Even though they share characteristics, citations and attributions play different roles and appear in different places. This chapter defines these, explains how and when they should be used in an open textbook, and discusses their purposes, similarities, and differences.

Outside ideas and information provide evidence that build an argument or lay the foundation for a textbook’s topic. A strong textbook will appropriately reference these sources, showing the student reader where information and ideas that do not originate with the open textbook author come from. This should be done for both restricted and open works through citations and attribution statements. Use this as an opportunity to show students by example how a scholar respects and shares information from other sources.

Citation

A citation allows authors to provide the source of any quotations, ideas, and information that they include in their own work based on the copyrighted works of other authors. The Oxford Living Dictionary defines it as a “…quotation from or reference to a book, paper, or author, especially in a scholarly work.”^[1] Excluding the citation of a resource referenced in your own work can place you at risk of plagiarizing. Plagiarizing is the act of passing another individual’s ideas or work as your own.

Citation is a common and long-time practice among scholars used to indicate where a resource is from and who the author is. Unlike an attribution, citation is typically used for copyrighted works with restricted rights or “all rights reserved.” In other words, it is used in works for which broad permissions have not been granted.

As a scholar and potential author of an open textbook, we assume that you are familiar with the rules around citation. However, the article Warning: When You Must Cite from the Yale Center for Teaching and Learning provides some guidance about how, what, and the amount of a work that can be cited.

Attribution

Attribution is the cornerstone condition when using a resource or text released with an open-copyright license. This legal requirement states that users must attribute—give credit—to the creator of the work.

In a CC BY license, the “CC” stands for “Creative Commons” and the “BY” stands for “Attribution,” or who the work is “by.”

An attribution statement is used to provide credit to the original creator. Its purpose is similar to a citation. Best practice says that the statement should include the title of the work, name of the creator, and license type (with links to each where possible). When using text from another open educational resource, be clear in your attribution statement what section of your textbook contains this information.

A useful tool to help create attribution statements is the OPEN Attribution Builder by Open Washington.

Differences

Citation and attribution serve different purposes.

• Citation is used for academic reasons in order to give credit to a colleague for their work as part of academic integrity. It’s also used for legal reasons. Attributing an open work fulfills the legal requirement of the open-copyright license, which requires you to give credit to the creator of the work.
• Citation is used for restricted works where the copyright holder does not share the rights of the copy with the general public. The opposite is true for cases where attribution is used.
• Citation legally protects an author who wants to refer to someone else’s work and to avoid plagiarism and copyright infringement. The author of an open work has given advanced permission for others to use their work.
• When referencing a restricted work with a citation, one must be careful about the amount referenced. Both direct quotations and paraphrasing are permitted. All of an open work may be used with no limitations; attribution is used to give the author of this work credit.
• The closest one can come to altering a restricted work is to paraphrase the original author’s ideas and expression of these ideas. Conversely, the author of an open work has provided advanced permission to use AND change their work (except in cases where ND—NoDerivatives—has been applied).
• Citation styles are varied and established. They dictate how to cite or reference a paraphrase or quotation within text (e.g., with an in-text citation or footnote) and how and where to provide the full reference, whether it be in a reference list, a works cited, or a bibliography at the end of a book.
• The styles for attribution statements are still emerging. Current best practice for an attribution statement states it should reside on the same page (digital or printed) as the resource it refers to. Statements can stand alone, e.g., within the caption of an image, or in a list at the bottom of the page.

The following table summarizes the differences between citations and attributions.

Similarities

There are also similarities between a citation and attribution.

• Both can be—and often are—copyrighted.
• Both give credit to the creator of the original work.
• For both restricted and open works, the author or creator of a work might be different from the copyright holder. For example, if a faculty member writes an open textbook, their institution might hold copyright. However, it’s standard practice to attribute the creator—not the copyright holder—in the attribution statement.
• Both can be used for either a newly created work or a revised work.
• Both can be used when referring to a portion of another work, though the amount that can be cited from a fully copyrighted work is substantially less than what can be used from an open work.
• Both can be used when building an argument or the foundation of a textbook.

Special Cases

Citing and Attributing a Closed Online Resource

Resources kept in a closed system, such as a password-protected platform, can still be cited and attributed in an OER. Below are templates and examples showing how based on APA guidelines. (For other examples, see style guides to your preferred citation style.)

