Annotated Bibliography
An Annotated Bibliography is an alphabetical list of information sources (e.g. journal articles or book chapters), which includes concise descriptions, analysis, and evaluations of each source, formatted like a bibliography or reference list.
Purpose of an annotated bibliography?
Creating an Annotated Bibliography will allow you to:
Questions to ask yourself
Choosing which sources to include in your Annotated Bibliography is important and when choosing you should consider the following questions:
How to Write an Annotated Bibliography
An Annotated Bibliography is made up of two (2) parts:
Create the Citation
The citation should be constructed the same as a reference list in APA 7th edition format.
For more in-depth instructions on creating a citation refer to the Referencing and Plagiarism assessment support guide.
Creating an Annotation
There are six (6) components that go into creating an Annotation:
A summary of the content.
The scope and subject.
Brief analysis of the source.
The usefulness of the source.
Its limitations.
A reflection on its relevance.
All of these components should be addressed in the Annotation.
Putting it All Together
Once you have answered all of the concepts above, you should condense them into a single paragraph of between 150-200 words. When writing your annotation, you should:
Look at how this example uses the six component listed above to create an annotated bibliography entry. Each component is numbered in the example.
Checklist
Have I:
⇒ Used APA 7th Edition referencing format?
⇒ Are the sources are listed alphabetically?
⇒ Each entry is composed of the full reference of the source followed by the annotation
⇒ Given a brief overview of the main ideas of the source, using features such as the structure, the purpose or the research methodology of the text as discussion points?
⇒ Evaluated the source for its objectivity and reliability?
⇒ Commented on whether the source was useful to my research?
⇒ Ensured my spelling, grammar and punctuation are correct and my writing is set out in a logical format
⇒ Proof read all your work?