In JavaScript, what is the expected behavior when assigning a value to index -1 in an array?

Surprisingly, I discovered that:

var a = [1, 2, 3];
a[-1] = 4;

This code snippet can yield different outcomes:

  • In Chrome -> a ends up being [1, 2, 3]
  • In Node -> a results in [1, 2, 3, '-1': 4]

Is there an expected behavior for this scenario?

Answer №1

Although the way values are displayed in the console may vary, the end result should remain consistent. The specific formatting of values in the console doesn't impact the fundamental mechanics at play. In this scenario, setting the property called -1 to 4 has the same effect regardless of how it appears on the console. However, iterating through this structure conventionally may pose challenges unless you explicitly designate the start value as -1. Additionally, the value at -1 likely won't affect the array's length property.

If you want to delve deeper, the ECMAScript specification for Arrays can be found here:

The definition of the length property for Array instances is outlined here:

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