In what scenarios would using array_merge() be more advantageous than directly accessing and modifying array elements in PHP?

Using array_merge() can be more advantageous than directly accessing and modifying array elements in PHP when you want to combine two or more arrays without modifying the original arrays. This function creates a new array by merging the input arrays, leaving the original arrays unchanged. It is particularly useful when you want to merge associative arrays or when you need to merge arrays with numeric keys without overwriting values.

$array1 = ['a' => 1, 'b' => 2];
$array2 = ['b' => 3, 'c' => 4];

$mergedArray = array_merge($array1, $array2);

print_r($mergedArray);