Author, Date, System, Footnote or Endnote System, Use of Notes. Position of Notes

 

1. Author-Date System

The Author-Date system is a style of citation where references are cited briefly within the text using the author’s last name and the date of publication. The complete details of the source are then provided in a reference list at the end of the document. It’s commonly used in APA and Chicago (Author-Date) citation styles.

Key Features:

• In-text citation:
  • Format: (Author’s Last Name, Year)
  • Example: (Smith, 2020)
• Reference list:
  • Format: Author’s Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the work. Publisher.
  • Example: Smith, J. (2020). Research Methodology in Social Sciences. Academic Press.

Position of Citations:

• In-text citations are placed within the body of the report, typically at the end of the sentence before the period.
  • Example: “Research supports this theory (Smith, 2020).”

Advantages:

• Readers can quickly identify the source of information without being distracted by detailed notes.
• Allows for a clean text flow without interruptions.

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2. Footnote or Endnote System

In the Footnote or Endnote system, references are indicated by superscript numbers in the text, and the full citation details are provided either at the bottom of the page (footnote) or at the end of the document (endnote). This system is typically used in Chicago (Notes and Bibliography) and Turabian styles, and also in legal writing.

Key Features:

• In-text citation: A superscript number is placed at the point of reference.

  • Example: "This method was highly effective in earlier studies.¹"

• Footnotes: The full citation appears at the bottom of the same page where the source is referenced.

  • Example:
    • John Smith, Research Methodology in Social Sciences (New York: Academic Press, 2020), 45.

• Endnotes: Instead of appearing at the bottom of each page, the citation is included in a separate section at the end of the document.

Position of Footnotes/Endnotes:

• Footnotes are located at the bottom of the page where the citation occurs.
• Endnotes are placed at the end of the document, before the bibliography section.

Advantages:

• Provides a way to include detailed references without cluttering the text.
• Footnotes can also include additional commentary or explanations that don’t fit into the main text.

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3. Use of Notes

Notes can be used for two purposes:

1. Citations: To provide full reference details of the source.
2. Additional Information: To offer further explanation, clarification, or commentary that is relevant but does not fit neatly within the body of the text.

Types of Notes:

• Bibliographic notes: These contain the citation details of the source.
  • Example:
    • John Smith, Research Methodology in Social Sciences (New York: Academic Press, 2020), 120.
• Explanatory notes: These are used to add commentary, additional explanations, or clarifications related to the text.
  • Example:
    • ¹This study was funded by the National Research Foundation.

Position of Notes:

• Footnotes are positioned at the bottom of the page where the reference occurs, making it easy for the reader to find the note while reading.
• Endnotes are gathered in a separate section at the end of the document, making the main text cleaner but requiring the reader to flip to the end for the references.