5a. Cite

Introduction

Scientific writing requires evidence. You cannot just make it up! References to other (scientific and reliable) publications show that you are aware of the background of your topic, of current research, and of relevant official data. They also show that you know how to use all that information to support your findings. You can support your sources by quoting or paraphrasing. In all cases you need to create and format a reference list.

Step 1

When to use References
Understand when you should use references

Step 2

Quoting and Paraphrasing
Understand how to cite using quotation or parenthesis

Step 3

Formatting your References
Know what formats you should use for references and your reference list

Step 1: Know when to use references

When you publish a text, you want others to credit you when they use your work. The same applies to the authors whose work you use! Using someone else’s work or findings without indicating that you have done so is plagiarism. It is better be safe than sorry; it is better to add an unnecessary reference than forget a necessary one. So when should you use references?

• When giving an overview of the research carried out previously: your starting point.

• When you use factual (e.g. statistical) data which you did not collect yourself.

• To support a statement: to indicate that it is based on research, not something you just made up.

• Sometimes, but not too often, to illustrate a point you are making.

• When information is considered “common knowledge” you don’t need to add a reference. “Common knowledge” is something that anyone familiar with a field of research is expected to know. In case of doubt, it is better to add an unnecessary reference than leave one out which is required.

• When you use texts generated by AI tools (such as Chat GPT) it is important to mention this in your work. Describe how you used the tool in your methodology section or introduction and mention the prompt you used when citing a ChatGPT response (see also the next section)

Step 2: How to make references: Quoting and Paraphrasing

There are two ways in which you can include information from sources in your own text: quoting or paraphrasing.

Quoting

If the exact words of the original document are important, you should quote the text. This is for example the case when it matters which formulation the author used. Put the quotation between double quotation marks to indicate that the words are not your own. Add an in-text citation to the source and also add it to your reference list.

Be aware: long quotations with 40 words or more are considered as block quotations and are formatted in an isolated block without quotation marks.

When you quote, bear in mind that:

Too many quotations make your text difficult to read. Quoted texts must not be too long. Your text should mostly be your own, not a copy of someone else’s.

Some examples of direct quotations

• According to Palldino and Wade (2010), “a flexible mind is a healthy mind” (p. 147).

• In 2010, Palladino and Wade noted that “a flexible mind is a healthy mind” (p. 147).

• In fact, “a flexible mind is a healthy mind” (Palladino & Wade, 2010, p. 147).

• “A flexible mind is a healthy mind”, according to Palladino and Wade’s (2010, p. 147) longitudinal study.

• Palladino and Wade’s (2010) results indicate that “a flexible mind is a healthy mind” (p. 147).

• Source: McAdoo, T. (2010). How to cite direct quotations

Paraphrasing

In many cases, you want to put the idea(s) from another’s work into your own text and therefore you will paraphrase it. Paraphrasing rather than using direct quotations gives you the opportunity to show that you understand the idea(s) being discussed. A paraphrase is approximately the same length as the original text. Paraphrase a text by describing the original idea(s) in your own words. Following your words add an in-text citation to the source and also add it to your reference list.

When you paraphrase:

Use your own words. It is not enough to replace one or two words with a synonym! Make sure your readers are absolutely clear about which parts of your text are paraphrases, and which parts are your own ideas.

Example of paraphrasing

Original text:

“Artificial intelligence systems can only perform as well as the data they are trained on; biased data leads to biased outcomes.” (Nguyen, 2022)

Paraphrased version:

Nguyen (2022) points out that the performance of artificial intelligence depends directly on the quality of its training data, meaning that if the data contain biases, the system’s results will also be biased.

Step 3: Formatting your References and Creating a Reference List

There are certain rules for the order of the references in your reference list as well as for the formatting of references themselves. These rules are determined by the citation style (also referred to as “reference style”) you choose. A reference must contain enough elements to be traceable. There are many different citation styles available. Usually, you will be told to use a specific citation style, so you can simply look up the style on the internet or in a book and make sure you follow its rules. If you can choose your own style, it is a matter of personal taste. Just make sure you consistently use a single citation style.

Example of paraphrasing

Note: regardless of what reference style you use, a source should always be referenced both in-text and in the reference list.

Formatting image references

All reproduced images, photographs, tables and figures in your paper must be cited three times: in the text, in the caption beneath the image (including a copyright statement) and in the reference list. A copyright statement is not necessary if you have bought a stock photo or if the image is your own work. In that case use the words “own work” in the caption or add a note in your text stating that photos or drawings without reference are your own.

Reference list

A reference list or literature list is a list of all publications (including figures, graphs, tables, datasets etc.) an author refers to (either quotes or paraphrases) in a document to:

• substantiate his/her statements

• describe the context of the subject

• give examples

• show different opinions about the subject

A reference list must be ordered and formatted consistently, according to a single citation style. It is included at the end of your master thesis.

Reference styles

Reference styles can be divided into two main groups: author-date styles and numbered styles. Author-date styles are sometimes also called parenthesized styles.

	Author-date style (Parenthesized styles)	Numbered style
In-text reference	(Smith, 2016) or Smith found … (2016).	My article text [¹] or My article text¹
Reference list	References ordered alphabetically, by author’s last name.	References ordered numerically, in the order in which they appear in the text.
Advantage	A reader can recognize important original texts from the in-text reference, without having to check the reference list.	A reader who wants to check all references while reading a paper, can easily move from one reference to the next without having to search for the next author’s name in a (long) list. Text is easier to read.
Disadvantage	Longer in-text references (for example, references with multiple authors or more than one reference in the same place) can make a text more difficult to read.	In-text references do not contain any useful information themselves.
Examples	APA, Chicago, Harvard	Nature, Vancouver, IEEE

Use Reference Managers

When formatting references, using reference management software like Zotero, Mendeley or Endnote can be very helpful. You can choose your reference style and your reference manager will format it accordingly.