Harvard Referencing
T he ‘In-Text’ System
General Principles of the Har vard System
The Harvard System requires two parts: you should have both in-text references and a list of references at the end of your work.
1. Within the Text—In-text Citations
The Harvard referencing system requires you to include three pieces of information about a source within the text of your work. This information is:
• the name of the author or authors
• the year of publication
• the page number (when the information/idea can be located on a particular page, or when directly quoted)
2. At the End of the Text—List of References
At the end of your text, you must include a List of References, a list of all the books, journal articles and other sources of information you have used to research your assignment.
1. In-Text Citations
How to Cite ‘In-Text’
Citations may be placed at the end of a sentence (before the concluding punctuation) in brackets:
The theory was first developed by Browne (Gibbs 1981).
Another way of including a reference in your text is to integrate the author’s surname into your sentence, followed by the year of publication and page number, in parentheses:
What is Referencing?
Referencing is a system that allows you to acknowledge the sources of information you use in your writing. If you do not reference your sources you are plagiarising.
When to Reference
You must provide a reference whenever you quote, paraphrase or summarise someone else’s ideas, theories or data. You must also reference any graphic information you use. Some of the sources you will need to reference include:
• books or chapters in books
• journal or newspaper articles
• conference papers
• films or television programs
• personal communications like emails, interviews or letters
• electronic sources such as web pages, journal articles from online databases, or usenet groups.
Gibbs (1981, p. 89) states that Browne was the first to develop the theory of...
The following extract is an example of a paragraph using the Harvard system:
Criticisms aside, Durkheim’s work was an extraordinary contribution to the sociology of religion, perhaps more specifically to a greater understanding of the origins of collective morality. Gardner (1987, p. 74) makes an extremely important point about Durkheim when he writes “Durkheim had a lifelong interest in morality . . . For Durkheim morality was the centre and end of his work and society itself was the end and source of morality” . For Durkheim, the nature of morality was the nature of social solidarity. In The Elementary Forms Durkheim defined religion as the main expression of the deep moral sentiments inspired by society in individuals. His interest in the moral substratum of the modern social order expressed concern with the moral consequences of modernisation (Toles 1993).
To cite a direct quotation
Write the text word for word and place quotation marks at the beginning and end of the quotation. The author, date and page number must be included.
“Australia is a settler society” (Hudson & Bolton 1997, p. 9).
To cite a paraphrase or a short summary of an author’s words or ideas
Restate the original words/ idea in your own words. The author, date and page number(s) must be included.
Wartime textile rationing was imposed through a coupon system, which meant garments now had two costs: their value in monetary units and in coupons (McKernan 1995, p. 152).
To reference the overall content of a work
You do not need to include page numbers because it is the entire work you are referring to:
Larsen and Greene (1989) studied the effects of pollution in three major cities...
2: List of References
The List of References in the Harvard system is a single list of all the books, journal articles and other sources you have referred to throughout your assignment.
1. A list of references should be laid out alphabetically by author surname.
2. If bibliographic information exceeds one line of text, then the following lines should have a hanging indent.
3. The title of a book should be in italics. Minimal capitalisation is recommended (e.g. only capitalise the first word of a title’s heading/ subheading and any proper nouns).
Citing Dif ferent Sources
To cite a book
In the text
A page number is required if you are paraphrasing, summarising or quoting directly:
(Karskens 1997, p.23)
Ward (1966, p. 12) suggests that ...
If you are only citing the main idea of the book:
(Karskens 1997)
In the List of References
Karskens, G 1997, The Rocks: life in early Sydney, Melbourne University Press,
Carlton.
Ward, R 1966, The Australian legend, 2nd edn, Oxford University Press,
Melbourne.
Present full bibliographic details in the following order:
1. author’s surname and initial(s)
2. year of publication
3. title of publication (in italics and with minimal capitalisation)
4. edition (if applicable. Abbreviated as ‘edn’)
5. publisher
6. place of publication
To cite a journal article
In the text
If the page number is required, as it is for summarising, paraphrasing and direct quoting:
(Kozulin 1993, p. 257)
If you are citing the main idea of the article only:
(Kozulin 1993)
In the List of References
Kozulin, A 1993, ‘ Literature as a psychological tool’, Educational Psychologist, vol.
