Hooks in React Native: Classification

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Hooks allow you to use state and other React features in functional components. They are classified into:
Basic Hooks
- useState: Manages state in functional components.
- useEffect: Handles side effects (e.g., API calls, subscriptions).
- useContext: Accesses context data without prop drilling.
Additional Hooks
- useReducer: Manages complex state logic.
- useCallback: Prevents unnecessary re-creation of functions during re-renders.
- useMemo: Optimizes expensive computations by memoizing values.
- useRef: Maintains a reference to a value that doesn’t trigger re-renders.
- useImperativeHandle: Customizes a ref exposed by a child component.
- useLayoutEffect: Like useEffect, but fires synchronously after DOM changes.
- useDebugValue: Displays custom hook info in React DevTools.
It is the most commonly used React Hook. It allows functional components to have state variables. It takes an initial state value as the argument and returns an array with two elements — the current state value and a function to update that state.
What it does: Manages component state.
How it works: Replaces this.state in class components.
import React, { useState } from 'react';
import { View, Text, TextInput } from 'react-native';
const Example = () => {
const [name, setName] = useState('');
return (
Hello, {name}!
);
};
It enables performing side effects, such as data fetching, subscriptions, or DOM manipulations after the component has been rendered.
What it does: Handles side effects (e.g., fetching data, timers).
How it works: Acts like componentDidMount, componentDidUpdate, and componentWillUnmount.
import React, { useState, useEffect } from 'react';
import { View, Text } from 'react-native';
const Example = () => {
const [count, setCount] = useState(0);
useEffect(() => {
const timer = setInterval(() => setCount((c) => c + 1), 1000);
return () => clearInterval(timer); // Cleanup
}, []); // Empty array = run only on mount
return (
Count: {count}
);
};
useContext
This is another hook for anyone unfamiliar with context API in react native.
What it does: Avoids prop drilling by providing data to deeply nested components.
How it works: Consumes context values created with React.createContext
import React, { useContext, createContext } from 'react';
import { View, Text } from 'react-native';
const ThemeContext = createContext('light');
const Example = () => {
const theme = useContext(ThemeContext);
return (
The current theme is {theme}
);
};
Provides an alternative to ‘useState’ for managing complex state logic involving multiple sub-values or when the next state depends on the previous one.
What it does: Manages state with a reducer function, similar to Redux.
When to use: For complex state transitions.
import React, { useReducer } from 'react';
import { View, Button, Text } from 'react-native';
const initialState = 0;
const reducer = (state, action) => {
switch (action.type) {
case 'increment':
return state + 1;
case 'decrement':
return state - 1;
case 'reset':
return initialState;
default:
return state;
}
};
const Example = () => {
const [count, dispatch] = useReducer(reducer, initialState);
return (
Count: {count}
);
};
Key Rules for Hooks
- Only call Hooks at the top level (not inside loops, conditions, or nested functions).
- Only call Hooks in React functions (components or custom hooks).
By understanding and applying these hooks, you can build more efficient, readable, and reusable React Native components.
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