While preparing a research paper, you will gather information that supports your ideas, which you have found in works created by others. A citation gives your reader the information needed to locate these works.
Although it is acceptable to discuss and build on the ideas of others, those authors must be given credit for their work. If you don’t give credit to other authors by including accurate citations in your paper, you are committing plagiarism, which is not acceptable at Northampton Community College.
For help with understanding and avoiding plagiarism, go to the Library's "Citing Sources" page, or contact a writing tutor at the NCC Learning Center. It is better to ask questions about citations before you hand in your paper, rather than risk making a mistake and earning a lower grade.
The APA citation format was developed by the American Psychological Association (APA), and is often used by students taking courses in the sciences and social sciences. If your instructor has recommended that you use APA format, and you need help with citations, visit the NCC Library's "Citing Sources: APA" web page for assistance.
This image of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association is a scan of the NCC Library's own copy! You may find it in the book stacks at call number BF 76.7 .P834 2020, at both the Bethlehem and Pocono libraries.
1) The APA's Publication Manual has its own website, which includes video tutorials, samples of formatted pages, guidelines for APA-style punctuation and grammar, and a user's blog.
2) Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL) has lots of helpful information about using APA style, including sample citations, video tutorials, and a tool that will automatically convert publication information into the correct format.
3) This YouTube video by the library at the University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh explains how to cite an article from an online scholarly journal using APA format.