Answered on : 2024-01-23
Cardinality in an Entity-Relationship Diagram (ERD) defines the possible number of occurrences in one entity associated with the number of occurrences in another. It indicates the relationships' numerical attributes. Here's a concise explanation:
1. **Definition:** Cardinality is the count of times one entity can (or must) associate with each occurrence of another entity[6].
2. **Representation:**
- Cardinalities are numerical values expressing the degree of association between two entities in a relationship[4].
- Common cardinal relationships include one-to-one, one-to-many (or many-to-one), and many-to-many[8].
3. **Example:** In a team-player relationship, a cardinality of "ONE team has MANY players" signifies a one-to-many relationship[3].
Understanding cardinality is crucial for designing effective database relationships in ERD diagrams.