In academic writing, few conventions are more important than referencing. When writing an essay, report, journal article or book, referencing puts your work in context, and demonstrates the breadth and depth of your research. It acknowledges the work others have done that you have used (that is, it avoids plagiarism).
Referencing also enables your readers to locate the precise source of the ideas and quotations you used, so that they can verify the accuracy or authority of your research and read further.
Here are ten tips for better academic referencing that I’ve found helpful:
- Become familiar with your prescribed essay referencing style (at Moore College, we recommend the SBL style, a modified form of the Chicago style), and your preferred reference management software (such as EndNote or Zotero).
- Know when to reference. You need to reference more than simply direct quotes: any part of your writing that is substantially dependent on the work of others for its content must be cited.
- Develop a routine of recording full bibliographic information and relevant page numbers when you read the source. You may not have time later to locate the missing details.
- Be consistent: always use the same format and style. A tidy essay suggests an ordered mind.
- Be accurate: Check for spelling and numbering mistakes; and that all footnotes have corresponding entries in your reference list or bibliography.
- Allow plenty of time for keeping your referencing metadata accurate and up to date, for formatting your references, and for editing and proofreading.
- Learn from the best: note how published authors record citations and references, and do likewise.
- Don’t confuse the authors of book chapters with the editor of the whole book. In the body of your essay, refer to the author; in your footnotes and references, cite the material under the author’s name and include the editor’s name along with the book title.
- When citing translated works, include the translator’s name but don’t mistake translators for co-authors. Record the year of English publication, and (if possible) the original-language publication date.
- There’s no need to reference your own observations, ideas, analysis, opinions and experiences, or facts or information generally viewed as “common knowledge.”
Dr Rod Benson is an ordained Baptist minister presently working as Research Support Officer at Moore Theological College, Sydney. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking, bush walking, writing fiction and nonfiction, and reading a good book.
Image source: bibliography.com
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