Best practice when referencing

There are many styles of referencing original works. When doing so in an academic publication, the main referencing systems are the Harvard (name, date) and Vancouver (numbered) systems but for scientific research papers a digital object identifier (DOI) can be sufficient for use online. Some recommendations for good practice are: 

Reference to a book

Author(s). Year of publication. Title of the book. Publisher.

Kerrigan, Jo. 2018. Follow the Old Road. O’Brien Press.

Reference to a journal

Author. Year. Title of the article. Name of the journal. Publication date or journal issue, pages.

Hamilton, Sorcha. 2019. Real or fake Christmas tree – what’s better for the environment?. Irish Times Magazine. December 2019, 20-21.
Egan, Timothy & Egan, Casey. 2016. Can the Selfie Generation Unplug and Get Into Parks?. National Geographic. October 2016.

Reference to an article from an online journal

Author. Title of the article. Name of the journal [type of media]. Journal issue or publication date [time of reference]. DOI (Digital Object Identifier). Available: URL or PMID.

Bray, Alison. Rising interest in owning part of the events of 1916. Irish Independent [online article]. 29.12.2016 [accessed 23.02.2024] Available: https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/rising-interest-in-owning-part-of-the-events-of-1916/35326941.html

Reference to digital material

Author. Title. Date created. Available: URL. Date accessed.

Twinkl. The Water Cycle Worksheet. 2022. Available: https://www.twinkl.ie/resource/t3-g-96-the-water-cycle-activity-sheet. Accessed 02.05.2024

Reference to an image

1. Image from a book or magazine

Name of the creator. Title of book or magazine, date of publication, page number.

Picture: Ogden, Perry. 7 Reece Mews – Francis Bacon’s Studio, 2001, 48-49.

2. Image from the internet

Image bank / Author. Name of the picture. URL. Date accessed.

Picture: iStock / ivetavaicule. Sea, boats, people and fish. https://www.istockphoto.com/vector/sea-boats-people-and-fish-gm1001378372-270687048. Accessed 04.07.2024.

3. Image from the internet with a CC License

Author. CC license. Link to the original photograph’s URL. Date accessed.

Picture: Galeotti, Georgio. CC BY4.0. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Samuel_Beckett_Bridge_-_Dublin,_Ireland_-_August_18,_2017.jpg. Accessed 02.07.2024.

Reference to a TV and radio programme

Name of the programme. Broadcast date. Network.

News at One. 31.07.2024. RTÉ Radio 1.

Reference to an interview

Name of the interviewed person. Profession. Company. Name of interviewer. Date of the interview.

Fletcher, Annie. Director, IMMA. Irish Independent. Interviewed 04.12.2022.

Reference to a Blog

Blogger’s name. Title of the post. Date of the post. URL. Date accessed.

Múinteoir Valerie. Space Week Teaching Ideas. Blogpost 29.09.2023. https://www.muinteoirvalerie.com/space-week-teaching-ideas/. Accessed 15.08.2024

References to posts in discussion forums and social media

Author. Date of the post. Name of the social media platform or forum. URL.

National Library of Ireland. @NLIreland. 30.07.2024. X/Twitter https://x.com/NLIreland/status/1818239315182334238.

The use of posts in social media and discussion forums depends on the terms of use for the service.