Plagiarism

Plagiarism (from Latin plagiarius: kidnapper) is the unacknowledged use of another's ideas and/or expression.  To plagiarize is to pass off as your own something borrowed from someone else. It is a form of intellectual theft, although not all versions are strictly legal offences.  Many are moral or ethical offences leading to loss of reputation, job, course credit, or even expulsion from university.

It is the student's RESPONSIBILITY to ensure the careful documentation of ALL material, whether quoted directly, paraphrased, or summarized from published sources, from another student, or from any other source.

While plagiarism can be a deliberate act by desperate, cynical, or lazy people (concealing sources, handing in a paper written by someone else), it is also often an act of omission.  When students unintentionally recall and repeat exact wording from a source, forget to ensure quotation marks around exact quotations, use online material they thought copyright-free, or paraphrase or summarize a source's ideas without acknowledgment, they are nevertheless guilty of plagiarism.

It is also important to be clear when NOT to credit sources.  You do not need to cite your own original observations, although you need to explain the basis of your thinking. Whereas there is no need to cite a source for facts such as the dates of tenure of a particular prime minister, you do need to cite a source for statistics relating to his/her increasing or waning support during that tenure or for a particular perspective on the success or failure of the prime minister.  In general, you do not need to credit sources for proverbial sayings ("People in glass houses should not throw stones"), familiar quotations ("We shall overcome"), or common knowledge (the dates of World War II, the name of the first prime minister of Canada). When in doubt, cite your source (Gibaldi 33).

If evaluating secondary reading is always challenging, it is especially so in the case of online resources.  For some useful advice on evaluating online resources, access:

• "Evaluating Internet Sources" at http://library.albany.edu/internet/evaluate.html
• "Lessons Learned: Exemplary Practices in Teaching Web Evaluation" by Susan E. Beck, Head, Humanities and Social Sciences Services Department, New Mexico State University Library at http://lib.nmsu.edu/staff/susabeck/checs98.html
• "Evaluating Information found on the Internet" by Elizabeth E. Kirk, Head, Entrepreneurial Library Program, Sheridan Libraries, Johns Hopkins University at   http://milton.mse.jhu.edu:8001/research/education/net.html

Some detailed advice follows, but in the meantime be sure to familiarize yourself with University and College rules regarding academic dishonesty.  Use the links on this page and also on the home page of the Edwards School of Business web site.  Students are expected to know the rules regarding plagiarism and to know that IGNORANCE of the rules is NO DEFENCE against a charge of academic dishonesty.

 Why Document Sources?

• to give credit for intellectual debts
• to reinforce and support your line of argument
• to add credibility of supporting authorities
• to protect your reputation and reassure readers of your honesty
• to give readers access to further sources on a particular topic

• when the source's expression is especially effective, vivid, original
• when the source depends on technical or specialized vocabulary
• when you want to dispute the terms of the source's argument

Use three spaced periods (. . .) to indicate omitted words within a sentence; use four periods when the omission comes at the end of a sentence.

Use square brackets ([]) to indicate any changes you may have made to integrate quotation into your grammar.  For example, if you are quoting a first-person account ("I") in your own discussion, you will want to change the pronouns to fit. For example:  When John Barsky argues, "[he prefers] face-to-face communication for sensitive personnel issues," he is . . . .  Or when the quoted passage includes vague pronoun or other references, you will also need to insert bracketed material.  For example, "When she [Diana Hacker] recommends. . . ."; or "This [visual aid] is particularly important . . . "

Short quotations (of four or fewer lines) should be run in; that is, incorporated in the regular single- or double-spaced lines of your document.  For example: According to Lee Iacocca, "You don't succeed for very long by kicking people around.  You've got to know how to talk to them, plain and simple" (qtd. in Boone et al. 413).

Long quotations (longer than four lines) should be set off from the regular text by indenting the left-hand margin 10 spaces.  Indenting has the same purpose as quotation marks around short quotations.  Do NOT use both except when there is quotation within an indented quotation.  When a complete sentence introduces your indented quotation, the sentence is followed by a colon. For example:

Terri Morrison and co-authors Wayne A. Conaway and George A. Borden stress that "cultural orientation" is far from being a science:

          [doublespace before quotation and indent 10 spaces from left]

Summary and Paraphrase

When quotation is not necessary, put the source ideas in your own words (summary or paraphrase) and follow regular documentation style (see section on Documentation Styles below).

