Section 4: Working with Sources
Finding Credible Sources
Finding sources at the U of A Library
The University of Alberta has several Library Research Skills modules in Canvas to help you navigate finding sources. The page How to Research has information on how to enrol in these modules.
Using sources ethically
What is plagiarism?
Plagiarism is the misrepresentation of something as your own.
Plagiarism is one of the most frequent violations of academic integrity. It ranges in severity from blatant plagiarism, where a student simply submits a whole work that is not their own–for example, a paper they purchased online–to inadvertent plagiarism, where a student tried to do honest work but still accidentally plagiarized.
Types of plagiarism
Most students understand that it is wrong to plagiarize but are confused about what plagiarism is. Watch Types of Plagiarism (7:43) for a detailed explanation of seven basic types of plagiarism.
How to avoid plagiarism
Read How to avoid plagiarism from the Office of the Dean of Students for tips on how to avoid plagiarism:
Using Generative AI to find sources for a research paper
Consider academic integrity
- Please refer to your course syllabus and university policies on using Generative AI.
Use it effectively
- There are Generative AI tools that specialize in finding academic research sources. (Search the Internet for “best AI tools for finding academic sources.”) These tools may perform this task more effectively than general Generative AI tools like ChatGPT.
Beware of the limitations
- Some Generative AI tools make up research sources that don’t exist. Be sure to find any sources provided by Generative AI on your university’s library website.
- Generative AI tools may have outdated information.
- You may not know why the tool chooses the sources that it does. There may be an unknown bias in how Generative AI chooses sources. Ask yourself if Generative AI’s sources are the best sources for your paper.
Consider your learning journey
- You may miss out on the cognitive benefits of finding and evaluating sources independently.
Consider ethics
- The tool may index and list the research sources without the permission of the publisher and author.
- Make sure that you understand the ethical implications of using these tools.
Attributions
“Finding Credible Sources” by Nancy Bray, Introduction to Academic Writing, University of Alberta, is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0
- The definition and explanation of plagiarism is from “Plagiarism Defined” by Ulrike Kestler, Academic Integrity, University of Regina is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.
