DBS Library

Referencing Series
Harvard Referencing
What is referencing?
Referencing is a standard method of acknowledging the sources of information you have consulted in
NOTE:
compiling your assignment. Anything – words, figures, graphs, theories, ideas, facts, images –
The information and
originating from another source and used in your assignment must be referenced (i.e. acknowledged).
examples contained in this
In your assignment (e.g. essay, seminar paper, dissertation, project, etc.) you must provide the reader guide are chiefly derived
with precise information pertaining to every source referred to in your written work or consulted as from the following
part of your research. publication: Pears, R. and
Shields, G. (2017) Cite them
What is Harvard Referencing? right: the essential
referencing guide. Durham:
Harvard referencing is a specific style of referencing. This style is often referred to as the ‘author-date’ Pear Tree Books.
style. As there is no single authority to define this style, several different versions of Harvard
Referencing exist. Please refer to this guide for the specific version used within Dublin Business School.
All business students within Dublin Business School are required to use the Harvard referencing format
in their assignments.

Why reference?
Referencing is a vital part of academic research and writing. There are several reasons why it is so important, some of which are
listed below:
• To avoid plagiarism • To verify your research and quotations
• To back up your argument(s) • To provide your reader with the details needed to
• To establish credibility source the original documents, etc. used in your research

What is plagiarism?
Plagiarism is defined by the College as the act of presenting the work, written or otherwise, of any other person, including another student
or institution, as your own. The only way to use another person’s work without committing plagiarism is to fully and precisely reference
the original author(s) in your own work.
You must cite and reference all materials, including both print and electronic, which you have used or presented in your own work.
Whether you use another author’s words directly or you summarise someone else’s ideas and write about them in your own words, you
must cite and reference the original work in your assignment. Not to do so would be an act of plagiarism. Please follow the examples
detailed in this guide to ensure you cite and reference correctly in all your assignments.

What about common knowledge? What’s the difference

between a reference list
Widely known information or facts such as names, events and/or dates do not always have to be and a bibliography?
referenced. This is known as common knowledge. For example, it is commonly known that Neil Reference list – only includes
Armstrong was the first man to walk on the Moon in 1969, thus there is no need to cite or reference sources cited in the text of
such a statement in your work. your assignment.
If you are in doubt over whether or not something is common knowledge, cite it! Bibliography – includes all
materials used in the
How to reference: a three-step process preparation of your work.

There are 3 basic steps to citing and referencing throughout your research and writing:
1. Record the details of all materials used in your research and reading as you go along – this will ensure you have all the requisite
information to create your citations and references when you begin writing your assignment.
2. Create an in-text citation every time you use or refer to someone else’s work within your own assignment
3. Build your reference list as you go along (in alphabetical order), listing every source cited within the text of your assignment.

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http://library.dbs.ie
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Email: library@dbs.ie
Types of use
Direct Quotation
1. Direct quotes should be used sparingly and only when relevant to your argument. Short and long quotes are treated differently.
2. Short quotes (less than 40 words) should be contained within the main body of your text with a citation which includes the page
number and quotation marks, as in the following example:
Example
Bernanke (2015, p. 137) stated “since 1934, the federal government has protected bank depositors against losses, up to a limit,
even if their bank fails”.

3. Long quotes (40 words or more) should be entered as a separate paragraph from the main body of your text. The quotation should be
indented and contain a full citation. Quotation marks are not required.

Example
Bernanke (2015) suggests that John Maynard Keynes ideas depended on
“ the notion that wages and at least some prices are “sticky”- that is, they do not adjust rapidly enough to always ensure full
employment and full utilization of the capital stock (factories and equipment). In Keynesian theory, an unexpected decline in
demand- says, a fall in business investment in new equipment or reduction in government spending- can lead to increased
unemployment, as companies, facing lower sales, reduce production and lay off workers” (Bernanke, 2015, p. 27).

4. If you omit a section of a quote, place three dots (...) in place of the removed text.
5. If you want to explain a section of the quote in more detail (with your own words), place your explanation inside square brackets
within the text of the quote, as in the following example:

Example
Farage declared “the old guard [British civil servants] all need clearing out, every single one of them ” (Connelly, 2017, p. 158).

Paraphrasing
1. Paraphrasing is re-writing or re-stating another person’s idea or argument in your own words, rather than using a direct quote.
2. You must always cite (including page number) and reference the original material when you paraphrase another writer’s work.
3. Paraphrasing is often more appropriate than a direct quote as it does not disrupt the natural flow of your own writing style.

Example
In a recent book, Dessler (2017, p.176) demonstrates how firms are using social media tools to screen potential employees.