SUMMARY involves condensing in your own words the argument/information in your source.  You will summarize when you want to give the gist of the source without supplying details of the developing argument.

PARAPHRASE involves rephrasing in your own words and generally following the source's line of reasoning without any concern to reduce the number of words in the source. You need to be very careful not to repeat words from your source or to substitute synonyms while retaining the source's grammar.  If words from the source are helpful or important in your paraphrase, be sure to put quotation marks around those particular words  (Hacker 258).
 

How to avoid Plagiarism

• keep careful notes on your research--who wrote/said, where, when, etc.
• double-check names, publication titles, dates, places of publication, page numbers of cited/paraphrased passages
• keep detailed records of Internet sources--service or network (Internet, CompuServe, etc.), date of access, URL (uniform resource locator)
• distinguish exact quotation and your own paraphrase or summary (having decided which method best serves your objectives and audience)
• write your paraphrase from memory of the source
• ensure you credit source of paraphrase and avoid misrepresenting original source
• check that you have not inadvertently repeated some of the original wording in your paraphrase
• if possible, retain source materials (or photocopies of shorter pieces) until final proofing stage to double-check quotations/paraphrases/summaries and source information
• ensure that all works consulted or cited appear in your Works Cited or Bibliography
• be clear on the extent and specific location of borrowings

Different disciplines and professions use different documentation styles.  Whichever style is appropriate to your topic and task &/or whichever is prescribed by your instructor, use it consistently.

In the Edwards School of Business and in business and professional settings, you may be required to use any one of three documentation styles (MLA, APA, and footnote or endnote references) each of which has its own logic and set of conventions.

The Modern Language Association of America is used by a variety of Humanities disciplines and is the system I have used on this page.  Like the APA style, MLA uses a Works Cited (References in APA) together with in-text parenthetical references at the appropriate point in the document to acknowledge sources.  The Works Cited lists all works from which you have drawn in writing your document.  The parenthetical reference identifies exactly where you have used the sources and gives just enough information to identify the relevant entry in the Works Cited.  In other words, if a work is listed by author in the Works Cited, then your parenthetical reference begins with the author's name; if a work is unsigned and therefore listed by title, use the first significant word in the title (no articles or prepositions).  For example, A Guide to the Internet will be alphabetized under g and you will use (Guide) in parentheses.

Keep the parenthetical references brief by incorporating information within your sentences as in the first example below where the author's name is used to introduce the quotation. Note that MLA style requires the full name of the author(s) on first citation (cf. last name only in APA).  In MLA style what is important is WHO said (author's last name), WHERE the source made the claim (page reference), and exactly WHERE and HOW you use the source (exact quotation, summary or paraphrase).

Here are some examples of in-text citation:

One Author/One Source
David Thorpe claims, "effective communication means effective revision" (102).

Although some believe that revision is a waste of time, others insist that "effective communication means effective revision" (Thorpe 102).

One Author/Two Or More Sources
Include a short version of the title to distinguish the works; for example:  (Colombo, Quotations 12);
Colombo's claim ("Proverbs" 16) is compelling.

Four or More Authors
Include only the name of the first author followed by "et al." ("and others" in Latin).  For example, "Diversity of language is only one of many challenges you face when presenting information to a cross-cultural audience" (Boone et al. 417).

An Interview
If the interview is part of a publication, recording, or program, place title within quotation marks.  For example:  Talking candidly in "A Career Reviewed," Ralph Nader reflected on challenges faced and opportunities missed.

If the interview has no title, your in-text citation will identify the interviewee and your Works Cited will use Interview without quotation marks, underlining, or italics (add interviewer's names if known: Interview with Sheila Smith).  For example:  "Patience, planning, and preparation are the keys to success," according to communications expert Joan Writealot.

If you conducted an unpublished interview, identify the person interviewed and include details in Works Cited of when and how the interview was conducted.  For example:  From Bellegarde's perspective, the media were willfully misrepresenting the case.

A Lecture
In citing a lecture or presentation, give the speaker's name and include in the Works Cited the name, the title in quotation marks, the occasion and sponsoring institution where applicable, the location, and date. If there is no title, then assign a descriptive title without quotation marks, italics, or underlining (Lecture, Keynote Address).  For example: In introducing her topic, Isobel Findlay stressed that "effective group dynamics [were] an invaluable resource in any organization."

