Used by: Archaeology, Biochemistry (as well as Vancouver), Biology (as well as Vancouver), Economics, Environment, Health Sciences, HYMS (as well as Vancouver), International Pathway College, Management, Philosophy (as well as MLA), Politics, Sociology, Social Policy and Social Work, Theatre, Film, Television and Interactive Media (as well as MHRA)
The Harvard style originated at Harvard University. It's been adapted by individual institutions, and there is no set manual or formatting rules, so it is extremely important to check and follow your department's specific regulations.
Information from sources in the text is shown with in-text citations that include the author's surname and the publication year (and a page number in some situations). These can appear after the information, or integrated into the sentence:
The in-text citation examples given throughout this guide use the (Neville, 2010) version.
The reference list at the end of the document includes the full details of each source so the reader can find them themselves. The list is organised alphabetically by author surname.
The information to include depends on the types of source - see the examples on this page.
Some departments use their own variations on the Harvard style - if this is the case, details will usually be given on course materials.
Here are some departmental variations:
Archaeology prefer students to use page numbers for all in-text citations unless students are referring to a complete book in a very general sense. Anything more specific should have a page number. Archaeology also require the following in-text citation punctuation: (Lee 2012, 236) for in-text citation with page number and (Lee 2012) for in-text citation without page number.
Environment ask that for multi-authored sources, given in the reference list, that the first 10 named authors are listed before the use of 'et al.' to indicate additional named authors.
This guidance applies to all source types.
In-text: (Becker, 2007)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
List both authors in the order they appear in the publication. Use 'and' between names.
In-text: (Peck and Coyle, 2005)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In the reference list and the first citation, list all authors in the order they appear in the publication. Use 'and' between names. In subsequent citations, give the first author's name followed by et al. (the full stop is important!).
In-text
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In all in-text citations, give the first author's name followed by et al. (the full stop is important!). In the reference list, you can either include all author names or include the first author name followed by et al. - be consistent in what you choose.
In-text: (Moore et al., 2010)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
OR
If you are synthesising a number of sources to support your argument you may want to use a number of sources in one in-text citation. For example:
They should appear in date order, the most recent one first.
If an author (or a group of authors) have more than one publications in the same year, add lower-case letters (a, b, c, etc.) to the year to differentiate between them. Add a to the first source cited, b to the second course and so on. For example:
In-text: (Carroll, 2007a; Carroll 2007b)
Bibliography/ reference list:
It is important to use quality sources to support your arguments and so you should carefully consider the value of using any source when you cannot identify its author.
For online sources, look carefully for named contributors, such as in the ‘about us’ sections. For printed material look carefully at the publication/ copyright information, which is often on the inside cover of a book or back page of a report. If you can't locate the information you could use the name of the organisation (eg, OECD) for the author. Don't include a URL in a citation.
If there is no individual or organisational author, it is acceptable to use 'Anon' in your Bibliography/ Reference List. You should also use 'Anon' for your in-text citation.
Knowing when a source was created, published, or last updated is important as this helps you to determine the relevance and reliability of the source.
For online sources look carefully for created and/ or last updated dates on the page(s) you are using and similarly look carefully for named contributors, such as in the ‘about us’ sections. For printed material, especially historical sources where the exact date is unclear you could use ‘circa’ or ‘c’ before the date to indicate the approximate date of publication. For example:
Quotations are word-for-word text included in your work and must be clearly distinguished from your own words and ideas. Quotations are word-for-word text included in your work and must be clearly distinguished from your own words and ideas. You must also include the page number(s) in the in-text citation.
Use a brief phrase within your paragraph or sentence to introduce the quotation before including it inside double quotation marks “ “. For example:
Use block quotation, without quotation marks, but clearly indented to indicate these words are not your own. For example:
A secondary reference is given when you are referring to a source which you have not read yourself, but have read about in another source, for example referring to Jones’ work that you have read about in Smith.
Avoid using secondary references wherever possible and locate the original source and reference that. Only give a secondary reference where this is not possible and you deem it essential to use the material. It is important to think carefully about using secondary references as the explanation or interpretation of that source by the author you have read may not be accurate.
If it is essential to use a secondary reference follow:
In-text: Campell (1976) highlighted…(as cited in Becker, 2007, p.178)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Only the source you have actually read is referenced in the bibliography/ reference list
It is important to give a page number to an in-text citation in the following circumstances:
This might mean giving an individual page number or a small range of pages from which you have taken the information. Giving page numbers enables the reader to locate the specific item to which you refer.
You should only capitalise the first letter of the first word of a book, journal article etc. The exception is the names of organisations.
Usually in-text citations will be included in your word count as they are integral to your argument. This may vary depending on the assignment you are writing and you should confirm this with your module tutor. If in-text citations are included this does not mean you should leave out citations where they are appropriate.
