Viittaustyylien

Viittaustyylit, or citation styles, are standardized methods for acknowledging the sources of information used in academic and research writing. They provide a consistent framework for citing both in-text references and the full bibliography or reference list. The primary purpose of using a citation style is to give credit to the original authors, avoid plagiarism, and allow readers to locate the original sources.

There are numerous citation styles, each with its own specific rules for formatting citations. Common examples include APA (American Psychological Association), MLA (Modern Language Association), Chicago/Turabian, and Harvard. The choice of style often depends on the academic discipline, the publication venue, or the specific requirements of an institution or professor.

A citation style typically dictates how to format the author's name, publication date, title of the work, and publication details such as the journal name, publisher, or website URL. In-text citations, which appear within the body of the text, usually include the author's last name and the publication year, and sometimes a page number. The corresponding full citation is then provided in a reference list at the end of the document, offering more comprehensive details about each source. Adhering to a specific viittaustyyli ensures clarity, credibility, and academic integrity.