Produced by Information Services University of Northhampton

1. Referencing
Guide
Questions
&
Answers
The APA Style
American Psychological Association
Produced by

2. Information Services
Contents
Section One - Aspects of Referencing
1 What is referencing? p. 5
2 Why reference? p. 5
3 What is the difference between a reference list and a bibliography? p. 6
4 How do I present referred material in my essay? p. 6
5 How do I cite authors in my essay? p. 7
6 What rules apply if there is more than one author? p. 8
7 What will my reference list look like? p. 9
8 Where do I find the exact information that I need for my
references list? p. 10
9 Is an editor cited in the same way as an author? p. 11
10 What do I do if I can’t find a named person as the author/editor? p. 11
11 What do I do if I want to refer to a part or chapter of a book? p. 12
12 What do I do if I want to cite an author that someone
else has cited? p.13
13 How do I use quotations p.13
14 How do I distinguish between two items by the same author in the
same year? p.14
15 What do I do if publication details are not given? p.15
Section Two - Formats for Printed Material
2.1 Books p.16
2.2 Journal article p.16
2.3 Corporate author p.17
2.4 Government Publications p.17
2.5 Conference proceedings p.17
2.6 Newspapers p.18
2.7 Legislation p.19
2.8 Theses p.19
2.9 Patents p.19
2.10 Unpublished material p.20
Section Three - Formats for Electronic and other Material Types
3.1 Videotape p.21
3.2 Film p.21
3.3 Internet p.21
3.3.1 World Wide Web p.21
3.3.2 Electronic Journal (WWW) p.22
3.3.3 Full Text Journal from Electronic Database p.23
3.3.4 Mailbase/Listserv e-mail lists p.23
3.3.5 Broadcast Media – TV Programmes p.23
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3. 3.3.6 Personal Communications – e-mails, conversations,
interviews or telephone calls p.23
Section Four - Points to Remember!
Points to remember! p.24
Section Five – Plagiarism and University Policy on Referencing
Statement on Plagiarism (from University Student Code 1999) p.25
University Policy on referencing p.25
Section Six - References
References p.26
3

4. Referencing - Questions & Answers
The aim of this document is to offer an introduction to the practice of
referencing published material to anyone who is starting to write
essays/reports for academic purposes. The ‘question & answer’ format is
used so that the reader can easily check areas of specific concern to them.
After reading these ‘questions & answers’ you should be able to:
• understand the need for, and how to use, reference systems
(specifically the APA STYLE)
• indicate others writers’ ideas in your own work using accepted
citation style
• format appropriate references correctly from these citations
• deal with a range of common and less common bibliographic and
electronically formatted material
Look out for this Nb. sign: -
Nb.
- this indicates important notes which highlight specific aspects of APA style
or referencing practice.
4

5. Q. What is referencing?
A.
Academic writing normally involves using the material you have read and
studied to justify and support the answer to your essay or question. When
preparing a piece of written work you will refer to this information (ideas,
theories, statistics or data) in an agreed way or format (the APA Style).
Making reference to other people’s work is called ‘citing’, and the list of these
authors’ works are given at the end of a piece of written work in the form of a
‘reference list’.
The process of citing authors (and the associated reference list) can be done
in a number of styles. This guide describes the APA Style as outlined in the
Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.).
Washington, DC: American Psychological Association
Whichever system is adopted, one golden rule applies:
*** be consistent in everything you do! ***
This consistency applies to format, layout, type-face and punctuation.
Q. Why reference?
A.
It is the normal academic convention to reference material you have read from
the existing scholarly body of knowledge that exists in your subject area. To
write in an ‘academic’ way you must refer to this information to show where it
has come from and use it to construct your answer to the question posed by
the essay or other piece of academic work. An essay without references in the
text and a full reference list at the end would not normally be considered
‘academic’. So in the broadest sense you reference for a number of reasons:
• To support an argument, to make a claim or to provide ‘evidence’
• To acknowledge other peoples’ ideas or work correctly
• To show evidence of the breadth and depth of your reading
• To avoid plagiarism (i.e. to take other peoples’ thoughts, ideas or
writings and use them as your own), (see page 25)
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6. • To allow the reader of your work to locate the cited references
easily, and so evaluate your interpretation of those ideas
• To avoid losing marks!
Q. What is the difference between a reference
list and a bibliography?
A.
At the end of your essay under the heading ‘reference list’ you list all the items
you have made direct reference to in your essay (by the authors’ name and
year of publication). This list of books, journals, newspaper articles (or
whatever) is organised ALPHABETICALLY by the names of the authors (or
originators) of the work. (This list can be subdivided by year and letter if
necessary - see page 14.) This is your reference list.
Also, during the course of your preparatory reading you may use material that
has been helpful for reading around the subject, but from which you do not
make specific reference to in your essay. This is called a bibliography.
Nb.
A bibliography is not relevant or appropriate for Psychology students’ work
that is submitted for assessment.
Q. How do I present referred material in my
essay?
A.
You present material in two main ways:
• Paraphrasing or summarizing text that you have read – this is
the most common way to use material. Putting the ideas into
your own words (in the context of answering the question) and
then stating where that information came from. Paraphrasing
and summarizing is a skill that needs to be practiced and
developed.
• Quoting material directly from its source – word for word as it
was in its original form (see page 14). It is less usual to do this.
Your essay should not be a ‘cut and paste’ exercise using other
peoples’ words. Use quotations only when you have to use the
text in its original form or for presenting a longer quote which
6

