OU Harvard guide to citing
references
The examples here follow the Open University House Style Guide, which uses a version
of the Harvard system of citing references, but some OU courses may use other
referencing systems. Please check the details for your course before using this guide.
(Please note: this guide was revised in May 2010. Some of the advice on formatting
references has been updated and will differ from the previous version).
1
In-text citations
In the Harvard system, references in the text (in-text citations) are referred to by the
author’s name and year of publication, for example:
It is stated that…(Bloggs, 2007) or Bloggs (2007) states…
If you are directly quoting material (i.e. using the exact form of words used in the
original and putting the text in quote marks), you will also need to include the page
number(s) of the quoted material in your in-text citation, for example:
Bloggs talks about ‘the importance of preparation’ for interviews (2007, p. 57).
Library Services
This is also the case for quoting material for all the types of text referred to in the rest of
this guide, unless page numbers are not available.
In the reference list or bibliography, items are listed only once in alphabetical order.
In some cases you may refer to more than one publication by an author for a specific
year. To help identify these different items for your in-text citation and reference list,
you should add a letter of the alphabet to the year of publication, for example:
(Thomson, 2004a), (Thomson, 2004b) and (Thomson, 2004c)
where a, b and c refer to the order in which they are cited in your text.
When you come across a publication with 3 or more authors you only list the first
author for the in-text citation followed by et al. For example:
(Jones et al., 2007)
but in the reference list or bibliography you would list each author in full.
2
Reference lists
References in the reference list or bibliography give, in alphabetical order by author
surname, full details of all the sources you have used in the text, for example:
Bourdieu, P. (1992) The Logic of Practice, Cambridge, Polity.
Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) (2007) This
Way to Better Streets: 10 Case Studies on Improving Street Design, London,
CABE; also available online at
http://www.cabe.org.uk/default.aspx?contentitemid=1978 (Accessed 12
February 2009).
Foucault, M. (1977) Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison,
Harmondsworth, Penguin.
Glaskin, M. (2004) ‘Innovation: the end of the white line’, Sunday Times, 22
August, [online], http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/driving/article472085.ece
(Accessed 12 February 2009).
Goffman, E. (1959) The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, New York,
Anchor Books.
House of Commons (2003) Hansard, 2 July, Column 407 [online],
http://www.parliament.the-stationeryoffice.co.uk/pa/cm200203/cmhansrd/vo030702/debtext/30702-10.htm (Accessed
13 February 2009).
McNichol, T. (2004) ‘Roads gone wild’, Wired Magazine, issue 12.12,
December [online], http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.12/traffic.html
(Accessed 13 February 2009).
Ruppert, E.S. (2006) The Moral Economy of Cities: Shaping Good Citizens,
Toronto, University of Toronto Press.
Shared Space (2005) Shared Space: Room for Everyone, Leeuwarden, Shared
Space; also available online at http://www.sharedspace.org/files/18445/SharedSpace_Eng.pdf (Accessed 21 February 2009).
Thompson, K. (2003) ‘Fantasy, franchises, and Frodo Baggins: The Lord of the
Rings and modern Hollywood’, The Velvet Light Trap, vol. 52, no. 3, pp. 45–63.
3
Secondary referencing
You may want to use a quotation or an idea from a source referenced in another work.
You haven’t read the original, but have discovered it through a secondary source. This
is known as ‘secondary referencing’. Ideally you should try to get hold of the original,
but if you can’t then you need to make it clear in your work that you have not read the
original and are referencing the secondary source, for example:
In-text citation: Bloggs, quoted in Smith (2007) states ‘I love chocolate’ (p. 4). Or
Bloggs, cited in Smith (2007), loves chocolate.
In the reference list you would provide details for the source you read it in e.g.:
Smith, J. (2007) Musings from Chocolate Lovers, Bicester, JFJ Press.
For secondary referencing of work cited in course units, see Section 7.
December 2010
4
Books, book chapters and ebooks
4.1
Books
The correct format for referencing a book is: Author, A. (year of publication in
brackets) Title of Book in italics, place of publication, publisher.
Example:
Chalke, S. (2003) How to Succeed as a Working Parent, London, Hodder & Stoughton.
