1 / 69

Dissertations & Major Project Writing

An LDU short course presentation. Dissertations & Major Project Writing. Week 5 of 5: Referencing, bibliographies, plagiarism & the ‘final stages’. Robert Walsha, LDU City campus, Calcutta House, CM2-22. Dissertations & Major Project Writing week 5. This week’s topics:

yosef
Download Presentation

Dissertations & Major Project Writing

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. An LDU short course presentation Dissertations & Major Project Writing Week 5 of 5: Referencing, bibliographies, plagiarism & the ‘final stages’ Robert Walsha, LDU City campus, Calcutta House, CM2-22

  2. Dissertations & Major Project Writing week 5 This week’s topics: • Referencing & Bibliographies; • Plagiarism – and how to avoid it; • The final stages: • Writing & focusing your introduction & conclusion • Critical analysis of your own work, editing & proofreading, troubleshooting. • Damage limitation

  3. & 'bibliographies' 'referencing' 'references' 'citation' &

  4. Referencing & Bibliographies • Everything in the next 17 slides should be a reminder of what you hopefully know well already ~ • it’s all about good practice in bibliographies and referencing. • In this sense, your dissertation/project should be no different from what you have been trying to do with other written assignments so far.

  5. Referencing & Bibliographies • ABibliography is a listing, placed at the very end of your work, of every source referenced in your assignment. • In Psychology, the Bibliography section is called ‘References’. • Referencing is what you do within the written sections of your work to show evidence of where you are incorporating any thinking or other material that is not your own. In other words, you reference to show where you are utilising material derived from your various sources. • In Psychology, referencing is referred to as ‘citations’.

  6. Referencing & Bibliographies • Written Assignments require BOTH a Bibliography ANDReferencing – not one or the other!!

  7. Referencing & Bibliographies:Your bibliography ... • ... should provide a full listing in one place of all the sources you have referred to in your assignment. • … should list sources inalphabetical order, by author surname. • … should notinclude page references - that is the job of referencing. • What should I include in my bibliography? Basically, every source you have used in working on your assignment. Only include material you directly reference in your work.

  8. Referencing & Bibliographies:Format of your Bibliography • There are two basic bibliography formats, the ‘Cambridge’ (or‘British Standard’) and the ‘Harvard’ Systems. • This is Harvard: Ball, Stuart (1988), Baldwin and the Conservative Party: The Crisis of 1929-1931, London: Yale University Press. Carlton, David (1969), ‘The Anglo-French Compromise on Arms Limitation 1928’, Journal of British Studies, 8, pp. 141-62.

  9. Referencing & Bibliographies:Format of your Bibliography • There are two basic bibliography formats, the ‘Cambridge’ (or‘British Standard’) and the ‘Harvard’ Systems. • This is Harvard: Ball, Stuart (1988), Baldwin and the Conservative Party: The Crisis of 1929-1931, London: Yale University Press. Carlton, David (1969), ‘The Anglo-French Compromise on Arms Limitation 1928’, Journal of British Studies, 8, pp. 141-62. • This is Cambridge: Ball, Stuart, Baldwin and the Conservative Party: The Crisis of 1929-1931, London: Yale University Press, 1988. Carlton, David, ‘The Anglo-French Compromise on Arms Limitation 1928’, Journal of British Studies, 1969, no. 8, pp. 141-62.

  10. Referencing & Bibliographies:Bibliographies • You may benefit from breaking down your bibliography into sub-sections, such as ‘Primary sources’, and ‘Secondary sources’ perhaps including sub-sub-sections such as: ‘books’, ‘journal articles’ and ‘web-based sources’. • What should not be included in a bibliography? There are some things which you should not include: for example, mentioning your lecture notes is unnecessary, as is any general reference materials such as dictionaries or thesauruses.

  11. Referencing & Bibliographies:Bibliographies • Please note that, in some disciplines, two lists at the end of assignments is encouraged, both listing their respective sources in alphabetical order by surname: • ‘References’: sources visited and referred to in your written sections; • ‘Bibliography’: other sources that were useful to you, but which you do not reference in your work. Consult your supervisor over his/her preferences with regard to this.

