What is plagiarism?
Plagiarism is defined
as stealing someone else’s words or ideas and passing them off as your own. In
the context of academic writing, this means quoting someone’s words without
quotation marks or paraphrasing an idea without including a proper citation.
Dictionary
definition of “plagiarism” (from Merriam-Webster):
To
steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own: to use
(another’s production) without crediting the source
Plagiarism is also a
relevant concern in other contexts outside of academia. You might be aware of
high-profile examples
of plagiarism in the worlds of
art, politics, and music. It’s not only text that can be plagiarized, but also
creative works like music and images.
Why is
plagiarism bad?
Plagiarism is wrong because it doesn’t give credit where credit
is due—to the original creator of the work.
Plagiarism is a form of academic
dishonesty. Whether
you’re a student submitting a paper for a class or a researcher submitting to a
journal, the work you submit should be your own. Getting credit for work you
haven’t done impacts your learning and misleads your readers.
That doesn’t mean you can’t use others’ work. Drawing on
existing ideas and research is a key part of academic
writing. But it’s
important to clearly distinguish your own words and ideas from those of your
sources.
This not only gives proper credit to the works you referenced but also helps your readers track where your ideas came from and verify the
evidence for themselves.
Types of
plagiarism
In academic writing, there are various types
of plagiarism you
might encounter:
- Global
plagiarism means
plagiarizing an entire text. This includes purchasing an essay or turning
in an assignment completed by someone else.
- Verbatim
plagiarism means
directly copying someone’s words, without using quotation marks or citing
the source.
- Paraphrasing
plagiarism means
rephrasing someone else’s ideas and presenting them as if they were your
own original thoughts.
- Patchwork plagiarism means
copying phrases, passages, and ideas from different sources and compiling
them into a new text.
- Self-plagiarism means recycling
previous work that you’ve already submitted or published.
Although most plagiarism relates to the text, it’s also possible to
plagiarize things like images, data, and music. Any time you’re using something
someone else created, you must give credit to the source.
Other than global plagiarism, all these types can occur
accidentally as well as deliberately, through a lack of familiarity with how to
incorporate and cite sources properly. But even accidental plagiarism can still
have serious consequences.
Consequences
of plagiarism
Depending on the context, the consequences
of plagiarism range
from failing an assignment to serious legal trouble.
If you’re a student submitting work that you don’t intend to
publish, there likely will not be legal ramifications for plagiarism. However,
it can have serious consequences for your education, from a failing grade to
academic probation or expulsion.
If you are seeking to publish your work, plagiarism can damage
your reputation and land you in legal hot water. Not giving the original artist
or creator credit could lead to loss of gainful income or other financial
ramifications for them. Stealing intellectual property is against the law if
it’s copyrighted, and often has legal implications even if it isn’t.
Avoiding
plagiarism: Quote, paraphrase, cite
The most surefire way to avoid plagiarism is to always cite your
sources. But you also
need to make sure to properly integrate them into your text by either quoting
or paraphrasing.
When you want to use an idea or information from a source, but
the original phrasing isn’t important, paraphrase it. Make sure that you’ve
understood the original text and phrased it in your own way (not just swapped
out a couple of words for synonyms).
When you want to include an exact phrase, sentence, or passage
from a source, quote it. That means placing quotation marks
around any text copied directly from the source. Introduce each quote in your
own words, and avoid using standalone quotations as full sentences.
Some information is considered common
knowledge and
doesn’t need to be cited. Common knowledge is information that is widely known
and easily verified. For example, you wouldn’t need a citation to prove that
the Amazon is the world’s largest tropical rainforest.
How to avoid
plagiarism (3 steps)
Step 1: Keep
track of your sources
● Keep
a list of all the sources you consult
● Sources
include websites, videos, magazines, etc.
● Note
down sources just in case, even if you’re not sure you’ll use them
Details to write
down
✓ Author
name
✓ Source
title
✓ Publication
date
✓ Publisher
✓ Page
numbers of specific quotes or passages
✓ URL
or DOI for online sources
✓ Access
date for online sources
Step 2: Quote or
paraphrase
Two ways of sharing information from a
source:
|
Quoting |
Paraphrasing |
|
✓
Copy the author’s exact words ✓
Use quotation marks |
✓
Put the text into your own words ✓
No quotation marks |
Example of quoting
According to Darwin, “as natural selection acts
solely by accumulating slight, successive, favourable variations, it can
produce no great or sudden modification; it can act only by very short and slow
steps” (1859, p. 510).
When to use quotes
✓ To give textual evidence
✓ To analyze language
✓ To give precise definitions
Example of paraphrasing
According to Darwin, natural selection is a
gradual process that produces many small changes over time rather than sudden
leaps (1859, p. 510).
When to paraphrase
✓ To share information, To explain ideas, To show your understanding of the
source
Step 3: Cite the original source
●
In-text
citations briefly identify the source
●
A
reference list gives full source information
●
Follow
a consistent citation style (e.g. APA, MLA, Chicago)
●
Online
citation generators can help
APA citation example
In-text citation:
Recent research has shown that plagiarism is an
increasingly widespread issue (Smith & Thomas, 2018, pp. 34–36).
Reference list entry:
Smith, T. H., & Thomas, L. (2018). New
challenges in higher
education. Free Press.
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