User-centric data integration with the mapping assistant

Abstract

Data integration is the problem of transferring complex data from one into another representation in order to support exchange between different systems. From a technical point of view data integration has intensively been studied. However, less attention has been paid to user-centric aspects of data integration. In this work, we present the MappingAssistant which supports the user in finding and validating mapping rules between heterogeneous data sources. Compared to existing approaches we focus on an user-centric approach where the user inspects the consequences of the data integration rules on the instance level rather than being confronted with complex data integration rules. We performed a study which shows that the user-centric approach leads to better integration results, especially for users with little or no technical knowledge and is perceived as being more intuitive.