General principles

References in TOK exhibition document should include adequate in-text references and reference list at the end of the document. Any picture of an object or an idea taken from sources must be acknowledged. If an object is the student’s own original work (for example, a painting that they created in a visual arts class) then this should be identified to ensure that teachers and moderators are clear about the origins of the object.

In-text references can be done in footnotes, endnotes, or in-text with brackets. The references at the end of the TOK exhibition document should include only those works (such as books, journals, magazines, and online sources) used by the student. There needs to be a clear connection between the works listed and where they are used in the text. A list of sources at the end of the TOK exhibition document is not useful unless reference has been made to all of them within the document.

The references at the end of the TOK exhibition document should specify at least the following:

- author(s), title, date and place of publication
- the name of the publisher or URL (http://...)
- the date when the web page was accessed.

Examples of in-text references:

Example 1, in-text references with brackets:

Our minds can be extremely flawed and biased from time to time (Desjardins, 2021). There can be many causes for heuristics and cognitive biases (Popov, Parker & Seath, 2017, page 170).

Example 2, in-text references with footnotes or endnotes:

Our minds can be extremely flawed and biased from time to time¹. There can be many causes for heuristics and cognitive biases².
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¹Desjardins, 2021.
²Popov, Parker & Seath, 2017, page 170.

Examples of references at the end of the TOK exhibition document:

Desjardins, J. (August 26, 2021). ‘Every Single Cognitive Bias in One Infographic’. Retrieved from https://www.visualcapitalist.com/every-single-cognitive-bias/. Accessed on November 6, 2023.

Popov, A., Parker, L. & Seath, D. (2017). ‘IB Psychology Course Companion (2nd Edition)’. Oxford: Oxford University Press.