography of an article – as authors are now using DOIs as a citation tool. If you find a DOI in a bibliography and want to find the actual article, book, or book chapter (or at least further citation information), you need to use a DOI resolver ( see http://dx.doi.org/ ).

Film, Television & Video

Feature Film • Documentary Film   • Educational Film   • Television Series   • Television Episode   • TED Talks   • YouTube   • Vimeo  • Webinar

Feature Film

• Director(s)
• Year of release
• Film title - if non-English film, include both the title in the original language and the English version of title)
• Format type - it is not incorrect to include the format type always; but it is necessary to include the format type if the format provides additional content, such as a DVD with commentary or extras.
• Production company/companies

Anders, A., Rockwell, A., Rodriguez, R., & Tarantino, Q. (Directors). (1995). Four rooms [Film]. A Band Apart.

Capra, F. (Director). (1946). It’s a wonderful life [Film]. Liberty Films.

Fleming, V. (Director). (1939). Gone with the wind [Film]. Selznick International Pictures; Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

Gilliam, T. (Director). (1998). Fear and loathing in Las Vegas (Criterion Collection ed.) [Film; Blu-ray disc]. Rhino Films; Summit Entertainment.

Kurosawa, A. (Director). (1954). Shichinin no samurai [Seven samurai] [Film]. Toho.

Renoir, J. (Director). (1950). La règle du jeu [The rules of the game] [Film]. Nouvelle Éditions Française.

Documentary Film

• Film title - if non-English film, include both the title in the original language and the English version of title)

Flaherty, R. J. (Director). (1922). Nanook of the north [Film; documentary]. Pathé Exchange.

Morris, E. (Director). (1988). The thin blue line [Film; documentary]. Miramax Films.

Neville, M. (Director). (2018). Won’t you be my neighbor [Film; documentary]. Tremolo Productions; Impact Partners; Independent Lens.

Peck, R. (Director). (2016). I am not your Negro [Film; documentary DVD]. Velvet Film; Artemis Productions; Close Up Films.

Zhangke, J. (Director). (2020). Yí zhi yóu dào hǎi shuǐ biàn Ián [Swimming out till the sea turns blue] [Film; documentary]. Xstream Pictures.

Educational Film

• Name of database or collection if film is only available through a specific database or collection

Newman, R. D., & Nightingale, J. (Producers). (2012). Videofluoroscopic review of swallowing: Biomechanics, physiology, pathology [Film; educational DVD]. Vision Four Video; Plural Publishing.

McIlwain, C., Fisherkeller, J., Dietrich, E., & Benson, R. (Speakers). (2006). Qualitative research: Methods in the social sciences [Film; educational video]. SAGE Research Methods Video.

Prince, K. (Director). (2019). Some like it hip hop [Theatrical production recording]. ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company. Retrieved from Digital Theatre Plus.

Sartore, J. (Speaker). (2013). The art of travel photography: Six expert lessons [Film; educational DVD]. Teaching Company.

Television Series

• Executive producer(s)
• Years of production - if the series in ongoing, use the word "present" for the latter date
• Title of television series - if non-English film, include both the title in the original language and the English version of title)

Cho, H.-j., & Kim, S.-h. (Executive Producers). (2018-2019). Alhambeura goongjeonui chooeok [Memories of the Alhambra] [TV series]. Chorokbaem Media; Studio Dragon.

Kohan, J., Friedman, L, Hess, S., Herrmann, T., Vinnecour, L, Tannenbaum, N. K., & Burley, M. A. (Executive Producers). Orange is the new black [Netflix TV series]. Titled Productions; Lionsgate Television.

Maher, B. (Creator & Presenter). (2003-present). Real time with Bill Maher [TV series]. Bill Maher Productions; Grad Grey Television; Home Box Office.

Sheldon, L. (Executive Producer). (1961-1966). The Dick Van Dyke show [TV series]. Calvada Productions.

Television Episode

• Writer(s) and Director(s)
• Original air date
• Episode Title 
• Season number, episode number
• Title of television series  - if non-English film, include both the title in the original language and the English version of title)

Dueñas, M. (Writer), Grondona, A. (Writer), Rubio, S. L. (Writer), & Peñafiel, I. (Director). (2013, November 18). El sol siempre vuelve a salir (Season 1, Episode 5) [TV series episode]. In E. Pina & R. Baltanás (Executive Producers), El tiempo entre costuras [The time in between]. Boomerang TV; Atresmedia.

Parker, T. (Writer), Stone, M. (Writer), Goodman, D. R. (Writer), & Stough, E. (Director). (2001, July 11). Scott Tenorman must die [TV series episode]. In T. Parker, M. Stone, B. Graden, D. Liebling, F. C. Agnone, II, B. Howell, & A. Garefino (Executive Producers) South Park . Celluloid Studios; MTV Entertainment Studios; Comedy Parnters.

Williams, R. (Writer), & Bucksey, C. (Director). (2016, December 16). The road less traveled (Season 2, Episode 2) [Amazon Prime TV episode]. In R. Scott, F. Spotnitz, C. Baute, I. D. Hackett, S. Mackinnon, & C. Tricarico (Executive Producers), The man in the high castle . Amazon Studios; Scott Free Productions; Electric Shepherd Productions; Headline Pictures; Bight Light Productions; Picrow; Reunion Pictures.

If the TED Talk recording is found on YouTube, cite as a YouTube video (see examples below).

• Speaker - or the entity posting the video if found on YouTube
• Date - year and month if found on TED website or year, month, and day if found on YouTube
• Title of talk - include the speaker's name if found on YouTube

Robinson, K. (2006, February). Do schools kill creativity? [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/sir_ken_robinson_do_schools_kill_creativity ?

TED. (2015, March 20). Monica Lewinski: The price of shame [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/H_8y0WLm78U

TED. (2015, April 3). Bill Gates: The next outbreak? We’re not read y [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/6Af6b_wyiwI

Urban, T. (2016, February). Inside the mind of a master procrastinator [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_urban_inside_the_mind_of_a_master_procrastinator

• Name of person or entity posting the video (if known)
• Screenname or username of entity posting the video
• Date video was posted (year, month, day)
• Title of video

Drost, H. [Drost Video]. (2017, July 3). How to find your most watched YouTube videos [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/H_HrNWPThiA

Ghate, J. (2020, April 16). How to paint big dot mandala step by step tutorial [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/sSCPMuOoHJo

Kjellberg, F. A. U. [PewDiePie]. (2021, November 5). People break their legs on purpose. Why? [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/H_HrNWPThiA

Pinkfong Baby Shark – Kids’ Songs & Stories. (2016, June 17). Baby shark dance [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/XqZsoesa55w

University of Northern Colorado, University Libraries [UNCLibraries]. (2020, June 12]. APA style 7 th edition: Formatting an APA style paper – student paper in Microsoft Word [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/wBQz_FHhbRg

Art Gallery of Western Australia. (n.d.). Hannah Gadsby at AGWA: E Phillips Fox [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/243261903

Brass, M. (2011, August 12). Rocky Mountain National Park [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/27620090

Montana Office of Tourism. (n.d.). Indian nations: Cippewa Cree [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/74474155

Wolf, M. (2020, August 31). Another hayride [Video]. Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/453421514

If the Webinar recording is found on YouTube, cite as a YouTube video (see example below).

• Speaker(s) - or the entity posting the video if found on YouTube
• Date - year, month, day
• Title of webinar
• Name of entity responsible for recording/posting the webinar if not found on YouTube

Association of Clinicians for the Underserved. (2021, June 30). Managing in the time of COVID-19 & beyond – diversity, equity, & inclusion [Webinar]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/x5lg_BD-hDA

Hess, D., Hunter, J., Ascher, A., & Bishop, T. (2021, September 1). Understanding the Initial Preventive Physical Examination (IPPE), the Annual Well Visit (AWV) and cognitive assessments and care plan services [Webinar]. Novitas Solutions. https://bit.ly/3CLc5Bg

McCartin, L. (2020, March 18). Prioritizing curriculum during emergency remote teaching [Webinar]. University of Northern Colorado, Center for the Enhancement of Teaching & Learning, Teaching, Learning & Assessment. https://digscholarship.unco.edu/tla/37/

Pudewa, A. (2018, July 2). Strategies for winning the college writing game [Webinar]. Institute for Excellence in Writing. https://excellenceinwriting.adobeconnect.com/_a946750274/pfkfwvkpj194/

• An single person,
• Multiple people,
• A group author (an institution or organization), or
• Multiple group authors.
• Look for whomever takes credit or responsibility for the information. 
• If there is no individual or group author associated with the information, move the title into the place of author (before the date).
• the copyright date or
• the date of last update.
• Do not use a copyright date from a website footer as this does not give any indication of when the information was written; if no other date is available, us the rules of no date.
• For journal articles that have been accepted by a journal but not yet published, use the notation (In press). 
• Use circa (abbreviated ca.) for approximate dates, as in (ca. 1930). 
• If there is no date associated with the information, use the notation of n.d., for no date, as in (n.d.).
• entire standalone works (e.g., books, journals, albums, etc.) and
• works that a part of a greater whole (e.g., book chapters, journal articles, songs, etc.).
• For works that are not books, journal/journal articles, magazine/magazine articles, or newspaper/newspaper articles include a description of the type of work directly after the title and before ending punctuation inside square brackets.
• Source information varies by type, format, and retrieval method of source. For example, a print newspaper article has different source information than an online book. See examples on this page and the Publication Manual (pp.293-301).
• Generally a group author, but may be a mix of group and individual authors
• Date of publication
• Title of report
• Report number or designation (sometimes an alphanumeric code)
• Publisher name or organization (if different than the author)
• URL - if an online report

Government Report Online

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021, April). HIV infection, risk, prevention, and testing behaviors among transgender women (HIV Surveillance Report No. 27). https://bit.ly/3N2xWZJ

Department of Regulatory Agencies & Department of Health Care Policy and Financing. (2019, November 15). Final report for Colorado’s public opinion. State of Colorado. https://bit.ly/37umoOm

Internet Crime Complaint Center. (n.d.). 2020 internet crime report. Federal Bureau of Investigation. https://www.ic3.gov/Media/PDF/AnnualReport/2020_IC3Report.pdf

United States International Trade Commission. (2019, April). U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement: Likely impact on the U.S. economy and specific industry sectors (Report 4889 TPA 105-003). https://www.usitc.gov/publications/332/pub4889.pdf

Government Report Print

Colorado Department of Human Services. (1999, March 1). Assessment of community consolidated child care pilot program: Technical report submitted to the Colorado General Assembly .

Harmon, K. R. (1986, February). Telecommunications study for Colorado libraries: Executive summary report. Colorado Department of Education.

United States General Accounting Office. (1991, June). Professional military education at the four intermediate service schools: Report to the Chairman, Panel on Military Education, Committee on the Armed Services, House of Representatives (GAO/NSAID-91-182). Department of Defense.

Visher, M. G., & Hudis, P. M. (1999, October). Aiming high: Strategies to promote high standards in high schools – interim report. New American High Schools; U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education.

• Principal investigator
• Year grant begins
• Year grant ends
• Title of grant
• Grant number (if there is one)
• Granting agency
• URL - if grant abstract is online

Berg, M. (Principal Investigator). (2021-2022). Graduate content literacy for diverse learners, EDRD 515 [Grant]. University of Northern Colorado OER Committee. https://bit.ly/3JpO05w

Burns, P. (Principal Investigator). (2021-2025). Influence of fish oil on corpus luteum function (Grant No. 2021-67016-33839) [Grant]. United States Department of Agriculture. https://portal.nifa.usda.gov/web/crisprojectpages/1024909-influence-of-fish-oil-on-corpus-luteum-function.html

Cheung, P. W. (Principal Investigator). (2018-2021). Characterization of novel signaling pathways involved in water balance disorders (Project No. 3K08DK115901-03S1) [Grant]. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10165964

Mayer, J. (Principal Investigator). (2018-2019). OER awareness and infrastructure building at the University of Northern Colorado [Grant]. Colorado Department of Higher Education. https://highered.colorado.gov/Publications/Reports/Legislative/OER/OER_Report_2019_Final.pdf

Grey literature basically refers to the wealth of information sources that are not published through traditional publishing houses. This basically includes any information source that is not a book, journal, magazine, or newspaper.

Grey Literature includes materials that are generally

• not published commercially and/or
• not generally accessible and
• can include ephemera

According to the Twelfth International Conference on Grey Literature, the definition is as follows:

"Grey literature stands for  manifold document types produced on all levels of government, academics, business and industry in print and electronic formats  that are protected by intellectual property rights, of sufficient quality to be collected and preserved by libraries and institutional repositories, but not controlled by commercial publishers; i.e., where publishing is not the primary activity of the producing body" (for more information see  Towards a Prague Definition of Grey Literature - PDF ).

