(https://lib.guides.umd.edu/ethicalinfo/plagiarism)
When we talk about "academic integrity," we frequently think of plagiarism. But what exactly is "plagiarism"? This definition from the University of Oxford sums it up best:
"Plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work or ideas as your own, with or without their consent, by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgement."
Most of us know that plagiarism is wrong -- it's akin to taking a yummy dessert that your friend made, and then telling the rest of the dinner party that you made it all by yourself. Your friend would, rightfully, be pretty upset that you took credit for what they made.
Most of us don't want to deliberately upset our friends, just like most of us don't want to deliberately plagiarize. So why do we still do it?
Sometimes it's pressure from peers or time constraints that makes it seem like copying and pasting would be easier than doing the work ourselves. But other times, we genuinely don't know when something crosses the line into plagiarism.
Few people intentionally plagiarize. More often, people accidentally plagiarize because they don't know when they need to cite or don't know how to properly cite a source. Don’t let this happen to you!
Example: In Act I Scene II, Bevolio says, "One pain is lessen'd by another's anguish."
Reason: The words are not yours.
Facts or ideas you found in another source
Examples: The estimated population of Perth is 1,700,000. Alfred Russel Wallace thought he was the first to discover a gliding frog.
Reason: The facts or ideas might be true, but when they are not reasonably considered common knowledge, you must have found them somewhere.
Copying someone else's structure
Example: If you say, "I find these three elements to be crucial in understanding the school to prison pipeline " and John Doe wrote of those precise three elements before, then CITE IT.
Reason: If you used John Doe's writing to find out about those three elements, or you know John Doe discusses the same three elements, you need to credit him.
Using Collaborative Research
Example: If you reference research that you did with other people, CITE IT.
Reason: Those other people deserve credit too.
Paraphrasing conclusions, ideas, and interpretations
Example: When you paraphrase, avoid just mixing up the order of the original passage or keeping the exact structure of the passage and just finding synonyms. Use your own interpretation and CITE any references to the original.
Reason: Paraphrasing isn't just messing with the sentence until it is unrecognizable. It means putting others' ideas within your larger context, while still attributing ideas and conclusions to their rightful creators
These resources will help explain what constitutes plagiarism, so we can proactively avoid it.
It is easy to feel like you have to cite everything and that your reference sheet will end up longer than your paper. Fear not! There are some things you don't need to cite:
Examples: The tooth fairy is a mythological creature. Students use number 2 pencils when taking the SAT.
Reason: These are longstanding truths and understandings that are not attributed to a particular person.
Examples: Mary Tyler Moore was born December 29th, 1936. The bombing of Pearl Harbor took place December 7th, 1941.
Reason: While you could say at the end of your paper that Mary Tyler Moore showed her face in this world just a few days before the coming of 1937, would you really want to? Do you have to? The answer is no.
Example: I believe Bessie Darling's Halloween murder to be the first in a string of 1930s mountain crime.
Reason: This is the conclusion that you have made, all by yourself, from all your studious research.
Here are some examples for quick reference. If your source does not fit into one of these categories, check the appropriate Style Guide for relevant examples (under the "Accessing Style Guides" tab) or email Judy.
