Avoiding Plagiarism

plagiarism

Plagiarism is the act of using someone else’s work or ideas without giving them proper credit, presenting it as if it were your own.

Incidents of plagiarism and other ethical violations are unfortunately common, both in and out of our work environments. 

Both intentional and unintentional plagiarism are problems, and you should do everything you can to keep them from happening. As the UNSW Sydney’s page for their current students describes, “most incidents of plagiarism are the product not of deliberate cheating, but of underdeveloped academic skills.”^[1] Often the problem isn’t with the ethical standing of the author but with something else, such as lack of time, lack of clear notes, and lack of understanding of proper referencing.

Three rules for avoiding plagiarism:

• If you even suspect the idea is someone else’s, take the time to go back through notes, Google, or other reputable sources, and search for the author.
• Allow enough time to plan, write, and revise your reports.
• If you are not sure of authorship, consider using other evidence or sources to articulate your idea.

There are, however, very few things that don’t require attributions: scientific or mathematical equations and “common knowledge.” You don’t have to provide a citation if you include the equation E = mc², but you do need to attribute a quote that explains the history of the equation’s discovery. You don’t have to provide a citation if you include the fact that gravity exists, but you do need to provide a citation for a study that discusses how gravity impacts astronauts on the International Space Station.

Documenting and Citing Sources

Proper citation of sources is essential to avoiding plagiarism or copyright violations. There are several citation styles used for academic writing:

• American Psychological Association (APA) style, commonly used for psychology and social sciences
• Modern Language Association (MLA) style, commonly used in the humanities
• The Chicago Manual of Style, also used in the humanities

When doing writing for school, always check with the instructor for the citation style that they want you to use.

While academic writing requires a proper citation in accordance with generally agreed-upon rules, business writing might not need to be so precise. The intention of attribution and not taking credit for someone else’s work is still necessary in business writing. However, the form of the citation will be determined by your organization and may not follow the above citation styles exactly. 

Style and visual considerations are often important for business writing as well. Business reports might use footnotes or citations in a smaller font so as not to distract from the main text and graphics. This is reasonable for the type of document.

The key here is proper attribution and doing it in a manner that conforms with the visual and general use of your sources. The closer to academic work you are, the more precise and formal it needs to be. If, however, you worked for something like a startup or a smaller company, overly formal and precise citations might not be required. Use your best judgment and always ask if you are unsure.

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