Options in this section of the Automated Merge page let you set additional criteria for identifying duplicate records, and indicate what to do with records that have different prefixes, middle names, suffixes, or birth dates.
Select Yes to check within households for duplicate records.
Select No to ignore duplicate records if they are members of the same household.
Additional options in the Options for Finding Records to Merge section let you determine what to do with records that nearly match but have different information in the Prefix, Suffix, Middle, or Birthday fields. With these options, you indicate whether to find these records for automatic merging, automatic householding, or placement in the Manual Merge list. Comparison scenario options do not appear if you have selected Household Only in the Actions to Perform field.
The following comparison scenarios and options for each are available. Note that the Household option appears only if you've selected Merge and Household in the Actions to Perform field, and the Do Not Merge option appears only if you've selected Merge in that field. The Do Not Merge option does nothing if the comparison scenario is met.
Different, Non-Blank Prefixes, Suffixes, Middle Names, or Dates of Birth
When two records meet all merge criteria but have different, prefixes, suffixes, middle names, or birth dates (fields contain data and are not blank), they are not automatically merged. You have the option to ignore them (Do Not Merge) or household them (depending on whether you've selected Merge or Merge and Household in the Actions to Perform field), or to create a manual merge/household set so that you can review the records prior to manually merging or householding them. Examples of such records would be: Mr. Patrick Johnson and Mrs. Patrick Johnson; Joseph Peterson, Jr., and Joseph Peterson, Ph.D.; and Martha Ann Jacobson and Martha A. Jacobson.
Blank Non-Blank Prefix, Suffix, or Middle Name
When two records meet all merge criteria, but one has a prefix, suffix, or middle name and the other does not, they are not automatically merged. You can choose to ignore them (Do Not Merge) or household them (depending on whether you've selected Merge or Merge and Household in the Actions to Perform field), merge them, or to create a manual merge/household set so that you can review the records prior to manually merging or householding them. Examples of such records would be: Mr. Patrick Johnson and Patrick Johnson; Joseph Peterson, Jr., and Joseph Peterson; and Martha Ann Jacobson and Martha Jacobson.
Note: If you select the Merge option for Blank Prefix and Non-Blank Prefix, records with a prefix of "Mrs." or prefixes with the word "and" or the ampersand (&) symbol in them are only recognized as a match if the first name is feminine. This is determined by checking the first name of the Mrs. record against the Conversion Prefix code file. If the first name is found and has a prefix of Mr., then the records are NOT merged. If the first name is found and the prefix is Ms., then the records are merged. Likewise, if the first name is not found in the Conversion Prefix Code file, the records are merged. So, for example, the records for Mrs. John Smith and John Smith are not merged nor are the records for Mr. and Mrs. John Smith and John Smith. The records Mrs. Elizabeth Smith and Elizabeth Smith would be merged.
When records to be merged have fields with different information, the field information with the most characters is retained. For example, if one record has a salutation of Bob and another has Robert, Robert is placed in the salutation field of the destination record.
Blank Date of Birth and Non-Blank Date of Birth
When two records meet all of the merge criteria, but one has a date of birth and the other does not, they are not automatically merged unless you select the Merge radio option. Or you can choose to Household them (depending on whether you've selected Merge or Merge and Household in the Actions to Perform field), or Create Manual Merge/Household set so you can review the records prior to manually merging or householding them.
Mrs. and Ms. Prefixes, Mrs. and Miss Prefixes, or Miss and Ms. Prefixes
Where other data fields (that are compared) match, but the feminine prefixes are mixed, these options allow independent choices for processing to Household, Merge, or Create Manual Merge/Household.