...paint ings, pamphlets,  patents, patient care sheets, plans,  podcas ts, post cards, posters,  practice guidelines, policies,  PowerPoints , preprints, press release,  Prezis , proceedings...

Determining How to Cite Grey Literature

• Check the Reference Citations on this Guide.
• Consult the Publication Manual 7th Edition .
• Consult the APA Style Blog .
• Investing for life [Brochure] .
• How to create online continuing education classes [Webinar] .
• Anatomical model
• Annual report
• Apparatus and data file
• Blog comment
• Blu-ray disc
• Book review
• CD recording
• Conference presentation
• Committee report
• Computer software
• Database record
• Demographic map
• Electronic mailing list comment
• Facebook page
• Facebook post
• Lecture notes
• Letter to the editor
• Measurement instrument
• Mission statement
• Mobile application software
• Motion picture
• Online forum comment
• Organizational standards
• Physiological specimens
• Podcast transcript
• Policy documents
• Policy statements
• PowerPoint presentation
• PowerPoint slides
• Practice guidelines
• Press release
• Prezi presentation
• Product catalog
• Questionnaire
• Research notes
• Research proposal
• Scientific protocol
• Tape recording
• Television series episode
• Television series webisode
• Topographic map
• Twitter update

Journal Article

with DOI • Print Version  • with URL  • in Library Databases  • with Article Number  • with Page Numbers  • Advance Online Publication  • In Press

• Year of Publication
• Title of Article
• Title of Journal
• Volume Number
• Issue Number
• Page Numbers or Article Number

Journal Articles with DOI

Freeze, J. G., Kelly, H. R., & Batista, V. S. (2019). Search for catalysts by inverse design: Artificial intelligence, mountain climbers, and alchemists. Chemical Reviews, 119 (11), 6595-6612.  https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrev.8b00759

Katada, S. N. (2013). Financial crisis fatigue? Politics behind Japan’s post-global financial crisis economic contractions. Japanese Journal of Political Science, 14 (2), 223-242. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1468109913000042

Parsons, S. (2009). Sontag’s lament: Emotions, ethics, and photography. Photography and Culture, 2 (3), 289-302. https://doi.org/10.2752/175145109X12532077132356

Journal Articles Print Version

Meeker, M. (2001). Behind the mask of respectability: Reconsidering the Mattachine Society and male homophile practice, 1950s and 1960s. Journal of the History of Sexuality, 10 (1), 78-116.

Wechsler, H., Lee, J. E., Kuo, M., & Lee, H. (2000). College binge drinking in the 1990s: A continuing problem – results of the Harvard School of Public Health 1999 college alcohol study. College Health, 48 (5), 199-2010.

Wester, F. R. (1953). A technique for the measurement of race attitudes. American Sociological Review, 18 (1), 73-78.

Journal Articles with URL

Hopsicker, P. M. (2014). Racing to death: The not-so-ordinary happenings of the 1932 Lake Placid Olympic bobsled events. Journal of Sport History, 41 (1), 73-93. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/544501/pdf

Moskalik ,  T.,  Borz , S. A.,  Dvořák , J.,  Ferencik , M.,  Glushkov , S.,  Muiste , P.,  Lazdiņš , A., &  Styranivsky , O.  (2017). Timber harvesting methods in Eastern European countries: A review.  Croatian Journal of Forest Engineering, 38 (2), 231-241. https://bit.ly/376dRgA  

Rashidi, Z., Azadbakht, M., Amini, A., & Karimi, I. (2014). Timber harvesting methods in Eastern European countries: A Review. Cell Journal, 15 (4), 282-293. https://celljournal.org/journal/article/abstract/591

Journal Articles in Library Databases

Journal Articles with Article Number

Cucuzzella, C., Chupin, J.-P., & Hammond, C. (2020). Eco-didacticism in art and architecture: Design as means for raising awareness. Cities, 102 , Article 102728.   https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2020.102728

Rothan, H. A., & Byrareddy, S. N. (2020). The epidemiology and pathogenesis of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak. Journal of Autoimmunity, 109 , Article 102433. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaut.2020.102433

Urada, L. A., Rusakova, M., Odinokova, V., Tsuyuki, K., Raj, A., & Silverman, J. G. (2019). Sexual exploitation as a minor, violence, and HIV/STI risk among women trading sex in St. Petersburg and Orenburg, Russia. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16 (22), Article 4343. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16224343

Journal Articles with Page Numbers

Meadwell, J., Paxman-Clarke, L., Terris, D., & Ford, P. (2019). In search of a performing seal: Rethinking the design of tight-fitting respiratory protective equipment facepieces for users with facial hair. Safety and Health at Work, 10 (3), 275-304. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shaw.2019.05.001

Taddei, C., Zhou, B., Bixby, H., Carrillo-Larco, R. M., Danaei, G., Jackson, R. T., Farzadfar, F., Sophiea, M. K., Di Cesaire, M., Caminia lurilli, M. L., Rodriguez Martinez, A., Ashgari, G., Dhana, K., Gulayin, P., Kakarmath, S., Santero, M., Voortman, Riley, L. M., Cowan, M. J.,…Ezzati, M. (2020). Repositioning of the global epicentre of non-optimal cholesterol. Nature, 582 (7810), 73-77.  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2338-1

Zhong, Y.-P., Shen, X.-T., Ying, Y., Wu, H.-T., Li, J., Qi, Q., Zhou, C.-Q., & Zhuang, G.-L. (2012). Impact of transitory hyperprolactinemia on clinical outcome of in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer. Journal of Medical Biochemistry, 31 (1), 27-33. https://doi.org/10.2478/v10011-011-0039-x

Journal Articles, Advance Online Publication

Esposito, E., Li, W., Mandeville, E. T., Park, J.-H., Şencan, I., Guo, S., Shi, J., Lan, J., Hayakawa, K., Sakadžić, S., Ji, X., & Lo, E. H. (2020). Potential circadian effects on translational failure for neuroprotection. Nature. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-020-2348-z

Jose, K., MacDonald, F., Vandenberg, M., Williams, J., Abbott-Chapman, J., Venn, A., & Smith, K. J. (2020). School breakfast club programs in Australian primary schools, not just addressing food insecurity: A qualitative study. Health Education & Behavior. Advance online publication. https://doi-org.unco.idm.oclc.org/10.1177/1090198120920193

Rűber, I. E., & Janmaat, J. G. (2020). Does participation in adult education increase volunteering? An analysis of British longitudinal data. Adult Education Quarterly. Advance online publication. https://doi-org.unco.idm.oclc.org/10.1177/0741713620927348

Journal Articles in Press

In press articles are also called Journal Pre-Proofs.

In press articles are articles are manuscripts that have been submitted to and accepted by a journal, but are still in the process of final production; therefore, it is possible mistakes are included in this version of the article that will be caught and corrected before the final version. It is important to note in citation when working with an in press article, so that the reader knows the version of the article any information came from. Not all journals put in press articles online for others to see. It is generally journals in the sciences that offer access to articles before the final version is completed. In general, in press articles will not have a volume, issue, or page numbers; they may or may not be assigned a DOI.

Magazine Articles

Magazine Article Print Version • Magazine Article from Library Database   • Magazine Article on Open Web

• If no author is listed, move the magazine article title into the place of the author
• Date of publication
• Title of article
• Title of magazine
• Volume, issue, and page numbers are often not available for online magazine articles; if they are not available omit the numbers
• Magazine articles are not always on sequential page numbers; if an article appears non-sequentially give the first page or page range followed by a comma followed by the second page or page range, and so on
• URL - for online magazine articles

Magazine Article Print Version

Malcolm, J. (2018, October 29). Six glimpses of the past: Photography and memory. The New Yorker, 94 (34), 18-26.

Shah, S., & El-Sayed, A. (2022, January). Medical algorithms need better regulations. Scientific American, 326 (1), 10-11.

Spradley, N. (2016, December). Strokes of genius. Essence, 47 (8), 45-46, 48, 50.

What you should know about AirPods. (2022, March). Consumer Reports, 87 (3), 14-15.

Magazine Article in Library Database

Magazine Article on Open Web

Berinato, S. (2022, January-February). When people listen to happy songs, the market outperforms. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2022/01/when-people-listen-to-happy-songs-the-market-outperforms

Boyes, A., Esposito, L., Gillihan, S., & Leyba, E. (2021, May 4). The high cost of calm. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/articles/202105/the-high-cost-calm

Faber, T. (Author), Lai, A. (Photographer), & Tao, K. (Stylist). (2022, March 15). David Erritzoe: On the mind-bending potential of psychedelics. Kinfold, 43 . https://www.kinfolk.com/david-erritzoe/

Howley, E. K. (2021, June 4). COVID-19 vaccines for children: Timing, side effects and more. U.S. News & World Report. https://health.usnews.com/conditions/coronavirus-and-your-health/articles/covid-19-vaccines-for-children-timing-side-effects-and-more

If citing a new source from a newspaper , magazine , blog , or video site like YouTube , see examples under these types of sources. For news sources on websites such as ABC News, CBS News, CNN, HuffPost, MSNBC, NBC News, NPR, Reuters, Salon, Vox, etc., site as examples given below.

• If there is no author, move the title of the news article before the date element.
• News site name

News Site - Article with Author(s)

Fulcher, M. P. (2022, March 20). Boulder prepares to mark a painful milestone – a year since the King Soopers Shooting . CPR News. https://www.cpr.org/2022/03/20/boulder-prepares-to-mark-a-painful-milestone-a-year-since-the-king-soopers-shooting/

Karanth, S. (2022, March 16). 1 year after Atlanta spa shootings, Asian American women still face hate and violence. HuffPost. https://bit.ly/3qmU8nq

Sneed, T., & de Vogue, A. (2022, March 21). What Ketanji Brown Jackson might be grilled about her Supreme Court confirmation hearings . CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/21/politics/what-to-expect-ketanji-brown-jackson-confirmation-hearings/index.html

Thrash, R. (2022, March 21). 2 Pennsylvania troopers hit by a car and killed as they helped man on interstate, police say. CBSNews. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/two-pennsylvania-troopers-three-hit-car-killed-95-rcna20820

Website, Author and Publisher Are Same

Chinese Boeing jet crashes in mountains with 132 on board, no sign of survivors . (2022, March 21). Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-eastern-airlines-passenger-jet-has-accident-guangxi-state-media-says-2022-03-21/

Marine pilot killed in Osprey crash in Norway was a native on Leominster. (2022, March 21). WCVB Boston. https://www.wcvb.com/article/marines-pilot-capt-ross-reynolds-killed-in-norway-osprey-crash-was-a-native-of-leominster/39485562

Newspaper Articles

Newspaper Article Print Version • Newspaper Article from Library Database   • Newspaper Article on Open Web

• Author(s) - if no author is listed, move the newspaper article title into the place of the author
• If citing something without a title (such as an advertisement), write a description of the piece inside square brackets.
• If the title of newspaper lends itself to ambiguity (such as a common title such as The Daily Sentinel) place the city and state of the newspaper in square brackets after the title of the newspaper.
• Page numbers are often not available for online newspaper articles; if they are not available omit them
• Newspaper articles are not always on sequential pages; if an article appears non-sequentially give the first page or page range followed by a comma followed by the second page or page range, and so on
• URL - for online newspaper articles

Newspaper Article Print Version

Coyotes around Nunn numerous and bold. (1916, May 10). Greeley Daily Tribune , 6.

Hindi, S. (2018, May 3). Defense lawyer releases video from body camera. Fort Collins Coloradoan , A1, A3.

Klomhaus, S. (2022, February 10). Assessment finds Mesa County is lacking in available child care. The Daily Sentinel [Grand Junction, Colorado], A3.

[Advertisement for Saks & Company women’s wraps, capes, and coat sale with prices]. (1920, May 11). The New York Times , 5.

Newspaper Article in Library Database

Newspaper Article on Open Web

Carlson, M. (2022, January 2). Betty White obituary. The Guardian . https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2022/jan/02/betty-white-obituary

Casanova, S., & Sweeney, A. (2021, July 28). Violence spike of 2020 widened familiar safety gap between city neighborhoods, University of Chicago Crime Lab analysis shows. Chicago Tribune . https://bit.ly/3JmCeso

Dickerson, B. (2022, March 16). Opinion: Zelenskyy is the leader of the free world now. Detroit Free Press . https://bit.ly/3qdVnW1

Kafer, K. (2021, November 17). Denver talk show host is in hot water for false election fraud claims. The Denver Post . https://www.denverpost.com/2021/11/17/randy-corporon-talk-show-host-defamation-lawsuit-dominion-election-fraud/

Personal Communications

Emails • Text Messages   • Private Letters   • Online Chats   • Direct Messages   • Memos   • Telephone Conversations   • Unrecorded Classroom Lectures   • Personal Conference Notes   • Live Speeches  

Personal communications are only cited with an In-Text Citation. Do not give a Reference Citation.

