UNC Charlotte Writing Resources

Center

APA Documentation

Writing Resources Center (WRC)

Appointments:wrc.uncc.edu/

schedule-appointments uncc.mywconline.com

Website: uncc.wrc.eduEmail:

wrchelp@uncc.edu

Phone: 704.687.1899

Locations:Cameron 149

Atkins 109

Cone 268

OverviewThe workshop will cover the essentials of the American Psychological Association (APA) documentation style, including:

understanding documentation avoiding plagiarism paraphrasing source material integrating research information learning to cite sources within the text preparing a reference section

Documentation Documentation refers to a system of crediting people and institutions who created the information that writers use for their own purposes. Credit is required whether or not a person plans to publish the material. Writers should document sources that are used for research papers, oral presentations, or Internet- or electronic-based pursuits (e.g., websites, blogs, or PowerPoint slides).

Documentation

Why do we document sources in academic work?

DocumentationWe use the work of others to: prove credibility as a researcher

demonstrate fairness through consulting multiple points of view

provide background for research

place research in the context of others’ work

help readers follow the progression of ideas

reveal how new ideas relate to established ones

show readers where to locate more information on the subject

Documentation

What materials require documentation?

DocumentationMaterials that require citation include: quotations

paraphrases

summaries

claims that are arguable

facts that are not widely known

DocumentationMaterials that do not require citation include: common knowledge ideas available in a variety of sources

finding from your own primary or field research

Plagiarism

What is plagiarism?

Does plagiarism apply only to print material?

Plagiarism Plagiarism occurs when a writer deliberately uses someone else’s language, ideas, or original material without acknowledging its source.

Plagiarism applies to texts published in print or online, to manuscripts, to broadcasts, and to the work of other students.

Avoiding PlagiarismHow do writers use source material in ways that avoid plagiarism?

Avoiding PlagiarismAside from documenting sources, writers avoid plagiarism in the manner that they incorporate information from resources into their own writing. The most common ways to use others’ information are through direct quotations, paraphrases, and summaries.

Avoiding Plagiarism

Let’s define a:

Direct quotation

Paraphrase

Summary

Avoiding PlagiarismDirect Quotations: Use the original source’s language verbatim (word for word) and include quotation marks as well as an in-text citation.

Print source:“A traffic ticket is a public document because it is: (a) a document issued by a public employee during the conduct of public business, (b) a record stored in a government database, and (c) an exhibit in a legal proceeding” (Harrington, 2011, p. 7).

Internet source: “A traffic ticket is a public document because it is: (a) a document issued by a public employee during the conduct of public business, (b) a record stored in a government database, and (c) an exhibit in a legal proceeding” (Harrington, 2011, para. 3).

Note that a page or paragraph number appears in the citation.

Avoiding Plagiarism Paraphrases and Summaries: Express the

ideas of the original source in the writer’s own words and sentence patterns. Simply changing a few words or switching the order of elements in the passage does not constitute a paraphrase or summary.

Paraphrases may condense only a few sentences of the source.

Summaries usually condense one or more paragraphs.

Paraphrasing ExampleOriginal Source:

“The rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion of the population were the three great developments of late nineteenth century American history. As new, larger, steam-powered factories became a feature of the American landscape in the East, they transformed farm hands into industrial laborers, and provided jobs for a rising tide of immigrants. With industry came urbanization, the growth of large cities (like Fall River, Massachusetts, where the Bordens lived), which became the centers of production as well as of commerce and trade.”

Williams, J. G., Smithburn, E., & Peterson, M.J. (Eds.) (1980). Lizzie Borden: A Case Book of Family and Crime in the 1890s. Bloomington, IN: TIS Publications.

Paraphrasing ExampleHere’s the quote presented as a paraphrase. Is it acceptable? Why or why not?The increase of industry, the growth of cities, and the explosion of the population were three large factors of nineteenth century America. As steam-driven companies became more visible in the eastern part of the country, they changed farm hands into factory workers and provided jobs for the large wave of immigrants. With industry came the growth of large cities like Fall River where the Bordens lived, which turned into centers of commerce and trade as well as production.

Paraphrasing ExampleAn unacceptable paraphrase too closely resembles the original wording and structure, so this was not a viable option to the quote.

The increase of industry, the growth of cities, and the explosion of the population were three large factors of nineteenth century America. As steam-driven companies became more visible in the eastern part of the country, they changed farm hands into factory workers and provided jobs for the large wave of immigrants. With industry came the growth of large cities like Fall River where the Bordens lived, which turned into centers of commerce and trade as well as production.

Paraphrasing ExampleAcceptable ParaphraseAccording to Williams, Smithburn, and Peterson(1980), Fall River, where the Borden family lived, was typical of northeastern industrial cities of the nineteenth century. Steam-powered production had shifted labor from agriculture to manufacturing, and as immigrants arrived in the U.S., they found work in these new factories. As a result, populations grew, and large urban areas arose. Fall River was one of these manufacturing and commercial centers.

