Setters and getters are methods used in object-oriented programming to access and modify the values of private variables within a class. These methods are also known as accessors (getters) and mutators (setters). They provide a way to control how important variables are accessed and updated, ensuring data encapsulation and security.

Definition and Syntax

A getter method returns the value of a private variable, while a setter method sets or updates the value of a private variable. The syntax for both methods typically starts with either get or set, followed by the variable name with the first letter capitalized.

Example in Java

Here is an example of a class with a private variable and its corresponding getter and setter methods:

In this example, the getName method returns the value of the name variable, and the setName method sets the value of the name variable to the value passed as a parameter.