In-text citation: (Chalke, 2003) or Chalke (2003) says…
4.2
Book chapters
The correct format for referencing a book chapter – one written by a particular author
and included in an edited book – is: Author, A. (year of publication) ‘Title of chapter’ in
Editor, A. (ed) Title of Book, place of publication, publisher.
Example:
Mason, R. (1994) ‘The educational value of ISDN’, in Mason, R. and Bacsich, P. (eds),
ISDN: Applications in Education and Training, Exeter, Short Run Press
In-text citation: (Mason, 1994) or Mason (1994) states…
4.3
ebooks
The correct format for referencing an ebook is: Author, A. (year of publication) Title of
Book [online], URL (date accessed).
Example:
Willie, S. S. (2003) Acting Black: College, Identity and the Performance of Race
[online], http://library.open.ac.uk/linking/index.php?id=311027 (Accessed 10 April
2010)
In-text citation: (Willie, 2003) or Willie (2003) notes that…
4.4
ebooks on ebook readers
The correct format for referencing an ebook used on an ebook reader (such as a Kindle
reader) is: Author, A. (year of ebook publication) Title of Book [ebook], place of
publication, publisher.
Example:
Matthews, D. J. (2010) What Cats Can Teach Us [ebook], London, Penguin.
In-text citation: (Matthews, 2010) or Matthews (2010) notes that…
As page numbers are not available on ebook readers, use the chapters instead for
indicating the location of a quoted section:
In-text quotation: Matthews notes that ‘kittens are often delightful’ (2010, Chapter 6)
5
Journal and ejournal articles
5.1
Journal article
The correct format for referencing a journal article is: Author, A. (year of publication)
‘Title of article’, Title of Journal, volume, number, page numbers.
December 2010
Example:
Thompson, K. (2003) ‘Fantasy, franchises, and Frodo Baggins: The Lord of the Rings
and modern Hollywood’, The Velvet Light Trap, vol. 52, no. 3, pp. 45–63.
In-text citation: (Thompson, 2003) or Thompson (2003) writes that…
5.2
ejournal articles
The correct format for referencing an ejournal article is: Author, A. (year of publication)
‘Title of article’, Title of Journal, number, volume [online], URL (date accessed).
Example:
Virkus, S. (2003) ‘Information literacy in Europe: a literature review’, Information
Research, vol. 8, no. 4 [online], http://informationr.net/ir/8-4/paper159.html (Accessed
28 October 2003).
In-text citation: (Virkus, 2003) or Virkus (2003) states…
6
URLs for ejournals
For electronic journal articles you are advised to put the name of the service the item is
from, or the URL. Some databases and electronic journals provide persistent URLs.
This is a URL that should get you direct to the article – use this if given. Other journal
articles may have a digital object identifier (DOI). Again, this is a unique address to
find the article and if you have this put that beside the ‘available from’ information. If
neither of these apply, and your article is from a database, we would recommend just
listing the name of the database you got it from. This is because if you copy the address
from the database, it is unlikely to work for someone else using it to find the article.
7
OU course materials
7.1
Course texts
The correct format for referencing a course text is: The Open University as the author,
(year of publication in brackets), course code plus Course title (in italics, capitalise the
first word of the course title only), unit, ‘unit title in single quotes’, place of publication,
publisher.
Example:
The Open University (1984) T281 Basic physical science for technology, Unit 9,
‘Thermochemistry’, Milton Keynes, The Open University.
In-text citation: (T281, Unit 9).
7.2
Copublished course texts
The correct format for referencing a copublished course text (i.e. a text produced by The
Open University and another publisher together) is: Author, A. (year of publication in
brackets), Title of Book in italics, place of publication of first publisher, publisher/place
of publication of second publisher, publisher.
Example:
Hall, S. and Gieben, B. (eds) (1992) Formations of Modernity, Cambridge, Polity
Press/Milton Keynes, The Open University.
In-text citation: (Hall and Gieben, 1992) or Hall and Gieben (1992) claim...
December 2010
7.3
Course readers
The correct format for referencing a course reader (i.e. a collection of previously
published articles) is: Author, A. (year of publication of reader) ‘Title of article’ in
Editor, A. (ed) Title of Reader, place of publication, publisher.
Example:
Hall, S. (2000) ‘Who needs ‘identity’?’ in du Gay, P., Evans, J., and Redman, P. (eds)
Identity: a Reader, London, Sage.
