Do the in-text citations need to be within "quotation" marks?
Where does my in-text citation go in the sentence? Do I put my citation before or after the period?
Answer
Your in-text citation should be after your final quotation mark when you are quoting from a source, but before the period that ends the sentence. For example:
- Harvey wrote in his book, “Writing at a college level requires informed research” (1).
- Harvey (1) wrote in his book, “Writing at a college level requires informed research."
- Many authors agree, “Writing at a college level requires informed research” (Harvey, 1).
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Many authors agree, “Writing at a college level requires informed research” (Harvey, 1, p. 16).
You must use in-text citations and a source list anytime you use someone else's words or ideas. Don't forget this applies if you're using words or ideas from your textbook, too!
If you use direct words from the source, that's a quote, and you must use quotation marks. If you put the ideas from the source into your own words, that's a paraphrase. You don't need to put paraphrased material in quotation marks, but you do still have to cite it.
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