28, no. 3, summer, pp. 253-265.
Place the information in the following order:
1. author’s surname and initial
2. year of publication
3. title of article (between single quotation marks and with minimal capitalisation)
4. title of journal or periodical (in italics, using maximum capitalisation)
5. volume number, if applicable
6. issue number, month or season (if applicable)
7. page numbers of the article
To cite an article from a book collection
A book collection consists of a collection of articles or chapters, each by different authors, but compiled by editor(s).
If you want to cite a particular article/chapter, cite the author(s) of the article in the text:
(Curthoys 1997, p. 25)
In the List of References
When you use an article or chapter from a book collection, the title of the article appears in quotations. The title of the book is italicised. For example:
Curthoys, A 1997, ‘History and identity’, in W Hudson & G Bolton (eds), Creating
Australia: changing Australian history, Allen & Unwin, Sydney, pp. 23-38.
Place the information in the following order:
1. author’s surname and initial
2. year of publication
3. name of article (between single quotation marks and with minimal capitalisation)
4. in
5. initial(s) and surname(s) of editor(s)
6. (ed.) or (eds)
7. name of collection (the name on the title page) in italics and minimal capitalisation
8. publisher
9. place of publication
10. page range
To cite a book collection
If you want to cite the entire book, refer to the editors(s) of the collection in the text:
(Hudson & Bolton 1997)
To cite the entire book:
Hudson, W & Bolton, G (eds) 1997, Creating Australia: changing Australian history,
Allen & Unwin, Sydney.
To cite a quotation or idea from an author who attributes it to another source
You must acknowledge both sources in your text:
Graham Gibbs, in his 1981 study into student learning wrote that “because students are aware of their tutor’s mastery of the subject matter, it is quite common for them to assume that their reader has no needs at all” (Gibbs 1981, p. 39, cited in Bowden & Marton 1998, p. 35).
In the List of References, record the book that you actually sourced:
Bowden, J & Marton, F 1998, The university of learning, Kogan Page, London.
To refer to more than one work
Separate the references either with a semicolon or the word and
Each source will require a separate entry in the List of References.
(Entwistle 1977; Haddon 1969) or :
Entwistle (1977) and Haddon (1969) both demonstrated ...
To cite more than one author
Include both names in the order in which they appear on the title page:
(Gerster & Basset 1987) or:
In the List of References:
Gerster, R & Bassett, J 1991, Seizures of youth: the sixties and Australia, Hyland
House, Melbourne.
Gerster and Basset (1987) assert that ...
To cite more than three authors
Use the surname of the first author and et al.
(‘and others’) in the text:
Leeder et al. (1996, p. 78) argued ... or:
(Leeder et al. 1996)
In the List of References:
Leeder, SR, Dobson, AJ, Gibbers, RW, Patel, NK, Mathews, PS, Williams, DW &
Mariot, DL 1996, The Australian film industry, Dominion Press, Adelaide.
Don’t use et al. in the list of references. List all authors in the order in which they appear on the title page
To cite more than one work by the same author
Arrange citations in chronological order:
Each source will require a separate reference list entry.
(Smith 1981, 1984, 1985)
To cite authors with the same family name who have published in the same year
Use their initials to indicate different people:
Each source will require a separate reference list entry.
The theory was first developed early this century (Smith, A K 1979) but later many of its elements were refuted (Smith, J A 1979).
To cite an author who published more than one work in the same year
Attach an a, b, c, d etc. after the year:
Each source will require a separate reference list entry.
Dawkins (1972a, 1972b) completed a number of studies on...
To cite a part of a publication contributed by someone other than the main author
For example, a preface, introduction or foreword contributed by someone other than the author of the publication:
Drabble (in Bronte 1978) suggests ….
In the List of References, provide the details of the publication to which the contribution was made:
Bronte, E 1978, Wuthering Heights and poems, H Osborne (ed.), Orion Publishing
Group, London. Introduction by Margaret Drabble.
