Chapter 7 Summary - The Bedford Researcher

Chapter 7 of The Bedford Researcher, written by Mike Palmquist, discusses plagiarism. What plagiarism is and how to avoid plagiarism are Palmquist's two main points that he goes over in detail. He starts off by defining unintentional plagiarism, which is the most common form of plagiarism; intentional plagiarism, which is the more serious of the two; and plagiarism with in group projects, which can be hard to identify. After defining these he then moves on to talk about using research ethics like correctly representing the information; how and when to ask for permission to use a source; and what's common knowledge and how to identify it. The last part of chapter 7 goes in to detail on how to avoid plagiarism with five sets of skills. One, conducting a knowledge inventory by asking yourself if you have a clear understanding of your issue. Two, Taking and double checking your notes carefully. Three, distinguishing between your sources ideas and your ideas by using attributions; which is discussed in more detail in chapter 15. Four, Identifying sources in your document with citation. Five, understanding why writers plagiarize and how they backfire. Most people understand the general principle that plagiarism is wrong to do since you're taking someone else's work and this chapter is a great detailed reminder of that to writers of all experience levels.