Ethics in Writing Research Papers: Source Use, Citations and the Issue of Plagiarism

Ethics in conducting research and reporting research appropriately are of fundamental importance especially in today’s environment that majority of people have access to enormous sources of information online. The primary medium through which research is reported in academic context is a research paper. Thus, writing research papers is a central part of academic work. However, an issue that many emerging writers, especially second language writers, are faced with is how to use sources appropriately and how to avoid being accused of plagiarism. This paper elaborates on source use and the issue of plagiarism. It also illuminates the crucial role of citations in academic writing and discusses the importance of strategic use of citations in promoting the acceptability of research papers. The implications of the study are finally discussed.

Keywords:

Academic writing , Higher Education , Source Use , Citation , Plagiarism