Michael F. Schober is Professor of Psychology and Vice Provost for Research at The New School, USA. He served as Editor of Discourse Processes from 2005–15.David N. Rapp is Professor in the Department of Psychology, School of Education and Social Policy, and a Charles Deering McCormick Professor of Teaching Excellence at Northwestern University, USA. He is Editor of Discourse Processes.M. Anne Britt is Distinguished Teaching and Research Professor of Psychology at Northern Illinois University, USA. She recently was Co-PI on the IES-funded Project READI, which focused on evidence-based argumentation for disciplinary learning.

• Introduction: Discourse processes evolvingMichael F. Schober, David N. Rapp & M. Anne Britt Part I. Overviews Reading comprehension theories: A view from the top downPanayiota Kendeou & Edward J. O’Brien Theories and approaches to the study of conversation and interactive discourseWilliam S. Horton Studying discourse processes in institutional contextsAdrian Bangerter & Joep CornellisenPart II. Research Methods for Studying Discourse Processes: State of the Art and Challenges Research Methods: Conversation analysisSaul Albert Research Methods: The study of language processing in human conversation Sarah Brown-Schmidt Research Methods: Big data approaches to study discourse processesMichael Jones & Melody Dye Research Methods: Online measures of text processingJohanna K. Kaakinen Research Methods: Neuroscientific methods to study discourse processesChristopher A. Kurby Part III. Topical Reviews The role of sourcing in discourse comprehensionIvar Bråten, Marc Stadtler, & Ladislao Salmerón Discourse updating: Acquiring and revising knowledge through discourseTobias Richter & Murray Singer Discourse processing in technology-mediated environmentsDarren Gergle Discourse and expertise: The challenge of mutual understanding between experts and laypeopleRainer Bromme & Regina Jucks Discourse processing and development through the adult lifespanElizabeth A. Stine-Morrow & Gabriel A. Radvansky The cognitive neuroscience of discourse: Covered ground and new directionsJeffrey Zacks, Raymond A. Mar, & Navona Calarco Beliefs and Discourse ProcessingMichael B. Wolfe & Thomas D. Griffin Classroom Discourse: What do we need to know for research and for practice?Catherine O’Connor & Catherine Snow The Modern Reader: Should changes to how we read affect research and theory? Joseph P. Magliano, Matthew T. McCrudden, Jean-Francois Rouet, & John Sabatini Toward an integrated perspective of writing as a discourse process Danielle S. McNamara and Laura K. AllenAfterword: World-Wide Changes in Discourse and the Changing Field of Discourse ProcessesArthur C. Graesser, Morton Ann Gernsbacher & Susan R. Goldman

"This book provides an impressive overview of important topics in discourse processing and comprehension, such as cognitive models of reading and conversation; of reading development and writing; and of research methods, from commonly used methods to relatively new methods such as neuroimaging and big data. Importantly, several chapters are co-authored by prominent authors who haven’t previously worked together, which adds significant depth to the handbook."Paul van den Broek, Leiden University, The Netherlands