Searching for evidence, citing sources, referencing and formatting your bibliography
🔍 Searching for Evidence
Overview:
Strong academic and professional work begins with reliable, high-quality evidence. Whether you're writing a paper, developing a strategy, or designing a solution, your arguments need to be based on facts. This section explains how to find trustworthy sources, avoid misinformation, and build a solid foundation for your work. It equips you with essential search strategies to help you navigate the academic and professional landscape confidently.
Understanding the quality of evidence is essential for making sound arguments. Not all evidence is created equal. At the top of the reliability hierarchy are peer-reviewed journal articles, which are reviewed by experts in the field before publication and represent the gold standard of academic research. Next come books from reputable academic publishers, followed by government reports, industry white papers, and data from recognized statistical bodies. News articles, blog posts, and opinion pieces can still be useful, especially for capturing current debates or public perception, but should be used with caution and clearly attributed as such.
Peer review is a process where academic work is evaluated by other experts before it is published. This ensures the research is original, methodologically sound, and contributes to the field. Peer-reviewed sources are more trustworthy because they have passed a quality check by multiple specialists—not just an editor—which greatly reduces the risk of error, bias, or unsupported claims.
Where to Search:
-
Use academic databases like Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, JSTOR, and Research gate.
-
Access open-access journals such as DOAJ or government sources like OECD, World Bank, or Eurostat.
-
Explore university libraries, NGOs, think tanks, reputable businesses, industry publications and international agencies (WHO, weForum etc).
How to Evaluate Sources:
-
Prioritize peer-reviewed journal articles or official publications.
-
Check for author credibility, publication date, and transparency in methodology or data.
-
Use the CRAAP test: Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, Purpose.
Search Tips:
-
Use Boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) to refine your search.
-
Use quotation marks for exact phrases (e.g., “circular economy”).
-
Search backward and forward: look at what your source cites, and who has cited it.
✍️ Citing Your Sources
Overview:
Citing is not just about avoiding plagiarism, it’s about giving credit where it’s due, showing respect for others’ ideas, and strengthening your own credibility. Proper citations allow your readers to trace the origins of your ideas, explore your references, and trust the depth of your research. Whether you're quoting directly, paraphrasing, or summarizing information, citing helps you engage ethically and thoughtfully with the work of others.
There are many accepted citation styles: Harvard, APA, MLA, Chicago etc, and you're free to use whichever style you prefer. However, you must use the same style consistently throughout a single piece of work (e.g., your capstone project or research report). Consistency is key to clarity and professionalism.
You can choose to cite sources:
-
In the text, using formal referencing styles such as Harvard or APA.
-
Via hyperlinks, especially for online content such as news articles, websites, or reports, just make sure the link is accessible and points directly to the referenced content.
-
Some learners choose to combine both methods: using in-text citations for academic sources combined with hyperlinks to directly view the source.
In-Text Citation Rules (Harvard Style)
📌 Direct Quote
Use quotation marks and include the author, year, and page number:
“Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality” (Bennis, 1989, p. 23).
📌 Paraphrasing
Use your own words but still credit the source:
Bennis (1989) argues that effective leadership turns vision into action.
📌 Two Authors
(Keller & Price, 2011)
📌 Three or More Authors
(Brown et al., 2020)
📌 Secondary Sources
When citing a source that references another source:
(Taylor, 2001, cited in Freeman, 2005)
📌 Engaging with an Idea
To engage or contrast with an author’s idea:
cf. Christensen (1997)
📌 Hyperlinks
For online content, you may embed the link directly:
As noted in the World Economic Form's 2023-2024 report sustainability trends are reshaping global markets.
Tips:
-
Always include a reference list or bibliography at the end of your work, formatted according to your chosen style (see section below).
-
For Harvard references, list sources alphabetically by the author’s last name.
-
Be consistent with punctuation, author name formatting, and date placement throughout.
-
When using hyperlinks, ensure they are stable, specific, and don’t lead to general homepages or paywalled content.
📖 Proper Referencing
Overview:
A reference list is the formal record of all the sources you used in your work. This section shows how to build and format your reference list using the Harvard style. A clear and complete reference list not only supports your credibility but also makes it easier for others to explore the materials that informed your work.
Key Rules:
-
List all sources cited in the text.
-
Use alphabetical order by author surname.
-
Whichever referencing style you use, make sure to be consistent!
