The format you use for citing depends on the requirements of your assignment, the field of study, or the specific guidelines provided by your instructor or institution. Here’s a brief overview of each:
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MLA Format: Commonly used in the humanities, especially in literature, philosophy, and the arts. It emphasizes the author's name and page number in in-text citations, with a Works Cited page at the end.
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APA Format: Primarily used in the social sciences, such as psychology, sociology, and education. In-text citations include the author’s last name and the year of publication, with a References page for full citations.
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Chicago Format: Often used in history and some other humanities fields, it offers two systems: Notes and Bibliography (common in the humanities) and Author-Date (similar to APA, used in sciences).
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Turabian Format: A simplified version of Chicago style designed for college students, focusing on the Notes and Bibliography system.
Choose based on the guidelines you are following. If you have specific instructions, that will dictate the format you should use.