Chapter 5: Making Your List of References

Including a list of references is necessary for two primary reasons. First, it tells the reader that you have done your research as the writer on the topic you have chosen. This makes you more credible on the topic. Second, a references list gives readers enough information to help them find any of your sources that they might be interested in reading on their own. Without this information, it might be very difficult for the reader to find your sources.

Other than a few exceptions, everything you cite in the text should be included in the list of references. Some of the most commons examples that are cited in the text, but not included in the list of references, include any personal communications (e.g., interviews, e-mails, among others), as well as quotations from research participants. Another important rule is that everything in your list of references should be cited in the text. If you did not cite the material in your text, then you should not include it in your list of references. At the same time, as noted in Chapter 2 and Chapter 4, it is important to avoid plagiarism. With that in mind, every source you consult and from which you take information and include in your own writing must be cited in the text and included in the references list. It is also important to only cite and reference sources you have actually read. If you are citing a source that has been cited in another source, but you have not read that original source, you only reference the source you read (See Chapter 4 for how to cite such information in the text).