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FIN 480/536 - Finance for New Ventures

Citing sources

Why cite?

It's important to cite your sources, for a variety of reasons:

  • To give credit to the author(s) of your sources.
  • To allow your readers to locate your sources.
  • To show that you thoroughly researched your topic and can support your claims.
  • So you don't get in trouble for plagiarizing.

"If it is not your original words or ideas, give credit to the person whose words or ideas you are using," advises the UA's Dean of Students Office. Plagiarism violates the UA Code of Academic Integrity. You don't want to face these sanctions.

Citation resources

There are a variety of citation styles. Use the one specified by your instructor. If one isn't specified, the field of business typically uses American Psychological Association (APA) style.

These guides will help you format citations correctly:

Managing citations

Zotero

Zotero is a free, easy-to-use tool that helps you collect, manage, cite, and share your research sources. If you've never used Zotero before, you'll need to download it and then register for a free account. For help getting started, see the Zotero Quick Start Guide.


Group members can use Zotero Groups to collaborate on their project. Members can create a new Zotero group and then share project resources online.


NOTE: If you prefer using RefWorks, Mendeley, or EndNote Web, those programs are fine too.

Avoiding plagiarism