how to do citation in literature review

Academic Referencing Practices in Scholarly Writing

The Importance of Attribution

Acknowledging the sources of information, ideas, and data used in academic writing is crucial for several reasons:

  • Academic Integrity: Prevents plagiarism and upholds ethical research standards.
  • Credibility: Strengthens the author's argument by demonstrating reliance on credible sources.
  • Contextualization: Places the author's work within the broader scholarly conversation.
  • Reproducibility: Allows readers to locate and verify the sources used.

Common Referencing Styles

Different academic disciplines often adhere to specific styles for organizing and formatting references. The choice of style is usually dictated by the journal, institution, or field of study.

  • APA (American Psychological Association): Primarily used in psychology, education, and the social sciences.
  • MLA (Modern Language Association): Common in the humanities, particularly literature and languages.
  • Chicago/Turabian: Used in history, fine arts, and other humanities disciplines, offering both notes-bibliography and author-date systems.
  • IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers): Predominantly used in engineering and computer science.
  • Vancouver: Commonly used in medicine and related fields.

Each style provides guidelines for in-text indicators and a comprehensive list of all sources at the end of the document.

In-Text Indicators

These brief notations within the text of a paper signal that information has been drawn from an external source. The specific format varies according to the referencing style being used.

  • Parenthetical References (Author-Date): Typically include the author's last name and the year of publication within parentheses (e.g., (Smith, 2020)). Page numbers are included when directly quoting.
  • Numerical References: Assign a number to each source and use that number within square brackets or as a superscript in the text (e.g., [1] or 1).
  • Notes (Footnotes or Endnotes): Superscript numbers in the text link to detailed source information provided at the bottom of the page (footnotes) or at the end of the document (endnotes).

Comprehensive Reference List

A complete list of all sources cited in the text, placed at the end of the document. The title of this section varies based on the referencing style (e.g., "References," "Works Cited," "Bibliography").

  • Format Requirements: Each referencing style dictates specific formatting requirements for the entries in the reference list, including the order of elements (author, year, title, publication details), punctuation, capitalization, and indentation.
  • Source Types: Different source types (books, journal articles, websites, conference proceedings) require slightly different formatting, as dictated by the chosen style guide.
  • Accuracy and Consistency: Careful attention to detail is essential to ensure that the reference list is accurate and consistently formatted according to the selected style guide.

Tools for Managing Sources

Several software programs and online tools can assist researchers in organizing sources, generating citations, and formatting reference lists:

  • Zotero: A free, open-source reference management software.
  • Mendeley: A reference management software owned by Elsevier.
  • EndNote: A popular, commercially available reference management software.
  • Citation Generators: Online tools that automatically generate citations in various styles (use with caution and always double-check accuracy).