  12. Referencing & Bibliographies:Referencing • Referencing provides proof of exactly where you are taking ideas and facts from, at the point of use of those ideas/facts in your work. • The italicised section above is the justification for referencing: the reason why we must both provide both references and a bibliography. • There are different forms of referencing. Certain departments favour one approach over others, though with some departments you may have a choice. • Stick with department-favoured models or consult your supervisor over your options.

  13. Referencing & Bibliographies:Referencing Referencing options(?) • (the ‘Harvard system’) • ‘British Standard’ a.k.a. ‘Cambridge’ system, which may take two forms: • ‘footnoting’; or • ‘endnoting’.

  14. Referencing & Bibliographies:Harvard Referencing • The Harvard System makes its references in the main text itself, and appears within brackets. For example: ... The consequent publicity pushed the issue of race relations to a very high place on the political agenda (Seymour-Ure, 1974, pp. 99-136). The... Under this system you must include: (i) author surname (ii) date of publication, and (iii) page references.

  15. Referencing & Bibliographies:Harvard Referencing ADVANTAGES: • Efficient with space … cuts down a lot of repetition between references and bibliography (in Cambridge). For fuller information, cross-reference with the full information located in the bibliography (title and publication details are confined to the bibliography). DISADVANTAGES: • Long, difficult sentences are made longer by having to include additional bracketed reference information – and thus become even more confusing. For students who struggle with grammar and written communication, this can be a problem.

  16. Referencing & Bibliographies:Cambridge Referencing • The Cambridge System makes its references via a system of number references, corresponding to detailed references … • … at the bottom of the page (footnoting’) or • … at the end of each chapter, or by chapter at the end of the written sections (endnoting). ... The consequent publicity pushed the issue of race relations to a very high place on the political agenda.3 Another blah blah blah blah blah more text blah blah blah blah blah more text blah blah blah blah etc. etc. ... _________ 3Colin Seymour-Ure, The Political Impact Of The Mass Media (London: Constable, 1974), pp. 99-136.

  17. Referencing & Bibliographies:Cambridge Referencing • To create and manage your references, use Microsoft Word’s ‘Referencing’ function (called ‘Footnote’ in pre-Office 2003 versions of Word) to create your references: • when you reorder text, it will automatically re-sequence your references in the new correct order. 1. Click at the point at where you want to insert a reference in your main text (e.g., the end of a sentence).

  18. Referencing & Bibliographies:Cambridge Referencing 2. Click on ‘Insert’, then, on the drop-down menu, ‘Reference’, then click on ‘Footnote’.

  19. Referencing & Bibliographies:Cambridge Referencing 3. Choose your options from the command box (left), then click on ‘Insert’. A footnote number is created, with a space to enter the desired reference text. • Note: whether using Cambridge or Harvard for your actual referencing, you can also use footnoting to include (small amounts of) useful supplementary information that would distract if in your main text. (Larger useful additional information should be placed in appendices).

  20. Referencing & Bibliographies:Cambridge Referencing: BOOKS • First reference to book sources: • Include full author name(s), full title (italics or underline), place of publication, publisher, date of publication, page reference(s) 13 Stanley Cohen, Folk Devils and Moral Panics: The Creation of Mods and Rockers, Oxford: Blackwell, 1972, p. 137. • Second & subsequent references to the same source (short version): • author surname, short version of title (italics or underline), page reference(s). 16Cohen,Folk Devils and Moral Panics,p. 137.

  21. Referencing & Bibliographies:Cambridge Referencing: JOURNAL ARTICLES • First reference to journal sources: include: • full article author name(s), ‘full title of article’ (in quote-marks), in full title of journal publication (italics or underline), place of publication, publisher, volume, number, year of publication, page reference(s). 14 Richard S. Grayson, ‘Mods, Rockers and Juvenile Delinquency in 1964: The Government Response’, in Contemporary British History, London: Frank Cass, vol. 12, no. 1, 1998, p. 33. • Second & subsequent references to the same article in the same source (short version): • author surname, ‘short version of title’ (in quote-marks), page refs. 17Grayson, ‘Mods, Rockers and Juvenile Delinquency’,p. 33.

