Paraphrasing and Citations – APA

Selkirk International
Paraphrasing and Citations
1. Citation Types
1. Stating Factual Information
2. General statements about the research target/writing topic
3. Citing many authors
4. Citing specific author(s)
5. Identifying citation types - Practice
2. Paraphrasing
1. Paraphrasing – Introduction
2. Steps for paraphrasing
4 Citation Types
Stating factual information Citing many authors
Sentence focusing on information Sentence focusing on the
accepted as fact. findings/statements from many
authors.

General statements about the Citing specific author(s)

research target/writing topic Sentence focusing on the
Sentence focusing on the findings/statements of 1 or more
statements/findings of many authors.
articles.

* Very formal
4 Citation Types
Stating factual information
Sentence focusing on information accepted as fact.

Formula:
Topic + Verb (Present Tense) + Fact

Example:
Business success requires working hard for long hours.

* Very formal
4 Citation Types
General statements about the research target/writing topic
Sentence focusing on the amount of statements/findings about a topic.

Formula:
Amount + Verb (Present Perfect) + Topic (No Reference needed)

Example:
Much evidence has confirmed that success in business requires working very hard for long hours.
Few studies have shown that lazy people succeed in business.

* Very formal
4 Citation Types
Citing many authors
Sentence focusing on the findings/statements from many authors.

Formula:
Authors + Verb (Present Perfect) + Topic (Reference needed)

Example:
Many business leaders have stated that success in business requires working hard for long hours
(Beckett, 2019; Smith, 2018; Taylor, 2010; Walters, 2016).

* Very formal
4 Citation Types
Citing specific author(s)
Sentence focusing on the findings/statements of 1 or more authors.

Formula:
Author Name(s) + Verb (Simple Past) + THAT + Findings/Statements (Reference needed)

Example:
Beckett (2018) stated that success in business requires working hard for long hours.

* Very formal
Identifying Citations Types – what types of citations are these?
1. Several researchers have investigated the relationship between age and workplace
productivity (Chen, 2013; Mosley, 2002; Wang, 2015).

2. Universal health care is one hallmark of a healthy society.

3. Liu (2012) stated that the use of renewable energy is key in the fight against global
warming.

4. Several studies have focused on the link between diet and the incidence of colon cancer.

* Very formal
Identifying Citations Types – what types of citations are these?
1. Several researchers have investigated the relationship between age and workplace
productivity (Chen, 2013; Mosley, 2002; Wang, 2015). Citing many authors

2. Universal health care is one hallmark of a healthy society. Citing factual information

3. Liu (2012) stated that the use of renewable energy is key in the fight against global
warming. Citing specific author(s)

4. Several studies have focused on the link between diet and the incidence of colon cancer.
General statements about the research target/writing topic

* Very formal
Identifying Citations Types – what types of citations are these?
5. Triangulating data from interviews, observations and questionnaires is advantageous
for strengthening the reliability of the findings.

6. Chen (2014) analyzed the relations between a manufacturer and two suppliers via a
Stackelberg game.

7. Over the last decade, much research has focused on so-called green technologies.

8. Numerous authors have studied the applicability of 3D printing for small-scale

manufacturing.

* Very formal
Identifying Citations Types – what types of citations are these?
5. Triangulating data from interviews, observations and questionnaires is advantageous
for strengthening the reliability of the findings. Citing factual information

6. Chen (2014) analyzed the relations between a manufacturer and two suppliers via a
Stackelberg game. Citing specific author(s)

7. Over the last decade, much research has focused on so-called green technologies.
General statements about the research target/writing topic

8. Numerous authors have studied the applicability of 3D printing for small-scale

manufacturing. Citing many authors

* Very formal
Paraphrasing - Introduction
Paraphrasing: a text borrowing strategy in which the writer states
another writer’s ideas in a form other than the original.

It often involves the following skills in academic writing:

 Understanding the meaning of source sentences
 Using your own words to represent other authors’ ideas
Paraphrasing
As we paraphrase, we need to decide which words to keep and which to replace in
a paraphrase

Keep:
• Technical or specialized words that cannot be replaced
• e.g. Google, internet, board of directors, CEO, block diagram, algorithm, spread sheet
Replace:
• General vocabulary (i.e. common words)
Please see examples on
http://esl.fis.edu/vocab/academic/academicdrank_frm.htm
The content Slides 13~20 is adapted from Dr. Jan Frodesen's 'Linguistic Challenges of Summary and Paraphrase'
Problems in summarizing & paraphrasing

• Inappropriate “copy-delete” strategies in summarizing

• Word-for-word repetition
• Inappropriate paraphrasing strategies
“Near copies” or “patchwriting”
• A few words have been substituted with synonyms, but most words
and phrasing are kept the same, and the sentence order of the
original text is the same.
Examples of Unacceptable paraphrases
Unique links:
Individual words or several exactly copied words used in the paraphrase that occurred in
the original but only in one place in the original.

Example of unique links of three or more words:

Original:
Women have less work experience, less seniority, a lower rate of unionization and so on.
Paraphrase:
Women have less job experience, less seniority, and a low rate of unionization.
Unacceptable/acceptable paraphrasing
Original:
Students frequently overuse direct quotations in taking notes, and as a result they overuse
quotations in the final [research] paper. Probably only about 10% of your final
manuscript should appear as directly quoted matter. Therefore, you should strive to limit
the amount of exact transcribing of source materials while taking notes. Lester, James D.
Writing Research Papers. 2nd ed. (1976): 46-47.

A legitimate paraphrase:
In research papers students often quote excessively, failing to keep quoted material
down to a desirable level. Since the problem usually originates during note taking, it is
essential to minimize the material recorded verbatim (Lester, 1976, pp. 46-47).
Unacceptable/acceptable paraphrasing
Original:
Students frequently overuse direct quotations in taking notes, and as a result they overuse
quotations in the final [research] paper. Probably only about 10% of your final
manuscript should appear as directly quoted matter. Therefore, you should strive to limit
the amount of exact transcribing of source materials while taking notes. Lester, James D.
Writing Research Papers. 2nd ed. (1976): 46-47.

A plagiarized version:
Students often use too many direct quotations when they take notes, resulting in too many
of them in the final research paper. In fact, probably only about 10% of the final copy
should consist of directly quoted material. So it is important to limit the amount of
source material copied while taking notes.
Copyright ©1995-2007 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue
 So, what can we do?
How can we paraphrase?
Steps for paraphrasing
Paraphrasing – basic steps:
Step 1: Understand what you are reading. If you don't understand it, you can’t paraphrase it correctly.

Step 2: Think about the ideas, especially how the ideas may relate to your specific topic.

Step 3: Not looking at the original, write down the ideas.

Step 4: Look back at the original to see if you have changed the grammar and vocabulary. If not, change
them now.
Paraphrasing Tips
Analyze the text in relation to your research and thesis, and in relation to other sources
you've been reading.
If it supports your thinking, identify the assumptions/biases/perspectives influencing
the writer, and how they compare to your own and those of other writers.
If it is an opposing perspective, identify the assumptions/biases/perspectives
influencing the writer, and how they compare to your own and those of other writers.
Determine how this source contributes to your understanding or generates new
questions in your thinking
Source: http://www.bothell.washington.edu/wacc/teaching/writing/reviews
Paraphrasing – more help please!

For more information and details about paraphrasing, visit this link:

http://www.uefap.com/writing/report/repfram.htm

For more information Academic Writing, visit this link:

http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Criollo-LitReview.html