AECO 25A24 - Behavioral economics

The goal of this course is to give students an overview of the main areas of behavioral economics. It will present a wide range of behavioral findings which have advanced our understanding of how economic agents form beliefs, act and interact in various contexts. We will discuss how to incorporate to the traditional micro-economic framework some features of human nature such as altruism, emotions, biased perceptions of risk and time, biased interpretations of information and bounded rationality. We will study simple economic models, review empirical research, and devote particular attention to the presentation of experimental methods in economics. We will also discuss how behavioral economics can improve the design of effective public policies.

Students taking this class must have a background in Microeconomics. The course is intended to be a first class of Behavioral economics, so it is not suitable for students who took such a class already.

Students will be evaluated at a mid-term and at a final exam (90% of the final grade). Student engagement during the semester (participation in class discussions, ability to ask questions, and class citizenship etc.) will also be assessed (10% of the final grade).