Research Basics

DEFINITION:

The unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and information of another author and the representation of them as

one's own original work, as by not crediting the author or doing so improperly.

PLAGIARISM

RATIONALE:

Plagiarism is considered stealing (“intellectual property”) and is not tolerated in academia.

PLAGIARISM

INTENTIONAL V. UNINTENTIONAL:

Plagiarism can sometimes be committed unintentionally. Unfortunately, the

consequences of plagiarism are the same, regardless of intentionality.

PLAGIARISM

CONSEQUENCES:

In this class: You will fail the assignment with a score of zero points.

In college: You will fail the course, and may be brought before the academic board for

expulsion.

PLAGIARISM

Primary v. Secondary Sources

Primary sources: “Unedited, firsthand access to words, images, or objects created by persons directly involved in an activity or event or speaking directly for a group. This is information before it has been analyzed, interpreted, commented upon, spun, or repackaged. Depending upon the context, these may include paintings, interviews, works of fiction, research reports, sales receipts, speeches, treaties, legislation, letters, e-mails, and others.”

http://www.lib.washington.edu

“Secondary sources interpret, analyze or summarize.These are commentary upon, or analysis of, events, ideas, or primary sources. Because they are often written significantly after events by parties not directly involved but who have special expertise, they may provide historical context or critical perspectives.”

http://www.lib.washington.edu

Primary v. Secondary Sources

In an essay about the security of U.S. presidents in the public

sphere:

Live television news coverage of JFK’s assassination

In an essay about the use of light and color in Renaissance art:

The Sistine Chapel

In an essay about the futility of the U.S.’s involvement in the Vietnam

War:

An interview with a Vietnam War veteran

What is an Annotated Bibliography?

“An annotated bibliography is a list of [MLA Works Cited formatted] citations to books, articles, and documents. Each citation is followed by a brief… descriptive and evaluative paragraph, the annotation. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.”

http://olinuris.library.cornell.edu

Evaluating Online Resources

.com Commercial (credibility questionable)

.net Network (specific information shared within a group… often irrelevant)

.org Organization (often reliable, but beware of bias)

.edu Educational (reliable)

.gov Government (reliable)

In-Text Citations

The term “in-text citations,” also called “parenthetical citations,” refers to the references to source information that you embed in your writing.

In-Text CitationsA standard in-text citation should look like this:

“Due to the health problems caused by its food products, McDonalds should not be allowed to advertise to children” (Monroe 67).

Author’s last name

Page number

Close parenthesis

period

Notice that there is no punctuation between the author’s name and the page number.

In-Text CitationsThere are a few exceptions:

#1: If you are citing the same source once and then again with no other sources between, you can drop the author’s name from the second citation (use page number only).

#2: If you use a quotation that is more than four lines long, create a block quote:

•Omit quotation marks

•Indent each line one inch

•Maintain double-spacing

•Put end punctuation (period) before the citation in this case.

Block Quote exampleNelly Dean treats Heathcliff poorly and dehumanizes him throughout her

narration:

They entirely refused to have it in bed with them, or even in their

room, and I had no more sense, so, I put it on the landing of the

stairs, hoping it would be gone on the morrow. By chance, or else

attracted by hearing his voice, it crept to Mr. Earnshaw's door, and

there he found it on quitting his chamber. Inquiries were made as to

how it got there; I was obliged to confess, and in recompense for my

cowardice and inhumanity was sent out of the house. (Bronte 78)

NOTE: Papers 5 pages or less should contain no more than one block quote

Paraphrasing v. Quoting

Probably the most common cause for unintentional plagiarism is a misunderstanding of the difference between a quote and a paraphrase.

MYTH: A paraphrase is when you use something from a source but you change some of the words.

Quotation: Word-for-word recording of information from an original source

Use [brackets] to add syntactical necessities or ellipses (…) to omit impertinent information.

Paraphrase: Taking another’s idea and putting it entirely into your own words. There must me no resemblance whatsoever to the original sentence structure. This information should be fully digested by you first. Do not “paraphrase from the source”– you paraphrase from your mind.

Paraphrasing v. Quoting

Creating a Works Cited Page•No header, no pagination (must save separately from document)

•Title it “Works Cited” (but not with these quotation marks, of course) and center your title at the top of the page. No bold, no underline, 12 pt. Times New Roman font.

•Alphabetize your entries (same with your annotated bibliography)

•Double-space the page from top to bottom, but do not include any extra spacing between entries.

•Do not indent the first line of a given citation, but do indent any lines of continuation that fall under it (emphasizes author).