Q. What are academic integrity and plagiarism?

Any time a writer uses another source’s information, he or she must give credit to that source.

• Academic integrity is about giving credit to the original authors of information that you replicate or use.
• Plagiarism occurs if you do not give credit to the original author(s) of a source.   

Plagiarism is not always intentional. Citing your sources properly and completely is essential to avoiding unintentional plagiarism. Any time you use information that is not originally yours, even if you are paraphrasing information from sources (see more information on strong paraphrasing on the Writing Center's website), you must include a citation.

Additional Resources:

• If you are new to citations, take a look at some examples of citations.  
• See how to best cite your sources when you use evidence. 
• Learn how to avoid plagiarism with various self-paced plagiarism prevention modules. 
• View the archived webinar "Using and Crediting Sources in APA" to understand why and how to cite sources.
• Read the blog post "Avoiding Unintentional Plagiarism" to learn why citing sources is necessary.

Further Questions?

Would you like your current assignment or paper to be reviewed by the Writing Center?  If so please visit the Writing Center's Paper Review Website and make an appointment with us! 

Do you have other general writing questions? E-mail the Writing Center at writingsupport@waldenu.edu.

Other questions about your doctoral capstone or the Form & Style review? E-mail the Dissertation Editors at editor@waldenu.edu.

Want to peruse other writing resources? Go to the Writing Center’s homepage.