Viitekäytäntö

Viitekäytäntö refers to the established rules and guidelines for citing sources within academic and professional work. It encompasses the methodology for acknowledging the origin of information, ideas, data, and quotations used in a document. Adhering to a specific viitekäytäntö ensures academic integrity by preventing plagiarism and giving credit to the original authors.

Different fields and institutions often adopt specific citation styles, such as APA, MLA, Chicago, or Harvard. Each style has its own set of rules for formatting in-text citations and bibliographies or reference lists. These rules dictate how to present author names, publication dates, titles, and publication details, whether in the body of the text or at the end of the work.

The primary purposes of a viitekäytäntö are to allow readers to locate the original sources for further research, to demonstrate the author's engagement with existing scholarship, and to maintain a consistent and professional presentation of the work. Proper citation is a fundamental skill for researchers, students, and writers across disciplines. Understanding and applying the correct viitekäytäntö is crucial for producing credible and ethically sound work.