Citation is the most essential part of the research paper. While writing the research paper, the main objective of the researcher is to produce a high-quality paper with authentic and genuine content that makes the purpose of the research clear and understandable for readers. This requires hard work and a lot of effort from the researcher. He has to search properly for finding a credible source of information. When all the information presented in a research paper is referred to and cited it increase the credibility of the information. It shows the value of research and tells about the basis on which it is different from the previous research work.
But for beginners, it is difficult to decide how and which book, author, journal, or website they have to cite and which style. Many of them are unfamiliar with the requirements and formats of citation. But before deciding about the citation and its format, the most important thing is deciding about what information you have to include. With the internet full of information in form of articles, blogs, journals, and eBooks, deciding about what to include and what to not be like climbing Mount Everest. But when the papers are cited properly it gives novelty to the arguments of the author.
According to a PhD dissertation writing service, many times when we are reading any article or blog on the internet, we like a point or piece of information that we want to know more about it. For this, we try to search for its source. So when the information and arguments are properly cited it creates a chain of knowledge that helps the researchers to find all relevant data and information easily. So when all the relevant research data and information are linked to each other it increases the value of each piece of information regardless of whether it is major or small.
When the sources are cited properly it produces and shows the transparency of the research paper. It means that anyone can trace the actual sources to check the authenticity of the information or argument. Citation can be considered as a currency that can confer or deny the values. Some sources of information have such a great value that if they are cited in the paper it makes the paper credible and increases its value.
Types Of Citation:
There are different styles of citation and each type has its format and purpose.
- American Psychological Association popularly known as APA is the most widely used citation format in the world. It is mainly used for social sciences academic papers. APA citation style is mostly used for In-Text citation. In APA style, th3 last name of the author is written first followed by a comma, and then the initial first name is written. If there is more than one author then use the commas to separate the names of each author. Then write the year of publication in parenthesis. For writing the title of the research paper the first word and any proper noun are written in capital and subtitle (if any) is written after a colon.
- In Chicago style, the name of the author is written in the same format as in APA style. The last name of the author comes first. The title of the research paper is written in Title style where all adjectives, nouns, and verbs are written in uppercase. The title is written within quotation marks. Then the place of publication and year of publication are written. For unpublished papers, the date on which the paper is written is used. Additional information that helps locate the paper can also be added like if you have access to the paper online you can paste the URL. In Chicago style, the footnotes and parenthetical citations are used for in-text references. In footnotes, the first and last names of the author are not inverted. Whereas in parenthetical citation only the author name and date are written.
- In MLA citation format the last name of the author is written first and for more than one author the names are separated by commas. In MLA format the title and subtitle of a research paper are written within quotes. Except for articles and conjunctions, almost all other words are written in uppercase. For in-text citation, parenthetical references are used.
- In AMA citation style the last name of the author is written first with the first initial. No other punctuation mark except comma is used. If there are more than six authors only the name of the first three authors are mentioned and then the abbreviation et al is used. The title of the research paper is written in sentence case where only the first word and proper nouns are capitalized. Subtitles are placed afar colon.
Rules For Citation:
For citing a paper a researcher needs to keep a record of all the sources he has used for gathering the information. If a source of an information is properly cited, it gives credit to the original owner. And the formation which is not cited shows that it is the original work or idea of the researcher. Omitting or ignoring a single reference can cause the issue of plagiarism. So it is very important to include all the relevant citations in your research paper. Citations are necessary for identifying the origin of peace of information. It makes it easier for the targeted audience to get into the depth of every concept and knowledge. Based on this, the readers can more effectively evaluate the work of our researcher.
Citation is done for both support and critiques. Each part of the research paper needs to cite appropriately. It includes citing the literature review, methodology, finding suggestions, conclusion, and of course the introduction. Like the evidence supports the argument, similar references support the information and arguments. Citation needs to be done by the type and nature of the content proving with the research paper. The citation should be done transparently. The citation should be done when required, and it is also necessary to priorities the citation. Evaluation of citation should be done rhetorically.
List of References:
When creating the list of references, the references should be in alphabetical order based on the last name of the first authors. If you have cited more than one paper of the same first author, then sort them based on publication year. In the reference list, the entries are kept single space and start from the left margin. Entries should be separated with a blank line. In the list of references, write the author’s name followed by a period, and then write the date of publishing in parenthesis followed by a period. Then write the title.
When writing the author’s name, the last name of the first author is written first, followed by initials. If there is more than one author, their names should be separated by and. The date should be written in parenthesis. When citing the article, the title should be written in regular font, but the title of the book is written in italics.
For citing the journals, magazines, or newspaper write the name in italics with all uppercase letters (conjunctions, articles, and prepositions are written in lowercase). Then write the number of volume in italics, then in brackets the number of issues, and the page number. When referring to the magazine, if the article is on a single page, write p, and if on multiple pages, write pp. Then write the city and state of publication, and after a colon, write the name of the publisher. For referencing an interview, you must write the name of person(s), professional title(s), and the name of employer, and date, time, and place of interview.
