Citations & Reference Management — VWA / ABA

Correct citations are one of the most important requirements of an academic paper. This page explains how to properly reference sources, document AI usage and efficiently manage your references with Zotero.

Proper Citations

The citation style is agreed upon with your supervisor and must be applied consistently throughout the paper.

Style	Typical for	Example
APA (in-text)	Natural sciences, psychology, IT, sports	(Mueller, 2020, p. 15)
Footnotes (German style)	Humanities, history, philosophy	Cf. Mueller, Maria: Title. Vienna 2020, p. 15.

AI Usage (ChatGPT & Co.)

Generative AI may be used as an aid
All AI usage must be documented and cited
Full prompts and outputs must be included in the appendix
A signed AI usage declaration is required
Example citation: (OpenAI ChatGPT, "Chat title", 15.01.2026, Appendix A)

AI does not replace your own thinking

AI-generated text must not be used verbatim. Check every AI output for accuracy — generative models can produce plausible-sounding but incorrect information ("hallucinations"). Your own scholarly contribution must remain clearly recognisable.

Zotero — Free Reference Management

What is Zotero?

Zotero is a free, open-source reference manager. It stores sources, organises them into collections and automatically generates citations and bibliographies in Word. Recommended by the school for all VWA papers.

Installation

Download Zotero

Download from zotero.org — available for Windows, macOS and Linux. Free, no registration required.

Install the Browser Connector

Install the Zotero Connector for Chrome, Firefox or Edge. This lets you save sources directly from the browser with a single click.

Create an account (optional)

A free account on zotero.org syncs your library across devices (300 MB free, usually sufficient for a VWA).

Collecting Sources

Method	How it works
Browser button	Click the Zotero Connector button on any web page, book or article — the source is saved automatically with all metadata
ISBN/DOI	In Zotero: magic wand icon — enter ISBN or DOI — the source is found automatically
Manually	In Zotero: green + button — choose source type (book, journal, etc.) — fill in the fields
Import PDF	Drag a PDF into Zotero — metadata is detected automatically

Tip

Save every source in Zotero immediately when you find it. Tracking down sources later wastes unnecessary time.

Organising

Collections: Create folders for chapters (e.g. "Theory", "Methodology", "Results")
Tags: Assign keywords (e.g. "climate change", "statistics", "interview")
Notes: Add your personal annotations to each source — this makes writing easier later

Zotero + Microsoft Word

Check the plugin

The Zotero Word plugin is installed automatically when you install Zotero. A new "Zotero" tab appears in Word. If not: Zotero → Preferences → Cite → Word Processors → "Reinstall Microsoft Word Plugin".

Choose a citation style

On the first citation Zotero asks for the style. Recommended for VWA: "APA 7th Edition" (natural sciences) or "Chicago Manual of Style 17th (note)" (humanities). The style can be changed at any time.

Insert a citation

Place the cursor → Zotero tab → "Add Citation" → search for and select the source → enter the page number → Enter. The citation is formatted automatically.

Create the bibliography

Place the cursor at the end of the paper → Zotero tab → "Add Bibliography" → the bibliography is generated automatically and updates when new citations are added.

Before submission: Refresh

Zotero tab → click "Refresh" to ensure all citations and the bibliography are up to date.

Do not edit citations manually

Do not edit citations manually in the text! Always use the Zotero tab in Word. Manual changes are overwritten on the next refresh.

Source Research — Databases

Database	URL	Suitable for
Google Scholar	scholar.google.com	General academic search, books, dissertations
BASE	base-search.net	300+ million open-access documents, strong for German-language sources
JSTOR	jstor.org	Humanities, history, social sciences
SpringerLink	link.springer.com	Natural sciences, textbooks, journals
PubMed	pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov	Medicine, biology, health sciences
APA PsycNet	psycnet.apa.org	Psychology
Austrian National Library	onb.ac.at	Historical and Austrian sources

Source Quality

Golden rule: The closer a source is to the original, the better.

Prefer	Avoid / Use with caution
Peer-reviewed journals	Wikipedia (only as a starting point)
Official documents, legislation	Blog posts
Textbooks by recognised authors	YouTube videos
Original studies	AI-generated texts (risk of hallucination)
Statistics (Statistik Austria, Eurostat)	Unsupported claims

Recommended Number of Sources

Section	Guideline
Introduction	3–5 sources
Theoretical section	10–20 sources
Empirical section	3–8 sources (methodology, comparative studies)
Conclusion	References to previously cited sources
Total	Approx. 15–30 sources

Quality over quantity

15 relevant sources are better than 50 off-topic ones. Make sure your sources are current, scholarly and relevant to your research question.