A citation is a reference to any published work as well as any form of communication with sufficient details to uniquely identify the item. When academics, scientists and other professionals refer to any published work in their own published work, they cite it, giving the author, year and title of publication (Darity 2008).
Question: Why are citations important for the research process? Because citations ....
- validate and give credibility to an author(s)' ideas by showing that they came from a reliable source
- help the readers critically evaluate the quantity, quality and scope of academic research that has gone into the production of the work
- help the readers critically evaluate the varieties of disciplinary knowledge and voices that were taken into account when producing the work
- help the readers critically evaluate the contribution that particular articles, books and other resources have made to the creation of the work
- gives student researchers potential ideas on where to find to additional resources for their papers and topics