How to Write Using Chicago Style
Chicago style is the widely used system of citing references in academic works presented in the University of Chicago’s Manual of Style. There are other systems in use (for instance MLA or Modern Language Association style) but they all follow the same pattern as Chicago style. If you learn to write using Chicago style you will easily be able to adjust to other systems if necessary. In section one you will see how to write using Chicago style for papers in the natural and social sciences. Section two covers the forms used in history, literature and the arts.
Instructions
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Using Chicago Style for Social and Natural Science Papers
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1
Place a citation in parentheses at in the text at the end of paraphrased or quoted references from books, journal articles and most other publications. Include the last names of the author(s) and the year of publication. If the citation is for a direct quote, follow the date with a comma and the page number(s) for the quotation. For more than three authors, use only the last name of first author and the phrase “et al.” Examples include (Braverman 1976), (Rhodes, et al., 1998), (Burawoy 1976, 47-48).
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2
Place a complete citation in your text for references or quoted material from printed newspapers (not electronic newspapers). Give the name of the author(s) or person quoted in the text, and place the citation in parentheses. For example, “Senator Smith was quoted by Mary Jones (New York Times, June 10, 2005) as saying...” Do not include newspaper articles in the bibliography.
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3
Provide the full citation for books in your bibliography. The bibliographic entry includes the following information in the order given: author(s), year of publication, full title, city in which the book was published and publisher. All authors’ names are given, with only the first author’s last name listed first. Indent all lines in a citation after the first. Pay particular attention to the use of punctuation marks, as their use is specified when using Chicago style:Turner, Jonathan, Leonard Beeghley, ad Charles H. Powers. 1995. The Emergence of Sociological Theory. Belmont: Wadsworth.
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4
Use the same basic form for journal articles, but with the following specific format, including the journal name in italics, the volume and issue number, and the first and last pages the article appears on. Altman, Barbara. 2005. The Labor Market Experiences of People with Disabilities. Work and Occupations 24 (August): 360-64.
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5
Use the same formats as above for e-books and e-journal articles. Include the URL and date accessed immediately following the regular bibliographic entry using this format: www.xxx.org/filename (accessed June 15, 2007).
Using Chicago Style for Papers in History, Literature and the Arts
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6
Use footnotes or endnotes for all in-text citations. In Microsoft Word, place the cursor at the end of the text to be cited, immediately after the period or close quote mark. Go to the "Insert" menu, select "Reference," and then select "Footnote." Other word processors have a similar feature.
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7
Enter a full citation for your source. You may also use footnotes or endnotes add additional text. Use the following format for books:Smith, Merritt Roe and Leo Marx. Does Technology Drive History? The Dilemma of Technological Determinism (Cambridge: MIT Press, 1994).For the bibliography use this format. Pay careful attention to the differences in punctuation:Smith, Merritt Roe and Leo Marx. Does Technology Drive History? The Dilemma of Technological Determinism. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1994.
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8
Use this format to footnote journal and magazine articles:Simon Bryant. “Why Are There So Few Unions in the South?” Georgia Historical Quarterly 27 (Summer, 1997): 468.Enter the full citation in the bibliography as follows:Bryant, Simon. “Why Are There So Few Unions in the South?” Georgia Historical Quarterly 27 (Summer, 1997): 465-84.
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9
For all electronic journals and books, enter the website and date accessed immediately after the regular citation using this format:www.xxx.org/filename (accessed June 15, 2007).
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10
Only enter the full citation for a source the first time you cite it. For all further citations from the same work, enter the last name(s) of the authors, or the last name of the first author and the phrase “et al.” Include page numbers if the citation is for a direct quotation.
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Tips & Warnings
There are many kinds of sources not listed here, including encyclopedias, letters, websites, and unpublished dissertations. Almost every bookstore carries Kate Turabian’s “A Manual for Writers of Term Papers.” This is a short version of the Chicago Manual of style and contains hundreds of examples. You can also get more detail by clicking the link below.
