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Reference & Citation
What is Referencing?
Referencing is a standard way of acknowledging the printed or electronic sources of information and ideas used in your essay or assignment, in a way that uniquely identifies their source (Cleary, 2014). The information you would have used may be some facts, figures, ideas or words.
Why is referencing important?
Referencing is important in that:
- It shows respect of intellectual property;
- It helps you (and the reader as well) to make a follow up on the source you would have consulted;
- Where the reader refutes or doubts your facts, he or she can ascertain that with the original source of information;
- It adds authority to what you are presenting. In other words, referencing makes your writing more persuasive; and,
- It is an academic practice of showing gratitude to the author.
According to Cleary (2014) a reference list/references at the end of your essay or assignment includes all the information necessary to identify and retrieve each work that you have referred to in your text. Saunders (2003) stressed the importance of citing particularly the fact that it gives credit to authors. He also added that the citation must be consistent and complete for readers to easily follow up on cited information sources. A bibliography includes all the reference list and others that may have also influenced your way of thinking.
How to cite other people's works
As a student or researcher your research is going to be influenced by the other researchers before you, or other works in your field or other fields. The way you show these works in your own is called citation. In order to cite other people’s works you pick what is called a citation style and use it throughout that particular piece. You can check with your faculty or department which citation style they use or recommend. They are a lot of citation styles in use but we will only highlight a few that are relevant to BUSE. In this module we are going to concentrate on the APA and Harvard styles. You may contact the Library if you need support for other styles not listed here.
In-text referencing
As you write, you may quote some authors. You can quote directly or paraphrase. We are going to have some example of direct quotations and paraphrasing done using some of the most commonly used styles of referencing which are the The American Psychological Association (APA) style and Harvard style. When acknowledging an information source(s) within the text, you should include the following:
- Name of author;
- Date of publication; and,
- Page number(s).
The above details would be presented as follows:
Where Sithole is the author, 2017 is the year of publication and p.56 (Harvard) or 56 (APA) denotes the page 56 in the publication.
- Sithole (2017, p.56) Harvard style
- Sithole (2017: 56) for APA style.
The following paragraphs will provide examples of the two citation styles in most of the cases that the researcher will come across. Click on the heading to open the information.
| APA Style | Harvard Style |
|---|---|
| Sithole (2017:10) is of the opinion that agricultural policies must be developed in direct consultation with farmers.... | Sithole (2017, p.10) is of the opinion that agricultural policies must be developed in direct consultation with farmers.... |
| APA Style | Harvard Style |
|---|---|
| “Agricultural policies seriously impact on farmers‟ performance. In view of that, policies ought to be developed with direct consultation with the farmers” (Sithole, 2017:56) | “Agricultural policies seriously impact on farmers‟ performance. In view of that, policies ought to be developed with direct consultation with the farmers” (Sithole 2017, p.56). |
| Both APA Style & Harvard Style |
|---|
| The most successful group of plants have seeds (Taylor, 2010)... or |
| Taylor (2010) suggested that the most successful group of plants have seeds... |
| Both APA Style & Harvard Style |
|---|
| It is possible to learn Spanish if you are committed (Smith and Gonzalo, 2014)... or |
| Smith and Gonzalo (2014) opine that it is possible to learn Spanish if you are committed... |
| Note: Always include the two authors when citing in text as shown in the examples. Always cite both authors every time the reference occurs in your text. Keep in mind that the order of the authors’ name should be as they appear in the source. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Author. (Date).Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. | Author. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. |
| Taylor, D.(2010) Biological science. 3rd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. | Taylor, D.2010.Biological science. 3rd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Smith, M. and Gonzalo, D. (2014). Spanish for Dummies. Berkeley, CA: New Riders | Smith, M. and Gonzalo, D.2014. Spanish for Dummies. Berkeley, CA: New Riders |
| Note: Always include the city and 2-letter state code when work is published inside the USA – e.g. New York, NY, but city only work is published outside the USA. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Author. (Date). Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. Available from [URL] (Date of Accessing). | Author. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. |
| Smith, J. (2014). Financial management. London: Blueridge. Retrieved on 10 January 2017 from ebookcentral.proquest.com | Smith, J. 2014. Financial management. London: Blueridge. Available from ebookcentral.proquest.com (Accessed 10 January 2017). |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Title: subtitle. (Date). Place: Publisher. | Author. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. |
| History of the town of Bindura. (2011). Harare: Fast Publishing. | History of the town of Bindura. 2011. Harare: Fast Publishing. |
| Note: Always start with the title of the resource if the resource has no author. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Authors. (Date). Title: subtitle. Edition. Place: Publisher. | Authors. Date. Title: subtitle. Edition. Place: Publisher. |
