Would you like to improve your academic scores? If yes, then you need to concentrate more on your assignments and get to know the importance of referencing in academic writing. In scholastic life, assignments play a vital role. Especially, to secure high marks, you need to submit error-free, plagiarism-free, and premium-quality assignment content. Writing unique content is not at all easy, for which you must have strong subject knowledge. On the other hand, in order to come up with original academic research papers, you can refer to the work of other authors related to your topic and compose content based on such references. Note that, referencing is not copying.
When writing an academic paper, you can get inspiration from other relevant sources such as books, articles, journals, research papers, or magazines. But to make your paper look genuine, you must cite all those sources that you have used in your work by following a proper citation or referencing style. Continue reading this blog post to know more about referencing, the importance of referencing, and how to cite a source in an academic paper.
What is Referencing?
Referencing or citation is a method of identifying and acknowledging someone’s work that you have used in your research. Citation helps readers to make a proper connection between the information and its original source. The important factors you need to include while using referencing style are –
- The name of the author
- Date of publication
- Name and location of the publishing company
- Title of the journal or name of the book
- Title of the research or chapter’s name
- DOI (Digital Object Identifier)
Follow two basic methods for referencing: In first, you need to provide a brief reference of work in the body section known as “in-text citation” and second, a detailed reference list is required to mention all references at the end of the paper (in a list format).
Also Read: Know How to Quote a Movie in Academic Writing
Purpose of Referencing in Academic Writing
Today, referencing become the most essential part of academic writing. It provides authenticity to students’ research work in which they put their effort and dedication.
- With the help of citations, readers can locate the original sources of research work. Also, they can access the information or material from the original sources and understand it in their own way.
- Referencing helps to avoid plagiarism issues.
Why is it Important to Add References in Academic Papers?
Would like to know the importance of referencing in academic writing? Well, basically, referencing is one of the essential sections that need to be included in academic papers because it gives more credibility to the entire work. Moreover, the authors of the original sources will also earn some benefits from referencing. Here, let us see a few more reasons why is it necessary to add a referencing section in academic research papers.
- When you give credit to the author of original sources using a proper citation style in your paper, then definitely their name and work will be exposed to a wider audience. In this way, an author earns more value.
- Including references in your academic paper will help your readers to read and get more information about your research topic from different relevant sources such as books, magazines, research papers, etc. This in turn helps to update the informational knowledge of readers.
- Referencing adds authenticity to your work. In specific, the readers will trust your work, if you include a reference list and mention the details of the original sources that you have used in your work.
- Usually, to highlight your opinion or argument about a topic, it is necessary to include strong evidence. By adding references, you can support the ideas of your research work with proper evidence.
- With the help of references, you can also build a persuasive argument and defend it by using the points proved from research.
- If you include a references section, you will not get trapped in plagiarism issues.
Various Types of Referencing or Citation Styles
Referencing styles or citation styles are the various standard methods used to cite the original source of work. Refer to the below list to learn some widely used citation styles:
- Harvard
- Vancouver
- American Psychological Association (APA)
- Modern Language Association (MLA)
- Chicago/ Turabian
- American Chemical Society (ACS)
- Australian Guide to Legal Citation (AGLC)
- American Medical Association (AMA)
- Council of Science Editors/Council of Biology Editors (CSE/ CBE)
- Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
The last five referencing styles are rarely used but still required in some places. These styles depend on the terms of formatting, punctuation, and order of information. You will find the difference in both the level of citations (in-text citation and reference list). The use of citations reflects the discipline for which you are writing your documents. Furthermore, you need to follow the referencing style as per your academic institutions or publishers.
The numerous referencing styles follow two types of systems such as the documentary-note system and the parenthetical system.
- Documentary-note system: In this system, chronological numbers are used as in-text markers to either footnotes or endnotes, or both in which a numeric digit is usually placed after the full stop. The use of numeric digits in the reference list is not necessary as it totally depends on the specific referencing style.
- Parenthetical system: In this system, the brief information of author and date (or page number as in MLA format) is used in in-text citation enclosed by parenthesis (round brackets). At the end of the papers, you will find the detailed reference list.
Learn How to Do Referencing in Academic Papers
To do referencing, you can use any particular academic citation style and format based on your university guidelines. Some popular referencing styles that are commonly used to cite a source in an academic paper are Harvard, APA, MLA citation style, etc.
Here, let us have a look at some popular referencing styles and their usage.
Harvard Referencing Style
Harvard is a commonly used citation style based on author-date and is mainly used in the U.K. and Australia. There is no specific manual for this style. The use of punctuation and other formatting varies from institution to institution. We are using Charles Darwin University’s (CDU) Harvard Referencing Style Guide 2016 version to explain the details of this style.
- The parenthetical system of referencing is used in this style.
- The name of the author and year of publication are used in “in-text reference” and mentioned in round brackets. For example, (<author name><publication year>, <page number/s>). Use only the surname of the author and do not need to place a comma (,) between the author’s name and year of publication (Dickinson 2002). If the page number is included, then write in the following format like (Dickinson 2002, p 30). This referencing style is used in different subjects of humanities.
- For the reference list, use a separate page to mention the detailed references at the end of the document and arrange all authors’ names in alphabetical order.
When you need to include more than one author, refer to the below format for both methods
For in-text citation: Only mention the surnames of the authors and use “&” to separate them. (<author #1 surname> & <author #2 surname> <Publication Year>)
Example: (Christie & Dickens 2009)
For the reference list: Use “&” to separate the late name and initials of the two authors. <Author#1 last name>, <author#1 first name/s initials> & <author#2 last name>, <author#2 first name/s initials> <Publication Year>, <title>, …
Example: Christie, Agatha & Dickens, Charles 2009, <title>, …
APA Referencing Style
There is a negligible difference between MLA and American Psychological Association referencing styles. APA is generally used in the USA. In this section, we are using the APA 6th edition Library guide for the University of Sydney. In both in-text and reference lists, use double-line spacing to mention the authors’ information in APA style. It is also known as an author-date-based referencing style.
- This style of referencing uses the parenthetical system.
- Use the name of the author and year of publication “in-text reference” and mention in round brackets. For example, (<author name>, <publication year>, <page number/s>). Use only the surname of the author and place a comma (,) between the author’s name and year of publication like (Dickinson, 2002). If you include a page number, then write in the following format (Dickinson, 2002, p 30).
- students can use this referencing style in different fields of social sciences and some other subjects including education, business, and nursing.
- For the reference list, use a separate page to mention the detailed references at the end of the document and arrange all authors’ names in alphabetical order. Use double line spacing between each entry and place a full stop (.) to end each reference. Place the year of publication in parentheses.
Also, Read – What are the Differences Between APA vs. MLA
When you need to include more than one author, refer to the below format for both methods
For in-text citation: Only mention the surnames of the authors and use “&” to separate them. (<author #1 surname> & <author #2 surname>, <Publication Year>)
Example: (Christie & Dickens, 2009)
For the reference list: Use “&” to separate the late name and initials of the two authors.
<Author#1 last name>, <author#1 first name/s initials>. & <author#2 last name>, <author#2 first name/s initials>, (<Publication Year>). <title>, …
Example: Christie, Agatha. & Dickens, Charles. (2009). <title>, …
Wrapping Up
We hope you have now gained a complete understanding of referencing and its importance. If you are a student, then you must have good knowledge of the different citation styles to make your academic paper look authentic and unique. However, in case, you are still confused about how to use referencing styles in your papers, without any hesitation, take our 24/7 assignment help online from the scholarly writers in our team.
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