  22. Referencing & Bibliographies:Cambridge Referencing: EDITED (ANTHOLOGY) TITLES • Second & subsequent references to the same article in the same source (short version): • surname article author(s), ‘short version of title’ (in quote-marks), page reference(s). • First reference to edited collections: include: • full article author name(s), ‘full title of article’ (in quote-marks), in full editor name(s) (ed.(s)), full title of publication (italics or underline), place of publication, publisher, date of publication, page reference(s) 15 Gordon A. Craig, ‘Churchill and Germany’, in Robert Blake and Wm. Roger Lewis (eds.), Churchill, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993, p. 25. 18Craig, ‘Churchill and Germany’,p. 25.

  23. Referencing & Bibliographies:If these same references were in Harvard … … they’d look like this(bracketed within the main text)! • Books: • Journals: • Articles in Edited titles: (NB, with Harvard, the reader has to cross-reference with the Bibliography to find out the nature of the source, i.e., whether it is book, journal, other). (Cohen, 1972,p. 137) (Grayson, 1998, p. 33) (Craig, 1993, p. 25)

  24. 1. Author name, if known 2. Full title of document in ‘ ’ quote marks. 3. The title of the complete work, if applicable (italics or underline) 5. The full http address (URL) within < > angle brackets 4. Date of publication (or last revision) if known 6. The date of your access in ( ) brackets Referencing & Bibliographies:referencing e-based sources • This example is for web-site referencing (Cambridge) RichardDavis, ‘New Zealand Labour Government and the ALP, 1939-40’, The Electronic Journal of Australian and New Zealand History, 1996. <http://www.jcu.edu.au/aff/history/ articles/davis.htm>(5 Feb 2007).

  25. Referencing & Bibliographies:referencing e-based sources • … and if it was Harvard … In your references: (Davis, 1996) In your bibliography: Davis, Richard (1996), ‘New Zealand Labour Government and the ALP, 1939-40’, The Electronic Journal of Australian and New Zealand History. <http://www.jcu.edu.au/aff/history/articles/davis.htm> (5 Feb. 2007).

  26. Referencing & Bibliographies:Other sources • Apply the logic of conventional referencing to other sources. For example, referencing a TV documentary might follow this format: 7 ‘Taking On The Taliban: the Soldiers’ Story’, Panorama, BBC documentary, first broadcast 5 Nov. 2007. • Newspapers: 8 James Bloom, ‘Power from the final frontier’, Guardian ‘Technology’ section, 1 Nov. 2007, p.1. • Surveys, polls, etc.: 9 Gallup poll on ‘British Attitudes to Race Relations’ (following the publication of the MacPherson Report), Apr. 1999.

  27. Referencing & Bibliographies:Referencing primary sources • Interviews: • Referencing (Cambridge): 13 Interview with Gordon Brown, MP (5 Nov. 2007). 17 Interview with Matt Phillips, Communications Manager, British Phonographic Industry (16 Apr. 2006). • Referencing (Harvard): use footnotes as above, or in main text: (Interview with Gordon Brown, MP, 5 Nov. 2007) (Interview with Matt Phillips, 16 Apr. 2006). • In the bibliography: Interview with Gordon Brown, MP (5 Nov. 2007). Interview with Matt Phillips, Communications Manager, British Phonographic Industry (16 Apr. 2006).

  28. Referencing & Bibliographies:Referencing primary sources • Private papers: • Referencing (Cambridge): 13 L.S. Amery, 14 Jul. 1918, in Barnes, John & Nicolson, David (eds.), T he Leo Amery Diaries:vol.1, London: Hutchinson, 1980, p.226. 17 Austen Chamberlain to Ida Chamberlain, 20 Jan. 1924, AC5/1/303, Birmingham University Library. • Referencing (Harvard ): use footnotes as above, or in main text: (Amery diary, 14 Jul. 1918, 226) (A. Chamberlain to Ida Chamberlain, 20 Jan. 1924, AC5/1/303) • In the bibliography: [name of collection] [location of source] L.S. Amery Barnes, John & Nicolson, David (eds.), The Leo Amery Diaries:vol.1, London: Hutchinson, 1980. Austen Chamberlain MSS Birmingham University Library.

