Repair-Based Degrees of Database Inconsistency

We propose and investigate a concrete numerical measure of the inconsistency of a database with respect to a set of integrity constraints. It is based on a database repair semantics associated to cardinality-repairs. More specifically, it is shown that the computation of this measure can be intractable in data complexity, but answer-set programs are exhibited that can be used to compute it. Furthermore, its is established that there are polynomial-time deterministic and randomized approximations. The behavior of this measure under small updates is analyzed, obtaining fixed-parameter tractability results. We explore abstract extensions of this measure that appeal to generic classes of database repairs. Inconsistency measures and repairs at the attribute level are investigated as a particular, but relevant and natural case.

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