Referencing is useful to acknowledge other authors’ or researchers’ contributions to a study. Any document, whether an assignment or a research article, must have the relevant literature properly cited. By citing the work of other scholars, the writer acknowledges and respects the intellectual contribution of that particular researcher.
You can utilize any ideas from the existing body of literature and cite the author whose work has been used as the foundation for your study. It enables you to prove your point and claims with the help of evidence from the literature.
When you cite an expert from your field, it shows that you have adequate knowledge of the relevant field and have studied prominent scholars’ work. While citing a study, you should remember that references are accurate and enable the reader to trace the information you cite in your work. It is recommended to keep a record of all the sources you read during your study.
All the sources, including books and journal articles, newspapers and magazines, pamphlets and brochures, documentaries, ads, TV programs, websites, letters and personal interviews, should be cited from whom the idea of your study is being taken.
The following three circumstances raise the issue of referencing or citing other people’s works:
Direct quotation
In a direct quotation, the source’s precise words are used. When a text or opinion is so significant or debatable, or its source is so reliable that it must be conveyed with the greatest accuracy, such a direct quotation is necessary. It’s occasionally necessary to state another person’s words or beliefs exactly as they are.
Summary
It entails rewriting a passage from someone else’s writing without including instances, justifications, or other elaborations. A page in the original material might become a paragraph in your study due to the summary process, and a paragraph might turn into a sentence or a few words.
Paraphrase
It is a summary of other people’s writings. It means using material from other works again but in one’s terms.
There are important referencing styles, and each style has its own rules for citing a study. The following are the main referencing styles:
- APA
- MLA
- Oxford
- Harvard
- Chicago
Author-date styles: In this referencing style, put the author’s name in the assignment’s text. APA, MLA, and Harvard are the author-date style of referencing.
Documentary-note style: This referencing style includes a footnote with the author’s name at the bottom of each page or an endnote after the assignment writing.
All the referencing styles in common include the sources list at the end of the assignment in the reference list or bibliography.
In-text citation:
The styles prefer different formats. The authors’ names, year, and, occasionally, page numbers are included in an in-text APA citation, for instance, and are separated by commas.
(Latif, 2022, p.234), (Barbosa and Casais, 2015), (Latif et al., 2022).
MLA referencing style does not include years and commas.
(Latif 52)
The key components of an in-text citation are the authors’ last names, the year the work was published, and, if it is directly quoted, the page numbers, all enclosed in round brackets.
Difference between Reference list and bibliography
The writer frequently searches for sources to develop an idea or facts while writing an assignment writing services, article, or book. Students frequently mistake a bibliography for a reference in this context, but they vary in that the sources you cite in your research report or assignment are cited in the bibliography. On the other side, you list all the sources you used to develop the notion in the bibliography.
Any project under consideration should include a reference and bibliography since they help readers locate the sources of information while also appreciating the contributions of others. In addition to avoiding plagiarism, using various sources demonstrates that the author has done extensive research on the subject.
Each source cited in the text is listed in the reference list. A reference list contains an alphabetical list of the sources. When no author is listed for an item, the first important word in the title is used to reference the item and place it in the alphabetical list. A reference list often occurs at the end of a written work. Use commas to separate each element of the reference or citation. List the works in the publication sequence, beginning with the first, if you have more than one by the same author. The web address or URL should be placed between angle brackets (>) and the rest of the reference for electronic sources.
All background reading resources are listed in the bibliography, even if they aren’t cited in the text. The bibliography is written in the same way as the reference list.
Formats of Referencing
Three referring conventions or styles are frequently employed. The Harvard system, the APA and the MLA system are among them.
References in the text of your article that are enclosed in brackets adhere to the MLA style and lead readers to the full citations after the paper in the bibliography. Only the author’s last name and the page number(s) you are quoting should be enclosed in brackets within the essay’s main body.
Parentheses are also used in the APA format, but in the body of your essay, references should be in brackets and include the last name of the author, the year of publication, and the page number or pages you are referring to.
To use the Harvard method of the parenthetical citation, place the author’s surname and the publication date within brackets after the relevant passage in the text of your article. References is the name given to the bibliography that appears at the end of an essay. Following the APA style, the works are arranged alphabetically by the author’s last name.
Conclusion:
This discussion concludes that referencing others’ work in your assignment is very important as it provides comprehensive support to your ideas and claims. You should follow proper referencing styles as required. This might increase the value of the study in terms of evaluation by the reader as he finds supporting evidence from an existing body of literature for the assignment.
