Collections

What are collections?

Collections are any group of individual objects that are represented as a single unit is known as a Java Collection of Objects. In Java, a separate framework named the “Collection Framework” has been defined in JDK 1.2 which holds all the Java Collection Classes and Interface in it. It works as an interface that defines the highest-level of shared collection behavior, and extends Iterable which allows usage of ForEach loop.

Types of Collections

  • List:
    • Ordered collection
    • Allows duplicate elements
    • Example: ArrayList and LinkedList
  • Set:
    • Unordered collection
    • No duplicates
    • Example: HashSet and TreeSet
  • Map:
    • Key-pair values
    • Each key must be unique
    • Example: HashMap and TreeMap
  • Queue:
    • Follows First-In-First-Out order
    • Example: LinkedList and PriorityQueue
  • Deque:
    • Double ended queue
    • Insertion and removal at both ends
    • Example: ArrayDeque

Popcorn Hack!

Come up with a real world example in which collections are used! Write your answer below:

One real world example in which collections are used is managing a library’s inventory system, specifically with a List or Set. The library has a variety of books that can be sorted by attributes like title, author, and availability status. A collection like a List or Set could be used to represent the entire inventory of books and allow us to sort the books by some of these attributes.

HashMaps

What are they?

Hash Maps are a data structure with keys and values; very similar to a Python dictionary. The keys in Hash Maps have a single value assigned to them, which can be accessed by calling the key:

import java.util.HashMap;  //Hashmaps are part of the java.util package

public class PlanetDistances {
    public static void main(String[] args) {

        HashMap<String, Double> hashMap = new HashMap<>();

        // key-value pairs, where the key is the planet (a string) and the value is the double assigned to each key
        hashMap.put("Mercury", 0.39);
        hashMap.put("Venus", 0.72); //adding an element
        hashMap.put("Earth", 1.00);
        hashMap.remove("Earth", 1.00); //removing an element

        // the value 0.39 can be accessed by calling the key "Mercury"
        double value = hashMap.get("Mercury");
        boolean exists = hashMap.containsKey("Mercury"); //you can also check if a key exists
        System.out.println("Mercury is " + value + " astronomical units away from the Sun");
    }
}

PlanetDistances.main(null);

Mercury is 0.39 astronomical units away from the Sun

As shown above, the data type of the keys and values must be defined when creating the Hashmap. You cannot use data types for keys or values that are different from the ones assigned to it. Also, keys must be non-null objects. However, values can be null!


Keys in a Hashmap must be unique. Otherwise the previous values of the key get overwritten.

import java.util.HashMap;  

public class ShoePrices {
    public static void main(String[] args) {

        HashMap<String, Double> hashMap = new HashMap<>();

        hashMap.put("Nike", 41.97);
        hashMap.put("Nike", 80.97); //this value replaces the previous value 
        hashMap.put("Adidas", 69.99);
        hashMap.put("Vans", 55.00);

        double value = hashMap.get("Nike");
        System.out.println("A Nike shoe would cost " + value);
    }
}

ShoePrices.main(null);

A Nike shoe would cost 80.97

Popcorn hack: what can we do if we want to assign multiple values to a single key? Do it below!:

An ArrayList or Array can be used to assign multiple values to a single key.

import java.util.HashMap;  

public class ShoePrices {
    public static void main(String[] args) {

        HashMap<String, Double> hashMap = new HashMap<>();

        hashMap.put("Nike", 41.97);
        hashMap.put("Nike", 80.97);
        hashMap.put("Adidas", 69.99);
        hashMap.put("Vans", 55.00);

        double value = hashMap.get("Nike");
        System.out.println("A Nike shoe would cost " + value);
    }
}

ShoePrices.main(null);

My Code:

import java.util.HashMap;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.List;

public class ShoePrices {
    public static void main(String[] args) {

        HashMap<String, List<Double>> hashMap = new HashMap<>();

        // Add the first price for Nike
        hashMap.put("Nike", new ArrayList<>());
        hashMap.get("Nike").add(41.97);

        // Add the second price for Nike
        hashMap.get("Nike").add(80.97);

        // Add prices for other shoe brands
        hashMap.put("Adidas", new ArrayList<>());
        hashMap.get("Adidas").add(69.99);

        hashMap.put("Vans", new ArrayList<>());
        hashMap.get("Vans").add(55.00);

