There is no coercion that results in a complex value like `object` or `function`. **Note:** It may not be obvious, but JavaScript coercions always result in one of the scalar primitive (see Chapter 2) values, like `string`, `number`, or `boolean`.

Our goal is to fully explore the pros and cons (yes, there *are* pros!) of coercion, so that you can make an informed decision on its appropriateness in your program.Ĭonverting a value from one type to another is often called 'type casting,' when done explicitly, and 'coercion' when done implicitly (forced by the rules of how a value is used). In the same overall spirit of this book series, rather than running away from coercion because everyone else does, or because you get bitten by some quirk, I think you should run toward that which you don't understand and seek to *get it* more fully. If you've read other popular books on JS, you know that the overwhelmingly prevalent *message* out there is that coercion is magical, evil, confusing, and just downright a bad idea. Now that we much more fully understand JavaScript's types and values, we turn our attention to a very controversial topic: coercion.Īs we mentioned in Chapter 1, the debates over whether coercion is a useful feature or a flaw in the design of the language (or somewhere in between!) have raged since day one. getify/You-Dont-Know-JS/blob/master/types & grammar/ch4.md # You Don't Know JS: Types & Grammar Here is a table you can always check if you are unsureĪlso, give chapter 4 a read you will find some sort of explanation there.

Javascript does not equal null