Plagiarism is defined in the University Bulletin of the University of Southern Indiana as "literary burglary" and is a form of academic dishonesty. Plagiarism occurs when one claims another's ideas, words, facts or information as his/her own and does not give credit to the original author or source. In this University and in the College of Nursing, a student who commits plagiarism is subject to disciplinary action which may include dismissal.
The best way to avoid plagiarism is to carefully cite all information from sources appropriately. This does not mean that one can simply place a cite at the end of each paragraph. Cites must clearly indicate what information came from what source. Writers must make clear where cited information begins and ends. Use of another's exact words always requires quotation marks. However, simply using long quotes usually makes for long and tedious reading. Nursing students are expected to be able to read information and paraphrase that information in other words, yet still give the original source credit for the idea or facts shared. Examples of doing this are found in the APA manual in the chapter on ethics (page 349).
The following links have more information:
Rice Library LibGuide: How to Tell If You Are Plagiarizing