Cardiff University Harvard Referencing

To cite a website in Cardiff University Harvard style, give the author or organisation name, year the page was published or last updated, the title of the page, the URL preceded by "Available at:", and the date you accessed it in square brackets.

Websites do not always name a single author. In such cases, Cardiff Harvard allows you to use the responsible organisation as the author. If no ownership is detectable at all, you should question whether the source is of sufficient academic quality before citing it. The access date is essential because web content can change or disappear without notice.

To cite a book in Cardiff University's Harvard style, list the author's surname and initial(s), year of publication, full title in italics, edition (only if not the first), place of publication, and publisher.

The title page and its reverse are the most reliable places to find all bibliographic details for a book. If you are citing a second or later edition, you must state this in the reference list entry but not in your in-text citation. Cardiff Harvard lists all authors in the reference list even when the in-text citation uses et al.

To cite a journal article in Cardiff University Harvard style, include the author(s), year, article title (not italicised), journal title in italics, volume number, issue number in brackets, page numbers preceded by "pp.", and a DOI if available.

The article title uses sentence case (only the first word and proper nouns are capitalised), while the journal title retains its standard capitalisation in italics. When an article is only available online, issue and page numbers are sometimes absent. In such cases, include the article number if one is provided. The DOI is strongly preferred over a URL because DOIs are permanent and stable.

To cite in text using Cardiff University's Harvard style, place the author's surname and year of publication inside round brackets at the relevant point in your sentence, with no comma between the two elements.

The in-text citation can appear either within a sentence or at the end of it. When you include the author's name naturally in your sentence, only the year goes in brackets. For direct quotations or specific paraphrased points, you must add a page number after the year, separated by a comma and the abbreviation "p." or "pp." for a range.

To cite a PDF in Cardiff University Harvard style, identify what type of source the PDF contains — a journal article, report, or institutional document — and apply the format for that source type, adding the PDF's URL and your access date.

Cardiff Harvard does not have a separate category for PDFs. A PDF is simply a file format, not a source type. The citation format depends on whether the PDF is a journal article, a government report, a working paper, or something else. You must identify the original source type and apply its corresponding format, then include the URL where you accessed the PDF and the date you accessed it.

To cite a quote in Cardiff University Harvard style, enclose short quotations in double quotation marks and add the author, year, and page number in brackets immediately after; present longer quotations as an indented block without quotation marks.

Cardiff Harvard defines a short quotation as one that fits naturally within the body of a paragraph. Longer quotations, typically three lines or more, are indented from the left margin and do not use quotation marks. If you omit words from a quotation, use an ellipsis — three dots — to indicate the omission. If you add your own clarifying words inside a quotation, place them in square brackets to distinguish them from the original author's words.

To cite multiple authors in Cardiff University Harvard style, name both authors with "and" between them for two-author works; for three or more authors, use only the first author's surname followed by "et al." in in-text citations, but list all author names in full in the reference list.

The Cardiff Harvard style is specific about where to abbreviate. You use "et al." in the in-text citation to avoid lengthy interruptions to your text, but the full reference list entry must always include every author's name. When two different works happen to have the same first author and the same year, include enough additional surnames to distinguish them clearly.

To cite a chapter in an edited book in Cardiff University Harvard style, cite the chapter author rather than the book editor in both your in-text citation and reference list, and include the editor(s), book title, publisher details, and page range of the chapter.

This format applies specifically to edited books, where different authors contribute individual chapters and an editor compiles them. The chapter title appears without italics, while the book title is italicised. The editor's name is introduced by "In:", followed by the editor's initial(s) and surname, and then "ed." or "eds." in the reference.

To cite a news article in Cardiff University Harvard style, list the journalist's name, year, article title, newspaper title in italics, publication day and month, and page numbers if available; for online news articles, add the URL and your access date.

Newspaper articles are dated precisely, which is why Cardiff Harvard asks for the day and month in addition to the year. This distinguishes them from academic journals, which are usually cited by volume and issue alone. If the article appears in the print edition and the online version, prefer the print page numbers when available for accuracy.

To cite a report in Cardiff University Harvard style, use the organisation or author as the first element, followed by the year, the full title of the report in italics, and either a URL with access date for online reports or the place and publisher for printed ones.

Reports encompass a wide range of institutional documents: government white papers, UN publications, think-tank analyses, and corporate studies. If a report has a numbered series or a document number, include that after the title for easier retrieval. When a DOI is available, use it instead of a URL for greater stability.

To cite a YouTube video in Cardiff University's Harvard style, use the name of the person or channel that uploaded the video, the year of upload, the video title in italics followed by [YouTube video], and provide the full URL and access date.

If the uploader is an individual, use their name or screen name as the author. If it is a well-known organisation, use the organisation's name. Including the duration of the video is optional but useful, especially for lectures or long documentary content, where the reader may need to locate a specific point.

To cite a podcast in Cardiff University Harvard style, include the presenter or producer, year, episode title in single quotation marks, podcast series name in italics, the label [Podcast], the broadcast or upload date, and the URL with an access date.

Podcasts vary considerably in format: some are produced by broadcasters such as the BBC, others by individual creators or academic institutions. When citing a specific episode, that episode title is placed in single quotation marks while the series title is italicised. If you are citing the podcast series as a whole rather than a specific episode, omit the episode title and use only the series name.

To cite an image in Cardiff University Harvard style, list the creator's name, the year the image was created or published, the image title in italics, the medium or format in square brackets, and the URL with access date for online images.

Images include photographs, diagrams, paintings, maps, illustrations, and any other visual content you reproduce or refer to in your work. For images sourced from museum websites or digital archives, the institution that holds the image may serve as the author if the creator is unknown. If the image is in a printed book or journal, follow the format for that source type rather than the web format.

