Citation Guide

Citation styles are specific methods of formatting research papers and projects and citing sources to give appropriate credit to authors for their ideas and work.

The two main citation styles you are likely to use in your courses are MLA (Modern Language Association) and APA (American Psychological Association).

Additional citation styles you may use include Chicago, and AMA (American Medical Association).

Citing is important because it...

• Shows your readers you've done proper research into your topic
• Allows readers to track down the sources you used
• Shows you are a responsible scholar who gives credit to other researchers and acknowledges their ideas
• Allows you to avoid plagiarism and the associated consequences when you use another's words or ideas

(adapted from Overview - Citing sources - LibGuides at MIT Libraries)

(adapted from UT Arlington Acknowledging Sources tutorial and with permission from Purdue University Online Writing Lab - Plagiarism FAQs)

Check out Purdue OWL's "Should I Cite This?" flow-chart for help deciding if something should be cited.

Definitions

Common knowledge is generally understood to be any information that the average, educated person would know or accept as true without needing to look it up.

The Yale Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning defines common knowledge as information "that most educated people know or can find out easily in an encyclopedia or dictionary."

Purdue OWL says that common knowledge refers to information that can be found uncited in at least 5 reliable sources.

Types of Common Knowledge

In keeping with the definitions of "common knowledge" above, there are three main categories that common knowledge could fall into:

• General Information known by the majority of people
  • This includes, but is not limited, to basic facts, geographical locations/features, and long-established theories or equations, etc. 
    Examples)
    • A tomato is a fruit.
    • Seoul is the capital of Korea.
    • Einstein's theory of relativity or E=MC² (energy = mass x the speed of light squared)
• Cultural-Specific Information shared by people within a particular country or cultural group
  • This includes historical people and events
    Examples)
    • The Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776.
    • Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the famous "I Have a Dream" speech in Washington D.C.
    • Kamala Harris was the first woman to be elected Vice-President of the United States.
• Discipline-Specific Information shared by members of a specific field
  • This includes information that may be generally known and accepted by students or experts within a field-of-study, but not widely known outside it
    Examples)
    • In astronomy, it is widely known that black holes are the result of stars that go supernova.
    • In psychology,
    • In literature, it's common knowledge that Frankenstein is not the name of the monster, but the name of the scientist who created the monster.

(inspired from What is Common Knowledge? | Academic Integrity at MIT)

Questions to Consider

Since the concept of "common knowledge" is so broad consider the following questions when deciding whether to cite something that could be considered common knowledge in your work:

• Did I know this information before doing research?
  • If yes, the information might be considered common knowledge.
  • If no, the information is likely not considered common knowledge and should be cited.
• Who is my audience and what can I assume they know?
  • If you're writing for an audience of experts in the field, you might be able to consider a basic piece of discipline-specific information common knowledge.
  • If you're writing for a general audience, you should not consider the information common knowledge and cite your source.
• Could my reader ask me to back up this statement with evidence?
  • If the information is considered foundational in your field it can likely be considered common knowledge.
  • If you're reader might be surprised by your statement or it could be refuted by other sources it's probably not considered common knowledge and you should cite your source.

(adapted from What Is Common Knowledge? | Definition & Examples (scribbr.com))

Definitions

Plagiarism is when you intentionally or unintentionally use another person's words or ideas without giving them proper credit (i.e. citing them) and pass off their ideas or words as your own. At it's most basic level, plagiarism is intellectual theft.

The CSCU Student Code of Conduct defines plagiarism as "the submission of work by a student for academic credit as one’s own work of authorship which contains work of another author without appropriate attribution."

Examples of Plagiarism

(adapted with permission, Purdue University Online Writing Lab - Plagiarism FAQs)

Plagiarism is a very serious offense and depending on the intent and level of plagiarism you could face consequences ranging from relatively minor to severe. If you are found to have plagiarized, some possible consequences you might face include:

• A failing grade on the assignment
• A failure for the course
• Being put on academic probation
• Being suspended or expelled from the college
• If you plagiarize outside the college environment you could be fired from your job or face legal action against you

See the CSCU Student Code of Conduct beginning on page 25 for more information on disciplinary procedures and sanctions at CT State Community College.

The best way to avoid plagiarism is to ALWAYS cite your sources, whether you're quoting a source directly, paraphrasing, or summarizing words, or ideas from another person or entity. Both in-text citations and works-cited entries are always necessary. Below are some specific tips on avoiding plagiarism:

Quoting

• Use quotation marks when using the same exact words from your source
• Longer quotations (generally more than 3 sentences) are typically NOT put in quotation marks but indented on a separate line. Check the appropriate style gudie (MLA, APA, etc.) for proper formatting.
• Always include both an in-text and works-cited citation

Paraphrasing and Summarizing

• To correctly paraphrase or summarize, the wording AND sentence structure must be changed to reflect your own understanding of the information
• Always include both an in-text and works-cited citation

Citing

• Give explicit credit to ALL sources you took ideas, information, or language from regardless of the initial format (written, audio-visual, graphic, etc.).
• Clearly differentiate between your own ideas and any thoughts or information borrowed from another source by including in-text citations in the appropriate locations
• Make sure your in-text citations and works cited page (also known as reference list or bibliography) are properly formatted according to your citation style. Use our citation style guides to check your formatting. Ask a librarian if you have questions.
• Always include both in-text citations and a works-cited page listing all sources used

(adapted from Plagiarism - Academic Integrity & Plagiarism - LibGuides at Kwantlen Polytechnic University)