Working with Sources
As you turn to sources, gather complete information.
- First, in a source entry, record the details that identify each source so you can find it and eventually credit it correctly in your paper. Assemble these entries in a working bibliography.
- Second, in source notes, capture information of value to your inquiry as quotations, paraphrases, or summaries ready for use in your paper.
- Finally, if required or useful to you as a researcher, combine a source entry with a summary to build an annotated bibliography.
Why Working with Sources Matters
In a College Course
- You read case studies, theories, industry projections, and much more for your economics class, so you need to capture information efficiently.
- You combine what you learn from clinic observations with information about your own child’s diagnosis to direct your paper to an audience of parents.
In the Workplace
- You use company sales data, but you want to develop an annotated list of industry and government sources to expand available statistics.
In Your Community
- You agree to write a brief history of your campus social group, presenting the old records accurately but not offending potential contributors on alumni day.
When have you quoted, paraphrased, summarized, or credited sources? In what situations do you expect to do so again?