        // Retrieve and print prices for Nike
        List<Double> nikePrices = hashMap.get("Nike");
        System.out.println("Nike shoe prices: " + nikePrices);

        // If you want to get a specific price, you can do so by index
        double firstNikePrice = nikePrices.get(0);
        System.out.println("The first price for Nike: " + firstNikePrice);
    }
}
ShoePrices.main(null);

Nike shoe prices: [41.97, 80.97]
The first price for Nike: 41.97

Note that collisions can still occur when two keys produce the same hash code. Hash codes are assigned to each key through a hash function (this is called hashing). They are used to determine what the key-value pair’s index should be iwthin the Hashmaps. A bad hash function may cause collisions to occur, in which case the function would need to be adjusted.

HashMaps do not store the input order of the key-value pairs, and there is no guarantee the pairs will always be stored in the same order. Therefore if something needs to be found within a HashMap, iteration must be used. This can be done through keySet(), values(), or entrySet()


keySet() – provides access to the set of keys. Useful for if you only need to access keys w/out values

import java.util.HashMap;
import java.util.Set;

public class OscarWinners {
    public static void main(String[] args) {

        HashMap<String, Integer> oscarWinnersYear = new HashMap<>();

        oscarWinnersYear.put("Nomadland", 2020);
        oscarWinnersYear.put("Parasite", 2019);
        oscarWinnersYear.put("Green Book", 2018);
        oscarWinnersYear.put("The Shape of Water", 2017);

        Set<String> oscarWinners = oscarWinnersYear.keySet(); //using keySet to get keys 

        System.out.println("List of Oscar winners " + oscarWinners);
    }
}

OscarWinners.main(null);

List of Oscar winners [Nomadland, Parasite, Green Book, The Shape of Water]

values() – returns set of values, without any keys

import java.util.HashMap;
import java.util.Set;

public class OscarWinners {
    public static void main(String[] args) {

        HashMap<String, Integer> oscarWinnersYear = new HashMap<>();

        oscarWinnersYear.put("Nomadland", 2020);
        oscarWinnersYear.put("Parasite", 2019);
        oscarWinnersYear.put("Green Book", 2018);
        oscarWinnersYear.put("The Shape of Water", 2017);

        Collection<Integer> oscarWinnerYears = oscarWinnersYear.values(); //using values to get values 

        System.out.println("Years movies won Oscars " + oscarWinnerYears);
    }
}

OscarWinners.main(null);

Years movies won Oscars [2020, 2019, 2018, 2017]

entryset() – returns keys and values in the form of objects. Useful for when working with key-value pair relationships

import java.util.HashMap;
import java.util.Set;

public class OscarWinners {
    public static void main(String[] args) {

        HashMap<String, Integer> oscarWinnersYear = new HashMap<>();

        oscarWinnersYear.put("Nomadland", 2020);
        oscarWinnersYear.put("Parasite", 2019);
        oscarWinnersYear.put("Green Book", 2018);
        oscarWinnersYear.put("The Shape of Water", 2017);

        Set<Map.Entry<String, Integer>> oscarWinnersAndYears = oscarWinnersYear.entrySet(); //using values to get values 

        System.out.println("Oscars and their years " + oscarWinnersAndYears);
    }
}

OscarWinners.main(null);

Oscars and their years [Nomadland=2020, Parasite=2019, Green Book=2018, The Shape of Water=2017]

HashMaps have a time complexity of O(1) on average!

HashSet

What is a hashset?

  • A hashset is a data structure that stores only unique values and does not allow duplicates. You can also think of it as a set of keys with no values.
import java.util.HashSet;
import java.util.Set;

public class Colors{
    static Set<String> colors = new HashSet<>();

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        colors.add("Red");
        colors.add("Blue");
        colors.add("Green");
        System.out.println(colors);
    }
}

Colors.main(null);

[Red, Blue, Green]

What if we add duplicates?

  • If we try add duplicates, the hashset will simply not add the duplicate value and return false as seen bellow.
public class ColorsButDifferent{
    static Set<String> colors = new HashSet<>();

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        System.out.println(colors.add("Blue"));
        System.out.println(colors.add("Green"));
        System.out.println(colors.add("Green"));
        System.out.println(colors);
    }
}

ColorsButDifferent.main(null);

true
true
false
[Blue, Green]

Order?

