Metodix

A manual for using sources

Source reference systems can be roughly divided into three groups. In Vancouver System the references are numbered in consecutive numbers, starting from number one. Numbers are put in the text in their wanted place. Sources corresponding to the numbers are found in the end of the text in numerical order.

In Note Apparatus, references are marked in the text in consecutive numbers, just like in the Vancouver System, but the sources are marked at the foot of the page, where the reference is.

In Harvard System, a source reference is usually marked in paranthesis by writing first the surname of the author, then the printing year and the page numbers that are referred to. Sources can be found in alphabetical order in the list of sources. In Metodix, the manual for using sources is based on Harvard System.

What is suitable as a source?

· Published, explorative texts
· Internet sources according to one's own consideration
· Oral presentations (for example lectures or discussions), if one has the informant's permission

What is not a suitable source?

· Reference books, textbooks, encyclopaedias
· Newspaper and magazine articles
· A work, which one has not read (one has to use the original text, and if the original text is not available, it should be marked on the reference, for example Kyrö 1995, 23, cite Lämsä 2003, 13)
· An oral presentation without permission of the informant
· A net source without the author's name or authors' contact information or date for the latest update.

With every source, it is important to remember to be critical: Where the information came from, who produced it, in what ways it is useful for one's own work, for what purposes has the information been produced? Please note, however, that works not suitable as sources ( e.g. encyclopaedias) can be used as research materials.

Basic ways of quoting

Direct quote or citing

The original text is repeated word-for-word.

A short quotation is separated by quotation marks, and a precise source reference with pages is marked in the end. E.g. "The conclusions and the following evaluation can be thought as a maturity test for a researcher. (Kyrö, 2004, 136)"

A long quotation can be separated from one's own text by indenting or using different text style. In that case quotation marks are not necessary. Missing words or sentences have to be pointed out by two lines -- or three dots in parentheses (...).

Indirect quotation or paraphrase

What is quoted is summarized and elaborated to be suitable for one's own text. The original idea of the text can be applied, improved, opposed or questioned. The original source still needs to be mentioned.

E.g. A researcher has to prove his or her maturity at the latest when making conclusions and evaluation (see Kyrö, 2004, 136).

When quoting a text in foreign language in one's own words, giving a summary is usually the best alternative. If one wants to use word-for-word translation, the translator has to be mentioned.

Marking references

There are many ways to mark source references. Different disciplines have different traditions. The way you have chosen should anyhow be followed systematically throughout the text. The following quidelines are Metodix' recommendations for marking references.

References in the text

References in the text are placed in parantheses so that first comes the surname of the author, then the print year of the source and finally page numbers.

E.g. (Kyrö, 2004, 45-55).

If a reference consists of only one sentence, the reference is placed inside the sentence and the dot comes outside the parantheses.

If a reference refers to more sentences than only one, or to the whole paragraph, the reference will be placed after the dot in the end of the last sentence. In that case the reference is considered as an autonomous sentence, and a dot is put in the end of it.

E.g. Although every discipline develops its special knowhow within the group of typical research methods for it, different disciplines do need and utilize each other's research methods. Relationships with both the past and the future are relevant for every discipline, and on the other hand they have connections to individuals, organisations and society. (Kyrö, 2004, 105).

It is possible to refer to more sources in the same reference. In that case different sources are separated by semicolon. Sources can be put in order according to importance, alphabetical order or publication year. E.g. ( Anttila 2001; Kyrö 2004; Nurmi 2003).

If a work has three or more authors, only the first author is marked in the reference and also an acronym etc. or et al. is added after the name .

E.g. (Kuusi etc. 2001, 76)

However, if a publication has two authors, both of them has to be mentioned in the reference.

E.g. (Lämsä & Takala, 2001, 43-45).

A source can also be used by stating directly which work will be discussed. Also in this case, it is necessary to mention the particular pages that are dealt with.

E.g. Paula Kyrö discusses in her book The research process as a path of choises about the scientific research process in pages 13-26.

Marking net sources

There are not any established ways to refer to net sources yet, but the following quideline is Metodix' recommendation for referring to net sources. Particularly important is to mark the date, since web pages can change all the time. In addition, since it is not possible to get exact information from net sources the same way as from paper publications, it should be made clear in the reference that the source is an electronic document or www-address, which expresses the same thing.

In the case of an article or other text with a known author, the custom with references is the same as with printed references. The time that will be marked in the reference is the year when the article has been written or the year, when the article has last been updated. In Metodix articles, the source reference is marked in the beginning and in the end - according to Metodix' own recommendation.
E.g. (Aaltio-Marjosola, 2000).

If a source has no author, the name of the document is mentioned in the reference. Most sources without information about the author, though, are classified as research material, not as actual scientific sources.
E.g. (International Fuzzy Systems Association 2004).

Material sources

Marking archive sources

When it comes to archive sources, name of the document, possible date, possible collection number and its location should be marked in the reference.

E.g. (The decision of the State's film testing station 1109/24.1.1939. The state's film testing station).

Referring to newspapers and magazines

Generally speaking newspapers and magazines are not recommended as sources, but as objects of thinking, argumentation and research material they can be important.

An archive reference should include the surname of the author of the article/news, the name of the paper or magazine and the date of publication. Also the name of the article and the type of the source should be marked in the reference if it is not mentioned in the body text.

E.g.1. (Paananen, Helsingin Sanomat, 22.7.2004)
E.g.2. (Paananen, Blood and Sweat, Helsingin Sanomat, 22.7.2004)
E.g.3. (Paananen, Blood and Sweat -column, Helsingin Sanomat, 22.7.2004)

List of references i.e. bibliography

A list of references is attached to the end of the writing . The list is given in alphabetical order according to the authors' surnames.

