ECN204 Introduction to Behavioral Economics
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Showing course contents for the educational year 2022 - 2023 .
Course responsible: Frode Alfnes
ECTS credits: 5
Faculty: School of Economics and Business
Teaching language: NO
(NO=norsk, EN=Engelsk)
(NO=norsk, EN=Engelsk)
Teaching exam periods:
This course starts in Spring parallel. This course has teaching/evaluation in Spring parallel.
Course frequency: Annually
First time: Study year 2019-2020
Course contents:
The course will provide an introduction to behavioral economics and will cover key topics such as bounded rationality, limited willpower and social preferences. It will be used examples of behavior from finance, entrepreneurship, environment, energy, development, marketing, and consumer policy
Learning outcome:
After the students have completed the course, they are expected to have acquired the following knowledge, skills and general competence:
The student shall
- have an understanding of how psychology often affects economic decisions
- have knowledge of methods used in behavioral economic research
- have knowledge of limited rationality and how, among other things, prospect theory, systems 1 and 2, availability, confirmation and commitment biases affect the assessments and choices people make in economic contexts
- have knowledge of social preferences and how, among other things, altruism, reciprocity, trust, jealousy affect the assessments and choices people make in economic contexts
- have knowledge of time preferences and assessments of the future, and how, among other things, procrastination and optimism affect the assessments and choices people make in economic contexts
- have knowledge of how people's behavior can be influenced through the design of the choices and be familiar with concepts such as choice architecture and nudging
The student shall
- recognize some of the most common behavioral economic mechanisms in different parts of the economy
- be able to assess how findings from behavioral economics can affect different types of financial assessments and decisions
- be able to understand and use key concepts related to behavioral economics
- be able to conduct simple behavioral studies
The student shall
- have basic knowledge of key topics in behavioral economics such as limited rationality, social preferences, and time preferences
- be able to critically assess economic contexts with regard to behavioral economics
Learning activities:
Lectures, group assignments, and quizzes.
Syllabus:
To be announced at the beginning of the semester.
The pecha kucha and the 2-page articles written by the student groups will be made available to the whole class, and are part of the course curriculum.
Prerequisites:
ECN110 Microeconomics I - How to Think Like an Economist, or equivalent introduction course in microeconomics.
Recommended prerequisites:
Mandatory activity:
There will be mandatory quizzes on Canvas that must be completed every two weeks.
Students with approved activities in the course from a previous year do not need to complete the compulsory activities again.
Assessment:
Portfolio: Group assignment (40%) and test in one of the last lecture-hours (60%).
The group assignment is a pecha kucha over an assigned topic plus a 2-page article. The pecha kucha and the article are made available to the whole class.
Nominal workload:
125 hours
Entrance requirements:
Minimum requirements for entrance to higher education in Norway (generell studiekompetanse)
Type of course:
2 lecture hours per week.
Examiner:
External examiner will control the quality of syllabus, questions for the final examination, and principles for the assessment of the examination answers.
Examination details: Combined assessment: Letter grades