jQuery's $.proxy vs var self - The common way to preserve the context of `this` [closed]

Question

What is the common way to preserve the context of this? What is faster? What would you prefer?

1. $.proxy(...)

   $('a').on('click', $.proxy(function() {
       this.close();
   }, this));
   

2. var self

   var self = this;
   
   $('a').on('click', function() {
       self.close();
   });
   

Answer 1

Let's start by fixing your code. You have a useless function declaration, you may use $.proxy as

$('a').on('click', $.proxy(this.close, this));

Now, the second solution based on self

• requires only basic javascript knowledge
• doesn't require jQuery
• is a little more readable, especially as you often reuse your self variable
• is much faster

That's probably why it's more used.

Note that when you don't have to be compatible with IE8, you may use bind :

$('a').on('click', this.close.bind(this));