Which of the following allows access to encapsulated class members?

The correct answer is based on the principle of encapsulation in object-oriented programming. Getters and setters are special methods that provide controlled access to the private or protected members of a class.

Encapsulation is a fundamental concept that allows developers to restrict direct access to certain components of a class, thereby protecting the integrity of the data and promoting the use of defined interfaces. By using getters, you can retrieve the value of private fields, while setters allow you to modify those values, often including validation or additional logic when doing so.

This mechanism ensures that the internal representation of an object can only be altered in specified ways, which is crucial for maintaining the state and behavior of an object. It allows for flexibility in changing the internal implementation without affecting external code that relies on the class, as long as the interface remains consistent.

Whereas constructors are used to initialize objects, public fields would expose class members directly, undermining encapsulation. Inheritance indeed enables subclass access to base class members, but it does not encapsulate those members; it merely defines accessibility rules between classes. Therefore, getters and setters are specifically designed to facilitate controlled access to encapsulated class members, making them the most appropriate choice.