What is plagiarism? This question always pricks the minds of researchers. So the answer is that plagiarism is the process of taking and copying somebody’s work without giving credit to him or her. When the researcher does this, it indicates that he or she is stealing that person’s work. Hence, it is considered a theft and/or copyright violation.
And you know, the theft or copyright violation may lead to grave penalties and harsh punishment. Plagiarism is found in many areas of research, specifically academic writing, where statements are quoted without correct citations.
This article presents 6 effective ways that can be adopted to avoid plagiarism. But before presenting this, there is a need to discuss the five kinds of plagiarism, coupled with examples.
Five kinds of plagiarism
The following paragraphs explain the five types of plagiarism.
Global plagiarism
This kind of plagiarism means that the researcher picks off the entire text of someone else and mentions it in his or her research. For example, if a person writes an essay for you or if he or she finds an essay online and publishes that essay as his or her own, it means that he or she is committing global plagiarism.
Verbatim plagiarism
Verbatim plagiarism is also called direct plagiarism. It means that the researcher directly copies and pastes others’ work into their case without giving proper credit. This work could be entirely identical to the actual content or somewhat changed. In the case of entirely the same words in the researchers’ essay, there is verbatim plagiarism.
To avoid this kind of plagiarism, there is a need to mention the copied text in quotation marks and add an in-text citation.
Paraphrasing plagiarism
This is the most common kind of plagiarism. In this type of plagiarism, the researcher puts the text into his or her own words without proper citation. It is considered plagiarism because the researcher only rewrites someone else’s ideas in his or her own words and does not mention the source. So to avoid this kind of plagiarism, it is recommended to cite the source after completion of the rewritten quote. Additionally, if someone translates a piece of information without mentioning the source in the citation, this is also a form of paraphrasing plagiarism. So it is also recommended to use five proper citations after translating it.
Patchwork plagiarism:
Patchwork plagiarism is also called mosaic plagiarism. It means that the researcher creates a copy of different phrases, passages, and ideas from various sources and then puts them into a new text. In this process, the researcher slightly rephrases the original work of other researchers and adds some words to it. It is plagiarized when he or she does not mention the citation of the source.
Self- plagiarism
When a researcher reuses his or her previously submitted or published work, he is committing self-plagiarism. It is also a form of academic dishonesty. So it is important to seek permission and properly cite the previously published work.
Consequences of plagiarism
The researcher/author can face potential consequences for committing plagiarism when we talk about SEO. The first result is that Google will penalize the plagiarized content. The penalty is in the form of lowering the rank of the researcher’s website in search engine results pages (SERPs). It means that people face difficulty finding work.
Additionally, it is also possible that the website will be removed from the Google index altogether. It means that the website will not appear in search results. The other consequence of plagiarism is that the researcher may be fined or even imprisoned. If the researcher takes the copyrighted material, he or she may face a lawsuit from the copyright holder. So, it is important to give proper credit to that person whose ideas are used by other researchers in their essays.
How do I avoid plagiarism?
6 effective ways can be used to avoid plagiarism in your text.
Collect the sources and references together
Sometimes the researchers forget to mention the sources of material in their texts/essays. This is a case of unintentional plagiarism. This plagiarism can be easily avoided if the researcher creates a list of references and links them to his or her outline parts.
Quote
The second way to avoid plagiarism is to properly enclose the text in quotation marks and follow it by mentioning the author’s name and year. But one thing to keep in mind is that the content used in quotations is unique, original, and properly quoted. For example, in APA referencing style, if a researcher wants to mention a quotation, it is necessary to put it in commas and mention the author’s name along with the year of publication.
Paraphrase
Paraphrasing is the technique of rewriting someone else’s content in your own words while making sure that the idea remains the same. This technique is used to avoid plagiarism. To paraphrase a text, it is necessary to read the others’ text with attention. Furthermore, it is also necessary that the material be rewritten in one’s own words.
To adopt the technique of paraphrasing, it is suggested to note down the important points on a piece of paper. Then rewrite these points in your own words. But it has to be made sure that the main idea, after paraphrasing, remains the same.
Give recognition to your sources
If the researcher borrows another person’s words or ideas, it is vital to give credit and recognition to that person. In such a case, if the researcher is sure about the source, it is important to mention that source properly. It indicates that the researcher has done considerable research while writing the essay or article. Furthermore, it also indicates that the researcher gives credit to those researchers whose ideas are used in this research. So, it is important to mention the author’s name along with the year of publication of the research article.
Add and maintain a distinct perspective to existing content and story
There are millions of articles published in blogs continuously daily. So the researcher must produce a unique article with distinct and up-to-date knowledge.
Use plagiarism checker
The purpose of plagiarism checkers is to scan specific texts, compare them with web pages and publications, and identify the texts that appear similar to other texts. It is always suggested that you check the plagiarism of your text before submitting it for final publication. This will help in avoiding the chances of plagiarism in your material.
Conclusion
The presence of plagiarism in content is a serious offense, which weakens the reliability of research. Certain types of plagiarism are committed by people and have consequences of fines and imprisonment. So the researcher needs to avoid plagiarism. They can follow different techniques, such as quoting, paraphrasing, adopting distinct perspectives, and using plagiarism checkers. In this way, individuals can maintain their academic honesty and contribute to the body of knowledge in the specified fields of knowledge.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is plagiarism?
Plagiarism is the act of using someone else’s original words or ideas and pretending that they are your own. So anyone who borrows someone’s ideas or words and does not properly mention them is using plagiarized material, which is a violation of the rules.
What is the concept of copyright law?
The existence of these laws ensures the protection of our intellectual property. These laws decide that a material or idea is illegal if it is reproduced without proper permission.
If someone changes the words, is there still a need to cite the source?
Only changing the words is not sufficient to avoid plagiarism. The researchers/authors are required to properly cite the source of the ideas or words.