Question of the Month
From the Catherwood Library reference librarians
December 2002
PLEASE NOTE: The Reference Question of the Month is kept current only during the month for which it was written. Archived questions will not be updated, and over time may contain inaccurate information or broken web links. We provide archived questions as a service, since much of the information will remain accurate and of continued interest to the ILR community.
Question: I am finishing up my term paper and need to know how to cite the resources I used. In addition to print sources, I consulted web sites and databases. Where can I go to find out the proper citation formats?
Answer: Find out from your professor what "style manual" you should use for formatting your citations. Often the professor will specify the style manual in your course syllabus. If not, ask.
You will find a wealth of information about citing print sources within the print style manuals available in the Reference Room at the Catherwood Library. In addition, you can find style manuals and style manual supplements on the Web. Keep in mind that the print edition of a style manual may not include enough information on citing an electronic resource. If a print supplement does not exist, there may be a Web resource.
Select Resources on the Web
- APA Style
covers electronic media - Columbia Guide to Online Style
a guide for citing electronic resources, regardless of style manual - Documentation and Style Guide (MSOE)
based on the Chicago Manual of Style - How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography
a Cornell Library guide to annotation format - Introduction to Basic Legal Citation
citation primer by the Cornell Law School, based on "Bluebook," Seventeenth Edition - Library of Congress: Citing Electronic Resources
a guide for citing electronic resources including films, legal, maps, recorded sound, photographs and drawings, special presentations, and texts; examples are based on Turabian and MLA - MLA Style
from the MLA main page, click on "MLA Style" and then "Frequently Asked Questions" to find information about citing electronic resources - U.S. Census Bureau
citation style for information on the Census Bureau Internet site (HTML, ASCII, or PDF files, dynamically generated table/files, FTP files, and e-mail)
Resources available in print (Catherwood Library, Reference Room)
- ILR Ready Ref KF 245 U58 17th ed. 2000
The Bluebook; a Uniform System of Citation. (2000).
Littleton, Colo.: Fred B. Rothman Publications. - ILR Ref Z 253 V53 1993 14th ed.
Chicago Manual of Style. (1993). (14th ed.).
Chicago: University of Chicago Press. - ILR Ref PN 171 D37 L69
Li, Xia and Crane, Nancy B. (1993).
Electronic Style: a Guide to Citing Electronic Information.
Westport, CT: Meckler Publishing. - ILR Ref LB2369.T82 M29 1996
Turabian, K. L. (1996).
A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations
(6th ed. / rev. by John Grossman and Alice Bennett. ed.).
Chicago: University of Chicago Press. - ILR Ref LB 2369 P88 1973
New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University (1973)
A Manual of Style; A Guide for the Preparation of Term Papers, Theses, and Other Manuscripts at the New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations.
Ithaca, N. Y.: NYSSILR, Cornell University. - ILR Ref LB 2369 G53 1999
Gibaldi, J. (1999)
MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (Fifth Edition ed.).
New York: Modern Language Association of America. - ILR Ref KF 250 N73 2000
National Labor Relations Board. (2000)
NLRB Style Manual; a Guide for Legal Writing in Plain English.
Washington, D. C.: U. S. G. P. O. - ILR Ref BF 76.7 A512001
American Psychological Association (APA). (2001)
Publication Manual or the American Psychological Association
(Fifth Edition ed.).
Washington, D. C.: American Psychological Association. - ILR Reference PN 171 F56 F59
Fleischer, E. B. (1979).
A Style Manual for Citing Microform and Nonprint Media.
Chicago: American Library Association.
Further Information
You can find out more about citing sources by consulting "Citing Your Sources," available via the Catherwood Library Research page. From the main page, click on "Reference" and then "Major Resources for Research." You will see "Citing Your Sources" in the list at the left.
— Researched by sy82