Giving Credit When Credit is Due: A Message from the Publisher

There is no denying that all research is influenced in some way by the thoughts, experiments, and ideas of those who came before. As such, it is foundational to give credit where credit is due, hence why including a Reference Page at the end of a book chapter or journal article is vital for academics. Not only does a Reference Page give the proper credit to the other researchers, but also provides readers with material to verify the content and the integrity of the research. In fact, in most instances of plagiarism, one of the most reported and detrimental aspects of academic writing, can be avoided by taking extra time to review a Reference Page.

Some may ask, “Well, as the publisher, why does IGI Global care so much about References?” While seen as a middleman between the research and the reader, IGI Global has an ethical duty to assist with and check the References of every submitted manuscript and article. IGI Global has likewise found that, in order to make the publishing process proceed efficiently, it is imperative that researchers and publishers both retain the same level of ethical integrity. To provide some behind-the-scenes insight, staff from IGI Global’s Development and Copy-Editing Departments explain what happens with a book project when a reference section is inaccurate and how to best avoid these issues in the future.

“The best piece of advice I can give,” Development Coordinator Jordan Tepper reports, “is for anyone submitting their material to refer to the IGI Global APA Citation Guideline section of our website beforehand. Double check the references and citations, otherwise there’s a high possibility of having a major delay with the project, or we might have to pull the material if the revisions are not submitted in a timely fashion.”

Chris Shearer, IGI Global’s Manager of Copy Editing, agrees. “While it’s sometimes a simple thing to fix a title or make sure an author’s name is spelled correctly, editors and authors will save themselves from a lot of headaches by referring to the guidelines on our website as well as the American Psychological Association (APA) and Purdue OWL websites. These are invaluable tools to refer to if there’s any confusion about how to properly cite or log a reference."

Researchers, in addition to utilizing these tools, may also contact IGI Global representatives in the Development and Copy-Editing Departments if questions arise.

We are determined to produce the most ethical academic publications possible, and we need the help of practitioners suited for the task. To begin the journey with IGI Global, our book project proposal form can be found here. You may also find our Ethics and Malpractice Policy on the IGI Global website for additional information regarding our commitment to publishing original scholarly materials of the highest quality.

For further information, please utilize the following resources:

American Pscyhological Association (APA) Reference Examples

Purdue OWL Reference List: Basic Rules

IGI Global APA Citation Guidelines