Implement Recursive React JSON Viewer with Collapse
Overview
This question evaluates proficiency in React component design, recursive rendering of nested data structures, per-node expand/collapse state management, safe JSON parsing, and read-only UI rendering within frontend development.
Notion
Jul 17, 2025, 12:00 AM
Software Engineer
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React JSON Tree Viewer (Read-Only, Recursive)
Design and implement a React component that accepts a JSON string and renders a pretty-printed, read-only tree view. Each nested object or array must be collapsible/expandable via a toggle (e.g., a caret).
Requirements
- Support arbitrarily deep nesting by recursively rendering child components.
- Parse the input string safely; handle invalid JSON gracefully (show a helpful error without crashing).
- Maintain per-node expand/collapse state.
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Demonstrate the behavior using the input below. The "school" node should be collapsible/expandable:
- Provided (non-strict) input: {name: "bob", age: 5, nicknames: ["bobby", "bobman"], school: {name: "bob university", year: 2015}}
- Valid JSON to use in the demo: {"name":"bob","age":5,"nicknames":["bobby","bobman"],"school":{"name":"bob university","year":2015}}
- Briefly explain the component structure, state shape, and complexity considerations.
Assumptions
- Use modern React (functional components + hooks, React 17/18+).
- No external libraries required; plain CSS/inline styles are fine.
- The component is read-only (no editing).
Solution
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