This happens often with organisational websites but can occur for any collection of sources. For example, you may use several pages from the World Health Organization (WHO) all published in 2024, or perhaps several policies authored by the Scottish Government published in 2023.
While these materials are easy to distinguish in the reference list, the citations will all be the same, for example: (Scottish Government, 2023). It is no longer clear which citation refers to which source, which is a big problem. Here's how to fix it.
Differentiating between the citations
- ensure the references with the same author are organised by publication year (oldest to newest)
- arrange these items in your reference list alphabetically by title
- assign a letter to each year of publication, according to the order in your reference list
- assign the correct letters to the citations, in order to match the reference list. Please note this means that citation 'a' may not always appear first in your text.
Example
Citation
A recent study on the escalation of rent prices has revealed that socioeconomically disadvantaged groups are facing significant challenges in avoiding debt (Scottish Government, 2023b). Additionally, another policy suggests that families with children are likely experiencing even greater financial strain (Scottish Government, 2023a).
Reference List
Scottish Government (2023a). Housing market review Q3. Edinburgh: Scottish Government.
Scottish Government (2023b). New deal for tenants Available at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/new-deal-tenants-rented-sector-reform-current-proposals/ (Accessed: 21 August 2024).