7. you use to highlight and expand on ideas or issues in your
essay.
Q. How do I cite authors in my essay?
A.
The APA Style uses the NAME of the author of the work you wish to cite and
the DATE in which the work was published. These are incorporated into the
text of your work each time you make reference to that person’s ideas.
• This principle applies to any item that you need to reference regardless
of what it is or where it comes from – you need to find the author and
date of publication.
The author (or originator) is the person or organization responsible for
producing that information and should be found in the source document.
Author/originators can be individuals or ‘corporate’ (see page 16). The author
and date then become part of the text of your essay. Surname(s) only are
used; initials are not included. Names can be used as part of the sentence or
placed in brackets with the year following.
Eg.
Names and dates will appear in your text like this:
...Rogers (1994) has suggested that body image is related to self-esteem...
Only put the date in brackets if the name of author appears as part of the
narrative. Otherwise place both the name and year in brackets (separated by
a comma).
Eg.
...in a recent study of reaction times (Rogers, 1994), the methods employed…
If both year and author are part of they textual discussion, do not add
bracketed information.
Eg.
In 1994, Rogers compared two different theories…
Nb.
Within a paragraph, it is not necessary to include the year in subsequent
references to the work as long as the work cannot be confused with other
works cited in the article.
7

8. Eg.
In a recent study of reaction times, Rogers (1994) described the method …
Rogers also found…
Nb.
If a work appears to have no name attached to it then [ANON] can be used as
the author instead of a name.
• Some works are the result of co-operation between lots of individuals
none of whom can claim authorship e.g. dictionaries, encyclopaedias
and films or videos. Titles can then be used in the place of the author
name e.g. Gone with the wind.
• If no date can be found then [n.d.] can be used (see page 15)
Q. What rules apply if there is more than one
author?
A.
If there are TWO authors the names of both should be given in the text and in
the reference list.
Eg.
Wasserstein and Zappulla (1999) found that ...
or
… the findings suggest … (Wasserstein & Zapulla, 1999).
Nb.
Note that ‘and’ is replaced by the ampersand sign (‘&’) when the authors are
given in brackets.
If there are three, four or five authors, cite all authors the first time the
reference occurs; in subsequent citations include only the surname of the first
author, followed by et al. and the year if it is the first citation of the reference
within a paragraph.
Eg.
Wasserstein, Zapulla, Rosen and Rock (1999) found that …
Wasserstein et al. (1999) found that … (subsequent first citation per
paragraph thereafter)
Wasserstein et al. found that … (omit year from subsequent citations after first
citation within a paragraph).
If there are two similar references in the same year shorten to the same form
and cite the surnames of the first authors.
8

