Undergraduate Research Guide—
Citing Sources
How Do I…?
Annotate My Bibliography
This guide will help you:
 Differentiate between types
of annotations
 Write an annotated
bibliography
 Ask the right questions to
write your annotations
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The purpose of an annotation is to describe the
cited material. It is a brief, descriptive note that
should provide enough information to allow the
researcher to determine whether the source
should be examined further for use.
Annotations help to clarify each source and often provide
evaluative information.
Annotations are NOT book reviews. Be wary as you begin to write
your annotations that you do not create a book review. An
annotation also differs from an abstract or summary of the content.
The annotation provides more guidance to the reader in
determining the usefulness of an individual work.
An annotation does not need to address each category below, when
possible, it should improve the decision making and simplify the
researcher's work. Annotations can be any length, but are usually
about 50 to 150 words in length.
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Types of Annotations
Informative
 Written in the tone of the book or article, an informative
annotation presents the original material in a shorter form.
Descriptive
 Provides a description of the text, avoiding the addition of any
evaluative commentary on its quality.
Evaluative
 In addition to describing the material, also includes an
evaluative judgment of the material.
How Do I…?
Annotation Content
When writing annotations, ask yourself the following questions:
Author
 Who is the author?
 What is his/her occupation,
education, experience, etc.?
 Is the author qualified to write the
article?
Author Bias
 Does the author have a bias or make
assumptions upon which the rationale
of the article research rests?
 What are they?
Purpose
 What is the purpose for writing the
article or doing the research?




Relationship to Other Works
How does the study compare with
similar studies?
Is it in tune with or in opposition to
conventional wisdom, established
scholarship, professional practice,
government policy, etc.?
Are there specific studies, writings,
schools of though, philosophies, etc.
which this one agrees or disagrees that
one should be aware?
Author Conclusion
 At what conclusion does the author
arrive?
Information Source
Conclusion/Justification
 What method of obtaining the data, or
 Does the author satisfactorily justify the
conducting the research was employed?
conclusion from the research or
 Is the article (or book) based on opinion
experience?
or experience, interviews, research,
 Why or why not?
questionnaires, laboratory experiments,
standardized tests, etc.?
Intended Audience
 To what audience is the author writing? Significant Attachments
 Is it intended for the general public,
 Are there attachments or appendices
scholars, policy makers, teachers,
such as charts, maps, bibliographies,
professionals, practitioners, etc.?
photos, documents, tests or
 Is this reflected in the author’s style or
questionnaires?
writing or presentation?
 If not, should there be?
 How is this evidenced?
See examples of annotated bibliographies online:
The Writer’s Handbook (writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/AnnBib_content.html)
Purdue OWL Online Writing Lab (owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/614/03/)
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