  29. Referencing & Bibliographies:Referencing primary sources • Public papers (government, business, etc.): • Referencing (Cambridge): 13 Cabinet decision to go to war, CAB 23/100 folders 474-83; see also: FO 800/317 folder 84. 17 ATOC minutes of Extraordinary General Meeting, 2 Mar. 2005. • Referencing (Harvard ): use footnotes as above, or in main text: (CAB 23/100 folders 474-83); FO 800/317 folder 84) (ATOC EGM minutes, 2 Mar. 2005) • In the bibliography: [name of collection] [location of source] Cabinet Papers (CAB) (23 series) Public Record Office, Kew Foreign Office (FO) (800 series) Public Record Office, Kew Papers of the Association of Train ATOC Headquarters, London Operating Companies (ATOC)

  30. Referencing & Bibliographies:Referencing primary sources • Other: • Referencing (Cambridge): 13 Observations of staff interaction by author during work experience in Waitrose Product Buying department, London, 27 Jul.-17 Aug. 2007. • Referencing (Harvard ): use footnotes as above, or write in main text: … certainly no evidence of outward intimidation or bullying, during the period in which the current author was undertaking her work experience (27 Jul.-17 Aug. 2007). • In the bibliography: Observational studies: The present author’s work experience at Waitrose Product Buying Department, London (where it was agreed with line managers that log records could be taken examining the interaction of the Asia buying team).

  31. Plagiarism – and how to avoid it • Plagiarism is the passing off of others’ ideas or writing as if they were your own. • It is a serious offence to Plagiarise. There are serious penalties if you are found to have taken material from other sources and failed to credit them. • It is easy to accidentally commit plagiarism through error or slackness, yet the penalties for being found to have committed plagiarism are no less forgiving. • Because of the length of time involved in producing larger projects and dissertations, it is easier to accidentally commit plagiarism in these than it is with most other assignments. • This is because, if your note-taking is less than thorough, when writing up weeks or months later, you can easily forget whether ideas or words are your own or someone else’s. • So how can you guard against committing plagiarism accidentally?

  32. Plagiarism – and how to avoid it At note-taking / research stages: • Be thorough & focused with your research note-taking – • always record the source details at the top of the page; • Always record page number information by the side of every piece of information you record – whether you are quoting or summarising in your own words; • For any paragraphs, sentences or even phrases that you take word-for-word (for possible quotation in your work), remember to place the word-for-word information in your notes in quotation marks ‘ ’; • Always record where the idea originates and where your thoughts are your own.

  33. Plagiarism – and how to avoid it At the writing-up stages – referencing • Remember, referencing is all about being transparent with where you are obtaining source information: • Solid, thorough, honest referencing constitutes your primary means of conveying where you are obtaining material to build your argument – and therefore avoiding accidental plagiarism. • Get in the habit of inserting references early: • i.e., from your first-draft onwards, or … • … if this disrupts your written flow, then insert references immediately after writing your first draft; • Update your references in a similar way with each subsequent redraft;

  34. Plagiarism – and how to avoid it At the writing-up stages – referencing (cont.) • Be thorough, methodical & consistent with your referencing: • Many students under-use referencing. There’s nothing wrong with multiple references on a single page; • By contrast, there may be something suspicious if there are only ever 1 or 2 references per page (sections commenting purely on your own research are an exception). • Remember, you must not only reference ‘direct quotes’ (where you are using the words of others) … • … but also reference where you summarise the ideas of others in your own words. • Consistency of referencing style is important and will also help you to be sure all the required information is present.

