Chapter 7: Avoiding Plagiarism

Unintentional plagiarism is the use of another writer’s work without properly acknowledging the source of the ideas or information. Unintentional plagiarism is often the result of rushed work on a project. It can sometimes result from inadequate research writing skills or honest mistakes.
Step 1:
       Open your draft and check your essay for attribution. Review your draft to identify each quotation, paraphrase, and summary. Make sure that you have attributed each of them appropriately. For example, if you are quoting or paraphrasing a source written by Gordon Broadstreet, you might write:

  • According to Broadstreet,
  • Broadstreet notes,
  • Broadstreet writes
  • ...wrote Broadstreet,

If any quotations, paraphrases, or summaries are missing attributions, revise the sentences in the box below, adding an appropriate attribution.

Step 2:
        Check for appropriate in-text citation. Each use of information from a source should be accompanied by a reference to the source. If any source material is missing an in-text citation, add it in the box below.


Step 3:
        Have you created a works cited list, references list, bibliography, or list of works consulted? Ensure that each source is included in your works cited or references list. If any source is missing from your works cited or references list, write a correct entry for it in the box below.
Step 4:
        Review your essay to check for changes in writing style. If you find any, check your notes to identify the source of the passage. Have you neglected to include quotation marks or paraphrased too closely? Insert any missing quotation marks, in-text citation, and works cited entry, or revise the paraphrase so it is not too close to the original passage.




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