The Smallest Reflexive Relation on a Set A is the ……………………….
Question
The smallest reflexive relation on a set \( A \) is the ……………………….
Solution
A relation \( R \) on a set \( A \) is said to be reflexive if every element of \( A \) is related to itself.
That is,
\[ (a,a) \in R \quad \text{for all } a \in A \]
The smallest relation containing only these necessary ordered pairs is called the identity relation.
Identity relation on \( A \) is:
\[ I_A = \{(a,a): a \in A\} \]
Since it contains the minimum number of ordered pairs required for reflexivity, it is the smallest reflexive relation on \( A \).
Hence, the answer is:
\[ \boxed{\text{Identity Relation}} \]