There are several reasons why we cite our sources:
- Giving credit to researches and acknowledging their ideas is ethical behavior.
- Showing your reader that you've done your research. Be proud!
- Making it easy for readers to track down your sources if they want to consult them.
- Avoiding plagiarism.
To cite a source you will create a short reference, which you will ultimately list on a Works Cited page or bibliography. References are made up of common elements that provide your readers with the information that they need to track down sources. The most common elements are:
- author name(s)
- titles of books, articles, journals, and websites
- volume and issue numbers (for articles)
- date of publication
- page numbers
- Database
- Publication medium (e.g. print or web)
- Date of access (if it's a web source)
This is an example of how an e-journal reference might look in the MLA style:
Snow, Dean. "Sexual Dimorphism in European Upper Paleolithic Cave Art." American Antiquity 78, no. 4 (2013): 746-61. JSTOR. Web. 9 March 2014.