Personal Communications are  unpublished information sources  that are not recoverable by the greater population (readers). For published communications, use the corresponding published format for citation examples ( i.e. , for letters published in a book, cite a book; personal communications may be published in journal articles, books, book chapters, blogs, websites,  et cetera ).

• Name of the person the information came from
• Date of the communication - Month, Day and Year
• If possible, give context within your writing as to the type of source you are citing (compare the Letter example - where context is given - with the Memo Letter, in which no context is given)
• Parenthetical In-Text Citation: (R. J. Rymill, personal communication, January 12, 1936)
• Narrative In-Text  Citation: R. J. Rymill (personal communication, January 12, 1936)

In a letter written by Wyoming State Senator  Robert J. Rymill  ( personal communication, January 12, 1936)  to his brother W. L. Rymill, the senator stated, “Serving on city and county school boards is the most successful avenue to changing education."

• Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: (C. Okafor, personal communication, July 7, 2017)
• Narrative In-Text  Citation: C. Okafor (personal communication, July 7, 2017)

Chief Operating Officer  Cecelia Okafor   ( personal communication, July 7, 2017 )  advised the Board of Trustees of the necessity of managing human capital costs and cross-training efforts .

Conversation (Personal)

• Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: (C. Myers, personal communication, June 10, 2017)
• Narrative In-Text  Citation: C. Myers (personal communication, June 10, 2017)

One presenter, at a recent copyright conference, stated, “My best advice regarding the amount used is to consider the amount needed to serve the purpose in relation to the work being used” ( C. Myers, personal communication, June 10, 2017 ).

Text Message

The following example is for a text message from an unknown source. Generally, the author of a text message is known and both Parenthetical and Narrative In-Text Citations will include the author's name.

• Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: (personal communication, May 27, 2020)

A text message sent from an unknown source ( personal communication, May 27, 2020 ) stated, "Some who came into contact with you tested positive or has shown symptoms for COVID-19 & recommends you self-isolate/get tested." Cable News Network (CNN, 2020) later reported that individuals across the United States received the same or similar text messages that including a link that - if activated - downloaded malware onto the recipient's computer.

• Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: (G. Hampson, personal communication, April 20, 2020)
• Narrative In-Text  Citation: G. Hampson (personal communication, April 20, 2020)

In an email, G. Hampson  ( personal communication, April 20,2020 ) expressed his opinion on commercial (for-profit) entities' involvement in open access as follows:

I think we can build a very effective future on this common ground instead of continuing along the path where we divide our community into those whose motives are “pure,” and those who also look to do this work in a sustainable business manner.

Classroom Lecture (Unrecorded)

• Parenthetical In-Text  Citation: ( S. P. Mackessy , personal communication, January 21, 2020)
• Narrative In-Text  Citation: S. P. Mackessy (personal communication, January 21 , 2020 )

During a session of a human anatomy course at the University of Northern Colorado, Professor S. P. Mackessy  ( personal communication, January 21,2020 ) referenced a forensic investigation in which snake venom was used as a poison in the death of a two-year-old.

A note on keeping a personal Dark Archive for Personal Communications used in research.

The Society of American Archivists defines a Dark Archive as " a repository that stores archival resources for future use but is accessible only to its custodian" or a " collection of materials preserved for future use but with no current access."

Generally, a Dark Archive is not necessary or advisable for student papers; however, for theses, dissertations, and formally published works, a Dark Archive of Personal Communications is recommended. Thus, if you cite an email in a journal article, keep that email so that if anyone asks you about the information in the email or questions the veracity of the information, you still have that information accessible.

Podcast Series

• Years of Podcast Activity - this will generally be a range of years; the beginning year is the year in which the first episode was produced and the last year is the year in which the last year of the podcast was produced; if the podcast is still producing episodes, the latter part of the date range is noted as 'present'
• Title of Podcast
• Type of Podcast - audio or video
• Production Company

DJ Envy, Yee, A., & Charlamagne tha God (Hosts). (2010-present). The breakfast club [Audio podcast]. iHeartRadio. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/the-breakfast-club-24992238/

Rogan, J. (Hosts). (2009-present). The Joe Rogan experience [Video podcast]. Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/show/4rOoJ6Egrf8K2IrywzwOMk

Shepard, D., & Padman, M. (Hosts). (2018-present). Armchair expert with Dax Shepard [Audio podcast]. Simplecast. https://armchairexpertpod.com/

Podcast Episode

• Date of Episode (Year, Month Day)
• Title of Episode
• Type of Podcast
• URL - if the episode is accessed through an app, the URL can be omitted)

Abumrad, J. (Host). (2019, November 19). The only one for me, Jolene [Audio podcast episode]. In Dolly Parton’s America . WNYC Studios. https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/dolly-partons-america/episodes

Eagan, D. (Host). (2021, April 2). Elevators: Terror and death in a 6 by 6 foot box (No. 3) [Audio podcast episode]. In Strange and unexplained . Obsessed Network. https://www.strangeandunexplainedpod.com/post/episode-3-elevator-stories

Ko, C., & Miller, N. (Hosts). (2021, December 9). Matt Damon ruins your Saturday (No. 217) [Video podcast episode]. In Tiny meat game podcast . TMG Studios. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_aUaq1mYds

• If no author is given, move the title of the slide deck to the first element position in the citation.
• If no date is given, use n.d. in place of a date to indicate "no date"
• For various online slide software, it may be necessary to to figure out where this information is located (for example, for Google Slides select File>>Document Details which gives the creation date for the Google slide deck)
• Title of slide deck
• Publisher or host website
• If the slide deck is behind a firewall (e.g., Canvas, Blackboard, a company intranet) and the main audience of the slide deck is within the organization that has access to materials behind the firewall, provide the name of the platform and the URL of the platform sign-on page.
• If the slide deck is behind a firewall and the main audience does NOT have access to materials behind the firewall, cite the slide deck as a personal communication.

Davenport, B. (2015, May 17). 20 stress-free ways to declutter your home [Slides]. SlideShare. https://www.slideshare.net/bbdavenport/20-stressfree-ways-to-declutter-your-home

Denny, M. (2021, April 20). Setting writing goals & staying motivated [Google slides]. Google. https://bit.ly/37Lg05v

Mayer, J., & Webber, N. (2017, November 9). Showcase your impact as an author/creator and tell your research story [PowerPoint slides]. University of Northern Colorado Scholarship & Creative works @ Digital UNC. https://digscholarship.unco.edu/workshops/1/

Wei, L. (n.d.). Multilingualism, social cognition, and creativity [PowerPoint slides]. Stony Brook University. https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/mic/_pdf/LiWeiSlides.ppt

Wiegand, S. (2018, Fall). Asking an answerable question, part III [Slides]. University of Northern Colorado Canvas Learning Management System. https://www.unco.edu/canvas/

Yohe, E. (2021, February 25). What you need to know about paid leave law [Slides]. Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. https://cdle.colorado.gov/sites/cdle/files/documents/CLDE_DLSS_Webinar_PresenationDeck_Web.pdf

Research instruments are sometimes referred to as tests. They are scales, inventories, questionnaires, and measurement tools used to collect data.

• Individual(s) and/or Group(s)
• If no year is associated with the instrument, give the notation for no date (n.d.)
• If no title is associated with the instrument, give a description of the instrument in square brackets
• Publisher, if available
• Database name, if citing at database record
• DOI or URL, if available

Manual for Research Instrument

Kerby, M. L. (1980). Kerby learning modality test: Manual (Rev. Ed.). Western Psychological Services.

Messer, B., & Harter, S. (2012). The self-perception profile for adults: Manual and questionnaires. University of Denver, Department of Psychology. https://portfolio.du.edu/downloadItem/225566

Sanders, C. M., Mauger, P. A., & Strong, P. N., Jr. (1984). Grief experience inventory: Manual. Consulting Psychologists Press.

Research Instrument - Test, Scale, Questionnaire

Alliance for the Study of School Climate. (n.d.). School climate assessment instrument (SCAI): Elementary teacher version (Version 2016 7.2.3). California State University-Los Angeles. https://web.calstatela.edu/centers/schoolclimate/pdf/assessment/ASSC-SCAI-E-G.pdf

American Chronic Pain Association. (n.d.). Quality of life scale: A measure of function for people with pain. https://health.gov/hcq/trainings/pathways/assets/pdfs/QOL_scale.pdf

Cohen, S. (n.d.). Perceived stress scale: 10 item . https://www.cmu.edu/dietrich/psychology/stress-immunity-disease-lab/scales/html/pss.html

Mart, E. G. (2011). The practical assessment of testamentary capacity and undue influence in the elderly . Professional Resource Express.

Database Record for Research Instrument

Mind Garden. (1977). Ways of coping questionnaire [Database record]. CINAHL Plus with Full Text. https://www.ebsco.com/products/research-databases/cinahl-plus-full-text

Peterson, J. C. (2016). Stress management questionnaire (Rev. Ed.) [Database record]. Mental Measurements Yearbook with Tests in Print. https://www.ebsco.com/products/research-databases/mental-measurements-yearbook-tests-print

Zeitlin, S, Williamson, G. G., & Szczepanski, M. (n.d.). Early coping inventories: A measure of adaptive behavior, observation and self-rated forms [Database record]. PsycTESTS. https://doi.org/10.1037/t12063-000

Social Media

Facebook   • DeviantArt   •  Instagram • LinkedIn   •  Twitter   • and many more...

Social Media defined by Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary : F orms of electronic communication (such as websites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (such as videos).

Social Media defined by Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary : F orms of electronic communication (such as websites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content (such as videos).

Cite social media information only when it is original information. For example, if a Facebook post links you to an article on the UNICEF website, site only the UNICEF site and not the Facebook post; however, if the Facebook post offers original information, such as a Facebook post by a parent expressing the need for face mask exemptions for students in primary school, this is original information and you cite the Facebook post.

• Author - Real name, screenname, username
• Date - Day, month, and year
• Regular title
• Content of the post up to the first 20 words
• If audiovisuals, give the type of audiovisual in square brackets 
• Site or platform title
• URL - if the content is changing and updating (such as on a wiki) give the retrieval date

For examples of citing YouTube and TikTok videos, see .

Butko, B. [lincoln_highway]. (2020, August 20). A derecho storm with winds up to 140 mph has devastated Iowa, damaging or destroying 13 million acres of crops [Photograph]. Instagram.  https://www.instagram.com/p/CEHq1J_lcCc/

National Portrait Gallery [nationalportraitgallery]. (2022, February 16). Today's #portraitoftheday is none other than Oscar Wilde [Photograph]. Instagram.  https://www.instagram.com/p/CaCn4yjMoPJ/

University of Northern Colorado [unc_colorado]. (2022, February 10). Great careers start in bear country. Yours can too! Network with alumni working in careers you want to pursue [Video].  https://www.instagram.com/p/CZziObQBFy8/

Feinstein, A. (n.d.). Home [LinkedIn page]. Retrieved March 7, 2022, from  https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyfeinstein/

Morse, A. (2022, March 5). It was great having Sara Frederic of Mississippi State University join us in our University of Northern Colorado of sport [Image attached] [Post]. LinkedIn.  https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6905657650567032832/

University of Northern Colorado. (2021, May 7). UNC track and field student-athlete and new grad Armanni Portee '21 connected with alumnus and former football player Jonathan Martin [Video attached] [Post]. LinkedIn.  https://www.linkedin.com/posts/university-of-northern-colorado_uncbears-alumni-connections-activity-6800803462264303616-QoEh 

Obama, B. [@BarackObama]. (2022, March 3). The Ukrainian people need our help. If you're looking for a way to make a difference, here are some organizations [Thumbnail with link attached] [Tweet]. Twitter.  https://twitter.com/BarackObama/status/1499505056126808068

Musk, E. [@elonmusk]. (n.d.). Tweets [Twitter profile]. Twitter. Retrieved March 8, 2022,  https://twitter.com/elonmusk

Rocky Mountain National Park [@RockyNPS]. (2015, November 17). The next time someone tells you to take a hike, head to #RMNP! #TakeAHikeDay [Image attached] [Tweet].  https://twitter.com/RockyNPS/status/666668053522960384

Woodson, J. [@JackieWoodson]. (2022, March 4). This happened tonight. #HansChristianAndersenMedal 'for the most distinguished contribution to international children's literature' #IBBY2022 [Image attached] [Tweet]. Twitter.  https://twitter.com/JackieWoodson/status/1499994495760449540

Student Work

Action Research Projects  • Capstones • Dissertations   • Master's Theses  • Undergraduate Honors  Theses

Published student work refers to students works that are available online through a commercial database (such as ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global , through an institutional repository (such as Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC ), on a personal website, or other source. Unpublished student work refers to student works that are kept by a university but are only available in print.

