6.5 Avoiding Plagiarism

What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism is when you use words, thoughts, ideas, or materials that belong to someone else without giving them credit. In both the classroom and the professional world, documenting your information sources is the only way you can convey to others how thorough and careful you have been in researching your topic. Plagiarism—sometimes referred to as “literary theft”—is using someone else’s work and claiming it as your own. This can be language, ideas, opinions, theories, images, videos, software code, or anything else developed by someone else. Because of the ubiquity of information online and the ease with which we can cut and paste text, images, videos, and more, it is very easy to commit plagiarism and not even be aware you’re doing so. But whether the plagiarism is intentional or unintentional, it is nevertheless considered dishonest, unfair, and unethical.

According to Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary, to “plagiarize” means:

• • • to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own
    • to use (another’s production) without crediting the source
    • to commit literary theft
    • to present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source

But can words and ideas really be stolen?

According to U.S. law, the answer is yes. The expression of original ideas is considered intellectual property and is protected by copyright laws, just like original inventions. Almost all forms of expression fall under copyright protection as long as they are recorded in some way (such as a book or a computer file).

Examples of Plagiarism

• • • Copying and pasting from a source into your work without attribution
    • Purchasing a paper online or from another student
    • Turning in the same work in two different classes (self-plagiarism)
    • Failing to put quotation marks around direct quotes in your work
    • Copying a diagram, image, graph, or photo into your work without referencing the source
    • Copying and pasting text and changing just a few words or phrases to “put it into your own words,” sometimes referred to as “patch writing”
    • Using information gained in a personal interview or conversation without citing the source
    • Failing to cite sources for any information that you used in your paper

*Only information considered to be universally common knowledge, such as dates of important events and widely known facts, can be used without citing the source (refer back to the previous section of this book, 6.4 “Citation & Documentation Basics”, and watch the video “Giving Credit Where Credit is Due” for more detailed information about what is considered common knowledge).

Examples of Plagiarism in the News

Check out the following news articles about plagiarism:

• • • New York Times topic: Plagiarism
    • Huffington Post topic: Plagiarism
    • LA Times topic: Plagiarism
    • Google News Plagiarism

How to Avoid Plagiarism

Plagiarism in writing is fairly easy to avoid as long as you pay close attention to how you integrate your source material and make sure that you give credit to the source when using someone else’s words or ideas. Most cases of plagiarism can be avoided by citing sources. Simply acknowledging that certain material has been borrowed and providing your audience with the information necessary to find that source is usually enough to prevent plagiarism.

As discussed in Section 6.3, there are three ways to use someone else’s ideas: you may use them word for word (verbatim) as a direct quote, you may paraphrase a particular point or idea in your own words, or you may summarize an idea. Whichever way you choose, the original author should be credited for their words and ideas.

There are serious consequences for both intentional and unintentional plagiarism. Ignorance is not an excuse. As a student, the consequences of plagiarism can range from the loss of credit for an assignment or course to expulsion from school. In the work world, the consequences of plagiarism can range from loss of your professional reputation and credibility to the loss of your job and the destruction of your career. As a student, you should be familiar with your school’s and instructors’ academic integrity policies.

The best way to avoid plagiarism is to simply list the sources you used in preparing your work (many writers find it helpful to jot down or bookmark all their sources as they find them and compose their drafts). You may not end up using all of your sources, but saving them as you work (even if you may not use some) will save you a lot of trouble down the road trying to track down a source you used and forgot to document.

Remember that credit must always be given to others for:

• • • their words, either quoted, summarized, or paraphrased;
    • their artistic material (photos, charts, slideshows, etc.); and
    • their research findings, analyses, and conclusions.

8 Simple Rules to Avoid Plagiarism

For more information on how to avoid plagiarizing, watch “Citing Sources & Avoiding Plagiarism” from Madison College Libraries:

Additional Resources

• “Plagiarism: Avoid it at All Costs,” a helpful slideshow presentation on avoiding plagiarism.

• “Avoiding Plagiarism, Self-plagiarism, and Other Questionable Writing Practices: A Guide to Ethical Writing,” a comprehensive website from the Office of Research Integrity devoted entirely to avoiding plagiarism.

"5.2 Plagiarism." Technical Writing. [License: CC BY 4.0]
"Citation Help and Avoiding Plagiarism." Video. Uploaded by Madison College Libraries. 28 July, 2019. Youtube.com.
“How to Defend Against Online Plagiarism,” Harris Xiong. https://www.flickr.com/photos/161099408@N03/41518026592.
     [License: CC BY 2.0]
"8 Simple Rules to Avoid Plagiarism." www.ediqo.com/blog/8-simple-rules-to-avoid-plagiarism.
     Accessed 10 June, 2022.