9. Eg.
Wasserstein, Zapulla, Rosen and Rock (1999) and Wasserstein, Rosen et al.
(1999)
If there are six or more authors, cite only the surname of the first author
followed by et al. and the year for the first and subsequent citations.
Eg.
Adam et al. (1990) suggested that the left side of the brain …
To cite more than one work at the same time, include all cited authors in
brackets in alphabetical order by the first author’s surname. Separate the
citations with semicolons.
Eg.
Several studies…(Adam et al., 1990; Cook, 1985; Wasserstein & Zapulla,
1999).
Q. What will my reference list look like?
A.
Everything you cite in your essay will be listed once alphabetically by author
(or originator) and subdivided by year and letter, if necessary - (see page 14).
Eg.
Anderson, J. E. & Valentine, W. L. (1944). The preparation of articles for
publication in the journals of the American Psychological Association.
Psychological Bulletin, 41, 345-376.
Gross, R. (2001). Psychology: The science of mind and behaviour. London:
Hodder and Stoughton.
Hogg, M. A., & Vaughan, G. M. (2002). Social psychology. Harlow: Prentice
Hall
Nb.
It is acceptable for the book title/journal title and volume number to be
underlined rather than in italics, though this is more appropriate for
manuscripts rather than published or assessed work.
The APA style requires the second and subsequent lines of the reference to
be indented.
9

10. The punctuation, layout and spacing are the same for each type of item in the
list – remember the golden rule:– BE CONSISTENT.
See section two ‘formats’ for conventions that apply to all the different types of
media e.g. books, journals, newspapers, conferences etc…
Q. Where do I find the exact information that I
need for my list of references?
A.
Usually from the book title page (or reverse title page) of the book or
document you are citing. For journal articles (PsycINFO and PsycARTICLES)
this information is on the contents pages, front page or individual article page.
Remember though:-
• The order of authors’ names should be retained
• Cite the first named place of publication for books
• Edition dates in books are not reprint dates (new editions will have
new text and must be cited as such). The copyright sign will often
indicate the date of publication
• Web pages may not appear to offer the information you need – see
if there is a ‘home page’ or an ‘about us/contact us’ link or
something similar as these may include ‘publication’ details
If your material has not originated from a commercial publisher and lacks
obvious title page data, then the appropriate information should be gleaned
from any part of the printed publication, if you can say with some certainty that
it fulfils the required criteria for your reference list.
Nb.
Remember to keep the full reference details for written notes you take from
books and to also note the reference details of any items you have used
which you have borrowed from the library or photocopied.
Q. Is an editor cited in the same way as an
author?
A.
10

11. Yes. But make sure that it is the editor you are citing as the originator of the
text, not one of the chapter writers (see page 12).
In the reference list you should indicate editorship by using one of the
following abbreviations:
Eg.
Smith, L. (Ed.). (1987). Statistics for psychologists. London: Helman.
Or:
Smith, L. & Pearson, D. T. (Eds.). (1994). Solving problems with algebra.
Aberdeen: Falmer.
Q. What do I do if I can’t find a named person
as the author or editor?
A.
Sometimes it is impossible to find a named individual as an author. What has
usually happened is that there has been a shared or ‘corporate’ responsibility
for the production of the material. Therefore the ‘corporate name’ becomes
the author (often called the ‘corporate author’).
Corporate authors can be:
Government bodies
Companies
Professional bodies
Clubs or societies
International organizations
Eg.
American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication manual of the
American Psychological Association (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
The ‘corporate author’ appears in the text in the usual way, with the year of
publication.
Nb.
When the author and publisher are identical, use the word Author as the
name of the publisher.
If the edition is greater than the first edition, give the edition details in
brackets.
11