• Title of work
• Type of work
• Name of institution awarding an associated degree
• If published: name of database, institutional repository, archive, or website
• If published, but not in a commercial database: URL

Action Research Project

Felder, A. (2020). The impact of research workbooks on assessment [Action research project, University of Northern Colorado]. Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/arp/25/

Fiumara, D. A. (2016). The effects of motivational strategies to increase teachers' commitment and enthusiasm [Action research project, St. Catherine University]. Sophia, the St. Catherine University Repository.   https://sophia.stkate.edu/maed/136/

Mousel, S. (2006). Bad medicine: Homework or headache? Responsibility and accountability for middle level mathematics students [Action research project, University of Nebraska Lincoln]. DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/mathmidactionresearch/51/

Senn, K. (2018). Evidence-based tuberculosis screening and testing clinical protocol for public health and primary care providers [Doctoral capstone, University of Northern Colorado]. Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/capstones/38/

Wu, T. (2019). Give me a good reason: Exploring tightness-looseness as a framework for norms-nudges [Master's capstone, University of Pennsylvania]. ScholarlyCommons.  https://repository.upenn.edu/mbds/15/

Doctoral  Dissertation

Beaumont, E. (2004). An empirical study of family group visitors to a millennium art gallery in the UK (Publication No. 2561899289) [Doctoral dissertation, University of Salford]. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global.

Becker, D. (2021). From babysitting to teaching - Latina childcare providers acquiring effective teaching strategies: A grounded theory of transformative professional development [Doctoral dissertation, University of Northern Colorado]. Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/dissertations/789/

DeFries Gallagher, A. (2021). A qualitative analysis of the recommended implementation and replication of the cure violence model according to New York City and Chicago program staff interviews [Doctoral dissertation, Johns Hopkins University]. JScholarship.  http://jhir.library.jhu.edu/handle/1774.2/66850

Lebsack, R. R. (1976). Identifying facilitative characteristics of major advisers by normative judgment analysis [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. University of Northern Colorado.

Williams, K. J. (2018). The structure of models of second-order set theories [Doctoral dissertation, City University of New York]. Kameryn J. Williams.  http://kamerynjw.net/research/pubs/diss/kwilliams-diss.pdf

Master's Thesis

Baretta, M. (2021). Exploring communication strategies used by speech-language pathologists and nursing professionals prior to and during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic [Master's thesis, University of Northern Colorado].  Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/theses/213/

Gallagher, W. J. (1990). The effect of altitude induced hypoxia on visual evoked potentials [Unpublished master's thesis]. University of Northern Colorado.

Han, M. N. (1994). State succession by Ukraine: Territories and armed forces from the former USSR [Master's thesis, Central Michigan University].  ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global.

Undergraduate Honors Thesis

Ardovino, A. (2013). Heroes of rock: A design post mortem exploring the video game design process as it relates to player satisfaction [Undergraduate honors thesis, University of Utah]. USpace Institutional Repository.  https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6611f5q

Brown, S. A. (2021). Understanding how high levels of noise affect the equine auditory system [Undergraduate honors thesis, University of Northern Colorado]. Scholarship & Creative Works @ Digital UNC.  https://digscholarship.unco.edu/honors/48/

Chuor, B. N. (2018). Asian-American political participation: The consequences of social invisibility and political alienation [Senior honors thesis, University of Houston]. University of Houston Institutional Repository.  https://uh-ir.tdl.org/handle/10657/4308

• Title of UpToDate article
• Retrieval date
• change  https:/ /www-uptodate-com .unco.idm.oclc.org /contents/homesickness ?search=homesickness&source=search_result&selectedTitle=1~1&usage_type=default&display_rank=1  
• to  https://www.uptodate.com/contents/homesickness

Chou, R. (2022). Subacute and chronic low back pain: Nonsurgical interventional treatment. UpToDate . Retrieved February 1, 2022, from https://www.uptodate.com/contents/subacute-and-chronic-low-back-pain-nonsurgical-interventional-treatment

Cohen, P. (2022). COVID-19: Outpatient evaluation and management of acute illness in adults. UpToDate . Retrieved March 5, 2022, from https://www.uptodate.com/contents/covid-19-outpatient-evaluation-and-management-of-acute-illness-in-adults

Thurber, C. A., & Walton, E. (2022). Homesickness. UpToDate . Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://www.uptodate.com/contents/homesickness

Visual Works

Artwork in Museum  • Artwork on Museum Website • Clip Art, Illustration, Stock Image, & Vector Image   • Exhibition  • in Library Databases  • Infographic   • Installation   • Map   • Mixed Media  •   Painting  • Photograph  • Sculpture   • Slides

• If no author is listed, move the title of the work of art into the place of the author (before the date).
• Date of creation, installation, publication
• If citing a work of art without a title, write a description of the piece inside square brackets in place of the title element.
• Type of art/format
• Include building if appropriate
• Generally includes city, state, nation
• If visual work is found in a database, give the database name instead
• If the visual work was viewed in place, do not give a URL
• If the visual work was viewed online (such as through a museum website or through a database) give the URL
• If the visual work was viewed through a proprietary database, give the homepage of the database instead of a direct URL to the work within the database

Artwork in Museum

Birritjama, D. (n.d.). Cat and crow legend [Painting]. Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

Escher, M. C. (1935). Hand with reflecting sphere [Lithograph]. Detroit Institute of Arts Museum, Detroit, MI, United States.

Savage, E. (1796). The Washington family [Painting]. National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, United States.

Kestrel, S. (1989). Spectre of ancient pathways [Sculpture]. Benson Sculpture Garden, Loveland, CO, United States.

Russin, R. (1959). Abraham Lincoln memorial monument [Sculpture]. Summit Rest Area, Interstate 80, WY, United States.

Weimer, D. (2004). Northern vision [Sculpture]. University of Northern Colorado University Center, Greeley, CO, United States.

Artwork on Museum Website

Ducrollay, J. (1744). Snuff box [Object]. The Wallace Collection, London, United Kingdom. https://bit.ly/3iHcxr7

Macalister, M. (1966). Victim [Sculpture]. Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, Auckland, New Zealand. https://www.aucklandartgallery.com/explore-art-and-ideas/artwork/3360/victim

Meucci, A. (ca. 1825). Mrs. Pierre Toussaint [Painting]. New York Historical Society Museum & Library, New York, NY, United States. https://bit.ly/3wq9efG

Vigée Le Brun, L.-É . (1780). La paix ramenant l’abondance [Peace bringing abundance] [Painting]. The Louvre, Paris, France. https://collections.louvre.fr/en/ark:/53355/cl010061985

Artwork in Library Database

Bourke-White, M. (1936). Wind tunnel construction, Fort Peck Dam, Montana [Photograph]. ArtStor. https://www.artstor.org/

Donald Trump – make America hate again . [Political sticker]. (2015-2016). ArtStor. https://www.artstor.org/

Murakami, T., & Louis Vuitton Design House. (2003). Bag (iid-bfl-141508) [Purse]. Bloomsbury Fashion Central. https://www.bloomsburyfashioncentral.com/

Oscar de la Renta. (ca. 1984). Dress (iid-bfl-141595) [Clothing]. Bloomsbury Fashion Central. https://www.bloomsburyfashioncentral.com/

Clip Art, Illustration, Stock Image, & Vector Image

bniique. (2021, June 2]. [Photograph of close-up of eye with reflection of window]. Pixabay. https://pixabay.com/photos/eyes-look-face-eye-cat-girl-5248678/

Boulart, G. (1877). Exocoetus volitans [Illustration]. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Exocoetus_volitans.jpg

grmarcstock. (n.d.). Diversity skins of black women and men cartoons [Vector image]. Vecteezy. https://www.vecteezy.com/vector-art/1760631-diversity-skins-of-black-women-and-man-cartoons

Prado, L. (2019, October 24). Dancer [Clip art]. The Noun Project. https://thenounproject.com/icon/dancer-3462518/

Crooks, J. (Curator). (2021, September 1-2022, February 21). Fragments of epic memory [Exhibition; Photographs]. Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. https://ago.ca/exhibitions/fragments-epic-memory

Mangat, T. H. (Artist). (2021, October 8-2022, April 23). Capturing the moment: Works by Terrie Mangat [Exhibition; Quilts]. International Quilt Museum at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE, United States.

Oliver, V. C. (Curator). (2021, November 5-2022, February 6). The dirty south: Contemporary art, material culture, and the sonic impulse [Exhibition; Mixed media]. Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, TX, United States.

Infographic

Bernander, P. (n.d.). Social capital and global health: What trusting relationships tell us about the global burden of disease [Infographic]. https://bit.ly/36etoP6

Cash, I. (n.d.). Infographic of infographics [Infographic]. http://www.ivan.cash/infographic-of-infographics/

León, W., Martinez, J. D., Ramos, C., Saab, Z., & Pacific Rubiales Energy. (2013). History of life as we know it [Infographic]. Bēhance. https://www.behance.net/gallery/10901127/History-of-Life

Installation

Beuys, J. (1983-1985). The end of the Twentieth Century [Installation]. Tate Modern, Bankside London, United Kingdom. https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/beuys-the-end-of-the-twentieth-century-t05855

Christo. (2021, September 18-October 3). L’Arc de Triomphe, wrapped [Installation]. L’Arc de Triomphe, Paris, France. https://christojeanneclaude.net/artworks/arc-de-triomphe-wrapped/

Cummins, P., & Piper, T. (2014, July-November). Blood swept lands and seas of red [Installation]. Tower of London, London, United Kingdom.

Kusama, Y. (2013). Infinity mirrored room – the souls of millions of light years [Installation]. The Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Clark, W., & Lewis, S. (1814). A map of Lewis and Clark’s track, across the western portion of North America from the Mississippi to the Pacific Ocean by order of the executive on the United States [Map]. Wikipedia. https://bit.ly/3iyHwW5

Google Maps. (n.d.). [Terrain map of Pawnee Buttes Trailhead in Colorado]. Retrieved March 24, 2022, https://bit.ly/3Jz1jk2

Humphreys, A. A., & Egloffstein, F. W. (1858). Rio Colorado of the West (No.2) [Map]. Library of Congress Geography and Map Division, Washington, DC, United States.

International Gay & Lesbian Aquatics. (2020, December). Sexual orientation laws in the world: From criminalisation of consensual same-sex sexual acts between adults to protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation [Map]. Retrieved from https://ilga.org/sites/default/files/downloads/ENG_ILGA_World_map_sexual_orientation_laws_dec2020.png

National Geospatial Technical Operations Center. (2022, March 14). US topo 7.5-minute map for Clarkville SE, CO [Map]. United States Geological Survey. https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/623a7c15d34e915b67cdf824

United States Forest Service. (2020). Winter motor vehicle use map: White River National Forest, Dillon Ranger District, Colorado, effective dates Nov. 23-May 20 [Map]. University of Northern Colorado James A. Michener Library, Greeley, CO, United States.

Mixed Media

Anatsui, E. (2005). Fading cloth [Mixed media artwork]. Saint Louis Art Museum, St. Louis, MO, United States. https://www.slam.org/collection/objects/48425/

Bradford, M. (2007). Helter skelter I [Mixed media artwork]. The Broad, Los Angeles, CA, United States.

Kokin, L. (2003). Approximation #3 [Mixed media artwork]. Boise Art Museum, Boise, ID, United States. http://www.boiseartmuseum.org/exhibition/bam-unpacked-for-kids/

Pindell, H. (1990). Autobiography: Scapegoat [Mixed media artwork]. Garth Greenan Gallery, New York, NY, United States.

Dali, S. (1972). Mae West lips sofa [Furniture]. Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Netherlands. https://www.boijmans.nl/en/collection/artworks/122647/mae-west-lips-sofa

Oscar Heyman Brothers. (1929). Marjorie Merriweather post brooch [Jewelry]. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA, United States. https://bit.ly/3wtwaLe

Tiffany, L. C. (ca. 1910-1920). Hibiscus and parrots [Stained glass window]. The Met, New York, NY, United States.

United States Army. (1912-1923). 115 th cavalry WWI corporal garrison uniform [Clothing]. Military Memorial Museum, Cheyenne, WY, United States.

Boardman, S. A. (2011). President Obama, Denver State Commission [Painting; Portrait]. Colorado State Capitol, Denver, CO, United States.

Duesberry, J. (n.d.). Still life with chintz and books [Painting]. University of Northern Colorado Archives & Special Collections @ Digital UNC, Greeley, CO, United States. https://digarch.unco.edu/islandora/object/cogru:119851

Green, W. O. (n.d.). The search for knowledge [Painting; Triptych]. University of Northern Colorado James A. Michener Library, Greeley, CO, United States. https://www.unco.edu/library/about_us/art.aspx

Silva, A., & Kiess, Z. (2020). In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity  [Painting; Mural]. 9 th Avenue and 7 th Street, Greeley, CO, United States.

