Is 1 USDT equal 1 USD?

Excuse me, I've been hearing a lot about cryptocurrencies and stablecoins, and I'm a bit confused about the value of USDT. Could you clarify for me if 1 USDT is indeed equal to 1 USD? I understand that stablecoins are designed to maintain a stable value relative to a real-world asset, but I'm not sure how exactly that works in practice. Is there a mechanism that ensures this parity? And how does it compare to other cryptocurrencies that may have more volatile prices? I'm just trying to wrap my head around this concept and understand the implications for investors and users alike.