When academics refer to the research of others, they give credit. This is called citing their information source. This enables readers to find the information themselves to verify accuracy and form their own conclusions. All sources must be cited whether from the Web or from papers and articles.
Different disciplines have their own style and usage guidelines for formating citations.
The important thing to remember is to be consistent and clear whenrefering to the work of others. Here are a few suggestions for conventions for citing source material. MLA Style Modern Language Association guidelines for preparing scholarly manuscripts. Commonly used in the arts. Includes instructions for citing common web resources.