Scientific Writing Knowledge Hub

Citing Etiquette

2 min read

—> See also Supporting your arguments

What is citing?

Citing is correctly stating the source of information in your text. It usually appears parenthetically:

Citing ensures transparent science (Ref et al. 2019).

Referencing (the bibliography at the end) provides complete publication details so readers can locate the original work.1

Where to place citations

Put the citation as close as possible to the claim it supports—usually in the same sentence, near a comma or period. Avoid bundling five citations at the end of a paragraph; distribute them to show exactly which claim each supports.

How to format in-text citations

Choose the format based on how much you want to emphasize the source:

  • Parenthetical (most common in STEM): ...has been shown to improve reproducibility (Ref et al. 2019).
  • Narrative: In a 2019 study of 300 labs, Ref and colleagues reported...
  • Author as subject (use sparingly): Ref et al. (2019) showed that...

Citation styles

Fields use different formats (APA, Vancouver, IEEE, etc.)—either author-date or numbered. Pick one appropriate for your thesis/journal and let your reference manager handle the formatting. Check the actual style guide only when the software fails.

How to build your reference list

Automate this with a reference manager like Zotero. A complete reference includes:

  • Author(s) and Year
  • Title of the work
  • Source (journal, publisher, or URL)
  • Volume/Issue/Pages (for articles)
  • DOI or URL

Verify the data

Reference managers sometimes garble spelling, years, or page numbers. Double-check the final list, especially for your most-cited papers.

Source quality and ethics

Source integrity

  • Original sources: Always cite the original so readers can verify. If unavailable, use “Smith 1980, as cited in Jones 2022” and list only Jones. Ask a librarian for help.
  • Avoid predatory journals: Check journal reputation carefully—citing these destroys credibility.
  • Self-citation: Only when directly relevant; never to inflate metrics.

Footnotes

  1. The bibliography (or reference list) contains full details for every source cited in the text. ↩

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