Citation Styles
When writing a research paper, you must always cite any sources that you have consulted in your research. You must acknowledge when you are using the ideas, information, arguments, phrases or direct quotes of another. Not to do so is referred to as plagiarism. Plagiarism is a very serious offence, but can be avoided by always acknowledging the work of others and citing resources.
Always check with your instructor to ensure you are using the correct style guide. For instance, at Kwantlen, History students are required to use the old MLA/Chicago style (which features footnotes and a bibliography). Psychology students are required to use the APA Style Guide. A Librarian at Kwantlen has created summaries of three of our most popular styles. The links are below as well as the call numbers for finding the complete citation style guide located in each of our Library reference collections.
APA Citation Style Quick Links
- APA Citation Style Guide & Title Page Example
- APA LibGuide
- Digital Object Identifiers (DOI)
- APA's Errata to the 6th edition
- From APA: Sample One- Experiment Paper
- How to Reference the DSM
MLA Citation Style Quick Links
Chicago Citation Style Quick Links
American Psychological Association
- Publication manual of the American Psychological Association BF 76.7 P83 2009 at Surrey, Richmond, Langley, Cloverdale
- Concise rules of APA Style BF 76.7 C66 2005 at Surrey, Richmond, Langley
- APA References (Diana Hacker/Barbara Fister, Gustavus Adolphus College)
- APA Style (by Purdue University)
- APA Styleguide Handbook
Modern Language Association
- MLA handbook for writers of research papers REF LB 2369 M57 2009 at Surrey, Richmond, Langley, Cloverdale
- MLA References (Diana Hacker/Barbara Fister, Gustavus Adolphus College)
- MLA Style (by Purdue University)
Chicago (Turabian Style)
- The Chicago manual of style, 16th ed., Z 253 U69 2010 at Cloverdale, Richmond, Surrey, Langley Reference Collection
- A manual for writers of research papers, theses, and dissertations : Chicago style for students and researchers (Turabian) LB 2369 T8 2007 at Cloverdale, Richmond, Surrey, Langley (Reference Collection and General Collection)
- Turabian Quick Guide
Archaeology & Anthropology
Journalism & Mass Media
- Associated Press stylebook 39th ed. REF PN 4783 A83 2004 at Richmond
- The Globe and Mail style book 9th ed. REF PN 4783 M34 2003 at Richmond
- Merriam-Webster's manual for writers and editors PN 147 M49 at Surrey, Richmond, Langley
Legal Research
- Canadian guide to uniform legal citation 7th ed. REF KE 259 C35 2010 at Surrey, Richmond and Langley
- Legal Citation Guide
CBE/CSE and other Sciences
- Scientific style and format: the CBE for authors, editors and publishers 6th ed. REF T 11 S 386 at Surrey and Richmond
- The ACS style guide: a manual for authors and editors (American Chemical Society) QD 8.5 A25 1985 at Langley undefined
- When writing a term paper, check to see if your instructor prefers one of these systems or another. (Some scientific fields, including chemistry, horticulture, medicine, and physics, have their own style manuals.)
- Council of Science Editors home
- Kwantlen Librarians have chosen a couple of web sites to help you with the CBE style by showing examples.
- CSE References (Diana Hacker/Barbara Fister, Gustavus Adolphus College).
- Excellent guide prepared by Munroe Community College
Social Sciences
- ASA Style Guide in Kwantlen's Print collection - HM 586 A54 2010 at Cloverdale, Richmond, Surrey, Langley (Reference Collection)
- American Sociological Association
- American Sociological Assocation Quick Style Guide
- Citing References Using ASA
Citing Statistics Canada Resources
Updated: 31/10/12
Updated by: UK