| Hart, C. (2016). (2nd Ed.) Artistic impressions: The works of selected artists in Zimbabwe. Bulawayo: Press Club. | Hart, C. 2011. Artistic impressions: The works of selected artists in Zimbabwe. 2nd ed. Bulawayo: Press Club |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Authors. Date (a). Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. | Authors. Date (a). Title, Place: Publisher. (Qualification). |
|
Nyati, Gillian S. (2011(a)). The impact of dollarization on small-scale business enterprises in Bindura. Bindura: Bindura University of Science Education. (PhD thesis). Nyati, Edwin V. (2011(b)). Small-scale business enterprises survival techniques in a dollarized economy. Southern Africa Journal of Education Science & Technology, 3(1):49-61, March. |
NYATI, Edwin V. 2011a. The impact of dollarization on small-scale business enterprises in Bindura. Bindura: Bindura University of Science Education. (PhD thesis). NYATI, Edwin V. 2011b. Small-scale business enterprises survival techniques in a dollarized economy. Southern Africa Journal of Education Science & Technology, 3(1): p. 49-61, March. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Author. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. | Author. Date. Title: subtitle. Place: Publisher. |
| Farm Orphan Support Trust. (2010). Agriculture simplified for you. Harare: FOST. | Farm Orphan Support Trust. (2010). Agriculture simplified for you. Harare: FOST. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Name of organisation that produced the brochure. (Date). Title of brochure (edition) [Material type]. Author. | Name of organisation that produced the brochure. Date. Title of brochure. edition. [Brochure]. Author. |
| Bindura University of Science Education. (2010). Report writing guidelines. [Brochure]. Gwata AR,: Author. | Bindura University of Science Education. 2010. Report writing guidelines. [Brochure]. Gwata, AR: Author. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume of journal, (number of issue), page reference, date of issue. | Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume of journal (number of issue): page reference, date of issue. |
|
Tsuro, D., & Pasteur, H. (2011). The human factor. Journal of Management and Culture, 5, (3), 70-86. |
Tsuro, D., & Pasteur, H. (2011). The human factor. Journal of Management and Culture, 5, (3), 70-86. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume or number of issue, page reference. | Author. Date. Title of article. Title of journal, volume or number of issue: page reference. |
| Gutu, M. (2014, May 3). Count down to a new era. Seasons, 175, 183-188. | GUTU, M. 2014. Count down to a new era. Seasons, 175:183-188, May 3. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Author. Date. Title of article. Title of newspaper, page reference, Month and day. | Author. Date. Title of article. Title of newspaper: page reference, Month and day. |
| Edwards, D. (2017, April 1). Cultivating a culture of conserving nature. Nature Unlimited, p.3. | EDWARDS, D. 2017. Cultivating a culture of conserving nature. Nature Unlimited: 3, April 1. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Title: subtitle. Edition. (Date). Place: Publisher. | Title: subtitle. Edition. Date. Place: Publisher. |
| Shorter Oxford dictionary. (9th ed.) 2013. Oxford: OUP. | Shorter Oxford dictionary. 9th ed. 2013. Oxford: OUP. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Author. Date. Title article. Title of encyclopedia, volume of encyclopedia, page reference. | Author. Date. Title article. Title of encyclopaedia, volume of encyclopaedia, page reference. |
| Masauso, X. (2010). Rock rabbit. BUSE encyclopaedia of wild animals, 17:152-177. | MASAUSO, X. 2010. Rock rabbit. BUSE encyclopaedia of wild animals, 17:152-177. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Author. Date. Title article. Title of encyclopedia, volume of encyclopedia, page reference. | Author. Date. Title article. Title of encyclopaedia, volume of encyclopaedia, page reference. |
| Masauso, X. (2010). Rock rabbit. BUSE encyclopaedia of wild animals, 17:152-177. | MASAUSO, X. 2010. Rock rabbit. BUSE encyclopaedia of wild animals, 17:152-177. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Name of person interviewed. (Date). Description of interview with day, month and year. [format] | Name of person interviewed. Date. Description of interview with day, month and year. [format] |
|
Foya, E. (2009). Interview with the author on 6 May 2009. Harare. [Cassette recording in possession of author].or T. Mangoma (personal communication. April 5, 2011). |
FOYA, E. 2009. Interview with the author on6 May 2009. Harare. [Cassette recording in possession of author]or MANGOMA, T. 2011. [Personal communication]. April 5 2011. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Name of person conversed with. (personal communication. Month Date, Year). | Name of person conversed with. (personal communication. Month Date, Year). |
| D. Muroyiwa (personal communication. July 8, 2010). | Muroyiwa, D. (personal communication. July 8, 2010). |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Name of producer. (Title of producer). (Date). Title programme. Place: Broadcast service. Month and day. | Name of producer. (Title of producer). Date. Title programme. Place: Broadcast service. Month and day. |
| Chiriseri, H. (Executive Producer). (2006, June 4). Sunday edition. Harare: Zimbabwe Television. | Sunday edition. 2006. Harare: Zimbabwe Television. June 4. |
| APA Style Format | Harvard Style Format |
|---|---|
| Author. Date. Title of article. Title: subtitle. Place: Academic institution. Degree. [Format if other than print] | Author. Date. Title of article. Title: subtitle. Place: Academic institution. Degree. [format if other than print] |
|
Chipa, O. (2010). The effectiveness of talk shows in promoting HIV and AIDS awareness amongst young adults. Bindura: BUSE. BSc-Counselling. [CD-ROM]. or Jari, D. M. (2010). Undergraduate students‟ attitudes towards electronic information services. Unpublished master's thesis, University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe. |
CHIPA, O. 2010. The effectiveness of talkshows in promoting HIV and AIDS awareness amongst young adults. Bindura: BUSE. (B Sc-Counselling). [CD-ROM].or JARI, D. M. 2010. Undergraduate students’ attitudes towards electronic information services. Harare, Zimbabwe. University of Zimbabwe. (MSc-thesis.) |