Pols 350 Group and Minority Politics

Research Paper Citation Guidelines

The preferred method for citing sources in the text of your papers is parenthetical citation.  This form of citation is designed to provide immediate source information without interrupting the flow of the paper.  The text citations refer the reader to the complete source information, included on a separate reference, or works cited, page with an alphabetical listing by author.  Here's an example:

Lobbying for Washington policymakers is no longer just an inside game (Birnbaum, 2001).  Birnbaum (2001) argues that "the best way to manipulate legislation is by mobilizing blocs of voters, not by buying access to politicians with campaign contributions (16).

Birnbaum, Jeffrey H. (2001). "The Secrets to Washington's Power Game." The International Economy: July-August, 14-17.

The key to citing sources--whether they be books, articles, or web sites--is to be consistent and complete, so that the reader can relocate the source if necessary.  There are several different documentation styles and any are appropriate for this paper.  You should use the one with which you are most familiar. 

The Writing Center at UW-Madison provides helpful descriptions of the APSA, APA, Chicago/Turabian, and MLA documentation styles, including guidelines for reference to electronic sources.  MLA and APA have their own web sites describing their formats for citing material from electronic sources.

The Writing Center website also contains a wealth of useful information for students embarking on a research paper project.   Topics include tips on completing a research paper, developing appropriate thesis statements, quoting and paraphrasing from research sources, and using proper grammar and style for the research paper.

Professor Rodd Freitag Schneider 200E Phone: (715) 836-5044 Fax: (715) 836-2944 Updated: February 5, 2008