To cite a lecture in Cardiff University Harvard style, include the lecturer's name, year, title of the lecture in italics, the module title or code, the institution's name, and the date the lecture took place.

Lectures are considered personal communications tied to a specific institutional context. If the lecture was delivered online and is accessible via a learning platform such as Cardiff University's Learning Central, you may add the URL and access date. Student lecture notes or slides posted by a lecturer are cited in the same way, with the format of the material noted in square brackets.

To cite a thesis in Cardiff University's Harvard style, list the author, year, title of the thesis in italics, the level of the thesis (PhD Thesis, MSc Dissertation, etc.), and the awarding institution.

Cardiff Harvard makes a clear distinction between doctoral and master's level theses in the reference. For a PhD, you write "PhD Thesis"; for a master's level work, you write "MSc Dissertation" or "MA Dissertation" depending on the award. If the thesis is accessible online — for example, via the British Library EThOS database — add the URL and access date.

To cite legislation in Cardiff University's Harvard style, use the full official title of the Act, followed by the year of enactment, and include the chapter number where relevant.

UK Acts of Parliament are identified by their formal title and the year they received Royal Assent. In Cardiff, Harvard, the title of the legislation takes the place of the author. You do not need to italicise the title of an Act. Statutory Instruments and Regulations follow a similar format, with the instrument number replacing the chapter number.

To cite a conference paper in Cardiff University's Harvard style, list the author(s), year, the title of the paper, the full name of the conference proceedings in italics, the location, date, and publisher, followed by a DOI or URL if the paper is available online.

Conference papers published in formal proceedings are treated similarly to book chapters but have the specific context of a conference event. The location and date of the conference itself must appear in the reference, not the publication date of the proceedings volume. A DOI removes the need for the "Available at" and "Accessed" components.

To cite a dictionary in Cardiff University Harvard style, treat it like a reference book: give the publisher or editor as author, the year, the word or term in single quotation marks, the dictionary title in italics, the edition, and the place and publisher for print editions, or a URL and access date for online editions.

Dictionaries can be authored by an editor or published directly under the publisher's name as the responsible organisation. Online dictionaries such as the Oxford English Dictionary or Merriam-Webster are considered electronic sources and require an access date. If you are citing a specialised subject dictionary, note the subject or disciplinary context in your writing so readers understand why that particular reference was used.

To cite a website with no author in Cardiff University Harvard style, use the name of the organisation responsible for the website in place of a personal author's name; if the organisation cannot be identified, use the title of the page as the first element.

Cardiff University's referencing guide acknowledges that web pages often lack named authors and provides that the responsible organisation may be substituted. If even the organisation is unclear, the absence of ownership information may indicate that the source is not of sufficient quality for academic purposes. You must still include the year, URL, and access date regardless of whether an individual or an organisation is listed as the author.

To cite a social media post in Cardiff University Harvard style, include the name of the person or organisation who posted, the year, the opening words of the post or a descriptive title in italics, the social media platform in square brackets, the full date of the post, and the URL with access date.

Social media posts are a legitimate source in academic work when they represent official communications from organisations, public figures, or primary evidence of discourse. The content of the post stands in place of a conventional title, so use the first 10–15 words of the post text. Always note the exact date of posting because social media content is time-sensitive and frequently removed.

To cite an annual report in Cardiff University Harvard style, treat it as an organisational report: use the company or institution as the author, the year of publication, the full report title in italics, and the URL with access date for online reports.

Annual reports are significant primary sources in business, finance, and policy research because they contain audited financial data, strategic targets, and governance statements published directly by the organisation. Where a named individual authored a section of the annual report you are specifically citing, use that individual's name followed by the organisation name. If citing the entire report, the organisation name alone as the author is standard and accurate.

To cite a working paper in the Cardiff University Harvard style, use the author(s), year, full title of the paper in italics, the label "Working Paper" followed by the series number if available, the name of the issuing institution, and a URL with access date if the paper is online.

Working papers are pre-publication research documents circulated for academic comment before formal peer review. Major sources of working papers include the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), the International Labour Organization (ILO), and university departments. Because working papers are not yet peer-reviewed, you should acknowledge their provisional status in your writing when discussing their findings.

To cite an interview in Cardiff University Harvard style, use the name of the interviewee as the author, the year, the form of interview in square brackets, and provide details of the interviewer and the medium or publication where it appeared.

Cardiff Harvard distinguishes between published interviews — which appear in print, online, or broadcast media — and unpublished personal interviews conducted by the researcher. A published interview can be verified by a reader and is therefore cited with a URL or publication reference. An unpublished personal interview is treated as personal communication and cited as such, though it is generally recommended to seek permission from the interviewee before citing their words.

To cite ChatGPT in Cardiff University Harvard style, use OpenAI as the author, the year the response was generated, a description of the query or prompt as the title, the model version in square brackets, and the URL with your access date.

Cardiff University has not yet issued specific standalone guidance for citing AI-generated content, but the general Cardiff Harvard principle of identifying the responsible organisation, year, and access information applies. The key challenge with citing ChatGPT is that its responses are not retrievable by other readers. For this reason, you should save or screenshot the response, acknowledge that it is AI-generated, and check whether your School or module handbook has specific regulations on the use of generative AI before citing it.

To cite a citation within a citation — also called secondary referencing — in Cardiff University Harvard style, acknowledge both the original source and the source through which you encountered it, using the phrase "cited in" in your in-text citation, and list only the source you actually read in your reference list.

Secondary referencing acknowledges that you read about an author's work through another author's writing, rather than reading the original source yourself. Cardiff University advises that you should always try to locate and read the original source directly before resorting to secondary referencing. This matters because a secondary author may have summarised or interpreted the original inaccurately, and citing it as though you read it yourself would misrepresent your research.