  35. Plagiarism – and how to avoid it At the writing-up stage – ‘in-text signposting’ • Referencing is not the only means by which you can attribute your use of evidence from other sources – and thus avoid charge of plagiarism. • You can also augment this with selected in-text attributions, where helpful for the readability of the work to do so. See ‘signposting’ the ideas of others in week 4 (Academic Writing). • Here is an example from Psychology, using Harvard: As Liverant (1960) has pointed out, we may indeed inherit an intellectual potential, but that potential will vary depending upon the environment we encounter during development. E.Jerry Phares, Introduction to Personality, (3rd edn.), 1991, p.429

  36. Plagiarism – and how to avoid it At the writing-up stage – ‘in-text signposting’ • Here is another example: It is open to question whether any real understanding had ever existed between the two parties. Stephen Brooke raises this doubt in his account of the Labour Party during wartime, claiming that debates about reconstruction within the Coalition ‘invariably fell along party lines’ and that ‘in terms of policy and ideology Labour retained a distinctive programme’.16 … _________ 16 Brooke, 1992, pp.9-10. Nick Ellison, ‘Consensus Here, Consensus there …’, in Jones & Kandiah (eds.), The Myth Of Consensus, 1996, p.19-20

  37. Plagiarism – and how to avoid it At the writing-up stage (cont.) • If you are thorough with both referencing and in-text signposting, then any information left non-attributed in your work will rightly be recognised as your own contribution to the debate– and therefore not require referencing! Top stuff!

  38. Plagiarism – and how to avoid it • ‘Legitimised’ Plagiarism: ‘a grey area’ of ‘virtual plagiarism’ that can still land people in trouble … avoid! • Quotations of others’ work should not be an excuse to do no thinking or writing of your own. • Therefore, avoid overuse of over-large quotations. Large quotes should be an exception rather than the rule, reserved for especially important or particularly quotable information. • A bad assignment, with large chunks of quoted material – properly referenced but with minimal linking sentences of the student’s own – may not technically constitute full-blown plagiarism, but can still land students in trouble. This kind of ‘legitimised plagiarism’ should be avoided – you will not get good grades for uncritically lifting others’ views, no matter how well referenced that material is.

  39. Plagiarism – and how to avoid it • ‘Legitimised’ Plagiarism (cont) • Most of your presentation of others’ ideas should involve summarise the point in your words, ‘flitting in and out’ of quotation as necessary. Let’s look again at the example above, with the relevant section now highlighted. See how this academic maintains effective written flow by using only selected key passages from the argument of Brooke that he is presenting in order to build his own argument. Stephen Brooke raises this doubt in his account of the Labour Party during wartime, claiming that debates about reconstruction within the Coalition ‘invariably fell along party lines’ and that ‘in terms of policy and ideology Labour retained a distinctive programme’.16

  40. Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion Your introduction: • When should I start writing my introduction? • Your Introduction should be set up to be a powerful ‘signposting’ tool, that eases the reader into your topic & explains exactly what will be looked at. • Don’t forget, an Introduction should properly ‘introduce’ the topic: • This may sound obvious, but bear in mind: • Depending on the nature of your project, there will be a range of things your Introduction should be addressing in order to be properly fulfilling in Intro function. A checklist of things your Introduction could or should do 

  41. Your Introduction checklist (tick when/if achieved) • Interpreting the title. Identify: is the project clear from the title? • Is there anything that needs defining, in brief, from the outset, in terms of focus or approach?; • Any possible ambiguity that could be cleared up in relation to the title? Anything that could be interpreted in more than one way?; • Any technical terms requiring immediate explanation?; • If so, clarify. • Is it helpful to explain how you will interpret your title / question? Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion

  42. Your Introduction checklist (tick when/if achieved) • mustcontain helpful background information, to ease the reader into your topic. Think in terms of: • ‘setting the scene’; • providing necessary context: • any helpful (brief) overview of thehistory surrounding your subject; • perhaps an identification of how this area of investigation fits into a wider context. • What it is helpful and/or useful for the reader to know from the start about your project; Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion

