Research Guides: Sociology of Golf: Document Sources

ASA and APA formatting

American Sociological Association (ASA) and American Psychological Association (APA) format are the standard citation styles for Sociology. The following books and links can help you with ASA and APA style, including paper format and citations:

Quick Tips for ASA Style
This two page document from the American Sociological Association will help you get started with ASA style.
APA Style
Directly from the APA; includes quick reference and answers to some items not directly addressed in the publication manual.

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association by American Psychological Association Staff
Call Number: REF BF76.7 .P83 2010

ISBN: 9781433805615

Publication Date: 2009-07-15
APA style guide to electronic references by American Psychological Association
Call Number: Online Access

ISBN: 9781433807046

Publication Date: 2012

APA In-Text Citations: OWL at Purdue
This single page resource quickly explains how to write in-text citations in APA for quotes and paraphrases.

Documenting Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism

Documentation is the careful way in which the researcher tells her/his readers which of these works he/she is using, and to what purpose through citations for references to any outside sources and quotation marks when needed. Without documentation, subsequent researchers will waste valuable time replicating work that has already been done, but not documented for others to find.

The failure to document your sources properly is plagiarism, and charges of plagiarism can lead to serious negative consequences, including assignment or course failure. However, sometimes it is hard to determine what would be considered plagiarism and what would not be considered plagiarism.

The following links will help you with documentation and avoiding plagiarism:

Paraphrase, Summary, and Direct Quotation
This handout from Methodist University explains how to integrate information from outside sources through paraphrases, summaries, and direct quotations.

Recognizing and Avoiding Plagiarism
This two page handout discusses the different types of plagiarism and explains tactics that you can use to avoid plagiarism.

Plagiarism Handout
This guide from UNC-Chapel Hill is written from a student's point of view. It discusses why you need to be aware of good citation practices, and why plagiarism is so problematic.