What is Citation: APA, MLA, IEEE, Chicago, Harvard, Vancouver Style

Here You can learn about Citation & Methods of Citation with Examples, and many referencing citation methods like APA Referencing Style, MLA Style, IEEE Style, Chicago Style, Harvard Style, and Vancouver Style.

What is Citation

Citation is the practice of giving credit to the original source of information, ideas, or data that you use in your academic or research work. It involves acknowledging the contributions of other authors, researchers, or scholars by referencing their work in your own writing. 

What is the purpose of Citations? 

1. Avoiding Plagiarism: By citing sources, you give proper credit to the original creators of the content, thereby avoiding plagiarism.

2. Supporting Your Arguments: Citations allow you to back up your claims with evidence from authoritative sources.

3. Providing Context: Citations help readers understand the background and context of your research or writing.

4. Allowing Verification: Citations enable others to locate the original sources of information, ensuring that they can verify and further explore the material you referenced.

Methods of Citation

Different academic disciplines and institutions prefer various citation styles, each with its own rules for formatting references. Below are some of the most commonly used citation styles:

1. APA (American Psychological Association) Style

The APA (American Psychological Association) style is a widely used citation format in the social sciences, education, psychology, and related fields. It provides guidelines for writing and formatting academic papers and ensures that sources are cited clearly and consistently..

Format:

• In-text citation: (Author’s Last Name, Year)
• Reference list: Author’s Last Name, First Initial(s). (Year). Title of the work. Publisher.

Example:

Examples of References

1. Books:

Format: Author’s Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the book. Publisher.

Example: Smith, J. A. (2020). Understanding human behavior. Sage Publications.

2. Journal Articles:

Format: Author’s Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the article. Title of the Journal, Volume(Issue), Page Range.

Example: Johnson, M. L., & Brown, P. R. (2020). The impact of social media on adolescent behavior. Journal of Adolescent Research, 35(3), 245-260.

3. Webpages:

Format: Author’s Last Name, First Initial. (Year, Month Day). Title of the webpage. Website Name. URL

Example: Anderson, C. (2021, May 10). How to manage stress in the workplace. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/workplace-stress

4. Edited Books:

Format: Editor’s Last Name, First Initial. (Ed.). (Year). Title of the book. Publisher.

Example: Thompson, R. J. (Ed.). (2019). Advances in cognitive psychology. Wiley.

5. Chapters in Edited Books:

Format: Author’s Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the chapter. In Editor’s First Initial Last Name (Ed.), Title of the book (pp. Page Range). Publisher.

Example: Miller, K. S. (2018). Motivation in the workplace. In R. J. Thompson (Ed.), Organizational behavior (pp. 45-68). Pearson.

2. MLA (Modern Language Association) Style

• Used In: Humanities, particularly in literature and language studies.
• Format:
  • In-text citation: (Author’s Last Name Page Number)
  • Works Cited list: Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of the Work. Publisher, Year.
• Example:
  • In-text: (Smith 45)
  • Works Cited: Smith, John. Literary Analysis. Oxford University Press, 2020.

3. IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Style

• Used In: Engineering, Computer Science, and other technical fields.
• Format:
  • In-text citation: Numbered references in square brackets, e.g., [1].
  • Reference list: Author(s). “Title of the article,” Journal Name, vol. x, no. y, pp. z–zz, Month Year.
• Example:
  • In-text: [1]
  • Reference list: J. Smith, “Innovations in AI,” IEEE Trans. Comput., vol. 68, no. 2, pp. 123–135, Feb. 2020.

4. Chicago Style

• Used In: History, Business, and Fine Arts.
• Formats:
  • Notes and Bibliography: Footnotes or endnotes are used for in-text citations, and a bibliography is provided for full citations.
  • Author-Date: In-text citation similar to APA, with full citations in a reference list.
• Examples:
  • Notes: John Smith, History of the Ancient World (Oxford University Press, 2020), 23.
  • Author-Date: (Smith 2020, 23)
  • Bibliography: Smith, John. History of the Ancient World. Oxford University Press, 2020.

5. Harvard Style

• Used In: Various disciplines, particularly in the UK and Australia.
• Format:
  • In-text citation: (Author’s Last Name, Year)
  • Reference list: Author’s Last Name, First Initial. (Year) Title of the Work. Publisher.
• Example:
  • In-text: (Smith, 2020)
  • Reference list: Smith, J. (2020) Marketing Strategies. Pearson Education.

6. Vancouver Style

• Used In: Medicine and Health Sciences.
• Format:
  • In-text citation: Numbered references in the order they appear in the text.
  • Reference list: Author(s). Title of the article. Abbreviated Journal Name. Year;Volume(Issue)
    numbers.
• Example:
  • In-text: [1]
  • Reference list: Smith J. The role of vitamins in health. J Med Sci. 2020;25(4):234-239.

References

1. American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). American Psychological Association.
2. Modern Language Association of America. (2021). MLA Handbook (9th ed.). The Modern Language Association of America.
3. University of Chicago Press. (2017). The Chicago Manual of Style (17th ed.). University of Chicago Press.
4. Pears, R., & Shields, G. (2019). Cite them right: The essential referencing guide (11th ed.). Macmillan International Higher Education.
5. National Library of Medicine. (2020). Citing medicine: The NLM style guide for authors, editors, and publishers (2nd ed.). National Library of Medicine.
6. IEEE. (2021). IEEE citation reference. IEEE Publishing.

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