Bell, C. M. (ca. 1849-1893). American Indian man with headdress and bear claw necklace and ornaments [Photograph]. Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC, United States. https://www.si.edu/object/archives/components/sova-naa-photolot-80-ref540

McClure, L. C. (1927). [Photograph of the view of Voorhies Memorial with Christmas decorations, Civic Center, Denver, Colorado]. Western History Collection, Denver Public Library, Denver, CO, United States.

Vavra, R. (n.d.). Portrait of James A. Michener [Photograph]. University of Northern Colorado Archives & Special Collections @ Digital UNC, Greeley, CO, United States. https://digarch.unco.edu/islandora/object/cogru:125648

Woodman, F. (ca. 1975-1978). [Self-portrait in cemetery with camera in front of face] [Photograph]. Museum of Contemporary Art, Denver, CO, United States. https://mcadenver.org/exhibitions/francesca-woodman

Černý, D. (2007). Metalmorphosis [Sculpture]. Whitehall Corporate Center, Charlotte, NC, United States. https://www.whitehallcorporatecenter.com/metalmorphosis

Kim, M. C. (1998). Sugar Land quan âm [Sculpture]. Vietnamese Buddhist Center, Sugar Land, TX, United States.

Lundeen, G. (1993). The promise of the prairie [Sculpture]. Lincoln Park, Greeley, CO, United States.

Shippen, G. (2016). Sentinel of the Plains [Sculpture]. Brinton Museum, Big Horn, WY, United States. https://thebrintonmuseum.org/collections/sculptures/

When Websites Are NOT Websites When citing the digital version of another type of source, cite it not as a website but as the specific type of source. For example, a digital journal article should be cited as journal article, not a website; a YouTube video should be cited as a video, not a website. This is true for books, book chapters, newspaper articles, magazine articles, dissertations, theses, capstones, grants, podcast, government reports, etc. For more information, refer to the Publication Manual , p. 282, 9.2. 

• Author(s) (group(s), individual(s), or a combination)
• Make sure that the date for the citation refers to the date of the specific content.
• Do not use a copyright date from a website footer as is does not reflect the date the information was created/published. If the copyright date in the website footer is the only data on the website, use n.d. in place of a date to indicate 'no date.'
• Title 
• Include a retrieval date only if the website has information that is designed to change over time

Website, Author and Publisher Are Different

Central Intelligence Agency. (2022, March 3). Bolivia . The World Factbook. https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bolivia

Mullis, K. (n.d.). Altermune: Chemically programmable immunity . Dr. Kary Banks Mullis 1944-2019. http://www.karymullis.com/altermune.shtml  

National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine. (2022, January 15). Famotidine . MedlinePlus. Retrieved March 17, 2022, from https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/meds/a687011.html

Murray, J. (2021, July 29). What are goji berries? The Spruce Eats. https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-are-goji-berries-3376443

American Red Cross. (n.d.). Building safer communities: Preparing families for disasters around the globe . https://www.redcross.org/about-us/our-work/international-services/building-safer-communities.html

Life Is Good. (n.d.). One van two brothers three simple words: Life is good . https://www.lifeisgood.com/company/about.html

The King Center. (n.d.). The King philosophy – Nonviolence365 . https://thekingcenter.org/about-tkc/the-king-philosophy/

University of Northern Colorado. (2022, January 20). Office of the president: About President Feinstein. https://www.unco.edu/president/about.aspx

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• Last Updated: Mar 11, 2024 2:19 PM
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• Knowledge Base
• Referencing

A Quick Guide to Referencing | Cite Your Sources Correctly

Referencing means acknowledging the sources you have used in your writing. Including references helps you support your claims and ensures that you avoid plagiarism .

There are many referencing styles, but they usually consist of two things:

• A citation wherever you refer to a source in your text.
• A reference list or bibliography at the end listing full details of all your sources.

The most common method of referencing in UK universities is Harvard style , which uses author-date citations in the text. Our free Harvard Reference Generator automatically creates accurate references in this style.

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Table of contents

Referencing styles, citing your sources with in-text citations, creating your reference list or bibliography, harvard referencing examples, frequently asked questions about referencing.

Each referencing style has different rules for presenting source information. For in-text citations, some use footnotes or endnotes , while others include the author’s surname and date of publication in brackets in the text.

The reference list or bibliography is presented differently in each style, with different rules for things like capitalisation, italics, and quotation marks in references.

Your university will usually tell you which referencing style to use; they may even have their own unique style. Always follow your university’s guidelines, and ask your tutor if you are unsure. The most common styles are summarised below.

Harvard referencing, the most commonly used style at UK universities, uses author–date in-text citations corresponding to an alphabetical bibliography or reference list at the end.

Harvard Referencing Guide

Vancouver referencing, used in biomedicine and other sciences, uses reference numbers in the text corresponding to a numbered reference list at the end.

Vancouver Referencing Guide

APA referencing, used in the social and behavioural sciences, uses author–date in-text citations corresponding to an alphabetical reference list at the end.

APA Referencing Guide APA Reference Generator

MHRA referencing, used in the humanities, uses footnotes in the text with source information, in addition to an alphabetised bibliography at the end.

MHRA Referencing Guide

OSCOLA referencing, used in law, uses footnotes in the text with source information, and an alphabetical bibliography at the end in longer texts.

OSCOLA Referencing Guide

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In-text citations should be used whenever you quote, paraphrase, or refer to information from a source (e.g. a book, article, image, website, or video).

Quoting and paraphrasing

Quoting is when you directly copy some text from a source and enclose it in quotation marks to indicate that it is not your own writing.

Paraphrasing is when you rephrase the original source into your own words. In this case, you don’t use quotation marks, but you still need to include a citation.

In most referencing styles, page numbers are included when you’re quoting or paraphrasing a particular passage. If you are referring to the text as a whole, no page number is needed.

In-text citations

In-text citations are quick references to your sources. In Harvard referencing, you use the author’s surname and the date of publication in brackets.

Up to three authors are included in a Harvard in-text citation. If the source has more than three authors, include the first author followed by ‘ et al. ‘

The point of these citations is to direct your reader to the alphabetised reference list, where you give full information about each source. For example, to find the source cited above, the reader would look under ‘J’ in your reference list to find the title and publication details of the source.

Placement of in-text citations

In-text citations should be placed directly after the quotation or information they refer to, usually before a comma or full stop. If a sentence is supported by multiple sources, you can combine them in one set of brackets, separated by a semicolon.

If you mention the author’s name in the text already, you don’t include it in the citation, and you can place the citation immediately after the name.

• Another researcher warns that the results of this method are ‘inconsistent’ (Singh, 2018, p. 13) .
• Previous research has frequently illustrated the pitfalls of this method (Singh, 2018; Jones, 2016) .
• Singh (2018, p. 13) warns that the results of this method are ‘inconsistent’.

The terms ‘bibliography’ and ‘reference list’ are sometimes used interchangeably. Both refer to a list that contains full information on all the sources cited in your text. Sometimes ‘bibliography’ is used to mean a more extensive list, also containing sources that you consulted but did not cite in the text.

A reference list or bibliography is usually mandatory, since in-text citations typically don’t provide full source information. For styles that already include full source information in footnotes (e.g. OSCOLA and Chicago Style ), the bibliography is optional, although your university may still require you to include one.

Format of the reference list

Reference lists are usually alphabetised by authors’ last names. Each entry in the list appears on a new line, and a hanging indent is applied if an entry extends onto multiple lines.

Different source information is included for different source types. Each style provides detailed guidelines for exactly what information should be included and how it should be presented.

Below are some examples of reference list entries for common source types in Harvard style.

• Chapter of a book
• Journal article

Your university should tell you which referencing style to follow. If you’re unsure, check with a supervisor. Commonly used styles include:

• Harvard referencing , the most commonly used style in UK universities.
• MHRA , used in humanities subjects.
• APA , used in the social sciences.
• Vancouver , used in biomedicine.
• OSCOLA , used in law.

Your university may have its own referencing style guide.

If you are allowed to choose which style to follow, we recommend Harvard referencing, as it is a straightforward and widely used style.

References should be included in your text whenever you use words, ideas, or information from a source. A source can be anything from a book or journal article to a website or YouTube video.

If you don’t acknowledge your sources, you can get in trouble for plagiarism .

To avoid plagiarism , always include a reference when you use words, ideas or information from a source. This shows that you are not trying to pass the work of others off as your own.

You must also properly quote or paraphrase the source. If you’re not sure whether you’ve done this correctly, you can use the Scribbr Plagiarism Checker to find and correct any mistakes.

Harvard referencing uses an author–date system. Sources are cited by the author’s last name and the publication year in brackets. Each Harvard in-text citation corresponds to an entry in the alphabetised reference list at the end of the paper.

Vancouver referencing uses a numerical system. Sources are cited by a number in parentheses or superscript. Each number corresponds to a full reference at the end of the paper.

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References: How to Cite and List Correctly

• First Online: 25 February 2021

Cite this chapter

• C. George Thomas 2  

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When we write an essay, research paper, thesis, or book, it is normal to include information from the work of others or support our arguments by reference to other published works. All such academic documents draw heavily on the ideas and findings of previous and current researchers available through various sources such as books, journals, theses, newspapers, magazines, government reports, or Internet sources. In all these cases, proper referencing is essential in order to ensure easy retrieval of information. Referencing is the name given to the method of showing and acknowledging the sources from which the author has obtained ideas or information.

Everything deep is also simple and can be reproduced simply as long as its reference to the whole truth is maintained. But what matters is not what is witty but what is true. Albert Schweitzer (1875–1965)

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COA [Commonwealth of Australia] 2002. Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers (6 th Ed.). John Wiley & Sons, Brisbane, Australia, 550 p.

Cousens, R. 1987. Theory and reality of weed control thresholds. Plant Prot. Q. 2: 13–20

Craswell, G. 2004. Writing for Academic Success: A Postgraduate Guide. Sage Publications, London, 271p.

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Davis, M. 2005. Scientific Papers and Presentations. Academic Press, Massachusetts, 356p.

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Hakansson, S. 1983. Competition and Production in Short-lived Crop Weed Stands: Density Effects. Report 127, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppasala, 85p.

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Lester, J.D. and Lester, J.D. Jr. 2009. Writing Research Papers: A Complete Guide (13 th Ed.), Longman, 416p.

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Neville, C. 2010. The Complete Guide to Referencing and Avoiding Plagiarism (2 nd Ed.). McGraw-Hill Education, 288 p.

Renu, S. and Thomas, C.G. 2000. Stale seedbed technique for the management of Sacciolepis interrupta in semi-dry rice. Indian J. Weed Sci. 32(3&4):146-149

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Thomas, C.G. (2021). References: How to Cite and List Correctly. In: Research Methodology and Scientific Writing . Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64865-7_15

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What is referencing?

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Academic writing relies on more than just the ideas and experience of one author. It also uses the ideas and research of other sources: books, journal articles, websites, and so forth. These other sources may be used to support the author's ideas, or the author may be discussing, analysing, or critiquing other sources.

Referencing is used to tell the reader where ideas from other sources have been used in an assignment. There are many reasons why it is important to reference sources correctly:

• It shows the reader that you can find and use sources to create a solid argument
• It properly credits the originators of ideas, theories, and research findings
• It shows the reader how your argument relates to the big picture

(For a detailed discussion, see why reference? )

Failure to properly acknowledge sources is called plagiarism , and it can carry significant academic penalties. Fortunately, plagiarism is easy to avoid by following a few basic principles.

What needs to be referenced?

Whenever an assignment uses words, facts, ideas, theories, or interpretations from other sources, those sources must be referenced. Referencing is needed when:

• You have copied words from a book, article, or other source exactly ( quotation )
• You have used an idea or fact from an outside source, even if you haven't used their exact wording ( paraphrasing and summarising )

The only exception to this is when the information is common knowledge , which is something that anyone is likely to know. If you are uncertain whether to reference something or not, it is better to reference it.

Citations and references

There are two elements used in referencing:

• A citation in the text of the assignment (also known as in-text citations)
• An entry in a reference list at the end of the assignment

The citation contains only enough information for the reader to find the source in the reference list. Usually, this is the name of the source's author and the year the source was published. For example:

When testing the usability of a website, it is necessary to gather demographic information about the users (Lazar, 2006).

In this example, (Lazar, 2006) tells the reader that this information has come from a source written by Lazar, which was published in 2006. This is a signpost, pointing the reader to the reference list.

The reference list is a list of all the sources used (and cited) in an assignment. It is alphabetised according to the names of the authors. Each entry in the reference list contains detailed information about one source. This usually includes the author's name, the year of publication, the title of the source, and source location details (e.g., publisher’s name, URL). For example:

Durie, M. (2003). Ngā kāhui pou: Launching Māori futures . Huia.

