What are the best practices for handling JSON data in PHP to avoid errors like returning arrays instead of expected values?

When working with JSON data in PHP, it's important to properly decode the JSON string to ensure that the data is correctly converted into PHP data types. One common mistake is forgetting to set the second parameter of `json_decode` to `true`, which results in returning an object instead of an associative array. To avoid this error, always set the second parameter to `true` when decoding JSON data.

// Incorrect way without setting the second parameter to true
$jsonString = '{"key": "value"}';
$data = json_decode($jsonString);
// $data will be an object instead of an associative array

// Correct way with the second parameter set to true
$jsonString = '{"key": "value"}';
$data = json_decode($jsonString, true);
// $data will be an associative array