  • Hashsets are not ordered and do not store the order in which the values were added that means that if values are removed their order will not be preserved.
public class Fruits{
    static Set<String> fruits = new HashSet<>();

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        fruits.add("Apple");
        fruits.add("Banana");
        fruits.add("Orange");
        System.out.println(fruits);

        fruits.remove("Banana");

        System.out.println(fruits);
    }
}

Fruits.main(null);

[Apple, Orange, Banana]
[Apple, Orange]

How do you know if a value is in a hashset?

  • You can use the contains method to check if a value is in a hashset.
public class Fruits{
    static Set<String> fruits = new HashSet<>();

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        fruits.add("Apple");
        fruits.add("Banana");
        fruits.add("Orange");

        System.out.println(fruits.contains("Apple"));
    }
}

Fruits.main(null);

true

Other methods

  • clear() - removes all values from the hashset
  • isEmpty() - returns true if the hashset is empty
  • size() - returns the number of values in the hashset
  • toArray() - returns an array of the values in the hashset
public class Fruits{
    static Set<String> fruits = new HashSet<>();

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        fruits.add("Apple");
        fruits.add("Banana");
        fruits.add("Orange");
        System.out.println(fruits);

        System.out.println();
        System.out.println("Length of Hashmap: " + fruits.size());
        
        System.out.println();
        System.out.println("Array Version of Hashmap: " + fruits.toArray());

        System.out.println();
        fruits.clear();
        System.out.println("Hashmap After Clearing " + fruits);

    }
}

Fruits.main(null);

[Apple, Orange, Banana]

Length of Hashmap: 3

Array Version of Hashmap: [Ljava.lang.Object;@665e264a

Hashmap After Clearing []

Iterations

  • You can iterate through a hashset using a for each loop or an iterator. The order of the values is not guaranteed and can change as values are removed or added.
  • These two methods are can be called using the iterator() and forEach() methods. For the forEach() method you can pass in a lambda expression (a lambda expression is an anonymous function) or a method reference.
// foreach loop to iterate through a set

public class Fruits{
    static Set<String> fruits = new HashSet<>();

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        fruits.add("Apple");
        fruits.add("Banana");
        fruits.add("Orange");
        System.out.println(fruits);

        // Using foreach loop to iterate through the set and print each fruit as it goes
        fruits.forEach(fruit -> System.out.println(fruit));
    }
}

Fruits.main(null);


[Apple, Orange, Banana]
Apple
Orange
Banana

// Different version of foreach loop to iterate through a set

public class Cheeses{
    static Set<String> cheeses = new HashSet<>();

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        cheeses.add("Cheddar");
        cheeses.add("Brie");
        cheeses.add("Gouda");
        System.out.println(cheeses);

        cheeses.forEach(cheese -> {
            if(cheese.equals("Brie")) {
                System.out.println("I love " + cheese);
            } else {
                System.out.println("I like " + cheese);
            }
        });
    }
}

Cheeses.main(null);

[Brie, Cheddar, Gouda]
I love Brie
I like Cheddar
I like Gouda

// using iterator to iterate through a set

import java.util.Iterator;

public class Games{
    static Set<String> games = new HashSet<>();

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        games.add("Monopoly");
        games.add("Scrabble");
        games.add("Sorry");
        System.out.println(games);
        System.out.println();

        Iterator<String> iterator = games.iterator();
        while(iterator.hasNext()) {
            System.out.println(iterator.next());
        }
    }
}

Games.main(null);

[Sorry, Monopoly, Scrabble]

Sorry
Monopoly
Scrabble

How to check for equality?

