Criminal Justice: Cite Sources

APA (American Psychological Association) citation style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources in psychology, social sciences, and health disciplines.

• Reference list: Always include a full list of your sources at the end of your paper.
• In-text citations: Always use in-text citations when you quote, paraphrase, or summarize to let the reader know that the information comes from another source.

See the MC Library research skill guide on APA Citations or one of the other resources below for more information.
Always check with your course instructor to verify which style you should use when writing a paper.

MLA (Modern Language Association) citation style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources in literature and the humanities.

• Works Cited list: Always include a full list of your sources at the end of your paper.
• In-text citations: Always use in-text citations when you quote, paraphrase, or summarize to let the reader know that the information comes from another source.

See the MC Library research skill guide on MLA Citations or one of the other resources below for more information.
Always check with your course instructor to verify which style you should use when writing a paper.

Note: Because there are no significant differences between MLA 8th edition (2016) and MLA 9th edition (2021), resources for both editions are linked below.

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation is the style manual for legal documents and academic legal publishing in the United States. How you use The Bluebook and format your citations will depend on the type of assignment you are completing. Use the rules in the "blue pages" for practitioner documents like court documents or memoranda. Use the rules in the "white pages" for academic legal writing like law review or journal articles.

Always check with your course instructor to verify which style you should use when writing a paper.

The final step in the research cycle is to cite your sources. This step shows your reader that you've done proper research by listing sources you used to get your information.

Citing sources provides credibility to your ideas and places them in an academic context. It is also an important part of academic integrity. Giving credit to other researchers and acknowledging their ideas avoids plagiarism.

MC Writing, Reading, & Language Centers
Tutors at the WRL Centers can provide feedback on your writing, including questions on properly citing your sources.

Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL): Research and Citation Resources
Includes tutorials, sample papers, and sample bibliographies for all major citation styles.

MC Academic Integrity Resources