12. For US publishers, include the place and abbreviated state.
If there is no distinguishable corporate author, move the title to the author
position, before the date of publication.
Eg.
Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary (10th ed.). Springfield, MA: Merriam-
Webster.
Nb.
For journal articles without authors the journal title becomes both author and
cited journal title.
Q. What do I do if I want to refer to a part or
chapter of a book? (edited)
A.
An edited book will often have a number of authors for different chapters (on
different topics). To refer to a specific author’s ideas (from a chapter) cite or
quote them (the chapter writer) in the text - not the editors. Then in your
reference list indicate the chapter details/title and the book details from which
it was published.
Eg.
Piaget, J. (1970). The stages of the intellectual development of the child. In
P.H. Mussen, J.J. Congor & J. Kagan (Eds.), Readings in child
development and personality (pp. 291-302). New York: Harper & Row.
Nb.
Note the use of ‘in’ to link the chapter to the book and the use of page
numbers. Piaget would appear as the author in the text, and in the reference
list. The year of publication is given once.
Q. What do I do if I want to cite an author that
someone else has cited?
A.
A journal article or book someone else cites that you have not seen is called a
‘primary source’. You should:
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13. • try and find this source for yourself and cite it in the normal way. It
is important if you are criticising ideas that you do it ‘first hand’
• if you cannot locate the primary source, you may cite it in your
essay using the reference that is provided in your ‘secondary
source’
i.e. the book/article you have read.
In your text and you must link these two items with the term ‘cited in’. The
format is:
Eg.
... a change in family circumstances can affect a child’s emotional stability
(Pollock, 1995, as cited in Jones, 1996, p.10.)
In your reference list, only give details of the source that you did refer to.
Eg.
Jones, P. (1996). A family affair. London: Butterworth.
Q. How do I use quotations?
Most referencing involves putting the information you have read into your own
words within the context of your answer. Quotes are sometimes used but
should, in most instances, be kept to a minimum. There are two ways to
present both SHORT and LONG quotations.
A.
To direct your reader to a short quotation (no more than one line) from your
source material it is normal to quote the page number within the text (after the
author and year) and to include quotation marks:
Eg.
... whilst it is possible that “poor parenting has little effect on primary
educational development it more profoundly affects secondary or higher
educational achievement” (Healey, 1993, p.22)
Nb.
It is not necessary to indicate the page number in the reference list.
Quotes should only really be used when the specific wording used is of
interest, e.g. a definition.
Longer quotes (of 40 or more words) should be:
• preceded by a colon
13

14. • indented from your main text (half an inch, 1.3cm or 5 spaces)
• double spaced
• not have quotation marks
• cite author, year and page number
Eg.
It was just a fragment, no more than 30 seconds:
The Euston Road, hansoms, horse drawn trams, passers-by glancing
at the camera but hurrying by without the fascination or recognition that
came later. It looked like a still photograph, and had the superb picture
quality found in expert work of the period, but this photograph moved!
Walkley (1995, p.83).
Nb.
Page numbers on web pages do not normally appear. If you are quoting from
a web page it is helpful to include an indication of where the quote can be
found (equivalent to the page number in the text) so use the paragraph
number, if available preceded by the ¶ symbol or the abbreviation para. If
neither paragraph nor page numbers are visible, cite the heading and the
number of the paragraph following it to direct the reader to the location of the
material.
Eg.
Smith, 2004, ¶ 7
or
Jones, 2003, Conclusion section, para 2.
Q. How do I distinguish between two items by
the same author in the same year?
A.
Occasionally authors publish two or more book or journal articles in any given
year. This would make the text citation identical for both. To distinguish
between different articles, letters (a,b,c etc.) are used with the date in the text:
Eg.
...Johnson (1991a) has progressed both experimental and practical aspects of
software technology to the point where they provide a serious challenge to
Pacific Belt dominance (Johnson, 1991b)…
Within the reference list the articles are presented alphabetically by the title
(excluding A or The) that follow the date.
14

15. Eg.
Johnson, C. (1991b) Changing global markets in IT ...
Johnson, C. (1991a) Software: the way ahead....
Nb.
If the references with the same authors published in the same year are
identified as articles in a series (e.g., Part 1 and Part 2), order the references
in the series order, not alphabetically by title.
Also note earliest publications by same author(s) come before later
publications.
Q. What do I do if publication details are not
given?
A.
Occasionally you will come across documents that lack basic publication
details. In these cases it is necessary to indicate to your reader that these are
not available. A series of abbreviations can be used and are generally
accepted for this purpose:
• author/corporate author not given use [Anonymous]
• no date use [n.d.]
• no place (sine loco) use [s.l.]
• no publisher (sine nomine) use [s.n.]
• not known use [n.k.]
For web pages it is often necessary to look beyond the page you are
referencing (see page 21) to the ‘Home Page’ for the whole site or at a link
like ‘About Us’ from that home page. Dates are often given at the bottom of
web pages.
Section Two - Formats for Printed Material
There are many different types of material that you may use that will need
referencing. Each different material format has an accepted ‘style’ for
presentation within the reference list.
The following examples give the format style and are followed by an example.
They are broadly separated into ‘printed’ and ‘electronic’ material.
15