You can use the following abbreviations in Harvard style citations and references:
References are the items you have read and specifically referred to (or cited) in your assignment. You are expected to list these references at the end of your assignment, this is called a reference list or bibliography.
These terms are sometimes used in slightly different ways:
You would normally only have one list, headed ‘references’ or ‘bibliography’, and you should check with your department which you are required to provide.
Contact your Faculty Librarians if you have any questions about referencing.
Examples of in-text citations and reference list entries for key source types.
Use these examples alongside the information given in the 'Guidance for all source types' box. Pay particular attention to the guidance on formatting for one, two or more authors.
In-text citation: (Peck and Coyle, 2005)
Reference list:
Information to include
Author(s) name, initials. (year). Name of book. Place: Publisher name.
For a translated book or a book published in another language, see the examples below.
In-text citation: (Dobel, 2005)
Reference list:
Information to include
Chapter author(s) surname, initials. (year). Title of chapter. In editor(s) surname, initials (Ed/Eds.), Title of edited book. Place: Publisher name, pp. page numbers
In-text citation: first citation (Daniels, Lauder, & Porter, 2009), subsequent citation (Daniels et al., 2009)
Reference list:
Information to include
Editor(s) surname, initials (Ed/Eds.). (year). Title of edited book. Place: Publisher name.
If referring to an interview conducted by someone else that has been published in such as a newspaper or journal you can reference in the following way
In-text: (Beard, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
If referring to an interview you have conducted as part of your research you should give a citation, perhaps also signposting the reader to a transcript attached as an appendix, and a full reference. Consideration also needs to be given to confidentiality and interviewee anonymity as appropriate.
In-text: (Smith, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Selman, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Information to include
Author(s) surname, initials. (year). Title of article / paper. Name of journal, volume(issue), page numbers. Available at: DOI.
Note:
In the absence of a DOI add a URL instead.
If you are citing the print copy of a journal article / paper and not accessing it online, omit the DOI and end the reference after the page numbers.
Include the most precise date of publication given - usually full date for newspaper articles, month and year for magazines.
In-text: (Brady and Dutta, 2012; Clarkson, 2008)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Information to include
Author surname and initial. (year). Title of article. Name of newspaper/magazine. day month year, pp. page numbers.
Give the name of the newspaper or magazine in place of the author name.
In-text: (The Guardian, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Information to include
Name of newspaper/magazine (year). Editorial: Title of article, day month year, pp. page numbers.
In-text: (Laurance, 2013)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Information to include
Author surname and initial. (year). Title of article. Name of newspaper/magazine. [Online] day month year. Available at: URL [Accessed day month year].
Include Last updated: if the page is likely to be updated (eg, news sites)
In-text: (Peston, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Information needed:
Author(s) name, initial. (year). Name of specific webpage. [Online]. Name of full website. Last updated: day month year. Available at: URL [Accessed day month year].
In-text: (St John Ambulance, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Information needed:
Organisation. (year). Name of specific webpage. [Online]. Name of full website. Last updated: day month year. Available at: URL [Accessed day month year].
Examples of in-text citations and reference list entries for other source types.
Use these examples alongside the information given in the 'Guidance for all source types' box. Pay particular attention to the guidance on formatting for one, two or more authors.
In-text: (Education Act, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
The (c.21) refers to the chapter, the number of the Act according to those passed during the parliamentary session.
Archival material can include a broad range of different types of sources, such as photographs, letters, manuscripts, maps. The following advice is intended as a guide and should be adapted where necessary to include key information about your source. Consult examples given elsewhere in the guide for other format types which constitute archival materials to help you construct your reference.
In-text:
Bibliography/ Reference list:
Note: (Date) is the year or date range of the creation of the material. If the archival material is undated use (no date) in your reference.
If an older manuscript is numbered by signatures or by folios (fol. or fols.), these should be used in place of page numbers, after the item title. If you use page numbers, the abbreviations p. and pp. should be used to avoid ambiguity. If a manuscript collection has identifying series or file numbers, these may be included in a citation.
In-text: (Master Atlas of Greater London, 2007)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Carswell, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Schwortz, 1978)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
If you are reading an English language version of a book originally published in another language follow this example.
In-text: (Larsson, 2009)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Follow this example if you need to reference a book that you read in another language.
In-text: (Hoops, 1932)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
To reference an example of case law you will need to know the abbreviation for the law report in which the case was published. This is usually provided in the citation for the case.
In-text: ('Gray v Thames Trains Ltd', 2009)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
If the case study is within another publication, such as a textbook or website, you can either cite it as a chapter or a range of pages within that publication.
In-text: (Burns, 2018)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Graf and Wentland, 2017)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Autodesk, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (ALT-C, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Pettitt, 2008)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Gavin and Stacey, 2007)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Either cite the name of the film or the director
In-text: (Lloyd, 2008) OR (Mamma Mia, 2008)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
OR
In-text: (Beauty and the Beast, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Change [Online] to [CD] or [DVD] if necessary.
