## How do you refer to sources?

There are various methods, also known as reference styles or citation styles, for clearly indicating which sources you have used in an academic text. The method you use varies depending on the subject area, and sometimes even the specific course. Discuss with your lecturer which method you should use. Each style has its own rules.

Whichever method you use, there are always two important steps:

- In the text of your report or thesis, indicate which information you have derived from which source.
- In the reference list at the end of your paper or thesis, provide a complete reference for each source you have used. Provide all the information needed to find the source (in the version/edition you have used).

The following diagram shows how these two steps are carried out in the different methods:

| Reference methods
--- | ---
author - year | footnotes / endnotes | volgnummers (issue??)
Step 1: Indicate in the text that you are using a source. | surname of author(s) and year of publication (and page number if cited)
Generation Z buys second-hand clothing because of the price (Mazanec & Harantova, 2024).
| footnote/endnote number
Generation Z buys second-hand clothing because of the price.1
| sequence (issue??) number of the publication
Generation Z buys second-hand clothing because of the price (1).
Step 2: In the reference list, provide a complete reference. | References in alphabetical order by author name | write references in the footnotes/endnotes | References in the order in which they are mentioned in the text at the end of the report

The methods mentioned are a rough classification. Within each method, there are different styles that prescribe in great detail how to create references.

## Which information do you need and where can you find it?

In the reference list, you provide enough information about the source so that the reader has sufficient details to locate it.

The table shows which information is needed to create references, depending on the type of publication:

Book | Chapter in book | Journal artice | Webpage2
author(s) title year of publication place of publication publisher (if applicable) edition (if applicable) DOI1 | author(s) of chapter editor(s) of the book title of the chapter title of book year of publication place of publication publisher edition DOI1 | author(s) of the article title of the article title of the journal year of publication volume issue number page range DOI¹ | author(s) or organization responsible for the content title of the page (check the bar at the top of the browser) title of the site (see the homepage of the site) date of last update of the page, or copyright date date you accessed the website full web address (URL) of the page

1 Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) are a series of characters that provide a permanent link to individual publications. An example of a DOI is: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-024-00573-7. DOIs are assigned to different types of publications, such as books, book chapters, and articles. When a DOI has been assigned, you are required to include it in the reference list.

2You cannot always find all of this information for a web page, but record as many details as possible.