How to Cite and Reference Sources the Right Way

At higher levels of study, assignments often require you to cite and reference sources. This shows that you’ve researched your subject thoroughly and have drawn on previous literature to support your answers within your assignment. Understanding how to do this correctly is essential – not only to avoid plagiarism but also to demonstrate academic integrity and credibility.

Citing and Referencing

Before delving into how to cite and reference correctly, it’s important to understand the difference between these practices.

Citing and referencing are both essential when writing an assignment that requires you to draw on previous research. Citing involves acknowledging the literature source within the body of the text, while referencing involves acknowledging the literature source in a reference list at the end of an assignment. When writing an assignment, it’s important that all sources used are cited and referenced properly, to ensure credit is given to original authors while also avoiding plagiarism.

Below provides further details and examples of citations and references.

Citations

Citations are acknowledgements of sources within the text. This is the key difference between citing and referencing. When you are citing a source, you are placing a brief in-text reference within the sentence where you are referring to another person’s research. Citations can be placed within a sentence or at the end of a sentence. Examples are shown below.

• Example 1 (end of sentence) – Effective supplier relationships can lead to long-term cost savings (Johnson, 2021).
• Example 2 (middle of sentence) – According to Johnson (2021), effective supplier relationships can lead to long-term cost savings.

You’ll notice that when you place the citation within the sentence, only the publication year is enclosed in parentheses. However, when the citation appears at the end of the sentence, both the author’s surname and the publication year are included in the parentheses.

References

References consist of the full acknowledgement of original sources within a reference list, which is provided after the assignment. An example of what a reference might look like is shown below.

Reference List

Johnson, B. (2021). ‘Building effective supplier relationships: Strategies for long-term success’, International Journal of Procurement Management, 2(3), pp. 7–27.

This example shows a full reference for an article within an academic journal. The reference follows this format: Author’s surname, first initial (publication year). ‘Article title’, Journal name, Volume (Issue number), page range.

It’s important to note that the format differs depending on the source. For example, if you’re referencing a book, this will require different information such as the publisher and place of publication. If you’re referencing a website, you’ll include the URL, the website name, and the name of the webpage.

The citation and reference examples above are formatted using the Harvard referencing style, which is used here at DLC Training. There are many different referencing styles, so it’s beneficial to check this when you enrol on a course where assessments require referencing. Some of the most popular referencing styles and the disciplines they are often used in are demonstrated in the table below.

It’s important to familiarise yourself with the referencing style required before you begin your assignment, so you’re confident when applying it throughout your work.

Citing and Referencing Sources

When you know what reference style you need to use, it’s beneficial to keep a resource handy to refer to while you are referencing your sources. Here at DLC Training, we provide our learners with guides to support them with Harvard referencing. There are also useful books available such as Cite Them Right. This book provides you with citing and referencing techniques for all the major referencing styles and also covers all the different source types (from books and journals to websites and social media).

Tips on Citing and Referencing

Here at DLC Training, our tutors have provided some useful tips for citing and referencing your sources, to ensure good academic practice.

• Relevant Research is Key
• Quality Over Quantity
• Use Theoretical, Recent, and Authoritative Sources
• Track Your References
• Formatting Your Reference List

Relevant Research is Key

It’s crucial to ensure that the previous research you cite in your assignment is relevant. It enables you to introduce ideas and support your arguments effectively. It also helps strengthen your responses by providing credible theoretical evidence when discussing and explaining theories and models.

You’ll often find when researching a topic that you’ll come across the same researchers in different papers you want to cite. This shows you’re on the right track, as you’re following the academics who specialise in the topics you are studying, through their research developments. You will also find opposing researchers who may disagree with the research. It’s good academic practice to include conflicting views to demonstrate critical thinking and show a balanced understanding of the topic.

Quality Over Quantity

Once you’re in the rhythm of citing sources, it’s easy to go overboard and include more citations than necessary. It’s important to ensure every source is adding value to your evidence without diluting your responses. Too many citations throughout your work can disrupt the flow of your writing and distract from the point you are trying to make.

