This interdisciplinary work is a collection of major essays on reasoning: deductive, inductive, abductive, belief revision, defeasible (non-monotonic), cross cultural, conversational, and argumentative. They are each oriented toward contemporary empirical studies. The book focuses on foundational issues, including paradoxes, fallacies, and debates about the nature of rationality, the traditional modes of reasoning, as well as counterfactual and causal reasoning. It also includes chapters on the interface between reasoning and other forms of thought. In general, this last set of essays represents growth points in reasoning research, drawing connections to pragmatics, cross-cultural studies, emotion and evolution.

"This book provides a very comprehensive, almost encyclopedic overview in the general area of reasoning. It encompasses psychological research and philosophical considerations of inductive paradoxes, along with useful sections on argumentation, reasoning and cultures, emotions and reasoning, abduction, and belief change. [...] Readers would benefit from a background in introductory logic or a familiarity with the history and practice of formal reasoning, especially for those articles in which formalization predominates over natural language. [...], this worthwhile book will benefit a wide range of readers since most of the articles deal with problems and issues that are fundamental to understanding the various ways that reasoning works, can work in context, or could work to inform prescriptions in ethics or arguments addressed to the best explanations. Recommended."
--J. Gough, Red Deer College, CHOICE