Examples (using Harvard style):
🔹Book
Format:
Author(s) Last name, Initial(s). (Year) Title of the Book. Edition (if not 1st). Place of publication: Publisher. - Hyperlink
Example:
Fitzgerald, F.S. (1925) The Great Gatsby. Paris: Charles Scribner's Sons.
Read: Internet Archive
🔹 Journal Article
Format:
Author(s) Last name, Initial(s). (Year) ‘Title of article’, Title of Journal, Volume(Issue), page numbers. - Hyperlink
Example:
Porter, M.E. and Kramer, M.R. (2011) ‘Creating Shared Value’, Harvard Business Review, 89(1/2), pp. 62–77. — https://hbr.org/2011/01/the-big-idea-creating-shared-value
🔹 White Paper / Research Report (Corporate or Organizational Author)
Format:
Organization Name (Year) Title of Report. Place of publication (if available): Publisher (if available). - Hyperlink
Example:
World Economic Forum (2023) Global Risks Report 2023. Geneva: World Economic Forum.
- World Economic Forum
🔹 Government or NGO Report
Format:
Author or Organization (Year) Title of Report. Place of publication: Publisher. - Hyperlink
Example:
United Nations Development Programme (2022) Human Development Report 2021/2022: Uncertain Times, Unsettled Lives. New York: UNDP. - https://hdr.undp.org/content/human-development-report-2021-22
🔹 Website
Format:
Author or Organization (Year) Title of Webpage. [Online] Available at: URL (Accessed: Day Month Year).
Example:
World Economic Forum (2024) Why businesses must embrace the circular economy to build sustainable success. [Online] Available at:https://www.weforum.org/stories/2024/02/why-businesses-must-embrace-the-circular-economy-for-a-more-sustainable-future/ (Accessed: 3 July 2025).
🔹 Video (e.g., YouTube or Vimeo)
Format:
Author/Organization (Year) Title of Video. [Video] Available at: URL (Accessed: Day Month Year).
Example:
Viva con Agua (2023) Water is a Human Right. [Video] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyz (Accessed: 3 July 2025).
🔹 Conference Paper or Presentation
Format:
Author(s) Last name, Initial(s). (Year) ‘Title of paper’, Title of Conference, location, date(s) of the conference. - Hyperlink
Example:
Sadeghi, N., Khayyati, S. and Schön, C. (2024) ‘Integrating predictive and prescriptive analytics for assortment optimization – a machine learning-based approach’, EURO 2024, 33rd European Conference on Operational Research, Copenhagen, Denmark, July 2024. - https://madoc.bib.uni-mannheim.de/6796
🔹 Newspaper or Magazine Article (Online)
Format:
Author(s) Last name, Initial(s). (Year) ‘Title of article’, Title of Newspaper or Magazine, date of publication. [Online] Available at: URL (Accessed: Day Month Year).
Example:
Banerjee, N. (2017) ‘How Big Oil Lost Control of Its Climate Misinformation Machine’, Inside Climate News, 22 December. [Online] Available at: https://insideclimatenews.org/news/22122017/big-oil-heartland-climate-science-misinformation-campaign-koch-api-trump-infographic/
🗂 Formatting Your Bibliography
Overview:
A well-structured bibliography reflects professionalism and care in your work. It helps others follow your sources and builds trust in your conclusions. This section outlines how to present your bibliography cleanly and consistently using Harvard style as an example, ensuring your work meets academic and professional standards.
Formatting Guidelines:
-
Label the list: “References”.
-
Arrange entries in alphabetical order by author surname.
-
Use hanging indent formatting (all lines after the first line are indented).
-
Match each in-text citation to a reference.
-
Include retrieval dates for any web sources.
🛠 Referencing Software
Overview:
Referencing software saves time, reduces errors, and helps you stay organized, especially when managing multiple sources across a project. This section introduces free and professional tools that make citation management easier, allowing you to focus more on your ideas and less on formatting.
Top Tools:
Mendeley
Free reference manager for organizing research, managing PDFs, and generating citations.
Zotero
Open-source tool that works in your browser and syncs with Word or Google Docs.
EndNote Web
Cloud-based citation tool that supports collaboration and multiple citation styles.
Tips:
-
Start building your reference library early in your project.
-
Always double-check auto-generated citations for accuracy.
-
Use folders or tags to group sources by topic or project milestone.
By mastering these referencing skills, you’ll improve the quality and credibility of your academic and professional work. Referencing is more than a requirement—it’s a tool for thinking rigorously, engaging ethically, and contributing meaningfully to the world of ideas.