Deakin University Harvard referencing tools

Whether you need to reference a book or a website, it’s important to get your Harvard referencing style right for your assignments. Below are links to the main Deakin resources you’ll need, plus a helpful step-by-step guide on how to do Harvard referencing and some accompanying FAQs and examples.

How to do Harvard referencing

Learning how to do Harvard referencing styles and formats can be tough. These tips will help to ensure you get your Harvard referencing right each and every time.

1. When writing your essay, make in-text citations (i.e. the last name of the author and published date in parentheses) and make sure you jot down the resources you use.
2. To correctly Harvard reference, you will need the name of the author, the year the book was published, title, city of publication, publisher and the page numbers that your references are on.
3. Consult the Deakin University Harvard referencing guide for the correct Harvard referencing style to format your references.
4. Make sure you put the reference list in alphabetical order by the author’s last name.
5. You’re all done! Go and hand in your assignment.

Deakin University Harvard referencing tools

The main tool you need to format your assignment using Harvard referencing is:

• Deakin study support page on Harvard referencing

FAQs

What is Harvard referencing?

Harvard referencing is a style of referencing used to cite sources of information. Sometimes referred to as the author/date citation system, Harvard referencing is an integral part of academic writing, primarily used by university students in essays. Its origins date back to the late 19th century, when a Harvard professor used this referencing style in a paper he wrote about garden slugs.

Why is Harvard referencing so important?

By including and citing valid sources in your work, you are acknowledging the ideas or words of others who have produced compelling content. Harvard referencing also demonstrates knowledge of background literature and that you can provide authority for statements in your assignments. It also helps avoid any accusation of plagiarism.

Is Harvard referencing used universally at Deakin University?

The Harvard referencing style is the preferred referencing style for many disciplines of study at Deakin University because of its uniformity and ease of understanding. However, it pays to check with your lecturer/tutor or in your assignment brief that Harvard referencing is the preferred method of citation.

Can Harvard referencing styles vary?

The Harvard referencing style can vary in minor features such as punctuation, capitalisation, abbreviations and the use of italics.

Can I Harvard reference websites? And do I reference them in the same format as books?

Of course, websites are commonly referenced! But the referencing format for websites is slightly different (books focus on publishers, websites focus on URLs). However, with this Harvard referencing tool, you won’t need to worry about the variations. Just input the details and it’ll do the work for you.

How do I format in-text citations?

In-text citations sit in the body of the paper to emphasise a point made by someone else.

Here are four common types of in-text citations:

1. Focus on the author(s)/summarise: In 1984, Orwell (1949) explores numerous dystopian themes.
2. Focus on the information/paraphrase: The Ministry of Peace is one of four government ministries in Oceania (Orwell, 1949, p. 8).
3. Short direct quote: This is reminiscent of the Party’s slogan ‘War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.’ (Orwell, 1949, p. 10).
4. A longer block quote (usually more than 30 words):
   We are not like that. We know that no one ever seizes power with the intention of relinquishing it. Power is not a means; it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship. The object of persecution is persecution. The object of torture is torture. The object of power is power. Now you begin to understand me. (Orwell, 1949, p. 250)

A few things to note:

• When paraphrasing or summarising (as in point one or two above), page numbers are not mandatory but advisable.
• A short quote features single quotation marks. The full stop goes after the citation.
• A block quote should be indented on both sides (you can often find this templated in Word already) and single spaced (even if your assignment is 1.5 or double spaced). The full stop goes before the citation.

What are some Harvard referencing examples?

Here is an example Harvard reference list. It includes different types of sources: books with one author, books with multiple authors, journal articles, websites, radio programs and chapters in curated textbooks.

Barikin, A 2012, Parallel presents: the art of Pierre Huyghe, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA.

The Cancer Council Australia 2007, National cancer prevention policy 2007–09, The Cancer Council Australia, retrieved 26 August 2010, <http://www.cancer.org.au/File/PolicyPublications/NCPP/NCPP_Full_document.pdf>.

Clarke, DB, Doel, MA, Merrin, W & Smith, RG (eds) 2009, Jean Baudrillard: fatal theories, Taylor & Francis, retrieved 23 September 2013, Ebook Library database.

Cotterall, S & Cohen, R 2003, ‘Scaffolding for second language writers: producing an academic essay’, ELT Journal, vol. 57, no. 2, pp. 158–66.

Hindsight 2006, radio program, ABC National Radio, Melbourne, 31 August.

HREOC – see Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission

Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission 1997, Bringing them home: report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from their Families, HREOC, Sydney.

Priest, A 2007, ‘Expression of the interesting’, The Australian, 10 October, p. 34, retrieved 29 April 2008, Newsbank database.

Richardson, JS 2004, ‘Content area literacy lessons go high tech’, Reading Online, vol. 8, no. 1, retrieved 1 August 2004, <http://www.readingonline.org/>.

Roberts, GE 2004, ‘Municipal government benefits, practices and personnel outcomes: results from a national survey’, Public Personnel Management, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 1–22, retrieved 3 Oct 2013, Business Source Complete database.

Watts, M 2006, ‘Team term papers and presentations’, in WE Becker, M Watts & SR Becker (eds), Teaching economics: more alternatives to chalk and talk, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, UK, pp. 151–70.

Weaver, RK 2000, Ending welfare as we know it, Brookings Institution Press, retrieved 23 May 2008, <http://books.google.com/books>.

Žižek, S 2001a, Enjoy your symptom!: Jacques Lacan in Hollywood and out, Routledge, London.

Where can I learn more about Harvard referencing?

• Deakin’s Harvard Referencing Guide covers everything from in-text citations to correct referencing of diverse mediums. It’s the perfect resource if you want to learn more about Harvard referencing. There’s also a host of other frequently asked questions about Harvard references and numerous Harvard referencing examples.