Citing Sources
Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Different disciplines use different styles for documenting the resources you use in your project. Documentation gives credit to the authors whose ideas and work have contributed to your finished product. It also allows others to locate the works you used. For instance, many of the social sciences use the American Psychological Association Publication Manual (APA) rules for formatting, citing within the text, abbreviations, and creating a bibliography of sources called “References”. The Modern Language Association Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (MLA) is often used in the humanities. It differs from APA in many ways, including the bibliography which is called “Works Cited”. There are other style guides, including The Chicago Manual of Style and guides specific for journalists, scientists, and musicians.
Be sure that you understand your instructor’s citation requirements and refer to the most recent citation guide purchased for your class for complete citation details. The following links will help you give proper credit and avoid plagiarism.
MLA
- MLA LibGuide - UA-PTC Libraries
- MLA Formatting and Style Guide 8th edition - OWL at Purdue
- Citing UA-PTC Databases and E-books 8th edition
- Citing Web Sites and Web Pages 8th edition
- MLA Paper Format Instructions
APA
- APA LibGuide - UA-PTC Libraries
- Documenting Print Sources in APA – Diana Hacker
- Documenting Online Sources in APA – Diana Hacker
- Citing UA-PTC Databases and E-books
- Citing Web Sites and Web Pages
Chicago
- Chicago Manual of Style 17th Edition – OWL at Purdue
- A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses and Dissertations - Kate L. Turabian
Associated Press
- AP Style – OWL at Purdue
CSE
- CSE 8th Edition LibGuide – UA-PTC Libraries
UA-PTC Ottenheimer Libraries
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