Summarising
1. Summarising is different to paraphrasing. When you summarise something you create a brief synopsis or list the main points of
another piece of work without providing minute detail of the arguments or ideas portrayed in that work.
2. As with quotations and paraphrasing, you must always cite (no page number needed) and reference the original author(s).

Example
Reich (2017) points out the influence the super-rich have over the US economy and government.

Secondary referencing Fair Use or Copyright Infringement?

• It is important to note that extensive use
1. If you are reading a source by one author and they cite or quote work by (either quotes or paraphrasing) of
another author, you may in turn cite or quote the original work. another person’s work can constitute
2. In such cases you use the phrase “cited in” to refer to both the original author unfair use and be deemed a case of
and the source which you have found it in. copyright infringement.
• Therefore, although you may reference
Example everything correctly you may still commit
In 2000 the market value of a homeowner's interest in their real property an act of plagiarism if your assignment is
had become a strong driver of consumption in consumer durables. (Mian made up of a significant amount of
and Sufi, 2014, cited in Thaler, 2015, p. 78). another person’s work.
3. In your reference list, you should only add the source that you referred to • Your assignment should be your own
directly. thoughts and words based on a critical
4. Although secondary referencing is acceptable, ideally you should try to locate analysis of the ideas, theories,
and read the original work in order to confirm and critically evaluate the point discussions and arguments that you have
or issue being referred to in the secondary source. researched and read.

BOOKS
Type
Book - single author
Book – two to three
authors
Book – four or more
authors
Book - editor
Book – chapter in an
edited book
Book – multiple works
by same author
(published in different
years)
Book – multiple works
by same author
(published in same year)
Book – no identifiable
author
eBook – from a Kindle
etc. (no page numbers)
eBook - from
Dawsonera.com
(DBS eBook collection)
*For more information and examples
please refer to the following
publication (available in the Library):
Pears, R. and Shields, G. (2017) Cite
them right: the essential referencing
guide. Durham: Pear Tree Books.
This guide presents examples of how to reference textual sources. However if you use
material from non-textual sources such as podcasts or documentaries you must also cite
the source in full. For details check out the Cite them right manual*.
In-text citation
According to Trott (2017, p. 59) innovation
has ….
The duties of project managers have
expanded from an operational to a more
strategic level (Larson and Gray, 2014, p. 26).
Slack et al. (2015, p.6) explains that large
business have used operations and process
management principles …
... global warming is a result of the release of
greenhouse gases in developed countries
(Lechner and Boli, 2012, p.4).
Hamad (2018, p.21) discusses the idea that ...
Laudon and Traver (2016, 2017) explain that...
If the town/city is not well known, you may add a
county, region or state (e.g. Harlow Essex, ) Note,
in the USA states are denoted by a two letter code,
e.g. NJ = New Jersey.
The view proposed by Godfrey (2013a,
2013b)...
Debenture is defined as ... (Dictionary of
Business Terms, 2008, p. 40).
1. According to Stiglitz (2013, loc. 1956) the..
2. Smith (2012, cha. 5, sec. 4, para. 9) stated…
3. Jones (2011, no pagination) warned that…
The principles of good accounting practice, as
set out by Dyson (2017, p. 19) ...
MANAGING YOUR REFERENCES
You can use a software
package such as Zotero to
manage your references.
Check out the Library’s guide
to Zotero, available online &
in the Library.
Reference List
Trott, P. (2017) Innovation management and new
product development. 6th edn. Harlow: Pearson
Education.
Larson, E. W. and Gray, C. F. (2014) Project
management :the managerial process. 6th edn. New
York: McGraw-Hill.
Slack, N. , Brandon-Jones, A. , Johnston, R. and Betts, A.
(2015) Operations and process management :principles
and practice for strategic impact. 4th edn. Harlow:
Pearson Education.
Lechner, F. J. and Boli, J. (eds.) (2012) The globalization
reader. 4th edn. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.
Use the name of the city in your reference. If there is more than one
location listed (e.g. Chichester, New York, etc.) use the nearest
geographical place or the city of the publisher’s head office.
Hamad, F. (2018) ‘Approaches to information
architecture’, in Urquhart, C. and Hamad, F. Tbaishat,
D. and Yeoman, A . (eds.) Information systems :process
and practice. London: Facet Publishing , pp. 9-31.
Laudon, K. C. and Traver, C. G. (2017) E-commerce
2017. 13th edn. Harlow, Essex : Pearson Education.
Laudon, K. C. and Traver, C. G. (2018) E-commerce
2018 :business, technology, society. 14th edn. Harlow,
Essex: Pearson Education.
Godfrey, J. (2013a) How to use your reading in your
essays. 2th edn. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Godfrey, J. (2013b) The student phrase
book :vocabulary for writing at university. Basingstoke:
Palgrave Macmillan.
Dictionary of Business Terms (2008) Wokingham:
Kaplan Publishing.
Stiglitz, J. (2013). The price of inequality. [Name of e-
book reader] London: Penguin.
1. Kindles allow users to see the location of text,
use this as an identifier (loc.).
2. For other formats use chapter (cha.), section
(sec.) and paragraph (para.) where possible.
3. If none exist use no pagination
Dyson, J.R. (2017) Accounting for non-accounting
students. 9th edn. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education.
Dawsonera [Online]. Available at:
https://www.dawsonera.com/abstract/978129212904
4 (Accessed: 16 November 2018).
More examples...
 JOURNALS, NEWSPAPERS & REPORTS