Hazledine, T., & Quiggan, J. (2006). Public policy in Australia and New Zealand: The new global context. Australian Journal of Political Science, 41 (2), 131–143.

Lazar, J. (2006). Web usability: A user-centered design approach . Pearson Addison Wesley.

Ministry for Primary Industries. (2012).  Food safety . https://www.mpi.govt.nz/food-safety

If they wanted to, a reader could use this information to find these sources in a library or online.

Referencing is a formal system: there are rules and standards to follow when formatting citations and references. Many students find referencing quite intimidating at first. Like any skill, it takes time and patience to learn.

The examples above use APA style , a format created by the American Psychological Association. It is the most common referencing style used at Massey University.

Other styles include MLA style , Oxford style , Harvard style , and Chicago style . These styles are subtly different, and different colleges and departments may ask you to use different styles. Oxford style, for example, uses footnotes instead of in-text citations, and a bibliography instead of a reference list .

For more about the different referencing styles used at Massey University, see referencing styles .

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Need help with your assignment or referencing? Contact a consultant and receive online and/or face-to-face support

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Understanding a reference: Working out what it is

When conducting library research, you will often need to find material based on the information in a reference list or reading list. In order to then locate that source, you will need to understand what the different elements of the reference mean and identify what type of source it is.

A reference is made up of some key details/elements about the source, that can broadly be broken down into the following:

• Who has ‘made’ the item (the author, creator, compiler…)?
• What is it called?
• If part of a larger work, what is that called?
• Where was (is) it disseminated/published?
• Who is responsible for the dissemination / publishing?
• When was it disseminated / published?
• A direct quotation, or allusion, should always include the page number(s).

You can normally identify the type of source by the information presented in the reference. Here are some tips for identifying some of the key types of source that you might come across on a reading/reference list:

Cooke, A. (2001) A guide to finding quality information on the Internet: selection and evaluation strategies. 2nd ed. London: Library Association Publishing.

Note the edition information, the publisher location (London) and publisher name (Library Association Publishing) which are included in the reference.

Journal article

De Pinto, M., Jelacic, J., Edwards, W.T. (2008) Very-low-dose ketamine for the management of pain and sedation in the ICU. Acute pain [online], 10 (2), p. 100. Available at: doi:10.1016/j.acpain.2008.05.023 [Accessed 8 September 2008].

Note that the title of both the article ('Very low dose ketamine ... ') and the journal ('Acute pain') are included. The journal volume (10) and issue number (2) are also included.

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• Last Updated: Apr 18, 2024 5:20 PM
• URL: https://library-guides.ucl.ac.uk/referencing-plagiarism

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• Referencing

Referencing explained

Why and when to reference.

Referencing is an important part of academic work. It puts your work in context, demonstrates the breadth and depth of your research, and acknowledges other people’s work. You should reference whenever you use someone else’s idea.

View video using Microsoft Stream (link opens in a new window, available for University members only)

These webpages explain what referencing is, why it is important and give an overview of the main elements of how to reference. Our Referencing made simple tutorial opens in a new window and covers how to identify your source and create a reference with interactive examples.

Why reference?

Referencing correctly:

• helps you to avoid plagiarism by making it clear which ideas are your own and which are someone else’s
• shows your understanding of the topic
• gives supporting evidence for your ideas, arguments and opinions
• allows others to identify the sources you have used.

When to reference

Whenever you use an idea from someone else's work, for example from a journal article, textbook or website, you should cite the original author to make it clear where that idea came from. This is the case regardless of whether you have paraphrased, summarised or directly quoted their work. This is a key part of good practice in academic writing.

Read more on:

• academic integrity
• quoting, summarising, paraphrasing, and synthesising
• citing direct quotations in Leeds Harvard or citing direct quotations in Leeds Numeric styles.

University and school policies

The University referencing policy (PDF) sets out the referencing requirements that all taught students and tutors are expected to follow.

Each school in the University requires students to use a specific style of referencing. Check the referencing style used in your school before you begin.

All your citations and references should match the style you are using exactly, including any punctuation, capitalisation, italics and bold, and you should use the same referencing style throughout your assignment.

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Writing Research Papers

• What Types of References Are Appropriate?

When writing a research paper, there are many different types of sources that you might consider citing.  Which are appropriate?  Which are less appropriate?  Here we discuss the different types of sources that you may wish to use when working on a research paper.   

Please note that the following represents a general set of recommended guidelines that is not specific to any class and does not represent department policy.  The types of allowable sources may vary by course and instructor.

Highly appropriate: peer-reviewed journal articles

In general, you should primarily cite peer-reviewed journal articles in your research papers.  Peer-reviewed journal articles are research papers that have been accepted for publication after having undergone a rigorous editorial review process.  During that review process, the article was carefully evaluated by at least one journal editor and a group of reviewers (usually scientists that are experts in the field or topic under investigation).  Often the article underwent revisions before it was judged to be satisfactory for publication. 

Most articles submitted to high quality journals are not accepted for publication.  As such, research that is successfully published in a respected peer-reviewed journal is generally regarded as higher quality than research that is not published or is published elsewhere, such as in a book, magazine, or on a website.  However, just because a study was published in a peer-reviewed journal does not mean that it is free from error or that its conclusions are correct.  Accordingly, it is important to critically read and carefully evaluate all sources, including peer-reviewed journal articles.

Tips for finding and using peer-reviewed journal articles:

• Many databases, such as PsycINFO, can be set to only search for peer-reviewed journal articles. Other search engines, such as Google Scholar, typically include both peer-reviewed and not peer-reviewed articles in search results, and thus should be used with greater caution. 
• Even though a peer-reviewed journal article is, by definition, a source that has been carefully vetted through an editorial process, it should still be critically evaluated by the reader. 

Potentially appropriate: books, encyclopedias, and other scholarly works

Another potential source that you might use when writing a research paper is a book, encyclopedia, or an official online source (such as demographic data drawn from a government website).  When relying on such sources, it is important to carefully consider its accuracy and trustworthiness.  For example, books vary in quality; most have not undergone any form of review process other than basic copyediting.  In many cases, a book’s content is little more than the author’s informed or uninformed opinion. 

However, there are books that have been edited prior to publication, as is the case with many reputable encyclopedias; also, many books from academic publishers are comprised of multiple chapters, each written by one or more researchers, with the entire volume carefully reviewed by one or more editors.  In those cases, the book has undergone a form of peer review, albeit often not as rigorous as that for a peer-reviewed journal article.

Tips for using books, encyclopedias, and other scholarly works:

• When using books, encyclopedias, and other scholarly works (that is, works written or produced by researchers, official agencies, or corporations), it is important to very carefully evaluate the quality of that source.
• If the source is an edited volume (in which case in the editor(s) will be listed on the cover), is published by a reputable source (such as Academic Press, MIT Press, and others), or is written by a major expert in the field (such as a researcher with a track record of peer-reviewed journal articles on the subject), then it is more likely to be trustworthy.
• For online encyclopedias such as Wikipedia, an instructor may or may not consider that an acceptable source (by default, don’t assume that a non-peer reviewed source will be considered acceptable). It is best to ask the instructor for clarification. 1

Usually inappropriate: magazines, blogs, and websites  

Most research papers can be written using only peer-reviewed journal articles as sources.  However, for many topics it is possible to find a plethora of sources that have not been peer-reviewed but also discuss the topic.  These may include articles in popular magazines or postings in blogs, forums, and other websites.  In general, although these sources may be well-written and easy to understand, their scientific value is often not as high as that of peer-reviewed articles.  Exceptions include some magazine and newspaper articles that might be cited in a research paper to make a point about public awareness of a given topic, to illustrate beliefs and attitudes about a given topic among journalists, or to refer to a news event that is relevant to a given topic. 

Tips for using magazines, blogs, and websites:

• Avoid such references if possible. You should primarily focus on peer-reviewed journal articles as sources for your research paper.  High quality research papers typically do not rely on non-academic and not peer-reviewed sources.
• Refer to non-academic, not peer-reviewed sources sparingly, and if you do, be sure to carefully evaluate the accuracy and scientific merit of the source.

Downloadable Resources

• How to Write APA Style Research Papers (a comprehensive guide) [ PDF ]
• Tips for Writing APA Style Research Papers (a brief summary) [ PDF ]

Further Resources

How-To Videos     

• Writing Research Paper Videos

Databases and Search Engines (may require connection to UCSD network)

• Google Scholar
• PubMed (NIH/NLM)
• Web of Science  

UCSD Resources on Finding and Evaluating Sources

• UCSD Library Databases A-Z
• UCSD Library Psychology Research Guide: Start Page
• UCSD Library Psychology Research Guide : Finding Articles
• UCSD Library Psychology Research Guide : Evaluating Sources

External Resources

• Critically Reading Journal Articles from PSU/ Colby College
• How to Seriously Read a Journal Article from Science Magazine
• How to Read Journal Articles from Harvard University
• How to Read a Scientific Paper Infographic from Elsevier Publishing
• Tips for searching PsycINFO from UC Berkeley Library
• Tips for using PsycINFO effectively from the APA Student Science Council

1 Wikipedia articles vary in quality; the site has a peer review system and the very best articles ( Featured Articles ), which go through a multi-stage review process, rival those in traditional encyclopedias and are considered the highest quality articles on the site.

Prepared by s. c. pan for ucsd psychology, graphic adapted from  t-x-generic-apply.svg , a public domain creation by the tango desktop project..

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Referencing

Referencing is one of the most important aspects of any academic research and poor or lack of referencing will not only diminish your marks, but such practices may also be perceived as plagiarism by your university and disciplinary actions may follow that may even result in expulsion from the course.

Difference between References and Bibliography

It is very important to be able to distinguish between References and Bibliography. Under References you list resources that you referred to within the body of the work that also include quotations.  For example,

It has been noted that “time and the management of time is an important issue, and the supply of time management products – books, articles, CDs, workshops, etc. – reflects the huge demand for these products” (Walsh, 2007, p.3).

Interchangeability of identical parts and a high level of straightforwardness of attaching these parts through the assembly line can be considered as revolutionary components of Fordism for the first part of the 20 th century (Nolan, 2008).

Under Bibliography, on the other hand, you need to list resources that you have read during the research process in order to widen your knowledge about the research area , but specific piece of information from these resources have not been used in your research in the direct manner. You do not need to refer to Bibliography within the body of the text.

There are various methods of referencing such as Harvard, APA and Vancouver referencing systems. You should check with your dissertation handbook for the exact type of referencing required and follow this requirement thoroughly.

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• Citing Sources

Citing Sources: What are citations and why should I use them?

What is a citation.

Citations are a way of giving credit when certain material in your work came from another source. It also gives your readers the information necessary to find that source again-- it provides an important roadmap to your research process. Whenever you use sources such as books, journals or websites in your research, you must give credit to the original author by citing the source. 

Why do researchers cite?

Scholarship is a conversation  and scholars use citations not only to  give credit  to original creators and thinkers, but also to  add strength and authority  to their own work.  By citing their sources, scholars are  placing their work in a specific context  to show where they “fit” within the larger conversation.  Citations are also a great way to  leave a trail  intended to help others who may want to explore the conversation or use the sources in their own work.

In short, citations

(1) give credit

(2) add strength and authority to your work

(3) place your work in a specific context

(4) leave a trail for other scholars

"Good citations should reveal your sources, not conceal them. They should honeslty reflect the research you conducted." (Lipson 4)

Lipson, Charles. "Why Cite?"  Cite Right: A Quick Guide to Citation Styles--MLA, APA, Chicago, the Sciences, Professions, and More . Chicago: U of Chicago, 2006. Print.

What does a citation look like?

Different subject disciplines call for citation information to be written in very specific order, capitalization, and punctuation. There are therefore many different style formats. Three popular citation formats are MLA Style (for humanities articles) and APA or Chicago (for social sciences articles).

MLA style (print journal article):  

Whisenant, Warren A. "How Women Have Fared as Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Since the Passage of Title IX." Sex Roles Vol. 49.3 (2003): 179-182.

APA style (print journal article):

Whisenant, W. A. (2003) How Women Have Fared as Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Since the Passage of Title IX. Sex Roles , 49 (3), 179-182.

Chicago style (print journal article):

Whisenant, Warren A. "How Women Have Fared as Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Since the Passage of Title IX." Sex Roles 49, no. 3 (2003): 179-182.

No matter which style you use, all citations require the same basic information:

• Author or Creator
• Container (e.g., Journal or magazine, website, edited book)
• Date of creation or publication
• Publisher 

You are most likely to have easy access to all of your citation information when you find it in the first place. Take note of this information up front, and it will be much easier to cite it effectively later.

