Adding Secondary Quotations

Citavi does not distinguish between primary and secondary quotations. Secondary quotations — that is, quotations that are taken from a source other than the original source — are best avoided in academic writing and should only be used if it is impossible to obtain the original source. To use secondary quotations in Citavi, you must apply some creative thinking, as illustrated by the following example:

1. You have a book by Müller from 2006 which contains an interesting quotation by Schmidt that you want to use. On page 14 of Müller, you find: According to Schmidt, "the power of facts has led to more laws than the legislature wants to accept" (Schmidt 1994, p. 84)..
2. To use the Schmidt quotation in your writing, you must add both references (Müller and Schmidt) to Citavi. The reference to Schmidt is in Müller's bibliography, and you should be sure to verify the accuracy of this reference in a library catalog or other database.
3. To cite the secondary quotation, add the Schmidt quotation to the Müller reference. It would be dishonest to add it to the Schmidt reference, because you have not actually consulted the original work. So, to Müller, you would add your quotation as follows: "The power of facts has led to more laws than the legislature wants to accept" (Schmidt 1994, p. 84 as quoted by Müller 2003, p. 14).

As you see, secondary quotations require a little extra thought. Again, they are best avoided and should only be used as a last resort when the original source cannot be consulted.