In-text: (Ralchenko, Kramida and Reader, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Change [Online] to [CD] or [DVD] if necessary.
In-text: (Oxford language dictionaries online, 2007)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Larkham, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Marcovitch, 2005)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Paperback Oxford English dictionary, 2006)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
If page markers are not available on the e-book version you are using cite the chapter for specific references to the source (eg “…” (Schlick, 2010, ch.1)).
In-text: (Schlick, 2010)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
If viewing an e-book using an e-book reader it is important to reference the specific version of the publication for this reader. If page markers are not available on the e-book version you are using cite the chapter for specific references to the source (eg “quote” (Collins, 2011, ch.3)).
In-text: (Collins, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Johnson, 2009)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Encyclopedia of consciousness, 2009)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Brooks, 2004)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: According to 'Karl Heinz Bablok and Others v. Freistaat Bayern' (2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: This issue is covered in 'Council directive 1999/2/EC' (1999)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Lloyd, 2008) OR (Mamma Mia, 2008)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
OR
In-text: (Great Britain. Defra, 2007)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
You can omit ‘Great Britain’ if you are only referring to UK central government publications and this will be clear to your reader. If you are referring to publications by devolved government bodies or to international government publications you should state the jurisdictions. The 'Cm. 7086' refers to the reference number given to this particular document. If you can locate the Cm. number you should include it.
Give the title for the table/ figure etc and include a full in-text citation
In-text: [INSERT IMAGE] The ‘Soloman four-group’ design (Field and Hole, 2010, p. 79, fig. 3.7)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Give the title for the table/ figure etc and include a full in-text citation
In-text: [INSERT IMAGE] Youths 16-24 claiming, March 2012 rate (The Guardian, 2012).
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (HL Deb 23 July 2019)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Jones, 2011).
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Jones, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Johnson, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Below is an example for an Ordnance Survey map. You can adapt this for other types of map.
In-text: (Ordnance Survey, 2015)
Bibliography/ Reference list:
Each one will have titles and references within it or you can refer to the actual microfiche record number, where it is stored and when accessed. This is an example of conference proceedings.
In-text: In-text: (AFIPS, 1968)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Copland, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Puccini, 1980)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Cambridgeshire County Council/BBC, 2010)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Monet, 1889)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text (first mention): (Graduate Students' Association, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Finance (No. 4) Bill, 2010-2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
The HC stands for House of Commons, with HL being used for Bills originating in the House of Lords. The date represents the parliamentary session and the number in [ ] the number of the bill.
In-text: (Berberet and Bates, 2008)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Jarche, 1931)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Lynn & Jay, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Webster, 1998)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Bairstow, 1980)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text:
Waters admits in his interview on the WTF podcast (Maron, 2016) that his trip to Lebanon had a significant impact on him...
Works cited/ bibliography:
Journal article on a preprint server:
In-text: (Basilio et al., 2023)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (BBC Radio 4, 2008).
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Neville (2010, p.161) suggests the following process for using religious or sacred works in your writing:
These include the Bible, Talmud, Koran, Upanishads, and major classical works, such as the ancient Greek and Roman works. If you are simply quoting a verse or extract, you do not need to give full reference entries. Instead, you should include the detail in the text of your assignment, for example:
The film script at this point echoes the Bible: ‘And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth’.
(Gen. 6:12) [the in-text citation is for the book of Genesis, chapter 6, verse 12]
However, if you were referring to a particular edition for a significant reason, it could be listed in full in the main references, eg:
In-text: (Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2008)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Higher Education Academy, 2008)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
This format is for when you read a more recent version of an older work. In-text, the date of the original publication is given first, with the later version in [ ], with any page reference to this newer version following. In the bibliography/ reference list you give the date and details of the version you read, with the original publisher and date at the end of the reference.
In-text: (Dickens, 1846 [2005], p.29)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Warner, 2008)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Belle & Sebastian, 2003, track 8)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
This should be used where it is important the institution from which the source originates should not be named, in to order protect corporate or individual confidentiality. For example, where a policy, procedure or care plan is being used.
In-text:(NHS Trust, 1999) or, for example: “This was in accordance with the NHS Trust's (Name withheld, 1999) disciplinary policy”.
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (British Standards Institute, 2006)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 1988)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Johnson, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Panorama: Britain's Crimes of Honour, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Johnson, 2007)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Chen, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (ELDT, 2012)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
In-text: (Appropedia, 2011)
Bibliography/ Reference List:
Use either the proper name of the author or X pseudonym. In the following example either (Trump, 2012) or (@realDonaldTrump, 2012) can be used in-text and in the Bibliography/ Reference List reference.
In-text:
Trump (2012) went as far as to claim that the Chinese invented climate change in a post in 2012.
Bibliography/ Reference list:
or