An advertisement
In citing an advertisement, list under the company or institution that is the subject of the advertisement.  The Works Cited will include the company name, followed by Advertisement, and then the normal publication information.   If the source is online, add the URL in angle brackets. The in-text citation will take this form: (Air Canada).

Electronic Sources
Here are some examples of in-text citation of electronic sources, including online databases.
Note that conventions for electronic sources are still in process of being defined and sites change or disappear constantly;  it is therefore important to supply as much information as possible to identify sources. To the information for print sources (author, title, publication information, date), you may need to add some or all of the following: publication medium (Online), the computer service or network by which you accessed information (CompuServe, Sympatico, e.g.), the sponsoring institution, the date of retrieval (as well as the date assigned to the site), and the URL (uniform resource locator).  Put angle brackets around the URL to avoid ambiguity and end with a period (not part of the URL).

CD-ROM: Check out the entries for "communication" in The Oxford English Dictionary.

Home Pages:

The home page of Romance Languages and Literature has helpful links.

Check out the History Channel site.

This page is included in the BsCom 100.3 Home Page.

According to Robert  Provine, laughter in business is a serious matter.

Here is a sample Works Cited covering the above citations (N.B. 2nd and subsequent lines should be indented):

Air Canada.  Advertisement. Maclean’s  12 March 2003: 16.

Bellegarde, David.  Personal interview. 24 December 2000.

Boone, Louis E., et al. Contemporary Business Communication. Scarborough, Ontario: Prentice Hall      Canada, 1999.

BsCom 100.3 Home Page.  1999.  Isobel M. Findlay, Department of Management and Marketing, Edwards School of Business, University of Saskatchewan. 22 December 2000.  Available <http://www.commerce.usask.ca/classes/bscom100/>.

Colombo, John Robert. Colombo's Canadian Quotations. Edmonton: Hurtig Publishers, 1974.

---. " On Proverbs and Folk Wisdom."  Findlay Journal of Communication 26 (1998): 12-28.

---. Windigo: An Anthology of Fact and Fantastic Fiction. Saskatoon: Western Producer Prairie Books,   1982.

"Communication." The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. CD-ROM. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1992.

Findlay, Isobel. "Team Research, Writing, Presenting." Business Communication, University of Saskatchewan, 22 January 2003.

The History Channel Online.  1998.  History Channel. 8 December 2000.  Available <http://historychannel.com/>

Nader, Ralph. "A Career Reviewed." Nightline.  ABC.  WABC, New York. 5 December 2000.

Provine, Robert.  "The Science of Laughter." Psychology Today 74 (2000). Online. Internet. 8 December  2000.  Available <http://www.psychologytoday.com/features5.html>.

Romance Languages and Literatures Home Page. 1 January 1997.  Dept. of Romance Languages and   Literatures, U of Chicago. 8 December 2000. Available <http://humanities.uchicago.edu/romance/>.

Thorpe, David. Business Communication. Toronto: Harcourt, 1999.

Writealot, Joan. Interview with Sheila Smith. Harvard University, Boston, Mass., 22 July 2002.

For further advice on documenting a wide variety of print and online sources, check Joseph Gibaldi, MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (1999).  You may also go to the MLA web site at http://www.mla.org/.   To access the MLA web site, click here
 

Favoured by social sciences, APA is the style of the American Psychological Association.  Like MLA, APA uses a two-part system of parenthetical citation and a list of References at the end.  For in-text citation, what matters for APA is WHO says (last name of author ONLY) and WHEN (date of publication); WHERE (page number preceded by p.) is supplied ONLY in the case of exact quotation. In introducing quotation, APA requires past tense or present perfect: Smith (1994) reported; Smith (1994) has reported (Hacker, 1996).  Where three or more authors are involved, identify all in the first citation; thereafter, use the first author's last name followed by et al.