  • You can check if two hashsets are equal by using the equals() method. This method will return true if the hashsets contain the same values and false if they do not.
public class Pokemon {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Set<String> pokemonSet1 = new HashSet<>();
        Set<String> pokemonSet2 = new HashSet<>();

        // Populate the sets
        pokemonSet1.add("Pikachu");
        pokemonSet1.add("Charmander");
        pokemonSet1.add("Pikaman");

        pokemonSet2.add("Pikachu");
        pokemonSet2.add("Charmander");
        pokemonSet2.add("Pikaman");

        // Check equality
        boolean areEqual = pokemonSet1.equals(pokemonSet2);
        System.out.println("Are the sets equal? " + areEqual);
    }
}

Pokemon.main(null);


Are the sets equal? true

Other kinds of hashsets

  • There are other kinds of hashsets that are similar to the hashset but have some differences. These include the linkedhashset and the treeset.
  • The linkedhashset is similar to the hashset but it maintains the order in which the values were added.
  • The treeset is similar to the hashset but it sorts the values in ascending order.
// LinkedHashSet

import java.util.LinkedHashSet;
import java.util.Set;

public class LinkedHashSetExample {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Set<String> linkedHashSet = new LinkedHashSet<>();

        // Add elements
        linkedHashSet.add("Pikachu");
        linkedHashSet.add("Charmander");
        linkedHashSet.add("Pikaman");

        // Iterate through the LinkedHashSet
        System.out.println("LinkedHashSet: ");
        linkedHashSet.forEach(pokemon -> System.out.println(pokemon));
        System.out.println();

        linkedHashSet.remove("Pikachu");
        System.out.println("New hashset: " + linkedHashSet);
    }
}

LinkedHashSetExample.main(null);

LinkedHashSet: 
Pikachu
Charmander
Pikaman

New hashset: [Charmander, Pikaman]

// TreeSet
import java.util.Set;
import java.util.TreeSet;

public class TreeSetExample {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Set<String> treeSet = new TreeSet<>();

        // Add elements
        treeSet.add("Alberquerque, New Mexico");
        treeSet.add("Pikachu");
        treeSet.add("Charmander");
        treeSet.add("Pikaman");

        // Iterate through the TreeSet
        treeSet.forEach(pokemon -> System.out.println(pokemon));
        // The values for the TreeSet are sorted alphabetically
    }
}

TreeSetExample.main(null);

Alberquerque, New Mexico
Charmander
Pikachu
Pikaman

SQL

SQL is a programming language focused on managing and manipulating relational (table-based) databases. It acts as the backbone for many of this class’s project backends, allowing users to create, read, update and delete data efficiently. To get a better idea of how data is formatted with JPA to be stored in an SQL database, we’ll be looking at the Person object in the lesson backend. Follow along in this notebook.

Person Object Setup

(see …/mvc/person/Person.java)

After the first three tags, which specify to Lombok that @AllArgsConstructor and @NoArgsConstructor methods should be created

The @Entity tag indicates that Person objects will be stored as entities in a database. Generally, entities’ attributes are represented by values in columns in the SQLite table.

@Data
@AllArgsConstructor
@NoArgsConstructor
@Entity
@Convert(attributeName ="person", converter = JsonType.class)
public class Person //...

The @Id tag specifies to that this value will be used as the unique identifier for each object in the database, and @GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.AUTO) allows these ID’s to be automatically generated when a new Person is created. In order for data to be most easily differentiated and manipulated in a database, IDs are deeply important to use.

@Id
@GeneratedValue(strategy = GenerationType.AUTO)
private Long id;

Person JPA Repository Setup

(see …/mvc/person/PersonJpaRepository.java)

JPA is a great asset when creating an SQL database because it can provide methods that help you modify its contents. If a specific object has a JpaRepository interface made that extends the base JPA repository, it allows you to access many useful JPA methods.

import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.JpaRepository;
import org.springframework.data.jpa.repository.Query;

// ...

public interface PersonJpaRepository extends JpaRepository<Person, Long> // ...

Popcorn Hack!

List all of the JPA methods that you see in the PersonJpaRepository.java file and what their purpose is.

  • Person findByEmail(String email): Retrieves data from a Person object based on the Person’s email address.

  • List findAllByOrderByNameAsc(): This method fetches and returns a list of all Person objects in ascending order by name. This is useful if you want to display user names in an order list.

  • List findByNameContainingIgnoreCaseOrEmailContainingIgnoreCase(String name, String email); Used to find all Person objects whose names contain the given string name (case insensitive) or whose emails contain the given string name (case insensitive).

  • Person findByEmailAndPassword(String email, String password): Retrieves the data of a Person object based on the Person’s matching email and password.

