Experimental and Behavioural Economics
Module description
Summary:
The difference between the laws of physics and the laws of economics is that the latter do not always hold. To find out when these laws hold and when they do not you will study human economic interaction under controlled laboratory conditions. While there is a taught element to the module, which gives you an overview on the most important results of experimental economics, most of the course will be “hands-on”. You will be involved in the preparation, running and the evaluation of an economic experiment on markets, public goods, bargaining, fairness, economic decision behaviour and much more.
Additional Information: Internationalisation
Microeconomics is relevant across countries as it is based on mathematical models.
Sustainability
All of the resources for this module are available on the ELE (Exeter learning Environment).
Employability
This module equips students with logical thinking, numeracy and writing skills, as well as an understanding and theoretical knowledge of economic issues. These help students think like economists, a quality highly valued by employers.
Full module specification
| Module title: | Experimental and Behavioural Economics |
|---|---|
| Module code: | BEEM125 |
| Module level: | M |
| Academic year: | 2016/7 |
| Module lecturers: |
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| Module credit: | 15 |
| ECTS value: | 7.5 |
| Pre-requisites: | None |
| Co-requisites: | None |
| Duration of module: |
Duration (weeks) - term 2: 11 |
Module aims
The aim of this module is to enable students to examine economic theory from a behavioural perspective, and highlight instances where standard economics predicts actual choices correctly and instances where it does not. Students will be introduced to recent behavioural theories that have emerged to explain the empirical observations, and will discuss the implications for economics, business and politics. Furthermore, students will be expected to become familiar with the methods of experimental economics. They will learn to design and conduct an economics experiment, as well as learn how to evaluate the data generated by the experiment.
ILO: Module-specific skills
- 1. be familiar with the methodology of and recent developments in experimental economics and their impact on economic theories
- 2. design and conduct an economics experiment
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
- 3. understand the difference between normative and positive theories of behaviour
- 4. 4. understand the implication on behavior of ethical considerations in decision-making, such as fairness or honesty preferences
- 5. discuss and evaluate how economic theories are developed and tested
- 6. understand how new theories are developed to account for new empirical evidence
ILO: Personal and key skills
- 7. effectively communicate findings from research project
- 8. produce high quality written work (whether in a group or individually)
- 9. engage in independent study
- 10. research and summarise a body of literature in order to produce a report
- 11. engage in critical thought and reasoned discussion
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 33 | 117 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Contact hours | 22 | Lectures |
| 11 | Tutorials |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conducting an experiment (individual) | 1-2 hours | 1-5 | Verbal |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Written essay | 100 | Max 5,000 words | 1-11 | Verbal or written |
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Written essay (100%) 5000 words | 1-11 | Aug/Sep |
Re-assessment notes
The re-assessment will be a 5,000 word essay. The re-assessment topics will be provided on the course’s ELE page after the final assessment results are released to students. The students will have 5 weeks in which to complete the assignment.
Syllabus plan
• Rational Choice
• Learning
• Framing Effects
• Group Decision-Making
• Social Identity
• Bargaining and Fairness
• Market Experiments
• Behavioural Game Theory I: Coordination
• Behavioural Game Theory II: Cooperation
• Behavioural Game Theory III: Sequential Decision-Making
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
Basic reading:
C. A. Holt. (2006) Markets, Games and Strategic Behavior, London: Pearson / Addison Wesley
D. Kahneman, A. Tversky. (2000) Choices, Values, and Frames Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
J.H. Kagel and A.E. Roth. (1995) The Handbook of Experimental Economics Princeton: NJ Princeton U. Press.
C.R. Plott and V.L. Smith. (2009) The Handbook of Experimental Economics Results vol. 1 Oxford: NorthHolland.
Module has an active ELE page?
Yes
Origin date
16/07/2014
Last revision date
13/08/2015