PLAGIARISM, QUOTING,
PARAPHRASING
Dr. M.C. Sengstock
Professor of Sociology
Wayne State University
IMPORTANCE OF THIS ISSUE
• The Profession Of Sociology Is Dependent Upon
The Communication Of Research
• Including Proper Citation of Other Authors’ Work
• You CANNOT Do Well In Graduate School If
You Cannot Write Research Papers
• Your Future In The Profession of Sociology
Depends Upon Your Ability to:
– Write Grant Proposals
– Write Research Articles & Reports
WHAT IS PLAGIARISM?
• Plagiarism Is Passing Off Someone Else’s
Work As Your Own
• You WILL NOT Turn In Any Plagiarized
Materials In This Class!
• Plagiarism May Result In:
– Failing The Assignment
– Failing The Class
– Dismissal From The Program
EXAMPLES OF PLAGIARISM
•
•
•
•
Downloading A Paper From The Internet
Copying A Paper From A Book Or Journal
Copying A Paper Taken From Another Student
Copying Segments Of Any Of The Above
Without Properly Citing The Original Source
• Copying Someone Else’s Exam
• Many Others
AVOIDING PLAGIARISM
• Write Your Own Papers! Don’t Depend
On Someone Else!
• Use Direct Quotes Sparingly.
• When You Use The Work Of Someone
Else, Be Sure To Quote It Appropriately.
• Learn How To Paraphrase Appropriately.
• Be Sure To Cite The Source Of The
Paraphrased Material As Well.
WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT TO
CITE THE SOURCE?
• The Original Author Should Receive Credit
His/Her Work.
• Gives Credibility To Your Work – Shows
You Are Familiar With Research In Your
Area.
• Protects You Legally From Being Accused
Of Plagiarism.
DIRECT QUOTES
• Avoid Using Too Many Direct Quotes.
• Paraphrasing Is Preferable To Direct
Quotes
• BOTH Direct Quotes And Paraphrased
Materials Must Be Carefully Cited
• Good Rule: Maximum Number Of Quotes:
– 1 Direct Quote Every 3 Pages.
QUOTES OR PARAPHRASING:
WHEN TO USE WHICH?
• Paraphrasing Is Generally Preferable.
• Use Direct Quotes Only For Specific
Reasons:
– Passage Very Famous (MLK: “I Have A
Dream” Speech)
– Original Writer Said It So Well You Want To
Make His/Her Words Known.
– You Want To Criticize The Author And Want
To Make His/Her Meaning Clear.
Proper Paraphrasing
• Must Be A True Restatement Of The
Original Author’s Work
– Cannot Change The Author’s Original
Meaning
– Must Make It Clear Who The Original Author
Was
• CANNOT Be A Simple Changing Of A Few
Words Here And There.
• Essential To Success In Graduate School
PROPERLY CITING SOURCES:
DIRECT QUOTES
• Make Sure The Quote Appears EXACTLY As In
The Original.
• Indicate The Author, Title, And Publication
Source Of The Original Work.
• Include The Exact Location Of The Quote (I.E.,
Include The Page Number).
• List The Original Work In The Bibliography.
FOOTNOTES AND ENDNOTES
• FOOTNOTES:
– The citation appears at the bottom of the page
of your paper on which the quote appears.
• ENDNOTES
– The citation appears with all other citations on
a separate page at the end of the paper.
NOTE: ENDNOTES are more common today
and are generally easier.
ALL items must be in the Bibliography.
INTERNAL CITATION METHOD
• Most Social Science Journals Today Use
The INTERNAL CITATION METHOD
• Author’s Name & Date Appears In Text
• Full Citation Appears In Bibliography – EX:
• “The Census Bureau does not accept
mixed ethnic responses” (Jones, 1998: 2).
• Jones (1998: 2) reports the Census “does
not accept mixed ethnic responses.”
PROPERLY CITING SOURCES:
PARAPAHRASING
• Make Sure It Is An Appropriate
Paraphrase
• Indicate The Author, Title, And Publication
Source Of The Original Work
• Page Number Is Not Necessary
• List The Original Work In The Bibliography
Proper Handling of Direct Quotes
• Present the passage EXACTLY as
originally written
• SHORT QUOTES: Place the material in
quotation marks [“….”]
• LONG QUOTES (over 3 lines): Indent and
single space the material
[and do NOT use quotation marks]
OMITTING MATERIAL
IN QUOTES
• Omitted Material May NOT Change The
Meaning Of The Original
• Indicate That Something Has Been
Omitted By Using An Elision:
– … (For Short Omissions Of A Few Words)
– ………………………………………
(E.G., An Entire Line Of Dots For Long
Omissions Of Several Lines)
QUOTING PASSAGES
WITH ERRORS
• You Must Still Quote The Material
EXACTLY – Including The Errors
• Indicate That The Error Appeared In The
Original By Placing “Sic” (“Thus,” I.E., In
The Original) At The Site Of The Error
• EXAMPLE: “Our First Precedent [Sic]
Was General Robert Washington [Sic].”
EXAMPLE OF PROPER QUOTING
LONG QUOTE:
The communication process between health professionals and
patients is sadly lacking.
..…………………………………………………………………………
Even if the patient has questions, it is often difficult to get an
opportunity to ask them. The patient feels as though she is using
the doctors' or nurses' valuable time (Sengstock, 1998: 286).
SHORT QUOTE:
“… if the patient has information … it must be communicated to the
right person” (Sengstock, 1998: 286)
Bibliography: Sengstock, M.C. "What's Wrong with the Breast Cancer
Treatment Process? A Breast Cancer Patient's Experience." Illness,
Crisis, and Loss, Vol. 6, No. 3, July 1998 pp. 275-290.
QUOTES WITHIN A QUOTE
SHORT QUOTES:
“... one priest told me he didn't know much
about them, but commented that they
were ‘probably Orthodox’” (Sengstock,
2005: 26)
LONG QUOTES:
Use “double” quotation marks because the
indentation takes their place.
PROPER FORM FOR
INTERNAL CITATION
"... one priest told me he didn't know much
about them, but commented that they
were 'probably Orthodox'" (Sengstock,
2005: 26).
NOTE: The quotation marks appear
before the parentheses, but the period
appears after.
IMPROPER PARAPHRASING
• The communication process between
health care workers and patients is badly
lacking.
• If patients have questions, it is hard to get
a chance to ask them. Patients feel as
though they are using the doctors' or
nurses' valuable time.
• Both are too close to the original (change
only a few words or the verb tense).
EXAMPLES OF PROPER
PARAPHRASING
• It has been suggested that the health care
setting involves serious problems of
communication, both between patient and health
professionals, and among the health
professionals themselves (Sengstock, 1998).
• Communication within the medical setting is not
very effective (Sengstock, 1998).
• Health care personnel do not communicate very
well with patients or each other (Sengstock,
1998).
• There are problems of communication in the
health care field (Sengstock, 1998).
SUMMARY: QUOTES VS.
PARAPHRASES
EXTREME CARE TO INSURE THAT WORKS
ARE USED AND CITED APPROPRIATELY
• QUOTES:
–
–
–
–
Cite Quoted Material EXACTLY
Make Clear What the Quoted Material Is
Quotation Marks or Indentation
Cite The Source (Including Page Number)
• PARAPHRASES:
– Make Sure You Have Described The Original Work
Accurately
– CANNOT Be An Alteration Of Just A Few Words.
– Cite The Original Source