A citation is a reference to the source of an idea, information or image.
Any words, ideas or images that you do not create yourself must be cited if you use them in your work.
Citing information sources lets the audience know the origins of your information (in case they would like to locate the original) and gives credit to the creator (preventing plagiarism).
In your ARTD 109 class, you will use MLA style, as it is most commonly associated with humanities research.
A citation in your outline will look like an "in-text" citation for a longer, written work.
If the article or chapter or website (etc.) you are citing was written by someone with the last name Smith and it was published in 2020. Imagining the same article but using MLA, you would just say (Smith) in your outline. Both of these examples assume that in your References/Works Cited pages, you had a full citation written out for this article, like below:
In your outline: 79% of respondents in one recent survey reported that they preferred the denser texture of cake donuts to lighter, yeast risen donuts (Smith, 2020).
In the References/Works Cited pages:
(APA References example) Smith, M. (2020). Glazed cake donuts are superior pastries. www.thisisamadeupwebsite.com
(MLA Works Cited example) Smith, Melisandra. (2020). "Glazed Cake Donuts Are Superior Pastries." www.thisisamadeupwebsite.com
You may also sometimes be asked to include brief citations on your slides for images or quotations.