Citation – APA

When a resource cannot be accessed publicly, APA citation style states it should be treated as a personal communication. Additionally, only a parenthetical in-text citation is required, without inclusion in the reference list. See below for a template and example that can be used for the in-text citation.

• APA citation template (in-text citation): Author, personal communication, Date of access.

If you plan to publish a resource currently stored in a restricted system, then it can be cited as an unpublished manuscript using this template.

• APA citation template: Last, F. M. (Year, Month Date published). Title of manuscript [Unpublished manuscript]. Faculty department, Name of post-secondary institution.

Citation – MLA

If your preference is the MLA citation style, then treating a resource within a closed online system as an unpublished document makes sense. Below is the template and also an example of how this can be done.

• MLA citation template: Author. “Title of Manuscript/Document.” Date of composition (at least a year), along with “the name and location of the library, research institution, or personal collection housing the material.”

Attribution

The legal code for Creative Commons licenses states that “If you share the licensed material you must retain the following if it is supplied by the Licensor: a URL or hyperlink to the Licensed Material to the extent reasonably practicable (emphasis added).” In other words, providing a link to the OER to be attributed is not legally required. You must just do your best to provide one if available.

Therefore, if you wish to include some or all of a private or non-accessible online resource (that is openly licensed) in another OER, here are suggested templates for the attribution statement for those closed-system OER.

Who Gets Attribution for an Image?

It is important to understand who to give credit to for an image. Frequently, especially for a work in the public domain, it is not the artist or photographer who created the original work. Instead, you must attribute the individual who created the version of the work that you are using in your book or educational resource. For example, a photograph of a painting is considered a secondary source, or interpretation of the original painting, and you will need to credit the photographer in the attribution statement, not the painter.

Below is a photograph of the famous painting Mona Lisa, by Leonardo da Vinci. In the attribution statement, credit is given to the photographer, not da Vinci. As such, the attribution statement should read: Mona Lisa by Dcoetzee is in the public domain. This also means that just because a work of art may be in the public domain, it does not mean that the reproduction of that work is in the public domain.

Attribution for Images in Pressbooks

As part of the OER Grant requirements for Weber State University faculty and staff, all images used within a Pressbooks project must be correctly attributed and have the correct metadata added to an image from within the chapter when you first upload an image or later added into the Media Library. Texas Tech University offers a step-by-step guide to add in media attributions for images in pressbooks. Alongside that guide, here is a list of required and optional elements to include in the Metadata for the Media Library in Pressbooks in accordance with the WSU OER Grant guidelines:

• Alt Text – Required
• Title – Required
• Source URL – Required (if known or created by someone else)
• Author – Required
• License – Required
• Adapted by – Required (if applicable)
• Adapted by URL – Required (if applicable)
• Author URL – Optional (if known)
• Caption – Optional
• Description – Optional

Should Items in the Public Domain be Attributed?

Resources for which copyright has been designated to the public domain by the creator do not require that attribution be given to the creator. However, as a best practice, we encourage still crediting the author or artist for the resources they created. Taking this extra step does many things:

1. It shows respect and provides recognition for the individual who created and freely shared their creation.
2. It upholds academic integrity.
3. It ensures consistency in how a textbook is styled.
4. It leaves no doubt that the resource is open for use and provides future users with links and other information about the resource’s origins.

Citation-Attribution Fusion

The libraries at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops have come up with a clever solution to the citation versus attribution dilemma. In the “Crediting Images Found Online” section of their APA Citation Style web page, they suggest modifying the APA citation style, so it incorporates open license or public domain information for the image’s caption and reference. Here is an example.

The image and its caption would appear like this:

 

The corresponding reference would be laid out like this:

Vernon, A. (Photographer). (2007). Yellow-bellied marmot pups – Kamloops, BC [digital image]. Retrieved from Wikimedia Commons website: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yellow-bellied_Marmot_pups_-_Kamloops,_BC..jpg

Attribution Statement Examples

This section provides sample attribution statements based on the most common rights and conditions under which open educational resources are released and used. Note that for resources in the public domain, the attribution statement changes depending on how the work ended up in the public domain. Attribution statements for resources that have been designated to the public domain by their creators are labelled as “Public domain: designated.” Items in the public domain because their copyright expired are labeled as “Public domain: expired copyright.”