  • List findByLikeTermNative(String term): The Person table is searched for any records that contain a given string (argument term in this case). It’s almost like a Ctrl F (at least for me), because we can search for a specific phrase or series of characters within a large text. Similarly, this method enables us to have more complex search methods, which is especially useful in large data bases.

Custom JPA Queries

You can create custom JPA queries that utilize SQL to serve a specific purpose outside of the existing JPA methods. See the example below from PersonJpaRepository.java:

@Query(
        value = "SELECT * FROM Person p WHERE p.name LIKE ?1 or p.email LIKE ?1",
        nativeQuery = true)
List<Person> findByLikeTermNative(String term);

Going step-by-step:

  • The @Query indicates a custom query is being created
  • value is a String containing an SQL query that will be run with the method findByLikeTermNative
    • ?1 is a placeholder for a parameter (in this case the String term from the method declaration)
  • nativeQuery is set to true, indicating that the value uses native SQL rather than JPQL (Java Persistence Query Language)

Using a custom SQL query like this would be a great way to show understanding on the homework.

Many-to-Many Relationship

(see …/mvc/person/Person.java)

A “Many-to-Many” relationship (shown in the @ManyToMany tag) indicates that entities on both sides of a relationship can have multiple connections with each other.

This condition allows for one object to be related to multiple different objects, and those different objects on the other side of the relationship can have their own relationship to other objects.

@ManyToMany(fetch = EAGER)
private Collection<PersonRole> roles = new ArrayList<>();

(fetch = EAGER) specifies that, whenever a Person object is loaded, its corresponding PersonRole objects should be loaded simultaneously.

Objects in a “many-to-many” relationship often use “join tables” to represent the connections between these objects.

| person_id | role_id |
|-----------|---------|
| 1         | 1       |
| 1         | 2       |
| 2         | 2       |
| 3         | 1       |
| 3         | 3       |

This is what a “join table” may look like with multiple interconnected people and roles. There is a table in the backend repository’s SQLite.db called person_roles that acts as a join table for the two roles, but you’ll notice that it’s empty. If you can show it filled up, that sounds like a good reason to give extra points.

Popcorn Hack!

Explain in your own words what the relationship between Person objects and PersonRole objects is. Why is this relevant to collections? (Hint: In the code above, multiple PersonRole objects are stored within a Person object’s roles attribute.)

The many-to-many relationship between Person objects and PersonRole objects is managed in Java in this repository via the JPA (Java Persistence API) file and in the database via a join table. This is relevant to the collections we’ve learned about because it involves efficiently and structuredly managing groups of related data (i.e. roles for each person).

Many-to-One Relationship

On the other hand, there is also a “Many-to-One” relationship that can exist between two objects. It means that multiple instances of one entity (the “many” side) are associated with a single instance of another entity (the “one” side). This can be seen applied to the Note object in relation to the Person object.

@ManyToOne(fetch = FetchType.LAZY, optional = false)
@JoinColumn(name = "tutorial_id", nullable = false) // notice this!
@OnDelete(action = OnDeleteAction.CASCADE)
@JsonIgnore
private Person person;

Notice the @JoinColumn(name = "tutorial_id", nullable = false) tag. Then, check the note table in the sqlite.db file.

Popcorn Hack!

Where do you see “tutorial_id” on the table? What does it represent in relation to the leftmost “id” column?

When I look inside the sqlite.db file, I can see the tutorial_id in a column of the note table. The primary key of the Note entity is typically the leftmost “id” column in the note table. Each note has a distinct ID (id) and is associated with a Person (for example, tutorial_id). The id column identifies each Note, while tutorial_id connects it to its corresponding Person (this is why the tutorial_id column only contains numbers).

Storing HashMaps with jsonb

JSONB is a binary representation of JSON data. It is a data type used in some relational databases (such as SQL databases) to store JSON documents in a more efficient and flexible way compared to traditional JSON. Within SQL databases, this data from the JSON can often be filtered, searched and/or extracted using provided functions.

@JdbcTypeCode(SqlTypes.JSON)
@Column(columnDefinition = "jsonb")
private Map<String,Map<String, Object>> stats = new HashMap<>();

JSONB allows for the storage of nested and dynamic data structures. In the context of Person object stats, it means that each person can store activity data with the formatted date as the key, and the structure of this JSON data can be modified or extended without altering the database schema.

