Use Case Generalization   Use case generalization is a relationship between two use cases indicating that the child (tail end) is more specific than the parent (arrow head end).

Explanation

Use case generalization is one of a number of modeling devices that can be used to factor out commonality between use cases. The parent, or more general use case (arrow head end) can be specialized into one or more children or specific use cases (tail end). The child use cases "inherit" the behavior and properties of the parent. The behavior includes all the relationships that the parent participates in, these may be: extend, include, other generalization relationships or associations with actors.

Related Entries

Generalization  Base Type A generalization relationship is related to a use case generalization because it is the definition of the fundamental relationship. The use case generalization is a specific example of the generalization relationship between use cases in the use case model.

Actor Generalization  Used Together Actor generalization is often used in conjunction with use case generalization. When the roles that use or seek value from an entity are generalized it is often the case that a symmetrical generalization will exist in the use cases. This is not always the case but represents a visual pattern in the use case model that can assist in uncovering commonality that exists between elements in the model.