Formatting styles

Differences between formatting styles

There are different styles used for formatting footnotes and bibliographies. Guidelines and style manuals are very specific, dictate exactly how sources of information and quotations should be listed, and cover all types of sources The most common citation formats include:

APA (American Psychological Association) used mainly in social sciences departments
MLA (Modern Language Association) used mainly in humanities studies
Chicago used mainly in History and some humanities departments
ACS (American Chemical Society)

There are manuals and books that show how to write a bibliography using these styles. Ask a librarian for assistance finding the one that you need.