16. Remember to:
• use the correct source information for all your references
e.g. book title page
• use the same punctuation consistently in each kind of format
Nb.
Note the consistency and use of italics for titles. Italics is the preferred format
but it is acceptable to underline.
2. Printed Material
2.1 Books
Author/editor surname, initials. (Year). Title. (Edition). Place of publication:
Publisher.
Eg.
Passer, M. W. (2004). Psychology: The science and mind of behavior (2nd
ed.). London: McGraw-Hill.
Nb.
The title is in italics
The date is the year of publication not printing.
The edition is only mentioned if other than the first.
The place of publication is the City not the Country (normally the first stated).
Use capitals for proper nouns and after a colon.
2.2 Journal article
Author surname, initials. (Year). Title of article. Journal Name. Volume
number, (issue or part number if needed), first and last page numbers.
Eg.
Clarke, L. (1998). Schizophrenia: All in the mind or locked in the brain?
Journal of Advanced Nursing. 21, 9-18.
Nb.
Journal name and volume number are italicised, not the article title.
16

17. Issue/part number is only given if each issue begins at page 1, otherwise it’s
not required.
2.3 Corporate Author
Format is the same as for a book, but uses the ‘corporate’ (company,
business, organisation) author in place of a named author.
Eg.
Royal College of Nursing. (1983). Guidance on the handling of patients in the
hospital and community. London: Author.
Nb.
Royal College of Nursing (1993) would be used in the text of your essay as
the citation.
Note the full stop after the corporate author.
2.4 Government Publications
Available data may vary for these, but where possible include the following:
Government Department/Institute. (Year). Title of document. (Number of
document, if given) Place of publication: Publisher.
Eg.
Department of Health and Social Services. (1980). Inequalities in health:
report of a research working group. London: Author.
2.5 Conference proceedings
Conference papers are often published in book form or as a special issue of a
journal. It is necessary to include the name, place and date of the
conference.
Author, Initial. (Year). Title of conference paper. In Initial, Author/Editor of
conference paper, conference proceedings title (pp. xx – xx). Place of
publication: Publisher.
Eg.
Webb, N. L. (1993). Mathematics education reform in California. In R. Clark
(Ed.), Science and Mathematics Education in the United States: Eight
innovations: Proceedings of a conference, (pp. 29-40). Paris: OECD.
17

18. Nb.
Use capitals for the name of the conference.
For unpublished conference proceedings, use the following:
Eg.
Lanktree, C. & Briere, J. (1991, January). Early data on the Trauma Symptom
Checklist for Children (TSC-C). Paper presented at the meeting of the
American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children, San Diego, CA.
Nb.
Give the month of the conference.
2.6 Newspapers
Journalist name, initial. (Year, Date). Title of news item. Name of newspaper,
Page number(s).
Nb.
Name of newspaper is italicised.
Eg.
Peters, R. (1992, June 23). Picking up Maxwell’s bills. Independent, p. 28.
Nb.
If it is a news article and does not attribute an author, use first couple of
significant title words in the text.
Eg.
‘Lottery’ for breast cancer help. (1995, March 21). The Guardian, p. 10.
2.7 Legislation
Law Reports
Name v. Name, Volume Source Page (Court Date).
Use the abbreviated name of law report and give the page number on which
report starts.
18

19. Eg.
Holgate v. Duke, 2 All ER 660 (1984).
Statutes
The usual method of citing an Act of Parliament is to cite its title and the year
in your text and in the reference list, include the source and section number of
the statute, and in parentheses give the publication date of the statutory
compilation, which may be different from the year in the name of the act. The
format is therefore:
Title of statute, Volume Source § xxx (Year).
Eg.
Mental Health Systems Act, 42 U.S.C. § 9401 (1988).
For a comprehensive guide to citing legal sources, refer to the:
American Psychological Association (2001). Publication manual of the
American Psychological Association (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
2.8 Theses
Author, initials. (Year).Thesis title. Level of thesis. Awarding Institution.
Eg.
Kirkland, J. (1988). Lay pressure groups in the local education system: a
study of two English boroughs. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Brunel
University, London.
2.9 Patents
In text, give the patent number and the issue date (not application date) of the
patent. In the reference list, include the inventor(s) to whom the patent is
issued, and the official source from which the patent information can be
retrieved.
Name of author/inventor (Year). Patent number. Source.
Eg.
Smith, I. M. (1988). U.S. Patent No. 123,445. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent
and Trademark Office.
19

