Writing Center Paraphrasing and Using Sources

Statement on Plagiarism Plagiarism (the intentional or unintentional theft of intellectual ideas), occurs whenever any information is used from another source without giving the author(s) of that source credit for the information. You must document sources every time you borrow any information, including facts, statistics, numbers, ideas, concepts, names, locations, or dates. Even if you are paraphrasing or summarizing information, you must still provide a citation for that information.

When to Cite Anytime you borrow thoughts, ideas, concepts, figures, or theories from an outside source, you need to give credit to those authors. Your citation should be provided immediately after you invoke a source. If you cite a source multiple times throughout a paragraph, cite the author in the first sentence in which you use their ideas, and if you readers can make the assumption you are using the same source throughout the paragraph, you only need the one citation. You will have to re-cite the source if you integrate new authors in a paragraph, or change to a new paragraph.

How to Cite In APA style you need to cite the author(s) of the piece, and provide a year of publication. For example, (Smith, 2007). For direct quotes, a page number must be included as well: (Smith, 2007, p. 57) Page numbers are not required for paraphrasing, but can be included by the author.

What is Paraphrasing? Paraphrasing is the process of the writer breaking down what he or she is reading, pulling out only the information that is relevant to the topic he or she is writing on. Properly paraphrased information should be written in the writer’s own words with an understanding of the information he or she is choosing to use. When writing a research paper, you are expected to integrate your cited material into your paper. Simply using direct quotes will not accomplish that.

The Purpose of Paraphrasing When writing in APA, the use of direct quotes should be limited. Your paper should include only two or three direct quotes. In APA style, how something is said is not nearly as important as what is said. Papers in APA style should focus in on what you are doing to combine the arguments of others, and use them, in addition to your own words, to create a new academic argument.

The Importance of a Focus Statement Your focus statement will let you know how to properly paraphrase, and what pieces of an article are important to sample for your essay. The authors of the piece you are citing have their own specific purpose for writing, which is different than your purpose, so you will want to refocus their ideas with your thesis in mind. While paraphrasing work, it is important to remember the goal of using outside sources is to support your work, so you will have to refocus the paraphrase so it specifically deals with the focus of your essay.

How to Paraphrase While paraphrasing, you want to take the most important aspect of what an original author is saying, and put it in your own words. When paraphrasing, you do not want to merely rearrange the original author’s words, but refocus them to support the purpose of your writing. To properly paraphrase, it is important to have a strong focus statement.

Example Topic: The importance of meditation in stress management. Quote: “Through the implementation of private, focused, daily meditation in a quiet space, 70% of participants reported feeling less stressed, while 59% reported feeling more confident in their relationships, and 68% reported feeling physically energized” (Corbin, 2001, p. 418). Paraphrase: “A majority of people who participated in mediation saw various physical and mental benefits (Corbin, 2001).

How to Paraphrase Find the main idea within a direct quote that you plan on using. Read that quote multiple times until you have a strong understanding of it. Take that idea and write it down on a separate piece of paper. Ignore everything else the author said that isn’t that idea. Incorporate the idea into your paper using your own words, with your purpose in mind.