Citation Style |
Citation Example |
More info |
MLA |
Redfern, Chris P. F., and Richard M. Bevan. “Use of Sea Ice by Arctic Terns Sterna Paradisaea in Antarctica and Impacts of Climate Change.” Journal of Avian Biology, vol. 51, no. 2, Feb. 2020, pp. 1–12. Academic Search Ultimate, doi:10.1111/jav.02318. Accessed Aug. 31, 2020. |
MLA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → An Article from an Online Database; see also MLA Style Guide: Periodicals |
APA |
Redfern, C. P. F., & Bevan, R. M. (2020). Use of sea ice by arctic terns Sterna paradisaea in Antarctica and impacts of climate change. Journal of Avian Biology, 51(2), 1–12. doi:10.1111/jav.02318 |
APA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → Online Scholarly Journal Article; see also APA Style Guide: Articles in Periodicals |
Citation Style |
Citation Example |
More info |
MLA |
Guarino, Ben. "The Audacious Effort to Reforest the Planet." The Washington Post, Jan 22, 2020. search.proquest.com/docview/2342941211?accountid=14696. Accessed Aug. 31, 2020. |
MLA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → An Article in a Web Magazine; see also MLA Style Guide: Periodicals |
APA |
Guarino, B. (2020, Jan 22). The audacious effort to reforest the planet. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://search.proquest.com/docview/2342941211?accountid=14696 |
APA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → Online News Article; see also APA Style Guide: Articles in Periodicals |
Citation Style |
Citation Example |
More info |
MLA |
Dow, Kirstin, and Thomas E. Downing. The Atlas of Climate Change : Mapping the World’s Greatest Challenge. Ebook, 3rd ed., University of California Press, 2015. ebook Collection (EBSCOhost), search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1225810&site=ehost-live. Accessed Aug. 31, 2020. |
MLA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → An E-book; see also MLA Style Guide: Books |
APA |
Dow, K., & Downing, T. E. (2015). The atlas of climate change : Mapping the world’s greatest challenge (3rd ed.). University of California Press. http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy-um.researchport.umd.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1225810&site=ehost-live |
APA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → Electronic or Kindle Books; see also APA Style Guide: Books |
Citation Style |
Citation Example |
More info |
MLA |
"Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions." United States Environmental Protection Agency, www.epa.gov/ghgemissions. Accessed Aug. 31, 2020. |
MLA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → A Page on a Website |
APA |
United States Environmental Protection Agency, (2020). Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions |
APA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → Webpage or Piece of Online Content |
Citation Style |
Citation Example |
More info |
MLA |
@GretaThunberg (Greta Thunberg). “As expected the #EUCO resulted in some nice words, some vague distant incomplete climate targets nearly impossible to track and a complete denial of the climate emergency. As long as we keep playing their game on their terms this is all we'll get- the leftover breadcrumbs. 1/2->.” Twitter, 21 July 2020, 4:57 a.m., twitter.com/GretaThunberg/status/1285499092710367238?s=20. Accessed Aug. 31, 2020. |
MLA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → A Tweet |
APA |
Thunberg, G. [@GretaThunberg]. (2020, July 21). As expected the #EUCO resulted in some nice words, some vague distant incomplete climate targets nearly impossible to track [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/GretaThunberg/status/1285499092710367238?s=20 |
APA Style Guide: Electronic Sources → Tweet |
Here are some examples for quick reference. If your source does not fit into one of these categories, check the appropriate Style Guide for relevant examples (under the "Accessing Style Guides" tab) or email Judy.
Citation Style |
In-Text Citation / Footnote Example |
More info |
MLA |
With page number → (Redfern and Bevan 5) Without page number → (Redfern and Bevan) |
MLA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
APA |
With page number → (Redfern & Bevan, 2020, p. 5) Without page number → (Redfern & Bevan, 2020) |
APA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
Citation Style |
In-Text Citation / Footnote Example |
More info |
MLA |
With page number → (Guarino 5) Without page number → (Guarino) |
MLA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
APA |
With page number → (Guarino, 2020, p. 5) Without page number → (Guarino, 2020) |
APA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
Citation Style |
In-Text Citation / Footnote Example |
More info |
MLA |
With page number → (Dow and Downing 5) Without page number → (Dow and Downing) |
MLA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
APA |
With page number → (Dow & Downing, 2015, p. 5) Without page number → (Dow & Downing, 2015) |
APA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
Citation Style |
In-Text Citation / Footnote Example |
More info |
MLA |
(U.S. EPA) | MLA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
APA |
First in-text citation → (United States Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], n.d.) Subsequent in-text citations → (EPA, n.d.) |
APA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
Citation Style |
In-Text Citation / Footnote Example |
More info |
MLA |
(@GretaThunberg) | MLA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
APA |
(Thunberg, 2020) | APA Style Guide: In-Text Citations |
Citation managers help organize your citations for you. This is especially helpful when you have a major research assignment with a large number of sources to keep track of. You most likely won't need to use these for first-year research assignments, but you may as you move through more advanced courses. If you feel like exploring or taking your research to the next step, check out our Citation Management Tools Guide below!
