How to Cite Sources in a Research Paper

Bibliography Harvard Style

There is no doubt that technological development in information and communication technology has made it real simple when it comes to looking for information in the present age. No longer does one have to rely on desktop or laptop PC to connect to the web as there are various consumer electronic products, e.g. smart phones, cell phones and PDAs that have been equipped with Wi-Fi technology making it possible to access information no matter where you are in the world. To students this has been both blessing and curse. Blessing in the sense that they can accomplish their essay and term paper well on time and curse in that cases of plagiarism is on the rise. In a layman's term, plagiarism refers to using someone else's work and claiming it to be your own. This has serious consequences as you can be sued for damages that may result in jail time or monetary fine.
However, it is possible to avoid instances of plagiarism in essay and term papers by citing your sources. There are different methods on how to cite sources in a research paper that a person can use as will be illustrated into detail in this article. Commonly used citations include Harvard, APA and MLA. Having recognized this as a need, the article discusses into detail how to cite sources in a research paper without falling prey to plagiarism.
What you will need for the lesson
- Oxford English Dictionary.
- Manual on writing styles.
- Bibliography software.
Tips and Guidelines
Begin without anything in the bibliography section of your research paper and build upon it on the basis of your original parenthetical referenced. This will make certain that you have not stated any information whose sources have not been cited and at the same time there are no cited sources that are not listed.
Secondly, place the last name of the author whose source you have utilized as well as the year in which the information was publishes within the parenthesis immediately after stated text, for example, "Drug abuse declined by 20% between the period 2002 and 2008 (Mwaniki, 2008)." The use of comma in the parenthesis is optional.
Thirdly, include the page number, where necessary immediately after the colon as is shown, i.e. "(Mwaniki, 2008: 45)". Next, check that your bibliography has the source listed as one of its references.
Fourthly, clearly state the difference between sources that have been published in the same year by same writer. This can be done by adding lower case characters in sequential manner. For example, "(Mwaniki, 1999b)" is an earlier publication than "(Mwaniki, 1999c)".
Last but not least, it is vital that you consult a 'How to cite sources in a research paper' manual on how to go about the process. Different institutions make use of different citations, e.g. MLA (Modern Language Association) or Harvard referencing styles.

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