Direct quotations
When you directly quote from a source, you use the author's/authors' original words. You need to use quotation marks to indicate this, as well as a page reference. Generally, students are encouraged to keep direct quotations to a minimum in their work and to paraphrase more.
Paraphrasing
Paraphrasing is writing about the sources you use in your own words. Successful academic writing involves paraphrasing as it demonstrates a greater level of understanding and engagement with your sources. Tutors expect to see more paraphrasing as you progress through your course into higher levels. Cite them right advises that the in-text citation for a paraphrase should include a page number. Work through the short tutorial to understand more about and practise successful paraphrasing: Paraphrasing tutorial
Summarising
Whilst a paraphrase is a rewriting of a specific idea from a specific point in a source, when we summarise we are referring to the main points of the source, eg a journal article or chapter or webpage. A summary describes a range of ideas that are covered by more than one section of a source. An in-text citation for a summary does not require a page number.
| Example |
Quotation |
Martincekova and Enright (2020, p.434) argue that “Forgiving oneself for postponing work on an important task could increase positive emotions in the present moment and therefore increase motivation to work productively on a current task.” |
Paraphrase |
Self-forgiveness for previous procrastination could enhance a sense of positivity and promote effective engagement with current work (Martincekova and Enright, 2020, p.434). |
Summary |
In their research Martincekova and Enright (2020) demonstrate that where university students are prone to shame and struggle with self-forgiveness, procrastination is likely to increase, whereas a capacity for self-forgiveness decreases procrastination. They argue for further testing of interventions that involve self-forgiveness to investigate their potential to enhance mood and reduce procrastination. |
Reference:
Martincekova, L. and Enright, R.D. (2020) ‘The effects of self-forgiveness and shame-proneness on procrastination: exploring the mediating role of affect’, Current Psychology, 39(2), pp. 428-437.