You can view the way this data is structured in the person sqlite.db table.

Homework

  • Complete all popcorn hacks throughout this lesson
  • Using the Person object as inspiration, create your own UNIQUE SQL database with at least 3 object entries that incorporates either a “many-to-many” relationship with another object (hint: Person and PersonRole) OR uses the JSONB column definition to store more complex data (such as a HashMap) as an attribute (hint: stats in Person object).
    • Show a clear screenshot of your SQLite table (using SQLite viewer) on your blog for credit.
    • Using past group project materials is valid for this homework as long as the expectations are met.

Ideas for 1.0/1.0

  • Incorporating both a “many-to-many” relationship and a JSONB column with information would be great.
  • Implementing JPA repository methods (think CRUD methods, custom queries, etc.) would show interest in modifying SQL database data.
  • Take extra notes on this lesson that show deeper research into Collections and SQL.

Here, a many-to-many-relationship as shown between the player_id and team_id

image

Here is my code for this portion:

@ManyToMany(fetch = FetchType.LAZY)
@JoinTable(
  name = "player_team",
  joinColumns = @JoinColumn(name = "player_id"),
  inverseJoinColumns = @JoinColumn(name = "team_id")
)

This screenshot shows the the sqlite table for the basketball players database with a JSONB column for player data

image

Here is my code for the JSONB column:

@JdbcTypeCode(SqlTypes.JSON)
    @Column(columnDefinition = "jsonb")
    private Map<String, Map<String, Object>> player_data;

Extra Notes

Collections Overview

Collections in Java are frameworks that allow users to store and manipulate a group of objects

Java Collections Framework (JCF)

Includes interfaces (e.g., List, Set, Map) and classes (e.g., ArrayList, HashSet) to represent collections Allows for consistency, reusability, and interoperability among different types of collections

Common Interfaces

List

  • ArrayList: Dynamic array implementation of List, provides fast random access
  • LinkedList: Doubly-linked list implementation of List, efficient for frequent insertions and deletions

Set

  • HashSet: Unordered collection using a hash table for storage, doesn’t allow duplicate elements
  • TreeSet: Implements a sorted set using a Red-Black tree

Map

  • HashMap: Implements Map interface, key-value pairs stored in a hash table for fast retrieval
  • TreeMap: Sorted map implementation using a Red-Black tree

Key Classes

ArrayList, LinkedList, HashSet, HashMap: Each class serves specific use cases based on performance and functionality requirements

Collections API Methods

The Collections class provides utility methods (e.g., sort, binarySearch) for working with collections The Iterable interface enables the enhanced for-loop for easy iteration

SQL (Structured Query Language)

Definition

SQL is a domain-specific language for managing relational databases

Basic Statements

SELECT

Retrieves data from one or more tables. Supports various clauses (e.g., WHERE, ORDER BY, GROUP BY)

INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE

Manipulate data in a table Follows the ACID properties (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability)

Data Types

Common data types include INTEGER, VARCHAR, DATE, BOOLEAN, etc Choosing appropriate data types ensures efficient storage and retrieval of data

Many-to-many relationships (JPA)

  • @ManyToOne Annotation indicates a many-to-one relationship between entities, such as Person and PersonRole
  • @JoinColumn Annotation specifies the foreign key column (tutorial_id) in the note table linking to the Person entity
  • Primary Key vs. Foreign Key: The “id” column is the primary key of each Note, while tutorial_id establishes the relational link to Person​​
  • In a many-to-one relationship, the foreign key in the child entity (e.g., tutorial_id in Note) references the primary key of the parent entity (e.g., id in Person)
  • These relationships ensure data integrity and enforce referential integrity within the database
  • The @OnDelete(action = OnDeleteAction.CASCADE) annotation indicates cascade operations, such as deleting all child entities (i.e. notes) when the parent entity (person) is deleted
  • This relationship pattern efficiently organizes data, especially in scenarios where one entity (i.e. person or tv show) is associated with multiple dependent entities (notes or genres)
  • The @JsonIgnore annotation often used in many-to-one relationships helps optimize data queries by preventing unnecessary data loading.