What does the concept of member functions encapsulate in a class?

The concept of member functions in a class encapsulates the interaction between data and functions. Member functions are associated with a particular class and can operate on the data members (attributes) of that class. This means they can perform actions that manipulate or utilize the class's data, providing a mechanism for these functions to access and modify the internal state of the objects created from the class.

By defining member functions within a class, encapsulation allows for better data management and security. It ensures that the data (data members) can only be accessed and altered in controlled ways, typically through methods that enforce certain rules or conditions, thereby maintaining the integrity of the object’s state. This interaction is fundamental to the object-oriented programming paradigm, which emphasizes the importance of bundling data with the methods that operate on that data.

The other options do not accurately describe the role of member functions in a class. They either narrow the focus on only specific aspects of the class (like data members or static methods) or imply a limited function of member functions (such as only public data manipulation), failing to capture the full scope of their purpose.