The surname of the author of the source, his/her first name, date of publication, name of the work, publisher, and place of publication should be stated in the list. When it comes to newspapers and article collections, also page numbers have to be given.

There are many ways to mark the list of references and they vary by disciplines. The chosen way should anyhow be systematically followed.

Monography (a solid work)

Surname, First name Date: Name of the work. Subtitle. Publisher, Place of publication.

E.g. Kyrö, Paula 2004: A research process as a path of choices. The University of Tampere, The Research and Education Center, Saarijärvi.

Edited work or more editors

Surname, First name; Surname, First name; Surname, First name (edit.) Date: Name of the work. Publisher, Place of publication.

E.g. Kamppinen, Matti; Kuusi, Osmo; Söderlund, Sari (edit.) 2002: The Futures Research. Basics and Application. The Finnish Literature Society's editorials 896, Kirjakas/Tallinn.

If there are more than three editors, the reference can be shortened so that only the first editor is mentioned, after which comes the acronym etc. or et al.

An article in a newspaper

Surname, First name Date: Name of the article, Name of the newspaper, Volume, Page numbers.

E.g. Linturi, Hannu 1998. Information with or without Fat. Crisis and Learning Environment. The Adult Education 1/1998, 30-48.

An article in an edited work

Surname, First name Date: Name of the article. Editor's Surname, First name (edit.): Name of the work. Publisher, Place of publication, Page numbers.

E.g. Linturi, Hannu 2002: The Cultural Evolution of Learning in the Net. Kamppinen, Matti et.c. (edit.): The Future Research. Basics and applications. The Finnish Literature Society's Editorials 896, Kirjakas/Tallinn. 665-789.

Unprinted thesis / licentiate thesis

Surname, First name Date: Name of the work. Thesis/Licentiate thesis et.c. Institution, for whom the work has been made. University: City.

Ala-Härkönen, Outi 2004: Personal homepages as a medium for communication - Self-expression, community and knowledge producing. Licenciate thesis -study. The department of Communications theory and Mass media. The University of Tampere: Tampere.

Electronic sources

Basic principles for referring to electronic sources are the same as for printed sources. Their purpose is to help the reader to find the original source and give the essential information: the producer of the information, the connection of the publication (for example the institution maintaining the pages, organization or private person), web address and date (either the date of publication or the last time the contents have been updated).

If the information mentioned above cannot be found, there is a justified reason to be somewhat critical towards the source.

E.g. Aaltio-Marjosola, Iiris 2002. Case study. http://www.metodix.com. Metodix.

Other materials

In a list of references, it is good to separate the material analyzed or in other ways used in the text (see Material sources) under a title of its own (E.g. Other material). You can find the criteria set for actual sources under the title What is suitable as a source. Besides actual sources, one can refer to other materials, which, however, cannot be considered as actual references.

Filmographic information about a film under a research

The name of the film, scriptwriter/s (original text and the date of the original text). D: Director. C: Cameraman. E: Editing. SD: Set Designer. M: Music. A: Name of an Actor (Name of the character). Premiere. Production unit/Producer.

E.g. Kauas Pilvet Karkaavat, Aki Kaurismäki 1996. D: Aki Kaurismäki. C: Timo Salminen. E: Aki Kaurismäki. SD: Markku Pätilä. M: Shelley Fisher. A: Kari Väänänen (Lauri), Kati Outinen (Ilona). 26.1.1996. Sputnik inc./Erkki Astala.

If the film in question is foreign, both original and translated title should be mentioned in the filmographic information.

Television programs

Name of the program, Name and number of the part, Name of the director and the date and channel where the program was shown should all be stated if possible.

E.g. Irti Oravanpyörästä. Suomi 2004. TV 1 Current Affairs Department. Edit. Susanna Päivärinta. Presented 12th Apr. 2004 YLE 1.

Television commercials

One should get as accurate information as possible from the advertiser about the author of the advertisement and the extent of the campaign.

Magazines

Names and volumes of the magazines used should be informed. This information is enough, since the author, the title and/or the type, number of the magazine, possible date and year are marked in the references.

E.g. Helsingin Sanomat 2002, 2003, 2004.

Unprinted contemporary literature

Author's surname, first name Date. Name of the work/description.

E.g. Aaltonen, Armas 1945-46. Diary.

Archive sources

Name of the archive. Type/name of a source.

E.g. Provincial archive of Oulu (OM), organizational department. Records of the investigation 1920-1931.

Interviews

About an interview the following things should be mentioned: who has been interviewed and how, who was the interviewer and how the interview has been recorded (tape, notes, phone etc)

E.g. Aaltonen, Armas. Interviews 2001-2002 interviewer Aino Armas. Tapes 1-5.

N.B. Putting the names of foreign authors in alphabetical order can sometimes be problematic. That is, the norms for their alphabetical order depend on the spelling rules of each language. A good guideline when doing this with foreign names is to look at the first capital letter. For example, in alphabetical order von Bagh is put under the letter B, while Van Denver is marked under letter V.

Electronic guidebooks to source usage

Reference guide: Tapio Onnela ja Jaakko Suominen
A guide for reference usage, the Department of Women study of the University of Tampre, Jaana Vuori
A guide for reference usage, Media research, the University of Turku, Anu Koivunen
The University of Tampere, A data acquistion guidebook for thesisi makers
Library for the University of Tampere, a library guide for students
The University of Helsinki, behavioral sciences, a guide book for data acquisition, tiedonhankinnan opas.
Internetix-materiaalial, Informaatiotutkimus 1
Internetix-materiaalial, Informaatiotutkimus 2