20. 2.10 Unpublished Material
Some printed materials are not produced by recognisable publishers, and
may not be widely available. The format is:
Author, Initials. (Year). Title. Unpublished manuscript.
Eg.
Lawler, C. (1987). Childhood vaccinations. Unpublished manuscript.
Nb.
If the manuscript is undertaken at a University, give the source information.
Eg.
Lawler, C. (1987). Childhood vaccinations. Unpublished manuscript, Brunel
University, London.
Section Three - Formats for Electronic and other
Material Types
3.1 Videotape
For off-air (recorded from television programmes) recordings use:
20

21. Name (function of the originator(s), e.g. director or producer). (Year and
date). Title [Television broadcast]. Country of origin: Movie studio/distributor.
Eg.
Smith, L. (Executive Producer). (1992, June 10). J’accuse: Sigmund Freud
[Television broadcast]. London: Channel Four.
3.2 Film
Name (function of the originator(s), e.g. director or producer). (Year). Title
[Motion picture]. Country of origin: Movie studio/distributor.
Eg.
Wilder, B. (Director). (1960). The apartment [Motion picture]. United States:
United Artists.
In the text of your essay refer to (Wilder, 1960).
3.3 Internet
3.3.1 World Wide Web
The principles for citing web pages are the same as for other types of media -
use author name and date of publication in your text and the following format
for the reference list. The nature of web publication can often mean though
that author names are missing and dates are vague or unavailable. The
solution to this problem is to decide who is responsible for producing the web
page (the originator), they will then become the ‘author’. It is often easier to
find this information (and a date) if you look at the Home Page link for the site
you are in or at the ‘About Us’ or ‘Contact Us’ type of links associated with
that page. The web page reference list format is:
Author/editor, initials. (Year). Title. Retrieved date, from URL
Eg.
Beckleheimer, J. (1994). How to cite URLs in a bibliography? Retrieved December
13, 1995, from http://www.nrlssc.navy.mil/meta/bibliography.html
Do not worry about omitting ‘place and publisher’ if they are not available.
Eg.
The “Accessed date” is the date on which you viewed or downloaded the
document. It may be subject to changes or updating and this allows for this
21

22. possibility. Keeping a record of the document as you used it (if permissible) is
recommended.
Often organisations put information on the Internet without citing a specific
author. If the author of the document is not identified, begin the reference
with the title of the document.
Eg.
Educating America for the 21st century: Developing a strategic plan for
educational leadership for Columbia University, 1993-2000 (Initial
workshop draft). (1994). Retreived May 16, 1995, from
http://www.ilt.columbia.edu/CONF/EdPlan.html
3.3.2 Electronic Journal (WWW)
To reference, online journal articles based on a print source, use the following
format:
Author, initials. (Year). Title. [Electronic version] Journal title [online], volume
(issue), page(s).
Eg.
VandenBos, G. Knapp, S., & Doe, J. (2001). Role of reference elements in
the selection of resources by psychology undergraduates [Electronic
version]. Journal of Bibliographic Research, 5, 117-123.
If you believe that an online article may differ from the printed version, include
the date retrieved and the URL.
Eg.
VandenBos, G. Knapp, S., & Doe, J. (2001). Role of reference elements in
the selection of resources by psychology undergraduates. Journal of
Bibliographic Research, 5, 117-123. Retrieved October 13, 2001, from
http://jbr.org.articles.html
3.3.3 Full Text Journal from Electronic Database
When referencing material obtained from a full text database, such as
PsycARTICLES, include the date of retrieval and the proper name of the
database.
Eg.
Borman, W. C., Hanson, M. A., Oppler, S. H., Pulakos, E. D. & White, L. A.
(1993). Role of supervisory experience in supervisor performance.
22

