IEEE Style Guide, 2009 Edition

Introduction

When writing a research paper you must cite all sources of information. Using the work of others without giving credit to your source is considered plagiarism.

Please check with your instructor as to which citation style to use.

This IEEE tip sheet is meant as a beginner’s guide only. For further information consult the following sources:

• 2009 IEEE Standards Style Manual website
• University of Toronto’s Engineering Communication Centre
• The Murdoch University Library – IEEE Style Guide

In Text Citations
General Information
Paraphrasing
Short Quotations
Longer Quotations
Personal Communications

References

Note: The IEEE Standards Style Manual refers to this list as “References.” The SAIT Career Communications section also uses the wording “Works Cited” for your list of references. Please check with your instructor as to the preferred wording.

Sample Reference List

In Text Citations

General Information

The IEEE style states you can only cite published works, to be published works and unpublished materials readily available. Some SAIT instructors encourage students to use primary sources such as interviews, personal surveys and email communication when doing research. The SAIT Career Communications department requires these sources to be documented and appear in the Reference list. Please check with your instructors as their preference may vary from the examples suggested below.

A numbered reference is enclosed in square brackets e.g. [1] and should be placed within the text of the research paper directly after the information that you are citing. Each numbered reference should appear on the same line as the text, before any punctuation, with a space before the bracket. Place the number directly after the reference rather than at the end of the clause or sentence, unless the reference ends at the end of the sentence.

Once a source has been cited within the text of the research paper, the same number is used in all subsequent references.

Do not mention the author or the date of the publication within the text of your research paper. Instead this style recommends substituting a reference number for the author’s name. IEEE encourages substituting reference numbers for the name of the author.

Paraphrasing

Put the information found in the original sources in your own words while maintaining the original meaning.

Choose paraphrasing over quoting if possible.

Example:

Or:

Multiple sources may be referenced within the same citation.

Example:

Or:

Or:

Note: This example is used only if the references appear in sequence in your References list.

Short Quotations

Quoted passages should be kept as short as possible. Direct short quotations (four lines or fewer) from a source must be enclosed within quotation marks.

Sometimes it is necessary to add, drop or change a few words from a quote to improve readability.

Use an ellipsis (three spaced dots …) to indicate that some words have been left out of the quotation. Use square brackets to indicate words that have been added or changed.

Example

Longer Quotations

If more than four lines are quoted from a source, indent the quoted material. Longer quotations are single-spaced. Longer quotations are not placed inside quotation marks.

Refer readers to the specific page numbers used in a citation by using the number of the reference followed by a colon and the page number(s).

Example

Personal Communications

According to the IEEE Standards Style manual, no citation is necessary for interviews and other “nonrecoverable” information. Personal communication and other “nonrecoverable” information include telephone conversations, interviews, e-mails and letters. The IEEE style recommends that this type of correspondence be identified within the text of the document. Also, do not refer to professional titles such as “Dr.” or “PhD” or even titles like U.S. Surgeon General, but do include personal titles such as “Jr.” or “III” after the surname.

Example:

Note: Some SAIT instructors encourage students to use primary sources such as interviews, personal surveys and email communication when doing research. The SAIT Career Communications section requires these sources to be documented and appear in the Reference list. Please check with your instructors as their preference may vary from the examples suggested below.

References

Note: The IEEE Standards Style Manual refers to this list as “References.” The SAIT Career Communications section also accepts the wording “Works Cited” for your list of references. Please check with your instructor as to the preferred wording.

General Information

A list of references contains details of the works that have been cited in the research paper. The reference list should appear at the end of your paper. Begin the list on a new page. The title “References” should be either left justified or centered on the page. The entries should appear in the order that the material is cited in the document of your assignment. Entries should not be listed in alphabetical order.

Each citation should contain the following information in this order:

• number of the citation, enclosed within square brackets, is placed flush left and the text of the entry is indented 2 or 3 spaces
• author’s name (first name or initial(s), last name)
• title of the article (or chapter, conference paper, patent etc.) is typed in quotation marks
• title of the book or journal is typed in italics
• publication information (place: publisher name, date).
• pagination cited as p. (if single page) or pp. (for multiple pages)

Print and Video Examples

Every important word in the title of a book or conference must be capitalized. Only the first word of a subtitle should be capitalized.

Example:

The names of all authors should be given in the reference unless the number of authors is greater than six. If there are more than six authors, you may use et al. after the name of the first author. Do not use a comma before et al.

Capitalize the first word of an article title and every important word in the title of the journal. Do not capitalize the “” in Volume for a journal article. You should spell out the entire name of the journal that you are referencing.

Example:

For video recordings include the following information in this order:

• first initial and last name of the person or persons responsible for the recording (usually the name of the director, writer and/or producer)
• title and subtitle, typed in italics
• format, typed within square brackets
• place of publication, publisher and year

Example:

For podcasts include the following information in this order:

• first initial and last name of the person or persons responsible for the recording (usually the name of the director, writer and/or producer)
• title of the radio program
• title of the episode, typed in italics
• date the program aired
• format, typed within square brackets
• place of publication and publisher
• access information (usually the URL of the source ) and the date of access

Example:

Electronic Publications Example

When you cite an electronic source, describe it in the same way that you would describe a similar printed publication. Try to provide sufficient information for your readers to retrieve the source themselves. Also, be aware that an electronic source may not always have clear author, title or publication details. The access information is usually the URL of the source. The date of access should be included because an electronic source can change between the time you cite it and the time it is accessed by another reader.

Example:

Personal Communication Examples

When you cite a personal communication, describe it in the same way that you would describe a similar printed publication. Try to provide sufficient information for your readers to retrieve the source themselves. Also, be aware that a personal communication source will not usually have a clear title or publication details. The date of the personal communication must be included.

Note: Some SAIT instructors encourage students to use primary sources such as interviews, personal surveys and email communication when doing research. The SAIT Career Communications section requires these sources to be documented and appear in the Reference list. Please check with your instructors as their preference may vary from the examples suggested below.

Example:

Or:

Or:

Sample REFERENCES list

Note: The IEEE Standards Style Manual refers to this list as “References.” The SAIT Career Communications section also uses the wording “Works Cited” for your list of references. Please check with your instructors as to the preferred wording.

(The information in parentheses is to show the type of work cited. Do not include it in your citation.)

(Book with one author)

(Single chapter from an edited book)

(Conference paper)

(Article in a journal)

(Article in a newspaper)

(Standard)

(Telephone conversation)

(Podcast)

(Article in a website)

(E-book from a subscription service)

(Article in a journal from a subscription service)

(Article in an online journal or E-journal)