Sweetland-Rackham Presents Beyond Plagiarism: The Role of Citation Norms in Establishing Scholarly Credibility

While proper citation of sources is required of any writer who wants to avoid plagiarism, academic norms regarding citation and source use are complex and extend beyond law and ethics. Danielle LaVaque-Manty explains how you can enhance your scholarly credibility in this Sweetland-Rackham Workshop on Writing.
Beyond Plagiarism: The Role of Citation Norms in Establishing Scholarly Credibility

Danielle LaVaque-Manty

February 13, 3-4:30 PM, Rackham West Conference Room

While proper citation of sources is required of any writer who wants to avoid plagiarism, academic norms regarding citation and source use are complex and extend beyond law and ethics. This Sweetland-Rackham Workshop on Writing offers a quick overview of key ethical concerns, followed by a more in-depth exploration of the role of citation practices in establishing scholarly credibility. Distinctions between plagiarism and copyright violations will be noted, but the workshop focuses more on how to situate one’s own research in a broader rhetorical landscape (how to position one’s work in an academic field) than on how to avoid breaking laws. This workshop will be most useful for graduate students in any discipline who are beginning to think about disseminating original research, whether at conferences or for publication. It will not address technicalities of copyright law in science or engineering fields.

Topics addressed:
* Law vs. ethics vs. credibility

* Varieties of plagiarism

* Effective use of paraphrasing

* How to signal your own research contributions through

strategic use and citation of sources

Danielle LaVaque-Manty teaches in the Sweetland Center for Writing.