23. Journal of Applied Psychology, 78, 443-449. Retrieved October 23,
2000, from PsycARTICLES database.
Nb.
An item or accession number may also be provided but is not required. If you
include this number, put in parentheses at the end of the retrieval statement.
3.3.4 Mailbase/Listserve e-mail lists
Author, Initials. (Year, Month Day). Subject line of message. Message
posted to name of electronic mailing list, archived at URL
Eg.
Bates, E. (2005, August 15). Changes to NLH. Message posted to Lis-
Nursing list, archived at http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/lis-nursing.html
3.3.5 Broadcast Media – TV Programmes
To reference a television series use the following:
Name, Initial. (Producer or Director). (Year). Title [Television series]. Place of
publication: Publisher.
Eg.
Miller, R. (Producer). (1989). The mind [Television series]. New York: WNET.
3.3.6 Personal Communications; e-mails,
conversations, interviews or telephone calls
Personal communications may be letters, memos, some electronic
communications (e.g., e-mail or messages from nonarchived discussion
groups or electronic bulletin boards), personal interviews, telephone
conversations etc. Personal communications are not cited in the reference
list as they do not provide recoverable data. They are only cited in the text
in the following format:
Initials, surname of the communicator (personal communication, date).
Eg.
A. T. Smith (personal communication, April 15, 2004).
23

24. Section Four - Points to Remember!
4.1 Above all - be consistent in whatever method of referencing you use.
4.2 The main title of the document should be distinguishable - italics or
underlined
4.3 The title should have only the first word starting with upper case
(except after a colon e.g. the sub-title or for proper nouns)
4.4 The date is the year of publication not printing.
4.5 For a book the edition is only mentioned if other than the first.
4.6 The place of publication is the city not the country.
4.7 Journal titles should be given in full.
4.8 Volume and page numbers are written as: part numbers can be:
25, 33-39.
Section Five – Plagiarism and University Policy on
Referencing
Plagiarism
Statement on Plagiarism (from University Student Code 1999)
The University unequivocally condemns plagiarism, which it considers to be
comparable to falsifying data and cheating in an examination, and warns
24

25. students that the Senate looks gravely upon incidents of plagiarism. Such
incidents are classed as Academic Misconduct and are subject to the
procedures further set out in the Student Code.
Definition
The University considers plagiarism involves an intention to deceive and
entails the submission for assessment of work which purports to be that of the
student but is in fact wholly or substantially the work of another. Since it is
difficult to establish such an intention to deceive except through practice the
University defines plagiarism in the following way.
The University defines plagiarism as the incorporation by a student in work for
assessment of material which is not their own in the sense that all or
substantial part of the work has been copied without an attempt at attribution
or has been incorporated as if it were the student's own when in fact it is
wholly or substantially the work of another person.
University Policy on Referencing
The University considers that referencing is an essential component of
academic activity. It is a sound discipline for students, which requires them to
demonstrate the provenance of their material and the sources of their
argument. It should indicate their understanding of scholarship and enable
them to recognise their place as learners in an academic discipline.
Acknowledgement of the academic work of others emphasises the integrity of
both the University's undergraduate and postgraduate study within the wider
academic community.
Referencing is also vital in reinforcing the University's policy on plagiarism and
in enabling students to understand the relevance and importance of that
policy.
In promoting good practice in relation to referencing, the University considers
it is more important that students understand 'why' they should be referencing
than that they are simply concerned with 'how' to reference.
As a result, the University thinks it is important to relate the practice of
referencing to the academic requirements and expectations of a particular
discipline rather than requiring slavish adherence to a uniform model.
The University therefore does not require adherence to a single standard form
of reference. However, the University recognises the problems and concerns
that referencing can occasion for students and therefore it considers that in
order to simplify the problem of referencing for students there should be a
limited number of models in operation in the University.
The University therefore issued the University Referencing Guide which it
would expect course teams to use, unless they can justify that it is
25

26. inappropriate in relation to accepted external academic or professional
practices in their area. Minor variations of practice are discouraged.
Section Six - References
American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication manual of the
American Psychological Association (5th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
Curtin University of Technology, Library and Information Service. (n.d.) APA
referencing. Retrieved January 14, 2003, from
http://lisweb.curtin.edu.au/guides/handouts/apap.html
Referencing guide. (n.d.) Retrieved February 17, 2005, from
http://nli.northampton.ac.uk/ass/psych/Divisional/Skills/New
%20referencing%20guide%20%28revised%29.htm
This guide is also available electronically via the Library Web pages at:
http://library.northampton.ac.uk/pages/arg
September 2005
26