If you quote the exact words directly from a text you must use quotation marks to indicate this. The author(s) and year must be stated and if possible the page number (or at least the chapter heading e.g. Chapter 6) from which the quote is taken.
Example: … Jackson (2017, p. 575) declared that “This is the finest example of postmodernism …”
If there are no page numbers, for example when using a website, use the paragraph number instead.
Example: (Smith, 2019, para 4).
If it’s a very long document such as an e-book on an e-book reader, include chapter number as well as para number.
Example: (Smith 2019, ch.7 para 8).
For a long quote (over 40 words) you should ‘in block’ (i.e. indent) the text. Leave a line space before and after the quote. Don’t use quotation marks.
Example:
Plagiarism is a specific form of cheating and is generally defined as presenting someone else’s work or ideas as your own. These may be in printed or electronic format and, in all cases, giving credit to the original authors by citing and referencing your sources is the only way to use other peoples work without plagiarising (p.1).
You can leave out any section of a quote as long as you make this clear by inserting an ellipsis (…).
Example: Flinders (2018, p. 71) comments that “When MPs had an operational grievance they were encouraged to direct their question … directly to the agency”.