Most of these attribution statement layouts are based on recommendations posted by Creative Commons. Here are the commonly used elements and other information to be aware of:

• Resource type + number. This is the label that you assign to a resource based on its place in your open textbook or OER (e.g. Figure 1.4). It is generally placed in a resource’s caption and is an effective way of connecting a resource to its attribution statement.
• Resource title. This is the title assigned to the resource by its creator. An attribution statement should contain the title of the resource with a link to the web page where the resource was found.
• Creator. This is the name of the individual who created the resource. An attribution statement should contain the creator’s name and (if available) a link to their profile page within the website or repository where the resource was found.
• Resource change. If you change a resource, including cropping a photo, this must be indicated in the attribution statement. NOTE: If the CC license covering a resource includes “ND” (NoDerivatives) as a condition, the item cannot be changed. This includes cropping.
• Copyright information. A link to a description of the type of license or other conditions that permit you to use this resource, should be provided as follows:
  • If the open-copyright license used is a CC license, link the license description to the ones provided on the Creative Commons website.
  • If the creator has designated their work to the public domain and marked this work with a Creative Commons zero (CC0) logo or icon, link to the CC0 page on the CC website.
  • If an item has been identified as having “no known copyright” with the Creative Commons public domain mark, link to the Public Domain Mark page on the CC website.
  • If an item is in the public domain and is not marked with a Creative Commons public domain logo or icon, we recommend linking to the public domain description from Wikipedia instead.
• Accessibility. Web accessibility guidelines state that if a link opens in a new tab or window, this should be marked (e.g., Creative Commons). However, because each attribution statement contains up to three links—and readers are less likely to open these links—it is not necessary or even advised to provide externally opening links for attribution statements. (See Links in the BCcampus Open Education Accessibility Toolkit.)

Open-Copyright License, No Changes

• FORMAT: Resource type/number + resource title “by” creator “is used under a“ license type.
• EXAMPLE: Figure 4.3 Mero (Epinephelus marginatus), Madeira, Portugal, 2019-05-31, DD 24 by Diego Delso is used under a CC BY-SA 4.0 License.

Open-Copyright License, Changes Made

• FORMAT: Resource type/number + resource title “by” creator “has been modified (resource change) and is used under a” license type.
• EXAMPLE: Figure 4.3 Mero (Epinephelus marginatus), Madeira, Portugal, 2019-05-31, DD 24 by Diego Delso has been modified (cropped) and is used under a CC BY-SA 4.0 License.

Public Domain: Designated, No Changes

• FORMAT: Resource type/number + resource title “by” creator “has been designated to the public domain (CC0).”
• EXAMPLE: Figure 5.5 Meadow by geralt has been designated to the public domain (CC0).

Public Domain: Designated, Changes Made

It is not required to include a description of a change when using a resource from the public domain. However, you can choose to include this information in your attribution statement.

• FORMAT: Resource type/number + resource title “by” creator “has been designated to the public domain (CC0). This item has been modified (resource change).”
• EXAMPLE: Figure 5.5 Meadow by geralt has been designated to the public domain (CC0). This item has been modified (cropped).

Public Domain: Expired Copyright, No Changes

• FORMAT: Resource type/number + resource title “by” creator “is in the public domain.”
• EXAMPLE: Figure 13.1 Walter Cronkite by NASA/Bill Ingalls is in the public domain.

Public Domain: Expired Copyright, Changes Made

It is not required to include a description of a change when using a resource from the public domain. However, you can choose to include this information in your attribution statement.

• FORMAT: Resource type/number + resource title “by” creator “has been modified (resource change) and is in the public domain.”
• EXAMPLE: Figure 13.1 Walter Cronkite by NASA/Bill Ingalls has been modified (cropped) and is in the public domain.

No Known Copyright Restrictions

• FORMAT: Resource type/number + resource title “by” creator “has no known copyright restrictions”(link to web page describing this condition).
• EXAMPLE: Figure 13.1 C.P.R. Mount Stephen House, Field, BC, 1909 by Musée McCord Museum has no known copyright restrictions.

Government Websites and Publications

Many government publications are in the public domain, even current and recent publications. However, they may be fully or partially copyrighted if published by a third party so be sure to verify the license and cite appropriately.

Source Statement

If available, an optional source statement can be appended to the end of an attribution statement. It notes the type of source from which an open educational resource is curated, such as a museum collection, and is used when this information provides legitimacy to the textbook subject matter.

Source statement example: This image is available from the Toronto Public Library under the reference number JRR 1059.

Full attribution statement with source statement: Toronto Rolling Mills is in the public domain. This image is available from the Toronto Public Library under the reference number JRR 1059.