Salesforce Platform Developer Practice Exam

Which data types can SOQL statements populate or evaluate to?

1. A Boolean

2. An integer

3. A list of sObjects

4. A single sObject

The correct answer is: An integer

The correct answer is that SOQL statements can populate or evaluate to a single sObject. This is a fundamental aspect of how SOQL (Salesforce Object Query Language) operates. SOQL is designed to retrieve and evaluate records from Salesforce objects. When you execute a SOQL query, it can return a variety of data structures, including a single sObject instance, which represents a record in your Salesforce org. This is particularly useful when you are looking up a specific record by its unique identifier or applying filters that are expected to yield only one result. While SOQL can also return lists or collections of sObjects when the query matches multiple records, single sObject retrieval is a distinctive capability as it allows you to work with the data directly without needing to iterate through lists. It is crucial to note that SOQL itself doesn’t evaluate to data types like Boolean or integer directly; rather, it retrieves records containing such data types as fields within those sObjects. In summary, the ability to populate or evaluate to a single sObject aligns with the purpose of SOQL in a Salesforce environment, highlighting its role in data queries and retrieval focused on CRM records.