Avoiding Accidental Plagiarism: Key Steps to Cite Properly

Subject : English

Question:

To avoid accidental plagiarism:

A. You always need to give credit to the person whose work or idea you are using.

B. You need to avoid citing any sources in your writing.

C. You’ll want to ask your instructor if you have any questions about properly citing sources.

D. You must give credit to your sources, unless you summarize someone else’s work in your own words.

Expert Verified Solution:

To avoid accidental plagiarism, it is essential to understand how to properly credit the original sources of information or ideas that you include in your work. The correct approach involves acknowledging the original authors, even when you paraphrase or summarize their ideas. Let’s look at each option to understand better:

A. “You always need to give credit to the person whose work or idea you are using.”
This is correct. Giving credit to the original author or creator whenever you use their work or ideas is a fundamental rule of avoiding plagiarism. This applies whether you directly quote, paraphrase, or summarize their work.

B. “You need to avoid citing any sources in your writing.”
This option is incorrect. Citing sources is crucial to avoid plagiarism. Not citing your sources is a direct route to committing plagiarism, whether intentional or accidental.

C. “You’ll want to ask your instructor if you have any questions about properly citing sources.”
This is correct. If you’re ever uncertain about how to cite a source properly or what constitutes plagiarism, seeking guidance from your instructor is a good practice.

D. “You must give credit to your sources, unless you summarize someone else’s work in your own words.”
This is incorrect. Even when summarizing or paraphrasing someone else’s work, you must still give credit to the original source. Summarizing without citation is still considered plagiarism.

Understanding these aspects of citation will help you avoid accidental plagiarism and maintain academic integrity in your writing.