What is the primary goal of normalization in database design?

The correct answer is Option 4) To eliminate data redundancy.

Key Points

• Normalization is a process in database design aimed at reducing data redundancy and ensuring data integrity.
• It involves organizing data into multiple related tables and applying rules called normal forms (1NF, 2NF, 3NF, etc.).
• The main goal is to:
  • Eliminate duplicate data
  • Ensure logical data dependencies
  • Make data updates, insertions, and deletions more efficient and less error-prone
• By removing redundancy, normalization also helps avoid anomalies such as update, insert, and delete anomalies.

Additional Information

• Option 1 – Incorrect: Enforcing referential integrity is a function of foreign keys, not normalization itself.
• Option 2 – Incorrect: Data encryption is a security feature, not related to the database design structure.
• Option 3 – Incorrect: Normalization may not always improve retrieval performance; in fact, it can require more joins, which could slightly impact performance.
• Normal Forms:
  • 1NF: Eliminates repeating groups
  • 2NF: Removes partial dependencies
  • 3NF: Removes transitive dependencies