How and When to Cite
Your Sources
Library & Learning Centre
Sha Tin College
Sha Tin College recommends:
MLA
Modern Language
th
Association (7 Ed.)
MLA
Is a style or format that sets out rules determining:
 How to set up your paper
 How you document your research sources
Why Do We Need To Cite
Sources?
 Referencing is used to acknowledge and credit the
work of others cited in your paper.
 It protects you against accusations of Plagiarism
(taking credit for other people’s work).
 It provides a map of your research for other.
 Correct referencing is an easy way of obtaining
marks for your essay.
4
What is a Citation or
Reference
It is a bibliographic list of resources that you have used in your work. It
usually includes:
•
•
•
•
•
Author’s Name
Title
Publisher’s Name & City of Publication
Date of Publication
Website Address (although this is optional in 7th ed.)
There are two parts:
• In-Text Citation/ Parentheses
• Reference List
In-Text Citation
The citation should appear next to the quotation or
paraphrased text using only:
(Author’s Last Name Page Number)
Example:
Romantic poetry is characterized by the “spontaneous overflow
of powerful feelings” (Wordsworth 263).
Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was “a spontaneous
overflow of powerful feelings” (263).
Both are acceptable
Examples of In-Text Citation
1.No author: use title

(“Impact of Global Warming” 6)
2.Two authors with same last name: use initial of first name

(A. Miller 7)
(B. Miller 10)
3.Multiple authors

(Smith, Yang, and Moore 76) or (Smith et al. 76) if there are more than 3 authors
4. Multiple books/ articles by same author

Book: (Smith, In Communication 56) or Article (Smith, “Visual Studies” 17)
5. Indirect citation when you’re not referencing from the original book/article

(quoted in Smith 300) or (qtd. In Smith 300)
6.Website

Include first item that appears in Work Cited entry (authors name or title). You do not need to
include paragraph or page number.

(Smith) or (“Impact of Global Warming”) or (CNN.com)
References/Cited Works
The FULL citation should:
 Appear in alphabetical order on the last page.
 Contains enough bibliographic information to allow readers to
locate your source.
 Formatted with hanging indentations.
Example:
Wordsworth, William. Lyrical Ballads. London: Oxford
University Press, 1967. Print.
Referencing changes according to type of source cited:
Letters, Journal Articles, Websites, Images, Videos etc.
Reference or Bibliography?
A Reference or Works Cited referred only to resources
that you have actually cited in your paper.
A Bibliography may also include material you have
consulted but not directly cited or paraphrased.
Footnotes & Endnotes
MLA discourages excessive use of Footnotes & Endnotes
However…
 MLA do allow their use for bibliographic notes which
refer to other publications readers may consult.
 The occasional explanatory notes which refer to brief
additional notes not included in the main body of the
text.
When Should I Cite:
 Information or ideas that are new to you, even if you
paraphrase.
 Direct Quotations (use quotation marks “….”).
 Numerical figures such as: dates, statistics,
percentages etc.
 Anything that is specific or questionable.
 Images.
 If in doubt, cite the source.
MLA Citations
Are required when introducing works of others:
 Paraphrase or quote the information and cite the
source at the end of the sentence.
 Introduce a source with phrases such as: according
to… then paraphrase or quote, then cite.
 Use introductory verbs such as: Smith discovered,
proved, indicated, asserted, found and noted.
How Do I Cite:
 Books
 Journal Articles
 Websites
 Online Magazines
 Pictures
Books
Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title. City of Publication:
Publisher’s Name, Date. Format.
Gleick, James. Chaos: Making a New Science. New York: Penguin,
1978. Print.
Cassell, Kay Ann, Uma Hiremath. Reference and Information
Services in the 21st Century. London: Neal-Schuman, 2009.
Print.
More than 3 author’s use phrase et al. (Latin: and others)
Journal Article
Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Article Title.” Magazine
or Journal Title Volume.Issue (date): pages. Format.
Horn, Anne. "Strategic Competence: to Soar Above." Library
Management 29.1 (2008): 5-17. Print.
Website
Author/Creator/Publisher (if stated). “Web page title.”
Website Title (this can incl.: .com, .org etc). Version
number (if stated). Sponsor (if stated). Date listed on site
or page. Web. Date you visited. URL (optional)
"The Purdue OWL: Research and Citation." Welcome to the Purdue
University Online Writing Lab (OWL). Purdue University, Sep.
2010. Web. 28 Feb. 2012.
NB: 7th Edition of MLA does not require a URL to be included.
Online Magazine
Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Article title.” Name of
web magazine. Publisher. (Date of article listed on site).
Page. Format. Date website was visited.
Dolby, Nadine. “Research in Youth Culture and Policy: Current
Conditions and Future Directions.” Social Work and Society:
the International Online-Only Journal 6.2 (2008): 330-336.
Web. 28 Feb. 2012.
Images
Artist’s Last Name, First Name. The work of art. Date of
creation. Name of institution and city where work is
housed. Name of website. Format. Date accessed.
Klee, Paul. Twittering Machine. 1922. Museum of Modern Art, New
York. The Archive. Web. 26 Feb. 2012.
More Information
SMART
LIBRARY
LIBRARY HOME PAGE
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Citation Guidelines & Tools
Citation Guidelines
and Tools
Here you will find:
 MLA Citation style – Useful tips on citation
management from Cornell University
 Purdue OWL MLA – for further citation guidance
 Template for MLA style
 Links to Referencing tools: EasyBib & Bibme
Oliver
The following guides and tools are available on the library
cataloguing page:
 Purdue University Writing Lab
 Conducting Research
 Using Research
 Referencing MLA
Tools for citing sources
 Bibme.org
 Easybib.com
For Further Assistance
Visit the LLC
Ask the LIBRARIAN
MLA QUIZ
 MLA Practice Test:
Online Writing Lab, Utah Valley University
 MLA Citation Methods Quiz:
Sponsored by The Learning
Center for Teaching and Learning at UIS
 MLA Citation Methods Quiz (Answer Key): Sponsored by The Learning
Center for Teaching and Learning at UIS