To cite unpublished material (thesis, a manuscript, an unpublished paper)
In the text
(Ballard 2003, p. 132)
(Fitzsimmons 2005)
When citing a thesis in the List of References:
1. put the title between quotation marks and do not use italics.
2. acknowledge the university where the thesis was undertaken
Ballard, BA 2003, ‘The seeing machine: photography and the visualisation of culture in Australia, 1890-1930’, PhD thesis, University of Melbourne.
An unpublished conference paper:
Fitzsimmons, D 2005, ‘Who chooses who belongs: tactics and strategies and migrant literature’, paper presented at the AULLA & FILLM conference, James
Cook University, Cairns, 15-19th July.
To cite from newspapers and magazines
In the text
List of References
If there is no author, list the name of the newspaper, the date, year and page number:
An unattributed newspaper article:
(Sydney Morning Herald 7 March 1994, p. 8)
If there is an author, cite as you would for a journal article:
(Donaghy 1994, p. 3)
‘UNSW gains top ranking from quality team’, Sydney Morning Herald, 30 February,
1994, p. 21.
A newspaper article with a named author:
Donaghy, B 1994, ‘National meeting set to review tertiary admissions’, Campus
News, 3-9 March, p. 3.
To quote from a privately obtained interview or other personal communication
Include the abbreviation ‘pers. comm.’ in your intext reference:
(B Daly 1994, pers. comm., 7 Aug.)
Note that the initial(s) precede the surname.
Details of a personal communication do not usually need to be included in the
List of References as it cannot be traced by the reader. Check with your tutor or lecturer for their preferences.
Before using personal communications, ensure you have the permission of the person with whom you communicated.
Brochure
In the text, cite the author or authoring body and the date if available:
(New South Wales Dept of Primary Industries 2005)
New South Wales Dept of Primary Industries 2005, Saltwater recreational fishing in New
South Wales: rules & regulations summary, brochure, NSWDPI, New South Wales.
Inlcude as much information as available. The publisher’s name may be abbreviated if it is also the author.
To cite a work reproduced in a book (image, poem, painting etc)
Refer to the work in the text, then include book author, date, page number:
De Kooning’s 1952 painting ‘Woman and Bicycle’
(Hughes 1980, p. 295) is an example of ...’
List the book containing the image:
Hughes, R 1980, The shock of the new: art and the century of change, British
Broadcasting Corporation, London.
Government Publications
If there is no obvious author or editor, cite the sponsoring agency as the author:
(Department of Education, Science & Training 2000)
Give the name of the ministry or agency that has issued the document
Department of Education, Science & Training 2000, Annual Report 1999-2000,
AGPS, Canberra.
ABS Statistics
Use the full name in the first in-text reference:
(Australian Bureau of Statistics 2005)
and use the abbreviation ‘ABS’ in subsequent references: (ABS 2005)
Australian Bureau of Statistics 2005, New South Wales in focus, Cat. no. 1338.1,
Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
name of agency as author year of publication title of publication (in italics) catalogue number name of publisher place of publication
If you are viewing the information online, include:
1. date of viewing (if viewed online)
2. database name (if applicable)
3. URL (between pointed brackets
Australian Bureau of Statistics 2007, Internet Activity, Australia, Sep 2006, Cat. no. 8153.0, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra, viewed 11 April 2007,
.
Finding More Information
The material in our guide is based on the 6th edition of the Government Style Manual:
Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers 2002, 6th edn, revised by Snooks & Co., AGPS, Canberra.
For more detailed information and examples, we recommend that you consult this source, especially Chapter 12 (pp. 187-232).
Many faculties and schools at UNSW have style guides indicating how referencing for assignments should be done. The Learning
Centre strongly suggests that you check with them about which method to use.
It is impossible to include every referencing format in this pamphlet. If you need referencing information for a format not listed here, seek further assistance from your lecturer or tutor, a Harvard referencing website (try an internet search), or a style manual. Style manuals for different citation systems are available in the UNSW library.
For advice on citing electronic and internet sources using the Harvard system, please see our website: http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/olib.html
