How to Cite a Book With No Author or Editor Using Harvard Style

Throughout academia, Harvard style is the most popular citation method. References and citations are methods of giving credit for research that you use to base your own conclusions in your research process. Harvard style citations use a small note within the text of the paper to direct a reader to more extensive set of details at the end of the text. These citations are very important because they allow you to credit other researchers' work and avoid accusations of plagiarism, the act of taking credit for work that is not yours. Plagiarism generally results in total loss of professional credibility, so you must cite all research that went into the formulation of your own conclusions.In the course of your studies and research, it is quite likely that you will encounter a text or reference that does not indicate the identity of an author or an editor. In situations like this, You will need to formulate your citation so that a reader can still locate the text should they wish to do so.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Title of the book
• City where the book was published
• Year the book was published
• Publisher

How to Cite a Book With No Author or Editor Using Harvard Style

1. List the title of the book. The title should be in italics. If your word processor will not support italics, then you will need to use an underscore to indicate that the title should be underlined. You do not need to follow this title with a period as is common in many formats. Use the first significant word of the title to place the book appropriately in the alphabetical list. For example, if your book is called "Letting Go of Flying," then it would be in the "L" section of the bibliography and should look, so far, like this:_Letting Go of Flying_
2. Follow the title with the year of publication and a comma. This information is usually available on the inside of the front cover of the book, or on a title page. For example, if the reference text was published in 1990, then your citation should now look like this:_Letting Go of Flying_ 1990,
3. Add the publisher's name and another comma. If the book does not have an author, you may also have trouble finding other information such as the publisher. If this happens, use the internet to search for the publisher. You can do this by entering the title of the work in a search engine. If the book was published by International Publishing, then your citation should, at this point, look like this: _Letting Go of Flying_ 1990, International Publishing,
4. Finish with the city where the book was published and a period. For example, if your book was published in Boca Raton, Florida, then your finished citation should read: _Letting Go of Flying_ 1990, International Publishing, Boca Raton.

Tips & Warnings

• Be certain to cite all types of information that you do not formulate yourself. For example, if you use "A" and "B" to conclude "C," then A and B must both be cited so that readers know where to go to learn more about them should they wish to do so.