In-text citation: (Hall, 2000) or Hall (2000) states…
7.4
Course DVDs
The correct format for referencing a course DVD is: The Open University as the author,
(year of publication in brackets), course code plus Course title (in italics, capitalise the
first word of the course title only), ‘DVD number and title’, place of publication,
publisher.
Example:
The Open University (2008) T320 E-business technologies: foundations and practice,
‘DVD 1: video case studies’, Milton Keynes, The Open University
In-text citation: (T320, DVD 1).
7.5
Secondary referencing of work cited in course units
If you wish to cite an author whose work is discussed in a course unit but you haven’t
read the original, you need to make this clear in what you write. For example:
In text citation: ‘Porter (cited in B820, Unit 2, p. 19) identifies…’
In this example, citing Porter without a date is taken to mean that Porter’s original work
has not been consulted.
In the references list you would provide details only for the source you have actually
read:
The Open University (2006) B820 Strategy, Unit 2, ‘Analysing the external
environment’, Milton Keynes, The Open University.
8
Newspaper articles: print and online
8.1
Newspaper: print
The correct format for referencing a printed newspaper article is: Author, A. (year of
publication) ‘Title of the article’, Title of the Newspaper, date, page number.
Example:
Mackay, C. (2002) ‘Alert over big cat’, The Daily Mirror, 4 July, p. 28.
In-text citation: (Mackay, 2002) or Mackay (2002) states…
8.2
Newspaper: online
The correct format for referencing an online newspaper article is: Author, A. (year of
publication) ‘Title of the article’, Title of the Newspaper, date, [online] URL (date
accessed).
December 2010
Example:
MacLeod, D. (2007) ‘Oxbridge trainee teachers twice as likely to get jobs’, Guardian, 3
August, [online]
http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/news/story/0,,2140513,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=
8 (Accessed 3 August 2007).
In text citation: (MacLeod, 2007) or MacLeod (2007) states…
9
Reports
The correct format for referencing a report is: Author, A. (year of report), Title, Issuing
Organisation, report number.
Example:
Halliday, J. (1995) Assessment of the accuracy of the DTI’s database of the UK wind
speeds, Energy Technology Support Unit, ETSU-W-11/00401/REP.
In-text citation: (Halliday, 1995) or Halliday (1995) states…
10
Conference papers
The correct format for referencing a conference paper is: Author, A. (year of
publication) ‘Title of paper’, Title of Conference, location, date of conference, place of
publication, publisher, page numbers.
Example:
Jones, J. (1994), ‘Polymer blends based on compact disc scrap’, Proceedings of the
Annual Technical Conference – Society of Plastics Engineers, San Francisco, May 1–5
1994, Brookfield, CT, Society of Plastics Engineers, pp. 2865–7.
In-text citation: (Jones, 1994) or Jones (1994) states…
11
Theses
The correct format for referencing a thesis is: Author, A. (year of submission) Title:
Subtitle, Degree Statement, place of publication, awarding institution.
Example:
Morishita, M. (2003) Empty museums: Transculturation and the development of public
art museums in Japan, Unpublished PhD thesis, Milton Keynes, Open University.
In-text citation: (Morishita, 2003) or Morishita (2003) claims…
12 Online documents, personal sites, blogs, podcasts and
wikipedia
12.1
Online documents
The correct format for referencing an online document is: Author, A. (year of
publication if given) Title of Document [online], place of publication, publisher, URL
(date accessed).
Example:
Spitzer, K. L., Eisenberg, M. B. and Lowe, C. A. (1998) Information Literacy: Essential
Skills for the Information Age [online], Syracuse, NY, ERIC Clearinghouse on
Information and Technology, Syracuse University (ED 427 780)
http://ericit.org/toc/infoliteracytoc.shtml (Accessed 28 October 2003).
In-text citation: (Spitzer et al., 1998) or Spitzer et al. (1998) state…
December 2010
12.2
Personal or organisational websites
The correct format for referencing a personal or organisational website is: Author, A
(year of publication/last updated) Title of Website [online], URL (date accessed).
Example:
Open University Library (2005) Welcome to the Open University Library [online],
http://library.open.ac.uk/ (Accessed 2 February 2010).