In the list of references at the end (NOTE ways in which APA differs from MLA):

• use only INITIALS instead of first names
• use ampersand (&) instead of "and"
• separate names with commas
• include all authors names (do not use et al.)
• enclose date in brackets after name
• underline (italicize) titles and subtitles of books, magazines, and periodicals
• DO NOT enclose article titles in quotation marks
• for books and articles, capitalize only the FIRST word of the title and subtitle as well as any PROPER NOUNS
• capitalize all major words in a periodical title
• for periodicals, follow the title with a comma, the volume number underlined (italicized), the issue number (if appropriate) in parentheses and followed by a comma, and the inclusive page numbers of the article
• for newspapers and for parts of anthologies, include the abbreviation p. or pp. before the numbers
• do not use p. or pp. before page references from magazines and scholarly journals
• do not include personal communications (e-mail, letter, memo) that cannot be retrieved by others; instead cite them parenthetically in the text (e.g., T. Smith, personal communication, 12 September 2004)
  

As Reid (1996) concluded, education has a critical role to play in countering such representations and building women's self-esteem because "women value themselves to the degree that they are valued and empowered" (p. 267).

It has been suggested that "women need to be more forceful than men in presenting health concerns to doctors" (Pierro & MacCallum, 1990, p. 138).

Waditaka, Woods, Cote, and Aubichon (1994) argued that children learn effectively by watching, listening, and imitating.

Waditaka et al. (1994) are illuminating on the consequences of children hearing the phrase "only a girl" (p. 189).

Here is an example of a reference list based on the above examples.  N.B. reference entries may be presented with a paragraph indent in the first line or with a hanging indent (2nd and subsequent lines indented).

McKenzie, A. (1989).  Defining female identity: The case of print media. Toronto, ON: Harper.

Pierro, M., & MacCallum, A. (1990).  Women in health.  In I. Findlay, S. Hemmings, & K. Crane (Eds.), You and your doctor (pp. 689-718).  Vancouver, BC: Talus.

Reid, G. (1996).  Women and education.  Higher Education, 16 (4), 56-75.

Waditaka, R., Woods, A., Cote, C., & Aubichon, M. (1994).  The learning process: A qualitative study (3rd ed.).  Montreal, QC: McGill-Queen's.

For more detailed advice, consult Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.  4th ed. Washington: APA, 1994.  See also the APA web site: http://www.apa.org/  To access the APA web site, click here

Footnotes or endnotes represent an alternative documentation style favoured by disciplines such as the sciences, history, art and theatre history, music and theology interested in multiple citations or corroborations of findings.  The Chicago Manual of Style 14th ed. is a widely used authority on this documentation style. MLA lists footnotes/endnotes as an acceptable form of documentation.  Because there may be NO separate bibliography,* the full publishing information is given in the first citation at the bottom of the page in the case of footnotes and on a separate sheet at the end in the case of endnotes (headed Notes centered one inch from the top).  A raised (or superior) Arabic numeral in the text (always after any punctuation except in the case of dashes and typically at the end of a sentence or clause) indicates a debt to a source which is identified in the footnote/endnote: author's name, title, and publication data.  Subsequent citations use a short form and typically follow MLA STYLE  and not the older Latin abbreviations: ibid. ("in the same place"); op.cit. ("in the work cited"); loc. cit. ("in the place cited").

* Note that some instructors/style manuals will require a bibliography too, especially if you consulted but did not cite other sources.  The bibliography entries are typically presented as in MLA style.

Examples of in-text citation followed by notes:

Deborah Tannen stresses that when men and women talk, they are involved in a form of intercultural communication.¹ Communication difficulties present special challenges for women in health professions.²

¹ Deborah Tannen, You Just Don't Understand: Women and Men in Conversation (New York: Morrow, 1990) 52.

² John Stark and Leslie Bear, The Health Care Crisis: Containing Costs, Expanding Coverage (New York: McGraw, 1992) 69.  See too Trina Hall, "Women in Health," Psychology Today July-Aug. 1996: 40.

Examples of subsequent citations:

³ Tannen 66.

⁴  Stark and Bear 87.

For more detailed advice, see Chicago Manual of Style 14th ed. Chicago: U of Chicago Press, 1993. See too their responses to frequently asked questions at their web site.
 To access the Chicago Manual of Style web site, click here

Boone, Louis E., et al. Contemporary Business Communication.  Scarborough, Ontario: Prentice Hall Canada, 1999.

Gibaldi, Joseph. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 5th ed. New York: Modern Language Association of America, 1999.

Hacker, Diana. A Canadian Writer's Reference.  2nd ed. Toronto: Nelson Canada, 1996.