Research Methodology

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What is MLA?

MLA style was created by the Modern Language Association of America. It is a set of rules for publications, including research papers.

There are two parts to MLA: In-text citations and the Works Cited list.

In MLA, you must "cite" sources that you have paraphrased, quoted or otherwise used to write your research paper. Cite your sources in two places:

1. In the body of your paper where you add a brief in-text citation.

2. In the Works Cited list at the end of your paper where you give more complete information for the source.

Core Elements of an MLA Citation

MLA 8th edition provides 9 core elements to complete any works cited entry. It is your job to try to fill in these core elements with the information you have about a source. If any element is missing or not applicable, you can skip that element. In the 7th edition of the Handbook, a separate set of citation instructions were given for each format type. The problem with this approach is that there is no way to anticipate all format types a student may encounter.

To solve this problem, this new edition of the MLA Handbook provides a "universal set of guidelines" for citing sources across all format types.

These guidelines state that, if given, these major elements should be included in the citation:

1. Author.

2. Title of Source (title is in italics if the source is self-contained. For example, an entire book.)

3. Title of Container (for example, the title of a book, journal, web site)

4. Other Contributors (such as editors, translators, or directors.) 

5. Version

6. Number

7. Publisher

8. Publication date

9. Location

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