There are three main reasons for referencing:
- to show which previous works your own work is drawing on
- to distinguish your own thoughts from those of others and to avoid suspicions of plagiarism
- to enable the reader to check out your sources or to delve deeper into the subject
Different disciplines have developed different ways of writing references. Examples of reference styles are Harvard, Oxford, APA, IEEE and Vancouver. Your supervisor should be able to tell you which is the most common and desirable style within your discipline.
Below you will find a selection of high-quality online guides to reference styles.