In text citation: (Open University Library, 2005) or Open University Library (2005)
states…
12.3
Blogs
The correct format for referencing a blog is: Author, A. (year of publication/last
updated), ‘Title of message’, Title of Website, day/month of posted message [online],
URL (date accessed).
Example:
Sloniowski, L. (2005) ‘Because sharing is nice’, Information Literacy in Canada, 30
June [online], http://blog.uwinnipeg.ca/ilig/archives/learning_objects (Accessed 2
February 2009).
In text citation: (Sloniowski, 2005) or Sloniowski (2005) states…
Note: Some blog authors may choose to remain anonymous by using an alias. Use this
instead of surname and initials if that is all that is available.
12.4
Podcasts
The correct format for referencing a podcast is: Title of podcast (year of publication),
podcast type, podcaster, place of podcast [online], URL (date accessed).
Example:
The wings of a butterfly (2005), podcast radio programme, ABC Radio National,
Sydney [online], www.abc.net.au/rn/podcast/default.htm#mind (Accessed 16 September
2005).
In text citation: (The wings of a butterfly, 2005) or in The wings of a butterfly (2005) it
is said…
12.5
Wikipedia
The correct format for referencing a Wikipedia entry is: Author, A (year of
publication/last updated) Title of entry [online], URL (date accessed).
Example:
Wikipedia (2009) Hawaiian tropical rainforests [online],
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaiian_tropical_rainforests (Accessed 5 October 2010).
In text citation: (Wikipedia, 2009) or Wikipedia (2009)
13
Images: online images and works of art
13.1
Online images
The correct format for referencing an online image is: Title of Image (year of
publication) [online], URL (date accessed).
December 2010
Example:
Mary of Modena, fleeing with her son James Francis Edward Stewart (c.1688) [online],
www.scran.ac.uk (Accessed 2 February 2006).
In text citation: When looking at the image Mary of Modena, fleeing with her son James
Francis Edward Stewart (c.1688), it is obvious that…
13.2
Works of art
The correct format for referencing a work of art is: Artist, A. (year of production), Title
of Image, medium, size, location.
Example:
Horan, D. (2002) Kipper in the Cat’s Mouth, watercolour, 20 x 30 cm, National Gallery,
London.
In text citation: (Horan, 2002) or Horan (2002) demonstrates…
14
Messages: emails and forums
14.1
emails
The correct format for referencing an email is: Author, A. (date of message) ‘Subject of
message’, email to recipient’s name.
Example:
Knight, C. J. (29 May 2007) ‘Cumbrian windfarms’, email to J. Q. Parker-Knoll.
In text citation: (Knight, 2007) or Knight (2007) states…
Note: You should always check with the author of the email that they are happy for you
to use the content of the email before using the material.
14.2
Forum messages
The correct format for referencing a forum message is: Author, A. (date of message)
‘Subject of message’ message to Name of the Forum.
Example:
Burrage, R. (10 August 2004) ‘Virus information’, message to OU Service News.
In text citation: (Burrage, 2004) or Burrage (2004) states…
Note: You should always check with the author of the forum message that they are
happy for you to use the content of the forum message before using the material.
15
Audiovisual material: TV programmes, films and YouTube
15.1
TV programme
The correct format for referencing an TV programme is: Title of Programme (year)
channel, date of transmission.
Example:
The Apprentice (2008) BBC 1, 11 June.
In text citation: Sir Alan Sugar (The Apprentice, 2008) exemplifies…
If you are accessing the programme online, e.g. via BBC iplayer, then you would amend
the reference as follows:
December 2010
The Apprentice (2008) BBC 1, 14 June [online], www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer (Accessed 16
June 2008).
15.2
Film
The correct format for referencing a film is: Title of Film, film, directed by Director
Name, place of distribution, distribution company, year of distribution.
Example:
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, film, directed by Peter Jackson, New York,
Newline Productions Inc, 2003.
In-text citation: The animation of the Ents (Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, 2003) is
a good example of …
15.3
YouTube item
The correct format for referencing a YouTube item is: Title of Item (year of
distribution), YouTube video, added by name of who uploaded it [online], URL, (date
accessed).
Example:
Google Privacy: A Look at Cookies (2008) YouTube video, added by googleprivacy
[online], www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfZLztx8cKI (Accessed 12 June 2008).
In-text citation: Maile Ohye discusses (Google Privacy: A Look at Cookies, 2008)…
December 2010