Avoiding Plagiarism: APA Documentation Style

1. Avoiding Plagiarism: APA Documentation Style PRESENTED BY THE UNIVERSITY WRITING CENTER

2. What is APA documentation style? 2 • What do you know about the APA style of documenting? • Do you have any past experience with APA documentation? Perhaps other styles? • If you do have previous experience with a documentation style, did you find it helpful? Why or why not?

3. APA 3 • APA stands for American Psychological Association, a group whose goal in establishing and promoting the APA style of documentation is to provide the social and behavioral sciences with a tool of reference regarding citation. * • So, how does this style pertain to you? • Will this style remain pertinent to you in your career? * Information taken from: http://www.apastyle.org/manual/index.aspx

4. What is plagiarism? MTSU’s department of Judicial Affairs: “the adoption or reproduction of ideas, words, statements, images, or works of another person as one’s own without proper acknowledgment.” Plagiarism--stealing another person’s work or ideas. What constitutes the stealing of an idea?

5. Why do people plagiarize? *image from: http://farm1.static.flickr.com/72/157458385_6dc97e3414.jpg

6. So, how do I avoid plagiarizing? There are two basic ways to incorporate research: • Paraphrasing • Quoting Are you familiar with these techniques? Can you think of situations in which one of these would be better to use than the other?

7. Citing Sources ALWAYS CITE the original source! Include an in-text citation: A little known fact, “ghosts are actually caused by Chuck Norris killing people faster than death can process them” (Spector 131). Provide the full citation in the References page at the end of the your essay.

8. Paraphrasing • If a source is wordy or unclear: paraphrase. • Keep the intent of the original passage the same. • You must use your own words and sentence structure! • REMEMBER! Even though you have put the information in your own words, you must cite the original source.

9. Paraphrasing Paraphrase: • approximately the same length as the original passage • accurately reflects the author’s intent Example: “The average zombie ‘life span’—how long it is able to function before completely rotting away—is estimated at three to five years. As fantastic as this sounds—a human corpse able to ward off the natural effects of decay—its cause is rooted in basic biology” (Brooks,2003, 10). Paraphrase: Though it may sound like a good thing, a zombie can live up to five years. The cause of this is biological, however, and not supernatural (Brooks,2003, 10).

10. “Modern kitten theory suggests several explanations for the kittens’ existence on Mars. The first, put forward by Dr. Patricia Krieger of the Hey You Bub Institute, suggests that kittens occur both everywhere and nowhere simultaneously.” Kitten theorists may be able to explain the kittens’ existence on Mars. One theorist suggests that kittens are everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Original Source: Read the following. Paraphrase: Is this paraphrase effective? Is it plagiarized?

11. “Modern kitten theory suggests several explanations for the kittens’ existence on Mars. The first, put forward by Dr. Patricia Krieger of the Hey You Bub Institute, suggests that kittens occur both everywhere and nowhere simultaneously.” Kitten theorists may be able to explain the kittens’ existence on Mars. One theorist suggests that kittens are everywhere and nowhere at the same time (Martin, 1999, p. 23). Original Source: Read the following. Paraphrase:

12. Quoting Enclose the phrase or sentence(s) in quotations marks: “Many of today’s adults who are otherwise capable of handling sophisticated modern devices, are united by a contemporary malady: sledgehammer anxiety” (Martin, 1999, p. 46). Include the following information in the in-text citation: • Author’s last name • Year of publication • Page number

13. Quoting, continued You may use the author’s name in the flow of your sentence: According to Martin (1999), “many of today’s adults who are otherwise capable of handling sophisticated modern devices, are united by a contemporary malady: sledgehammer anxiety” (p. 46). Notice the differences: • The year of publication appears after the author’s name. • Only the page number is included at the end of the quotation.

14. “In the last ten years, the sledgehammer has…finally [been] recognized for what it is: a tool, a thing, and a heavy object” (Martin, 1999, p. 49). “In the last ten years, the sledgehammer has come into its own, finally recognized for what it is: a tool, a thing, and a heavy object” (Martin, 1999, p. 49). Brackets and Ellipses • To add words, you may use brackets: [ ] • To omit words, you may use ellipses: … Original: Revised:

15. [Sic] Reproduce the exact wording of your source, even if it is incorrect. Use [sic] to indicate that the error appeared in the original source. Example: “I have a graduate degree in unclear [sic] physics.”* Why is the use of [sic] important for your paper and/or documentation? *Quote from : http://www.economicshelp.org/blog/uncategorized/funny-typos-in-interview-letters/

16. Leading In & Following Up • Sources should be used to support your own points. • Strengthens argument • Keeps you focused • Always lead into your quote. • Prepares readers • Follow up the quote with an explanation. • How it supports your argument

17. Oreo Cookie Lead-in: cookie Support: filling Explanation: cookie When surviving a zombie attack, one might think that a supermarket would provide an ideal safe haven. However, according to Brooks (2003), “supermarkets are…dangerous. Their huge glass doors, even when locked and gated, provide little protection. Basically, the exterior of a supermarket is a giant display window, meant to show the fresh, delicious food within” (p. 80). Though the food supply a supermarket has to offer might be tempting, one might think twice before seeking respite there.

18. *image from: http://brainwagon.org/images/oreo.jpg

19. Block Quotes A quote that is more than 40 words should be handled in the following manner: • Use a colon • Do not use quotation marks • Indent 1” from the left side • The period comes BEFORE the parenthetical Use quote strategies!

20. Creating a References Page • Each entry should correspond with an in-text citation. • Contains information one would need to find the source. Sample book citation: Brooks, Max. (2003). The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead. New York: Three Rivers.

21. Sample References Page

22. *image from: http://images-cdn01.associatedcontent.com/image/A1696/169615/300_169615.jpg

23. For additional help with APA documentation style… The American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.) Washington, D.C.: APA. Glenn, C., & Gray, L. (2010). The Hodges Harbrace Handbook (17th ed.) Boston: Wadsworth/Cengage.

24. Or visit the University Writing Center! James E. Walker Library Room 362 615-904-8237 uwcenter@mtsu.edu *image from: http://neatorama.cachefly.net/images/2008-01/chuck-norris-split-rock.jpg