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• v.14(4); 2018 Apr

Ten simple rules for responsible referencing

Bart penders.

Maastricht University, Care and Public Health Research Institute (CAPHRI), Department of Health, Ethics & Society, Maastricht, the Netherlands

We researchers aim to read and write publications containing high-quality prose, exceptional data, arguments, and conclusions, embedded firmly in existing literature while making abundantly clear what we are adding to it. Through the inclusion of references, we demonstrate the foundation upon which our studies rest as well as how they are different from previous work. That difference can include literature we dispute or disprove, arguments or claims we expand, and new ideas, suggestions, and hypotheses we base upon published work. This leads to the question of how to decide which study or author to cite, and in what way.

Writing manuscripts requires, among so much more, decisions on which previous studies to include and exclude, as well as decisions on how exactly that inclusion takes place. A well-referenced manuscript places the authors’ argument in the proper knowledge context and thereby can support its novelty, its value, and its visibility. Citations link one study to others, creating a web of knowledge that carries meaning and allows other researchers to identify work as relevant in general and relevant to them in particular.

On the one hand, citation practices create value by tying together relevant scientific contributions, regardless of whether they are large or small. In the process, they confer or withhold credit, contributing to the relative status of published work in the literature. On the other hand, citation practices exist in the context of current regimes of evaluating science. While it may go unnoticed in daily writing practices, the act of including a single reference in a study is thus subject to value-based criteria internal to science (e.g., content, relevance, credit) and external to science (e.g., accountability, performance).

Accordingly, referencing is not a neutral act. Citations are a form of scientific currency, actively conferring or denying value. Citing certain sources—and especially citing them often—legitimises ideas, solidifies theories, and establishes claims as facts. References also create transparency by allowing others to retrace your steps. Referencing is thus a moral issue, an issue upon which multiple values in science converge. Citing competitors adds to their profiles, citing papers from a specific journal adds to its impact factor, citing supervisors or lab mates helps build your own profile, and citing the right papers helps establish your familiarity with the field. All of these translate into pressures on scientists to cite specific sources, from peers, editors, and others. Fong and Wilhite demonstrate the abundance of so-called coercive citation practices [ 1 ]. Also, citation-based metrics have proliferated as proxies for quality and impact over the years [ 2 – 4 ], only to be currently subjected to significant and highly relevant critique [ 5 – 8 ]. To cite well, or to reference responsibly, is thus a matter of concern to all scientists.

Here, I offer 10 simple rules for responsible referencing. Scientists as authors produce references, and as readers and reviewers, they assess and evaluate references. Through this symmetrical relationship to literature that all scientists share, they take responsibility for tying together all knowledge it contains. Producing and evaluating references are, however, distinct processes, warranting different responsibilities. Respecting this dual relationship researchers have with literature, the first six rules primarily refer to producing a citation and the responsibilities this entails. The second set of four rules refers to evaluating citations and the meaning they have or acquire once they have become part of a text.

Rule 1: Include relevant citations

All scholarly writing requires a demonstration of the relevance of the questions asked, a display of the methods used, a rationale for the use of materials, and a discussion of issues relevant to the content of the publication. All of these are done, at least in large part, by including citations to relevant previous work. Omitting such references can wrongfully suggest that your own publication is the origin of an idea, a question, a method, or a critique, thereby illegitimately appropriating them. Citations identify where ideas have come from, and consulting the cited works allows readers of your text to study them more closely, as well as to evaluate whether your use of them is appropriate.

A single exception exists when facts, findings, or methods have become part of scientific or scholarly canon. There is no need to include a citation on the claim that DNA is built out of four bases, nor do you have to cite Kjell Kleppe or Kary Mullis every time you use PCR (neither do I right now). However, the decision as to when something truly becomes part of canon can be quite difficult and will include periods of adjustment (with irregular citation) and negotiation (on whether to cite or not).

Rule 2: Read the publications you cite

Citation is not an administrative task. First, a single paper can be cited for multiple reasons, ranging from reported data to methods, and can be cited both positively and negatively in the literature. The only way to identify whether its content is relevant as support for your claim is to read it in full.

Second, the collection of citations included to support your work and argument is one of the elements from which your work draws credibility. The same goes for the citations you include to criticise, dispute, or disprove. As a consequence, a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. The quality of the publication you trust and upon which you confer authority codetermines the quality and credibility of your work. Citation rates, especially on the journal level, do not correspond well to research quality [ 9 ], and they conflate positive and negative citations, not distinguishing authority conferred or authority that is challenged. To cite meaningfully and credibly requires that you consult the content of a publication rather than whether others have cited it, as a criterion for citation.

Rule 3: Cite in accordance with content

If, at some phase in the research, you have decided that a specific study merits citation, the issue of specifically how and where to cite it deserves explicit consideration. Mere inclusion does not suffice. Sources deserve credit for the exact contribution they offer, not their contribution in general. This may mean that you need to cite a single source multiple times throughout your own argument, including explanations or indications why.

A specific way to break Rule 3 is in the form of the so-called ‘Trojan citation’ [ 10 ]. The Trojan citation arises when a publication reporting similar findings to your own is cited in the context of a discussion of a minor issue, ignoring (sometimes deliberately) its key argument or contribution. By focussing on a trivial detail, the Trojan citation obscures the true significance of the cited work. As a consequence, it hides that your work is not as novel as it seems. As a questionable citation practice, a Trojan citation can be used to satisfy reviewers’ or editors’ requests to include a reference to a relevant paper. Alternatively, a Trojan citation may emerge unknowingly when (1) you are unaware of the content of a cited publication (not adhering to Rule 2 creates a very significant risk of being unable to follow Rule 3) or (2) disputes exist in the scientific community or among the authors on the contribution and/or quality of a scientific publication (in which case, Rule 4 will help).

Rule 4: Cite transparently, not neutrally

Citing, even in accordance with content, requires context. This is especially important when it happens as part of the article’s argument. Not all citations are a part of an article’s argument. Citations to data, resources, materials, and established methods require less, if any, context. As part of the argument, however, the mere inclusion of a citation, even when in the right spot, does not convey the value of the reference and, accordingly, the rationale for including it. In a recent editorial, the Nature Genetics editors argued against so-called neutral citation. This citation practice, they argue, appears neutral or procedural yet lacks required displays of context of the cited source or rationale for including [ 11 ]. Rather, citations should mention assessments of value, worth, relevance, or significance in the context of whether findings support or oppose reported data or conclusions.

This flows from the realisation that citations are political, even though that term is rarely used in this context. Researchers can use them to accurately represent, inflate, or deflate contributions, based on (1) whether they are included and (2) whether their contributions are qualified. Context or rationale can be qualified by using the right verbs. The contribution of a specific reference can be inflated or deflated through the absence of or use of the wrong qualifying term (‘the authors suggest’ versus ‘the authors establish’; ‘this excellent study shows’ versus ‘this pilot study shows’). If intentional, it is a form of deception, rewriting the content of scientific canon. If unintentional, it is the result of sloppy writing. Ask yourself why you are citing prior work and which value you are attributing to it, and whether the answers to these questions are accessible to your readers.

Rule 5: Cite yourself when required

In the context of critical discussions of citations and evaluations of citation-based metrics, self-citation has almost become a taboo. It is important to realise, though, that self-citation serves an important function by showing incremental iterative advancement of your work [ 12 ]. As a consequence, your previous work or that of the group in which you are embedded should be cited in accordance with all of the rules above. The amount of acceptable self-citation is very likely to differ between fields; smaller fields (niche fields) are likely to (legitimately) exhibit more.

This does not mean that self-citation is always unproblematic. For instance, excessive self-citation can suggest salami slicing, a publication strategy in which elements of a single study are published separately [ 13 ]. This questionable research practice, in tandem with self-citation, aims to inflate publication and citation metrics.

Rule 6: Prioritise the citations you include

Many journals have restrictions on the number of references authors are allowed to include. The exact number varies per publisher, journal, and article type and can be as low as three (for a correspondence item in Nature ). Even if no reference limit exists, other journals impose a word limit that includes references, effectively also capping the amount of references. Coping with these limits sometimes requires difficult decisions to omit citations you may feel are legitimate or even necessary. In order to deal with this issue and avoid random removal of references, all desired citations require prioritisation. A few rules of thumb, shown in Box 1 , will help decisions on reference priority.

Box 1: Reference prioritisation

‘Ten simple sub-rules for prioritising references’ can help to facilitate prioritisation. In most cases, a subset of the 10 sub-rules will suffice. First, prioritise anew for each publication. Prioritisations cannot (easily) be copied from one study to another. Second, prioritise per section (e.g., introduction, methods, discussion), not across the entire paper. Different sections require different types of support. Third, for the introduction, prioritise reviews, allowing broad context for relevance and aim. Fourth, for the discussion, prioritise empirical papers, allowing detailed accounts of relative contribution. Fifth, prioritise reviewed over un- or prereviewed papers (e.g., editorials, preprints, etc.). Sixth, deprioritise self-citations. Seventh, limit the number of citations to support a specific claim, if necessary, to a single citation. Eighth, move methodological citations to supplementary (online) information. Ninth, in cases of equal relevance, prioritise citation of female first or last authors to help repair gender imbalances in science. Tenth, request the inclusion of additional references with the editors, arguing that you have used all of the previous nine sub-rules.

Rule 7: Evaluate citations as the choices that they are

Research publications are not mere vessels of data or findings. They convey a narrative explaining why questions are worth asking, what their answers may mean, how these answers were reached, why they are to be trusted, and more. They also have a purpose in the sense that they will act as support for other studies to come. Each of the elements of their story is supported by links to other studies, and each of those links is the result of an active choice by the author(s) in the context of the goal they wish to achieve by their inclusion.

At the other end of the narrative, readers assess and evaluate the story constantly, asking whether it could have been told differently. The realisation that narratives can be told differently, supported by other citations to other prior work, does not disqualify them. Both the story and the choice of citations are political choices meant to provide the argument with as much power, credibility, and legitimacy the author(s) can muster. They are tailored to the audience the authors seek to convince: their peers. The choice to include or exclude a reference can only be evaluated in the context of that narrative and the role they play in it. Peritz has provided a classification of citation roles to assist this evaluation [ 14 ].

Rule 8: Evaluate citations in their rhetorical context

Rhetorical strategies serve to convince and persuade. Narratives are but one of the tools that can be used to persuade audiences. Metaphors, numbers, and associations all feature in our research papers as tools to convince our readers. The genre of the scientific article has had centuries to evolve to incorporate many of them, with the goal of convincing readers that the author is right. Bazerman has literally written the book on this [ 15 ] and urges us to consider academic texts and their features as part of social and intellectual endeavours. Citations are a part of the social fabric of science in the sense that through citing specific sources, authors show their allegiance to schools of thought, communities, or, in the context of scientific controversies, which paradigm they consider themselves part of. Other rhetorical uses of citations include explicit citations to notable figures and their work, which can serve as appeals to authority, while long lists of citations can serve as proxies for well-studied subjects.

Consider the following: Authors can describe a field as well-studied and include three references—X, Y, and Z—as support for their claim. Alternatively, they can argue that a field is understudied but that three exceptions exist, i.e., X, Y, and Z. Understanding the value attributed to X, Y, and Z in that particular text requires assessment of the rhetorical strategies of the author(s).

Rule 9: Evaluate citations as framed communication

Authors use words to accomplish things and, in service of those goals, position their work and that of others. They frame prior work in a very specific way, supporting the arguments made. We all do. The positioning of X, Y, and Z either as the norm or as exceptions, as shown in Rule 8, is an example of framing. It is important to recognise such framing and that X, Y, and Z acquire meaning in the text as the result of the frame. There is no frameless communication, as Goffman [ 16 ] demonstrated. All messages and texts contain and require a frame—a structure of definitions and assumptions that help organise coherence, connections, and, ultimately, meaning—or in other words, a perspective on reality.

As a result, a citation is not a neutral line drawn between publications A and B. Rather, the representation of cited article A only acquires meaning in the context of citing in article B. Article A can be framed differently when cited in work B or C. It can be framed as innovative in B or dogmatic in C. Framing usually is not lying or deceiving; it is a normative positioning of evidence in context. Hence, a citation is a careful translation of a source’s relevant elements, which acquire meaning in that context only.

An important consequence of this is that merely counting citations of article A in the literature does not inform us of the value (or many types of value or lack thereof) of article A to the scientific community. This point also appears as the first principle in the Leiden Manifesto, which argues that quantitative metrics can only support qualitative metrics (i.e., reading with an attentive eye for politics, rhetoric, context, and frame—or as adhering to Rules 7–9). The Leiden Manifesto was published by bibliometricians and scholars of research evaluation following the 2014 conference on Science and Technology Indicators in Leiden, the Netherlands. It warns against the abuse of, among other things, citation-based research metrics [ 9 ].