How Many References Should I Use?

As a general rule of thumb, you should be using around 8 – 12 references per 100 words. See below for the breakdown of common assignment word counts and their recommended number of references.

It’s important to note that this can differ depending on your topic, discipline, and assignment expectations. Please always refer to your brief and speak with your tutor to ensure you’re on the right track.

Use Theoretical, Recent, and Authoritative Sources

You should always use a combination of theoretical, recent, and authoritative sources. Theoretical sources are foundational texts that explain key concepts, frameworks, models, or theories that apply to your assignment topic. For example, Belbin’s Nine Team Roles provides a key theory for optimising team progress.

Recent sources refer to publications that have been made in the last 5-10 years, which demonstrates that you’re up to date with the latest developments in your topic.

Authoritative sources are sources that are highly credible. When you’re discussing previous research, you need to know that it’s trusted and well-respected by other sources. A good way to determine this is by seeing how often the source appears in other related works.

By ensuring you include an appropriate number of sources, you’ll create a strong foundation for effective referencing. Incorporating a good balance of theoretical, recent, and authoritative works will also ensure your referencing meets a high academic standard.

Track Your References

Every time you include a citation in the body of your assignment, you should include information for the full reference at the bottom of the page or in a separate document. That way, you can keep track of all your references and get through them easily when it’s time to format them correctly. While you can reference each citation as you work through your assignment, doing so can distract you from the assignment itself. It is generally more efficient to compile and format the references once your assignment is complete.

Formatting Your Reference List

At the end of your assignment, you will need to provide your reference list. This list should always be in alphabetical order. This makes sources easier to locate, avoids confusion, and most importantly, most referencing styles require you to follow this format.

When Should Citations Be Used?

Below, we’ll explore examples of when you’ll need to use citations within your assignment.

Direct Quotes: If you use someone else’s exact words, you must put them in inverted commas and provide a citation to give credit to the original author. For example:

Taylor (2023) suggests that “strong supplier partnerships drive success” in maintaining business efficiency.

Paraphrasing or Summarising: You must cite the source even when you restate someone else’s ideas or findings in your own words – this shows that the information is from someone else’s research or perspective. For example:

According to Taylor (2021), developing strong partnerships with suppliers is key to achieving business success and maintaining efficiency.

Data or Statistics: Any time you refer to specific data, statistics, or figures that you did not generate yourself, you need to provide a citation to identify the source.

Reference an Idea or Theory: If you discuss a theory, concept, model, or idea, you should cite the original author to acknowledge their work.

Support Your Arguments: When you use someone else’s research to back up your arguments or findings, you need to cite it to add credibility and avoid plagiarism.

Images, Diagrams, or Figures: Any visual material you did not create should also be credited to its original source.

Additional Points to Remember

Remember to use citations to support your discussion, not to overwhelm it. Your voice and analysis should remain the focus on the assignment. Citations should complement and strengthen your arguments, not replace them. Make sure you’re not over-relying on sources, as it could show a lack of original analysis or understanding.

Additionally, avoid repeating citations throughout your work. If evidence in different parts of your work relates to the same research article or book, cite it for similar points, only once.  There is no need to have the same citation multiple times in the evidence for one AC question. This point relates to courses delivered by DLC Training. If you are not studying with us, you will need to check the requirements from your provider.

Finally, it’s essential to remember to add a reference to the reference list for every citation you use throughout your assignment. The assessment team will check these references to confirm that the information in your assignment is accurate and properly supported.

Conclusion

Citing and referencing properly throughout your assignment is crucial for passing your assessment. While it may feel overwhelming at first, you’ll find that it becomes easier as you become more familiar with your referencing style. Remember to always refer to your referencing guide to ensure consistency in formatting throughout your work.

If you’re a learner with DLC Training, you’ll receive resources to support you with your referencing as well as other key aspects of your assignment writing. If you’d like to find out more about studying with DLC Training, contact our Course Advisory Team today.