Paraphrasing and Summarizing
Plagiarism is defined as presenting the language and thoughts of another author as one’s own. A common concern among students is how to avoid plagiarism while effectively communicating ideas. Two methods that can be used are paraphrasing and summarizing. Paraphrasing involves taking the phrases from an original work and interpreting them with your own words. In contrast, with summarizing you take the main ideas and points and put them into your own words. Summarizing can be thought of as being a step away from paraphrasing in that your writing is more your own (i.e., further from the original work). Both are skills are developed through practice and below are some tips to get you started.
Paraphrasing
1. To paraphrase you must interpret the work using your own words. Keep in mind:
“Your own words” does not mean that every word must be different from the original text. You will find that some ideas cannot be stated any other way, this includes proper names, defined terms, units of measurement or other specific language
(e.g., worldwide, Intelligence Quotient, endurance running).
2. Avoid using the same sentence structure as the author. This is especially important if you are using similar terms (e.g., endurance running – see back side of this hand out)
3. The three word rule. If you directly incorporate three or more words from the original work you must use quotation marks.
4. Even though the words are now your own you must still cite the original source. The ideas you are writing about are not your own.
5. If an entire paragraph is dedicated to one source you only need to cite it once at the beginning or at the end of the paragraph. However, if you have more than one source per paragraph you will need to give credit to distinguish the sources.
Summarizing
1. When you summarize your writing should be further away from a literal translation, in
terms of word usage and the concepts you select. You are taking the main ideas and
points and interpreting them into your own words.
2. Summaries should take a broader view of the original work and are significantly shorter.
3. As in paraphrasing you still cite the original work, even though more of your writing is
your own.
Quoting
A rule of thumb is to use quotes sparingly and strategically because, for the most part, you can paraphrase and summarize instead. Quotes are also more difficult to integrate into your writing. If you find that you must use quotations then consult your style manual for the specific rules.
Original Sentence:
However, although humans are comparatively poor sprinters, they also engage in a different type of running, endurance running (ER), defined as running many kilometers over extended time periods using aerobic metabolism.
Two Examples of Paraphrasing:
Of the different types of running, humans are the most effective at endurance running. Endurance running is defined as an aerobic activity that involves running extended distances over long periods of time (Bramble & Lieberman, 2004).
Having limited success in sprinting compared to other mammals, humans perform better in endurance running, which is a form of aerobic running over extended distances and periods of time (Bramble & Lieberman, 2004).
An example of summarizing:
Mammals are adept at covering long distances and one method by which they accomplish this is running. Each animal evolved a characteristic running ability that increases its chances of survival. For example, members of the family Felidae (i.e., big cats) are adept at sprinting, which helps them catch prey (Feline, 2011), whereas humans are particularly suited for running long distances (Bramble & Lieberman, 2004). Being able to cover long distances is a product of being hunters and gatherers.
[The underlined portion is the summary. Observe how the summary is integrated into the text and that it is much shorter than the paraphrase of the same original sentence]
Lastly, be sure to also include your original thoughts and ideas. A paper full of paraphrasing and summarizing will appear as pieces and not a coherent and logical analysis.
References
Bramble, D. M., & Lieberman, D. E. (2004). Endurance running and the evolution of Homo.
Nature, 438, 345-52.
Feline. (2011). In Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved from
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/98895/feline
Portions of this handout provided by:
Driscoll, D. L., Brizee, A. (2010). Quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing. Purdue
Online Writing Lab. Retrieved from http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl
/resource/563/01/
Duke University Libraries. (2009). Paraphrasing: When should I paraphrase.
Retrieved from http://educatoral.com/paraphrase-vs-summarize.html
I. Price (2011)