Common Documentation
Styles and Manuals:
Different
academic disciplines publish different style guidelines.
Why so many guidelines? Different fields of study need different
types of documentation, depending on several factors. Some
publish large journals that allow for lengthy annotation,
as is often the case in the discipline of history. Others
are constrained by small space in the major publications.
Some fields have many works in translation, and require
special annotation for that. In some fields, books are more
frequently referred than paperback journals or magazines.
Some studies require nonstandard typographics (such as musical
notation, Chinese ideographs, or visual designs). The result
is that different editors suggest varying guidelines to
best suit their needs. These are the most commonly used
documentation styles as of June 2004 (the last time I updated
this list). Find these manuals in the reference section
of the library or ask an instructor within your field what
is the most common format in that discipline. I would highly
recommend purchasing whichever one is most pertinent to
your studies.
American
Institute of Physics. Style Manual for Guidance in the
Preparation of Papers. 4th ed. New York: American
Institute of Physics, 1990.
American Mathematical
Society. A Manual for Authors of Mathematical Papers.
Rev. ed. Providence: American Mathematical Society, 1990.
American Psychological
Association. Publication Manual of the American Psychological
Association. 4th ed. Washington: American Psychological
Association, 1994.
Associated
Press Staff. Associated Press Stylebook and Libel Manual.
Reading: Addison, 1992.
Bates, Robert
L., Rex Buchanan, and Marla Adkins-Heljeson, eds. Geowriting:
A Guide to Writing, Editing, and Printing in Earth Science.
5th ed. Alexandria, VA: American Geological Institute, 1992.
The Bluebook:
A Uniform System of Citation. Comp. editors
of Columbia Law Review, et al. 15th ed. Cambridge: Harvard
Law Review Association, 1991.
Chicago Editorial
Staff. The Chicago Manual of Style. 14th
ed., Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993.
Council of
Biology Editors. CBE Style Manual: A Guide for Authors,
Editors, and Publishers in the Biological Sciences.
5th ed. Bethesda, MD: Council of Biology Editors, 1983.
Dodd, Janet
S. and the American Chemical Society. American Chemical
Society Style Guide: A Manual for Authors and Editors.
2nd ed. Washington: American Chemical Society Publishing,
1986. Gibaldi, Joseph. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research
Papers. 6th ed. New York: MLA, 2003.
Ferguson,
Billy. U. P. I. Stylebook. Lincolnwood, IL: National Textbook
Company, 1992.
Holoman, D.
Kern, ed. Writing About Music: A Style Sheet from the
Editors of 19th-Century Music. Berkeley: University
of California Press, 1988.
Linguistics
Society of America. "LSA Style Sheet." Published in the
December issue of the LSA Bulletin each year.
Lobban, Christopher
S. Successful Lab Reports: A Manual for Science Students.
Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, MA. 1992.
MacDonald,
R. H. A Broadcast News Manual. 2nd ed. New York: Longman,
1994.
Sides, Charles
H. How to Write and Present Technical Information.
2nd ed. New York: Oryx, 1991.
Turabian,
Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses,
and Dissertations. 5th edition. Chicago, University
of Chicago Press, 1987.
United States.
Government Printing Office. Style Manual.
Washington: GPO, 1984.
Wilson, John
M. Complete Guide to Magazine Article Writing.
Cincinnati: Writer's Digest Books, 1993.
