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avoiding plagiarism a guide to ethical writing
Concise Guide to APA Style: 7th Edition (OFFICIAL)
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Understanding Plagiarism: A Critical Analysis
Plagiarism, a serious ethical violation in academic and professional writing, involves presenting someone else’s work or ideas as your own.
This ebook excerpt delves into the nuances of plagiarism, offering a comprehensive overview of what constitutes this offense and how to avoid it.
Let’s dissect the key points:
The Necessity of Credit
The excerpt emphasizes the importance of giving credit where it’s due: “WORKS CREDITED IN TEXT Section 8.36) must provide more comprehensive credit in the form of a copyright attribution (see Section 8.39) and may need permission from the copyright holder to use the materials (see Section 8.38).” This highlights that simply acknowledging the source isn’t always enough; proper copyright attribution may be necessary, and in some cases, permission from the copyright holder is required.
The text further elaborates on the breadth of what needs to be credited: “The necessity for credit extends to the ideas of others as well.
For example, authors should credit the originators of theories they refer to in their paper.
If authors model a study after one conducted by someone else, the author of the original study should be given credit.
If the rationale for a study was suggested in someone else’s article, that person should be given credit.” It’s not just about directly quoting text; you must also acknowledge the source of ideas, research models, and rationales.
Recognizing the challenges in tracing the origin of ideas, the excerpt advises: “Given the free exchange of ideas, which is important to the health of intellectual discourse, authors may not be able to pinpoint exactly where the idea for their study originated.
They should make their best effort to find and acknowledge the source(s), including any personal communications (see Section 8.9).” This underscores the need for diligent research and acknowledgment, even when the source is unclear or involves personal communication.
Nuances and Gray Areas
While blatant plagiarism is easily identifiable, the excerpt acknowledges the existence of more complex cases: “Although many cases of plagiarism are straightforward (e.g., passages of text copied from another source without attribution), other cases are more challenging to evaluate.” This highlights the importance of understanding the subtleties of plagiarism.
The excerpt addresses the issue of incorrect citations: “Usually, using incorrect citations (e.g., misspelling an author’s name, forgetting or mistyping an element in a reference list entry, or citing a source in the text that does not have a corresponding reference list entry) is not considered plagiarism if the error is minor and attributable to an editorial oversight rather than an intentional attempt to steal someone’s ideas or obfuscate the origin of the information (Cooper, 2016).
However, such errors may still result in deductions on an academic assignment.” While unintentional citation errors are generally not considered plagiarism, they can still lead to academic penalties, emphasizing the need for meticulous attention to detail.
The Role of Plagiarism-Checking Software
The excerpt mentions the use of plagiarism-checking software: “Instructors and publishers may use plagiarism-checking software (e.g., iThenticate, Turnitin) to identify cases in which entire papers have been copied, passages of specified lengths match, or a few words have been changed but content is largely the same (the latter is known as patchwriting; see Merriam-Webster, n.d.-a).
However, human review is often necessary to determine whether plagiarism has actually taken place.” This emphasizes that these tools are aids in detection, not definitive judgments.
Human review is crucial to determine intent and context.
The excerpt concludes with practical advice: “Take careful notes as you research and write to keep track of and accurately cite your sources.
Check your work carefully to ensure that you acknowledge the words and ideas of others with citations in the text that have corresponding reference list entries.” This reinforces the importance of diligent note-taking, accurate citation, and thorough review.
Beyond Plagiarism: Unethical Writing Practices
The excerpt briefly touches on other unethical writing practices: “Unethical writing practices other than plagiarism are also prohibited.
For example, it is unethical to fabricate citations and/or reference list entries.
This practice gives the appearance of properly credited sources, but the sources are fictitious or untraceable; the author may have made up the information as well as the sources, or the information may come from real works that have not been…” This broadens the discussion beyond plagiarism to encompass other forms of academic dishonesty.
Conclusion
This excerpt provides a valuable overview of plagiarism, emphasizing the importance of proper attribution, the nuances of identifying plagiarism, and the ethical responsibilities of writers.
By understanding these principles and following best practices, authors can ensure the integrity of their work and contribute to the ethical exchange of ideas.
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Avoiding Plagiarism A Guide To Ethical Writing
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