Note that the citation appears within the text, which offers a viable alternative for in-text citations. Also, in APA, page and paragraph numbers do not appear in citations for paraphrases or summaries.

Paraphrase

What makes a strong paraphrase?

Uses your own words and writing style.

Expresses your perspective about the information and why it belongs in your paper.

Demonstrates why you think the information.

Includes a citation.

Integrating InformationBlending in source material rather than just plopping information into the text helps to establish flow. Consider two examples involving a direct quotation.

Plopped Version

People did not know much about the town. “The rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion of the population were the three great developments of late nineteenth century American history. As new, larger, steam-powered factories became a feature of the American landscape in the East, they transformed farm hands into industrial laborers, and provided jobs for a rising tide of immigrants. With industry came urbanization, the growth of large cities (like Fall River, Massachusetts, where the Bordens lived), which became the centers of production as well as of commerce and trade” (Williams, 1980, n. p.).

Integrating Information Blended VersionUntil 1892, most people thought of Fall River, Massachusetts as a sleepy, rural hamlet. They did not realize the extent that “[t]he rise of industry, the growth of cities, and the expansion of the population were the three great developments of late nineteenth century American history. As new, larger, steam-powered factories became a feature of the American landscape in the East, they transformed farm hands into industrial laborers, and provided jobs for a rising tide of immigrants. With industry came urbanization, the growth of large cities …, which became the centers of production as well as of commerce and trade” (Williams, 1980, n. p.). If citizens had known about Fall River’s transformation, then perhaps the Lizzie Borden murders would not have seemed as unbelievably shocking.

Integrating Information

How is the blended version better?

Integrating Information

Plopped Version

Limited information leading into the quotation

Lacked text appears after the quote to show its relevance to the topic

Integrating Information Blended Version Leads readers into the quotation and

demonstrates how the quote relates to the topic (Oreo Technique).

Alters the quote minimally, which assists flow.

Relates the quote to the topic (or explains the quote).

Integrating Information

What does it mean to explain the quote?

Integrating Information

The practice of relating a quotation to the topic is also referred to as explaining the quote. It does not paraphrase the quotation. If the writer can paraphrase the quote, then that would prove a better option. A paper needs the writer’s own voice to give it authority, so a minimum number of direct quotations should appear in the paper.

In-text CitationsAPA primarily cites information within the text in two formats. One places the author’s name and year of publication parenthetically at the end of the sentence. The other includes this information as part of the sentence. To increase the paper’s flow, it’s best to use a mix of the two formats.

In-text CitationsOption 1ParaphraseWhile sunshine laws exist in North Carolina, research determined that the general public has difficulty accessing government documents (Harrington, 2011).

Direct Quotation “While sunshine laws exist in North Carolina, research determined that the general public has difficulty accessing government documents” (Harrington, 2011, p. 19).

In-text CitationsOption 2Paraphrase

While sunshine laws exist in North Carolina, Harrington’s (2011) research determined that the general public has difficulty accessing government documents.

Direct Quotation

“While sunshine laws exist in North Carolina, Harrington’s (2011) research determined that the general public has difficulty accessing government documents” (p. 19).

In-text Citations

Do writers need to cite every sentence?

Would the paper’s flow appear choppy?

Is there an alternative that avoids plagiarism, cites sources, and enhances flow?

In-text CitationsBookending SourcesFor instances when multiple sentences in the paper clearly include information from the same source, “bookending” the citations is a better alternative than citing each sentence individually.Harrington (2011) indicated that what are considered public documents and what governments readily provide to citizens remains in dispute. Governing bodies frequently claim that drafts and white papers should not be available for public inspection because they remain unfinished. However, even draft reports from an outside consultant should be considered public because they are being created by someone paid with public funds (Harrington, 2011).

Citations & References

How are the in-text citations related to the reference section of a paper?

Reference Section

Citations form a shorthand that points to the entries of the reference section.

Reference entries contain complete bibliographic information for each source cited in the main text.

Note: Every citation in the text must lead to a reference entry; every reference entry must be connected to an in-text citation.

ReferencesHaybron, D. M. (2008). Philosophy and the science of

subjective well-being. In M. Eid & R. J. Larsen (Eds.), The

science of subjective well-being (pp. 17-43). New York,

NY: Guilford Press.

Light, M. A., & Light, I. H. (2008). The geographic expansion

of Mexican immigration in the United States and its

implications for local law enforcement. Law Enforcement

Executive Forum Journal, 8(1), 73-82.

ReferencesU.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National

Institutes of Heath, National Heart, Lung, and Blood

Institute. (2003). Managing asthma: A guide for schools

(NIH Publication No. 02-2650). Retrieved from http://

ww.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/prof/ lung/asthma_sch.pdf

VandenBos, G. R. (Ed.). (2007). APA dictionary of psychology.

Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Writing Resources Center (WRC)

Appointments:wrc.uncc.edu/

schedule-appointments uncc.mywconline.com

Website: uncc.wrc.eduEmail:

wrchelp@uncc.edu

Phone: 704.687.1899

Locations:Cameron 149

Atkins 109

Cone 268