Public Health: Citing Your Sources

• Everything derived from an outside source, i.e., ideas, information, statistics, etc., must be credited whether it is found in print or via the Internet.

• Style manuals/guides provide instructions and examples of how to format papers, cite sources, and prepare references or bibliographies. This guide contains references and links to a number of citation and style guides.

  For an overview of several different styles, you could consult: Cite Right: A Quick Guide to Citation Styles--MLA, APA, Chicago, the Sciences, Professions and More. PN171.F56 L55 2011 -- there are several print editions in the Library, and another available via Netlibrary.

Save time by using the "create citation" feature from the Library's article databases. (Don't forget to double check it.)

Chicago Manual of Style

NOW ONLINE through Gitenstein Library!

Chicago Manual of Style, 17th Ed.
REF Z253.U69, 1 copy at the Reference Desk; 16th edition in general collection

• Chicago Manual of Style Quick Citation Guide
• Using Chicago Manual of Style Format (Purdue University Online Writing Lab)

American Psychological Association (APA)

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th Ed
REF BF76.7.P83 2010, 1 copy at the Reference Desk, 1 copy at the Reserve Desk

• APAStyle.org (Style tips and official recommendations, including citation guidelines for electronic media.)
• Using American Psychological Association (APA) Format (Purdue University Online Writing Lab)

Modern Language Association (MLA)

MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing, 3rd Ed.
REF PN147.G444 2008, 1 copy at the Reference Desk

• MLA Style - Frequently Asked Questions (Official style recommendations, including FAQs about citing document sources from the World Wide Web.)
• MLA Citation Style (Cornell University Library)
• Using Modern Language Association (MLA) Format (Purdue University Online Writing Lab)

CheckCite is a handy citation tool from James Madison University Libraries

American Anthropological Association Style Guide

American Sociological Association Style (Trinity University Library)

Formatting in Sociology (Purdue University Online Writing Lab)

A citation management tool helps you:

• keep track of articles and books as you find them
• tag and annotate research materials
• easily create in-text citations
• instantly generate end-of-document bibliographies
• share research with collaborators
• conduct better research, faster

We suggest three choices to you in this guide: Refworks, Zotero, and Mendeley. (Each is available free of charge).

Refworks, is provided by TCNJ. It is a stable, well-established platform, but has limitations in terms of working with PDF files.

Zotero is an open-source software program that is notable for its ease of use, its ability to grab screenshots, and its capabilities for archiving website content for local storage (including  PDFs).

Mendeley, the newest option of the three, is a cloud-based proprietary system that includes PDF storage, annotation, and tagging. Mendeley has a wide range of functionality but has historically suffered from performance and accuracy issues.

We recommend that you explore a variety of citation managers, consulting with library staff as needed, before choosing one. We can provide guidance on best practices and share our experiences.