  43. Your Introduction checklist (tick when/if achieved) • must identify the overall aims / focusof the project: • If you have a hypothesis (or hypotheses), identify; • Likewise it will help to identify any central focus around which the dissertation is built; • following on this, identify any key themes that ‘cut across chapters’ or which can be seen to ‘underpin’ your dissertation as a whole. (This is more appropriate for Cat. A projects, as defined in week 4). A: Issue-structured (arts-humanities model) B: Experiment / survey / results-led (i.e., scientific-model) Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion

  44. Your Introduction checklist (tick when/if achieved) • could usefully outline why the subject is of interest / why it demands attention; • be temperate in your judgement – don’t overplay the importance of your study; • nevertheless, you should be able to identify relative importance in terms of what makes your project worthy of investigation; • maybe say a little about your owninterest in the subject, perhaps how your interest in the area developed; Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion

  45. Your Introduction (continued) • If yours is a cat. ‘A’ project (see week 4), you are strongly advised to provide a chapter-by-chapter breakdown of coverage. • It is as powerful a ‘signposting’ mechanism as one can have, making promises as to what will follow in subsequent chapters; • You must, of course, make sure that you deliver on all these promises, both in terms of structure & content, in all your main chapters that follow – in precisely the way you have indicated in your Introduction. A: Issue-structured (arts-humanities model) A: Issue-structured (arts-humanities model) B: Experiment / survey / results-led (i.e., scientific-model) B: Experiment / survey / results-led (i.e., scientific-model) Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion

  46. Your Introduction (continued) • If yours is a cat. ‘A’ project (see week 4), you are strongly advised to provide a chapter-by-chapter breakdown of coverage. • It is as powerful a ‘signposting’ mechanism as one can have, making promises as to what will follow in subsequent chapters; • You must, of course, make sure that you deliver on all these promises, both in terms of structure & content, in all your main chapters that follow – in precisely the way you have indicated in your Introduction. A: Issue-structured (arts-humanities model) A: Issue-structured (arts-humanities model) B: Experiment / survey / results-led (i.e., scientific-model) B: Experiment / survey / results-led (i.e., scientific-model) Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion For example: Chapter one will analyse the extent to which … and the relationship between […] and […]. It will explore how […] and ascertain whether this was a product of […] or other forces. The nature of […] is explored in chapter two. Whether […] can be seen to have influenced […] will be addressed, along with […]. The question of whether […] was a factor will be investigated, as well as the extent to which […]. Chapter three will examine […] … It will be concluded that […] …

  47. Your Introduction (continued) • couldcontain a review of the literature (if not required in own section, following the Introduction – see week 4). • couldcontain a discussion of research methods (if not required in own section, following the Introduction – see week 4). Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion

  48. Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion Your introduction: • Remember, consideration of what to include in an introduction should always be measured by whether it is helpful to include that information; • If you wish, you can use an introduction to make a bold assertion – provided you later explore and justify this in your main body. • That stated, don’t be sensationalist for the sake of it …but try to make your writing engaging to the reader. • You could open your Introduction (and, indeed, other sections) with a well-chosen quote. Stylistically this may be desirable, but only do so if you have a quote perfectly suited to the purpose.

  49. Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion Your introduction: • Keep your introduction to a reasonable size: • It depends greatly on what needs to be stated, but as a general rule, think between 1/7th and 1/10th of your overall written sections (e.g., excluding appendices and bibliography). • Maybe a little bigger still if your Intro contains a necessarily sizeable ‘literature review’ and/or ‘research methods’ aspects (i.e., not in separate sections) • What should I call my Introduction? • ‘Introduction’ is fine, • though you might wish to title it more specifically, i.e. ‘An introduction to …’, might do, or any other variations.

  50. A: Issue-structured (arts-humanities model) B: Experiment / survey / results-led (i.e., scientific-model) Focusing & writing your introduction & conclusion Your conclusion: • You should have a final concluding (usually fairly short) chapter in which you ‘wrap up’ your project in its entirety. This should: • Summarise / bring together all the main points you have dealt with; • stress key findings; and: • if appropriate, make recommendations (if not in its own section following: ‘Recommendations’ sections being more of a characteristic of cat. B projects) ~

More Related