Type In-text citation Reference List

Journal - article from a small businesses struggle to measure the Meenaghan, T. (2018) ‘Taking sponsorship to the next
print journal value of sponsorship (Meenaghan, 2018, p. level’, Irish Marketing Journal, 44(6), pp. 16-18.
16).
Volume & Issue information:
44 = Volume number
6 = Issue number

eJournal – full text According to Satell (2018, p. 21), “We Satell, G. (2018) ‘The industrial era ended, and so will
article in an electronic need to prepare for a new era of the digital era: interaction’, Harvard Business Review,
database innovation, one in which technologies such 96(5), pp. 21–21. Business Source Complete,
as genomics, materials science, and EBSCOhost [Online]. (Accessed: 16 November 2018).
robotics rise to the fore”.
eJournal – full text Findings by Sweeney and Hughes (2017, Sweeney, S. and Hughes, D. (2017) ‘Integrating visual
article from a free open- p.24) indicate ... literacy training into the business curriculum. A case
access online journal study at Dublin Business School’, DBS Business Review,
1(0). doi: 10.22375/dbsbr.v1.7. (Accessed: 16
November 2018).

Newspaper – article ... to curb their public debts and deficit Peel, Q. (2010) ‘Berlin pushes for global curbs’,
from a print newspaper spending (Peel, 2010). Financial Times, 21 May, p. 6.

eNewspaper – article ... Google is in danger of incurring large The Irish Times (2018) ‘Google accused of abusing
from an online fines from the EU (The Irish Times, 2018). location tracking tools’, The Irish Times, 27 November
newspaper (accessed 2018 [Online]. Available at:
If an author’s name is given, enter in the citation
directly through the https://www.irishtimes.com/business/technology/goo
& reference list.
newspaper’s website) gle-accused-of-abusing-location-tracking-tools-
1.3711963 (Accessed: 27 November 2018).
eReport – from an It was noted recently by Mintel (2018)... Mintel (2018) `Broadband Providers - Ireland - June
electronic database 2018`. Mintel market research reports, Irish series
[Online].(Accessed: 16 November 2018).
EVALUATING WEBSITES: You should always ask the
question ‘Is this website reliable?’ when using the
WORLD WIDE WEB (WWW) internet for research. Check out the guide to
‘Evaluating Websites’ for further details.

Type In-text citation Reference List

Web page with an … 14% of all 9-11 year olds already had Gottlieb, J. and Gottlieb, J. (2018) `Custom earbuds
individual author significant hearing loss (Gottlieb and could save your hearing`. Why haven’t they taken
Gottlieb, 2018). off?`. Available at:
https://www.fastcompany.com/90266524/custom-
earbuds-could-save-your-hearing-why-havent-they-
taken-off (Accessed: 16 November 2018).

Web page as ... outlines the measures government
organisation as author. departments have taken to remove
barriers to employment creation
(Department of Enterprise, Trade and
Innovation, 2018).
Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation
(2018) `Action-Plan-for-Jobs-2018-First-Progress-
Report.pdf`. Available at:
https://dbei.gov.ie/en/Publications/Publication-
files/Action-Plan-for-Jobs-2018-First-Progress-
Report.pdf (Accessed: 16 November 2018).

Web page with no ... explains the features of an investment `Investments Scams`(2018) Available at
author scam (Investments Scams, 2018). https://www.moneysmart.gov.au/scams/investment-
scams (Accessed: 16 November 2018).
Web page with no ...video compression can be explained ‘http://newmediarepublic.com/dvideo/compression.h
author and no date (http:newmediarepublic.com/dvideo/com tml` (no date). Available at
pression.html, no date). http://newmediarepublic.com/dvideo/compression.h
tml (Accessed: 22 November 2018).