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Why do you need Harvard referencing?
Before we understand how to do Harvard referencing, it is imperative to know why you must use it in your academic writing. Referencing helps you in building confidence your existing knowledge and portrays that you have read and clearly understood the topic. Referencing also helps you in staying away from plagiarism and using other researchers’ observations authentically.
Harvard referencing is extensively used to create reference lists, that is, an exhaustive list of sources that you have used in creating your research paper. This part of your paper generally gives information about the author, publication date, the title of the source, etc.
Before you start writing a Harvard reference list, make sure you keep the following pointers in mind.
1. Reference list is generally written on a separate sheet at the end of your document.
2. The authors must be organized in alphabetical order.
3. In case there is no author, then your sources should be organized as per the alphabetical order of the title.
4. Your reference list should be double spaced, which means that there should be a full and blank line of space between each text line.
In-text Citation: Harvard Referencing Style
These references are mentioned within the main body of your assignment or research paper. It must be included following a paraphrase or a quote taken from the original piece of work. In-text references are shorter in length in comparison to full references, and they contain the surname of the editor or the author followed by the year of publication and the page number. For example, if you use a quote from the work of an author named Michael James, then it is mentioned as follows.
(James, 2017, p. 189)
When a particular source has two or three authors, then their surnames are mentioned in alphabetical order. For instance,
(Coyne, James, and Thomson, 2017, p. 189)
If the original piece of work has four or more authors, then, in this case, the surname of only the first author is mentioned followed by the phrase ‘et al.’
(James et al, 2017, p, 189)
How to cite different types of sources
1. Citing a Book
When you are citing a book in the Harvard format, then keep in mind that the title is italicized. Only the first letter of the first word is capitalized unless it is a proper noun. Here’s an example to learn.
James and Thomson, M. (2017) A guide to citation.3rd edition. London: London Publishing.
2. Citing an Edited Book
Edited books are a collection of chapters that are scripted by various authors. Their reference format is quite similar to the book referencing format except instead of the author name the editor name is followed by (eds.) to distinguish editors from authors. The basic format is as follows.
Editor surname(s), initial(s). (eds.) (Year Published). Title. Edition. Place of publication: publishers
3. Citing an E-Book
Students tend to make an extensive used of online documents and e-books while writing their research paper. While doing so, make sure you reference an e-book correctly by mentioning all the required information about its collection, its online location, and the date on which it was accessed. An e-book citation also requires explicit mention of the author’s name, the title, and the year of publishing. The generalized format is as follows.
Author surname(s), initial(s). (Year Published). Title. Edition. E-book format [e-book reader]. Name of the E-Book collection. (Accessed: day month year)
4. Citing a Journal
In Harvard format, when you make a citation to a journal, make sure that the title of the article is written within single quotation marks. This is followed by the title of the newspaper in italics. Keep in mind to capitalize the first letter of each word. The name of the paper is followed by the volume and the required page numbers.
5. Citing a Newspaper Article
Citing a newspaper article in Harvard format is quite similar to citing a journal article except instead of the volume, and the issue number, the date of publication and the edition of the journal is mentioned. A generalized format is as follows.
Author surname(s), initial(s). (Year) ‘Article Title’, Newspaper Title (edition), day month, page number(s).
6. Citing a Film
When you are citing a film in the Harvard format, make sure that you mention the directors’ name followed by the format of the movie you are making use of like film, DVD, etc. Here’s an example of a citation using the movie ‘Rear Window.’
Rear Window (1954) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock [Film]. Los Angeles: Paramount Pictures.
7. Citing a TV Program
When you are citing a television series in Harvard format, then you should make sure that the episode title is enclosed within quotation marks and the title of the show is in italics. It is followed by the series number and the episode number.
Ultimate Guide to Harvard Referencing
Harvard referencing is a particular system of citation that is apt for students, writers or researchers. They can use it to incorporate other’s quotes, ideas in their writing. This helps the writers to validate their works without breaching any law. Harvard referencing style is basically used in various types of writings like assignments, homework etc. below we have discussed the ultimate guide to Harvard referencing; I hope it would help you to satiate your questions.
There are various types of citations available under Harvard referencing. You can pick any one and include it in your writing. A proper Harvard referencing style is made up of two components i.e. in-text citation and a reference list.
- In the in-text citation method you need to mention the author’s surname and year of publication (within brackets). It indicates if another source has some contribution in your writing.
- On the other hand a reference list will indicate all the sources that are directly cited in your writing.
Most of the scholars use this particular format while writing as they find it to be the most reliable one. According to them it is the easiest method for the readers to understand. Here you only need to include the author’s name, date of publishing, the name of the source etc, if needed you can add the page number too. For example: (Wordsworth, 1999).
Know about Harvard Referencing Format in Details
By using the citation of others in your writing, you can make your work enriched. We use various types of citations like direct quotes, statistical figures etc. Sometimes we summarize the main idea and write it in our own way. You can explain the writing by using a paraphrasing. But there are various types of format available in the market. Here we will discuss the Harvard referencing format with examples.
For in-text citation you can use the format mentioned below:
- For Books with one author
(The Surname of the Writer, Year of Publication)
(Johnson, 2022)
The actual structure of reference is like:
The Surname of the Author, Initials. (Year of Publication) Title, Place where it is Published: Name of Publisher.
Johnson, B. (2022) A Mayor of Cambridge. Italy: Royal Calligraphy.
- Books where more than one author is present
Sometimes we find a book where two or three authors have composed it together. In such cases, you need to mention the names of all the writers in the reference list.
It’s in-text citation is:
(Surname of the 1st Author, Surname of the 2nd Author, Surname of the 3rd Author, Year of Publication)
(Bentinck, Rutherford and Williamson, 2022)
Its reference structure is
Surname of the 1st Author, Initials. Surname of the 2nd Author, Initials and Surname of the 3rd Author, Initials. (Year of Publication). Name of the Work (in italics). Place where it is Published: Name of the Publisher.
Hickey, J. Thomson, D. and Churchill, W. (1991) Modern Theories with Criticism of the Past: an Inventor. 3rd edition. Kremlin: Russia.
Get Complete Guidance from Our Harvard Referencing Style Help
If you are searching for the Harvard referencing style help, then this is going to be apt for you. A referencing list must be a complete list where you need to include all the sources of references. It includes various sources like the name of the author, date and year of publication, title of the source etc. While working on a Harvard referencing style you need to keep some tips in your mind that are listed below.
- Take a separate sheet and enlist all the references according to your need. Add that sheet at the end of your assignment.
- You need to mention the names of the authors alphabetically to make it organized completely. If you find there is no author, then enlist the title of the original work without adding any article before it.
- Maintain proper space between two lines so that it may look organized.
The above guide will prove to be of great help in making a successful research paper with effective citation.
You can also read our APA Referencing Guide to know more about how to cite sources.
Your academic life extensively depends on good quality research papers and articles. Correct citation using Harvard referencing is a roadblock that many college and university students come across. It, thus, becomes essential to take professional assignment help and that is why our GotoAssignmentHelp assignment experts are ready to serve all your ends.
