How can PHP developers effectively debug recursive functions like the one described in the thread?

To effectively debug recursive functions in PHP, developers can use tools like var_dump() or print_r() to inspect the function's input parameters and return values at each recursive call. They can also add conditional statements or base cases to prevent infinite recursion and ensure the function terminates correctly.

function factorial($n) {
    // Base case
    if ($n <= 1) {
        return 1;
    }
    
    // Recursive call
    return $n * factorial($n - 1);
}

// Test the factorial function
echo factorial(5); // Output: 120