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Citation Style Guide

A quick look at how to cite sources in different styles.

APA Examples Handout

Chicago Style Examples Handout

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Available for print or download.

AI Disclaimer

Do not use AI to suggest references to read/cite

Please be aware that ChatGPT and other AI services can produce incorrect, made-up references that cannot be sourced. While some individual parts of an AI-generated reference may be accurate (such as the journal name, article or book title or an author) the whole reference does not usually exist so cannot be found by our library team.

If you have a reference that you cannot find, our team may ask where it came from so that we can ensure it is legitimate before attempting to find it. If you need assistance, please use our 24/7 library chat service. 

When to Cite Sources

Whenever you quote, paraphrase, summarize, or otherwise refer to the work of another, you are required to cite your source and provide a complete reference for your source in a bibliography, list of references or works cited.

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General Citation Guides

MLA Style Guides

APA Style Guides

Chicago/Turabian Style Guides

Harvard Style Guides

NOTE: "Harvard Style" is a misnomer as there is no actual connection between the institution and citation style. In general, "Harvard Style" refers to the use of author/date in-text citations e.g. (Robbins 1987)  Some Harvard faculty were simply among the first to do so in the late 19th century, and the name stuck, particularly in the British Commonwealth. 

Creating Hanging Indents

Citation Management Apps


Zotero Citation Manager (Beginner Level)

Zotero is a free app that lets you create and save a library of your sources, take notes, and use those sources with Word, Google Docs, or LibreOffice to integrate the citations in your paper and create a properly formatted bibliography. Recommended for Undergraduates and all levels of students in the Social Sciences or Humanities. You need to have your own personal computer in order to use the word processor integration to create bibliographies

RefWorks Citation Manager (Beginner Level)

RefWorks is a cloud-based licensed citation management app available free to all Wayne State students, faculty, and staff. It can collect citations from databases and Google Scholar, format bibliographies in lots of citations styles, and works with Word and Google Docs to insert citations and build reference lists as you write. Recommended for Undergraduates. RefWorks is also a good option if you work on lots of group research projects, or use public computers and need a cloud-based option.


EndNote Citation Manager (Advanced Level)

EndNote citation management software is licensed software available for purchase (at a discounted rate) by all Wayne State students, faculty and staff. It can format bibliographic entries in almost every citation style and works with most word processors to insert citations and build reference lists as you write. Citation information can be entered manually or export directly from the library's online databases. Recommended for Graduate Students in the Sciences or Engineering.

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