Social cognition, as a field, can be characterized as a distinct subarea of social psychology that examines all of the countless cognitive complexities, mental representations, and processes implicated in interaction, as well as an approach to studying interactions in the context of the groups, cultures, and societies to which they belong. Together these two facets of social cognition create one of the most influential and important social sciences to come along in some time.

Providing a comprehensive review of major topics in the field of social cognition, The Oxford Handbook of Social Cognition expresses that excitement and fascination in describing the content and approach that constitute the field today. The 43 chapters included in this handbook cover:

- central aspects of the field of social cognition, including its history and historically important foundational research areas (attribution, attitudes, impression formation, and prejudice/stereotyping), along with methodology
- core issues relating to social cognitive representations and processes (including those that are visual, implicit, or automatic) and the stages of information processing (attention, perception, memory, and judgment, along with simulation and thought suppression)
- applications of the social cognition approach to areas of social psychology, general psychology, and other disciplines, such as marketing, law, health and politics

After more than 30 years, the vibrant field of social cognition continues to reign as one of psychology's most dominant approaches. The impressive chapters collected in this volume define the field and contribute enormously to our understanding of what social cognition is today.