Harvard Referencing Guide

Harvard referencing style is the most widely used referencing style in academic papers. From social science and humanities to business and science subjects, the Harvard referencing style is used in a number of disciplines. The Harvard referencing style implies the use of in-text citations as well as the completion of a reference list at the end of a paper. Every source and author name that is used in the text, has to be used in the reference list as well. Universities follow strict guidelines for this referencing style and every detail of referencing including the commas and full stops must be taken care of by students.

In-text Citations

For in-text references in the Harvard style, one must mention only the author’s last name and the year of the work’s publication. In cases where direct quotes from a publication are used, the exact page number of the information must be included in the main text. You can cite a source either directly or indirectly. For example:

Direct citation: "Choking can be hazardous" (Davis, 2012, p.9).'

Indirect: As Davis (2012) notes, choking might be dangerous.

Other examples of in-text citations are as follows:

  • For citing two authors, list the last names of all authors:

Davis and Lerner (2004) states… Or …according to previous research (Davis and Lerner, 2004)

  • For three or more authors, use et al., after the last name of the first author. For example,

Johnson et al., (2014) states… or according to previous research (Johnson et al., 2014)

  • For citing multiple works from the same author in the same year, allocate a, b, c, etc. after the year to distinguish between different publications. Make sure to use the same allocations in the reference list. For example,

 (Davis, 2004a), Davis (2004b), Davis (2004c), etc.

  • For referencing multiple works in a single parenthesis, list all the in-text citations normally by separating different references with semicolons. For example,

(Davis, 2004; Andrews, 2001; Taylor, 1997)

  • For citing different editions of the same author in a single parenthesis, use the author(s)’s name followed by the appropriate dates separated by semicolons.

Davis (2004; 2007) states… Or according to previous research (Mitchell, 2004; 2007)

Reference List

The Harvard referencing style suggests the following format of references depending on the type of source:

  • Books (Last name, initials. (year) title, edition, location: publisher).

Smith, P. (2012) The Nutrition Bible, 2nd ed., New York: Sage Publications.

  • Journal Articles (Last name, initials. (year) title, journal, volume (issue), pages.)

Wein, M., Jenkins, O. and Martins, S. N. (1992) Guide for a Healthy Living, Health Journal, 8(11), pp. 45-69.

  • Online Journal Articles (Last name, initials. (year) title, journal, volume (issue), Available at: link [Accessed -date-])

Wein, M, Jenkins, O. and Martins, S. N. (1992) Guide for a Healthy Living, Health Journal, 8(11), [online]. Available at: www.healthjournal.com/guideforahealthyliving [Accessed on 1 May 2019].

  • Newspaper and Magazine Articles (Name, initials. (year) title, newspaper (edition), date of publication, pages or Available at: link [Accessed -date-])

Paul, B. (2010) Benefits of eating breakfast, Lifestyle Magazine (Weekend edition), 5 May, p. 12.

Paul, B. (2010) Benefits of eating breakfast. Lifestyle Magazine (Weekend edition), [online]. Available at: www.lifestylemagazine.com/benefitsofeatingbreakfast2010 [Accessed on 1 May 2019].

  • YouTube Videos (Name (year) title, Available at: link [Accessed -date-])

Healthy Living (2009) Simple Exercises, [YouTube video], Available at: www.youtube.com/healthylivingsimpleexcercises [Accessed on 16 July 2017].

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