Rule 10: Accept that citation cultures differ across boundaries

Despite critiques of the system, science is organised in such a way that citations continue to act as a currency that is represented as being universal [ 4 ]. However, citation practices are, for the most part, local practices, whether local to laboratories or department or local to disciplines. The average number of citations per paper differs between disciplines, and the way that citations are represented in the text and the value of being cited also differ radically [ 17 ]. What counts as proper citation practice in molecular biology—for instance, the inclusion of multiple references following a statement—is considered unacceptable in research ethics or science policy, in which single references require paragraphs of contextualisation and translation (see Rule 9 ). When reading a paper from an adjacent discipline, respect its different norms and conventions for responsible referencing and proper citation. If you are cited by a scientist from another discipline, assess that act as existing in a (however slightly) different citation culture.

Acknowledgments

I thank Maurice Zeegers and his team, who work on citation analyses, for stimulating me to think about the issue of citation more clearly, deeply, and critically, resulting in the considerations above. I also thank David Shaw for critical comments, moral support, and editorial assistance. As a closing note, as the human being that I am, I too have quite possibly referenced imperfectly in my previous work.

Funding Statement

The work that lead to this publication was, in part, supported by the ZonMW programme Fostering Responsible Research Practices, grant no. 45001005. The funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

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What we know about unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S.

The unauthorized immigrant population in the United States reached 10.5 million in 2021, according to new Pew Research Center estimates. That was a modest increase over 2019 but nearly identical to 2017.

The number of unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S. in 2021 remained below its peak of 12.2 million in 2007. It was about the same size as in 2004 and lower than every year from 2005 to 2015.

The new estimates do not reflect changes that have occurred since apprehensions and expulsions of migrants along the U.S.-Mexico border started increasing in March 2021 . Migrant encounters at the border have since reached historic highs .

Pew Research Center undertook this research to understand ongoing changes in the size and characteristics of the unauthorized immigrant population in the United States. The Center has published estimates of the U.S. unauthorized immigrant population for more than two decades. The estimates presented in this research are the Center’s latest, adding new and updated annual estimates for 2017 through 2021.

Center estimates of the unauthorized immigrant population use a “residual method.” It is similar to methods used by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Immigration Statistics and nongovernmental organizations, including the Center for Migration Studies and the Migration Policy Institute . Those organizations’ estimates are generally consistent with ours. Our estimates also align with official U.S. data sources, including birth records, school enrollment figures and tax data, as well as Mexican censuses and surveys.

Our “residual” method for estimating the nation’s unauthorized immigrant population includes these steps:

• Estimate the total number of immigrants living in the country in a particular year using data from U.S. censuses and government surveys such as the American Community Survey and the Current Population Survey.
• Estimate the number of immigrants living in the U.S. legally using official counts of immigrant and refugee admissions together with other demographic data (for example, death and out-migration rates).
• Subtract our estimate of lawful immigrants from our estimate of the total immigrant population . This provides an initial estimate of the unauthorized immigrant population .

Our final estimate of the U.S. unauthorized immigrant population, as well as estimates for lawful immigrants, includes an upward adjustment. We do this because censuses and surveys tend to miss some people . Undercounts for immigrants, especially unauthorized immigrants, tend to be higher than for other groups. (Our 1990 estimate comes from work by Robert Warren and John Robert Warren; details can be found here .)

The term “unauthorized immigrant” reflects standard and customary usage by many academic researchers and policy analysts. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Immigration Statistics also generally uses it. The term means the same thing as undocumented immigrants, illegal immigrants and illegal aliens.

For more details on how we produced our estimates, read the Methodology section of our November 2018 report on unauthorized immigrants.

The unauthorized immigrant population includes any immigrants not in the following groups:

• Immigrants admitted for lawful residence (i.e., green card admissions)
• People admitted formally as refugees
• People granted asylum
• Former unauthorized immigrants granted legal residence under the 1985 Immigration Reform and Control Act
• Immigrants admitted under any of categories 1-4 who have become naturalized U.S. citizens
• Individuals admitted as lawful temporary residents under specific visa categories

Read the Methodology section of our November 2018 report on unauthorized immigrants for more details.

Pew Research Center’s estimate of unauthorized immigrants includes more than 2 million immigrants who have temporary permission to be in the United States. (Some also have permission to work in the country.) These immigrants account for about 20% of our national estimate of 10.5 million unauthorized immigrants for 2021.

Although these immigrants have permission to be in the country, they could be subject to deportation if government policy changes. Other organizations and the federal government also include these immigrants in their estimates of the U.S. unauthorized immigrant population.

Immigrants can receive temporary permission to be in the U.S. through the following ways:

Temporary Protected Status (TPS)

In 2021, there were about 500,000 unauthorized immigrants with Temporary Protected Status . This status provides protection from removal or deportation to individuals who cannot safely return to their country because of civil unrest, violence or natural disaster.

Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) is a similar program that grants protection from removal. The number of immigrants with DED is much smaller than the number with TPS.

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals is a program that offers protection from deportation to individuals who were brought to the U.S. as children before June 15, 2007. As of the end of 2021, there were slightly more than 600,000 DACA beneficiaries , largely immigrants from Mexico.

Asylum applicants

Individuals who have applied for asylum but are awaiting a ruling are not legal residents yet but cannot be deported. There are two types of asylum claims, defensive and affirmative .

Defensive asylum applications are generally filed by individuals facing deportation or removal from the U.S. These are processed by the Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review. At the end of 2021, there were almost 600,000 applications pending.

Affirmative asylum claims are made by individuals already in the U.S. who are not in the process of being deported or removed. These claims are handled by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). At the end of 2021, more than 400,000 applications for affirmative asylum were pending, some covering more than one applicant.

Here are key findings about how the U.S. unauthorized immigrant population changed from 2017 to 2021:

• The most common country of birth for unauthorized immigrants is Mexico. However, the population of unauthorized immigrants from Mexico dropped by 900,000 from 2017 to 2021 , to 4.1 million.
• There were increases in unauthorized immigrants from nearly every other region of the world – Central America, the Caribbean, South America, Asia, Europe and sub-Saharan Africa.
• Among U.S. states, only Florida and Washington saw increases to their unauthorized immigrant populations , while California and Nevada saw decreases. In all other states, unauthorized immigrant populations were unchanged.
• 4.6% of U.S. workers in 2021 were unauthorized immigrants , virtually identical to the share in 2017.

Trends in the U.S. immigrant population

The U.S. foreign-born population was 14.1% of the nation’s population in 2021. That was very slightly higher than in the last five years but below the record high of 14.8% in 1890.

As of 2021, the nation’s 10.5 million unauthorized immigrants represented about 3% of the total U.S. population and 22% of the foreign-born population. These shares were among the lowest since the 1990s.

Between 2007 and 2021, the unauthorized immigrant population decreased by 1.75 million, or 14%.

Meanwhile, the lawful immigrant population grew by more than 8 million, a 29% increase, and the number of naturalized U.S. citizens grew by 49%. In 2021, naturalized citizens accounted for about half (49%) of all immigrants in the country.

Where unauthorized immigrants come from

Unauthorized immigrants living in the U.S. come from many parts of the world, with Mexico being the most common origin country.

The origin countries for unauthorized immigrants have changed since the population peaked in 2007, before the Great Recession slowed immigration. Here are some highlights of those changes:

The number of unauthorized immigrants from Mexico living in the U.S. (4.1 million in 2021) was the lowest since the 1990s. Mexico accounted for 39% of the nation’s unauthorized immigrants in 2021, by far the smallest share on record .

The decrease in unauthorized immigrants from Mexico reflects several factors:

• A broader decline in migration from Mexico to the U.S.
• Mexican immigrants to the U.S. continuing to return to Mexico
• Expanded opportunities for lawful immigration from Mexico and other countries, especially for temporary agricultural workers.

The rest of the world

The total number of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. from countries other than Mexico has grown rapidly. In 2021, this population was 6.4 million, up by 900,000 from 2017.

Almost every region in the world had a notable increase in the number of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. from 2007 to 2021. The largest increases were from Central America (240,000) and South and East Asia (180,000).

After Mexico, the countries of origin with the largest unauthorized immigrant populations in the U.S. in 2021 were:

• El Salvador (800,000)
• India (725,000)
• Guatemala (700,000)
• Honduras (525,000)

India, Guatemala and Honduras all saw increases from 2017.

The Northern Triangle

Three Central American countries – El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala – together represented 2.0 million unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. in 2021, or almost 20% of the total. The unauthorized immigrant population from the Northern Triangle grew by about 250,000 from 2017 and about 700,000 from 2007.

Other origin countries

Venezuela was the country of birth for 190,000 U.S. unauthorized immigrants in 2021. This population saw particularly fast growth, from 130,000 in 2017 and 55,000 in 2007.

Among countries with the largest numbers of U.S. unauthorized immigrants, India, Brazil, Canada and former Soviet Union countries all experienced growth from 2017 to 2021.

Some origin countries with significant unauthorized immigrant populations showed no change, notably China (375,000) and the Dominican Republic (230,000).

Detailed table: Unauthorized immigrant population by region and selected country of birth (and margins of error), 1990-2021 (Excel)

U.S. states of residence of unauthorized immigrants

The unauthorized immigrant population in most U.S. states stayed steady from 2017 to 2021. However, four states saw significant changes:

• Florida (+80,000)
• Washington (+60,000)
• California (-150,000)
• Nevada (-25,000)

States with the most unauthorized immigrants

The six states with the largest unauthorized immigrant populations in 2021 were:

• California (1.9 million)
• Texas (1.6 million)
• Florida (900,000)
• New York (600,000)
• New Jersey (450,000)
• Illinois (400,000)

These states have consistently had the most unauthorized immigrants since 1990 and earlier .

At the same time, the unauthorized immigrant population has become less geographically concentrated. In 2021, these six states were home to 56% of the nation’s unauthorized immigrants, down from 80% in 1990.

Detailed table: Unauthorized immigrant population for states (and margins of error), 1990-2021 (Excel)

Detailed table: Unauthorized immigrants and characteristics for states, 2021 (Excel)

Unauthorized immigrants in the labor force

The share of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. workforce was slightly less than 5% in 2021, compared with 3% of the total U.S. population.

Demographics help explain the difference: The unauthorized immigrant population includes relatively few children or elderly adults, groups that tend not to be in the labor force.

Overall, about 7.8 million unauthorized immigrants were in the U.S. labor force in 2021. That was up slightly from 2019 but smaller than every year from 2007 through 2015.

Detailed table: Unauthorized immigrants in the labor force for states, 2021 (Excel)

Here are some additional findings about unauthorized immigrants as a share of the workforce nationwide and in certain states:

• Since 2003, unauthorized immigrants have made up 4.4% to 5.4% of all U.S. workers, a relatively narrow range.
• Fewer than 1% of workers in Maine, Montana, Vermont and West Virginia in 2021 were unauthorized immigrants.
• Nevada (9%) and Texas (8%) had the highest shares of unauthorized immigrants in the workforce.
• Immigrant Populations
• Immigration Issues
• Unauthorized Immigration

Key facts about Asian Americans living in poverty

Latinos’ views on the migrant situation at the u.s.-mexico border, key facts about the nation’s 47.9 million black americans, key facts about the wealth of immigrant households during the covid-19 pandemic, 8 facts about recent latino immigrants to the u.s., most popular.

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6 Common Leadership Styles — and How to Decide Which to Use When

• Rebecca Knight

Being a great leader means recognizing that different circumstances call for different approaches.

Research suggests that the most effective leaders adapt their style to different circumstances — be it a change in setting, a shift in organizational dynamics, or a turn in the business cycle. But what if you feel like you’re not equipped to take on a new and different leadership style — let alone more than one? In this article, the author outlines the six leadership styles Daniel Goleman first introduced in his 2000 HBR article, “Leadership That Gets Results,” and explains when to use each one. The good news is that personality is not destiny. Even if you’re naturally introverted or you tend to be driven by data and analysis rather than emotion, you can still learn how to adapt different leadership styles to organize, motivate, and direct your team.

Much has been written about common leadership styles and how to identify the right style for you, whether it’s transactional or transformational, bureaucratic or laissez-faire. But according to Daniel Goleman, a psychologist best known for his work on emotional intelligence, “Being a great leader means recognizing that different circumstances may call for different approaches.”

• RK Rebecca Knight is a journalist who writes about all things related to the changing nature of careers and the workplace. Her essays and reported stories have been featured in The Boston Globe, Business Insider, The New York Times, BBC, and The Christian Science Monitor. She was shortlisted as a Reuters Institute Fellow at Oxford University in 2023. Earlier in her career, she spent a decade as an editor and reporter at the Financial Times in New York, London, and Boston.

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