ECON30270 Behavioural Economics and Public Policy

Academic Year 2020/2021

The purpose of this course is to provide an advanced undergraduate level introduction to the principles of Behavioural Economics. Behavioural economics incorporates insights from psychology, sociology, philosophy, and other fields into economic analysis in order to enrich our understanding of how humans make choices. This course will survey the main concepts in behavioural economics and examine how they have influenced thinking on public policy and regulation.

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Curricular information is subject to change

Learning Outcomes:

At the end of the course, students should have a broad understanding of behavioural economics and, in particular:

1. Understand the key theoretical concepts in behavioural economics.

2. Understand how to evaluate empirical evidence from behavioural research.

3. Be able to critically evaluate the role of behavioural research in informing public policy and regulation.

Indicative Module Content:

The course will cover a selection of the following topics:

1. Decision Making under Uncertainty

2. Probability Theory, Heuristics, and Biases

3. Prospect Theory

4. Mental Accounting

5. Intertemporal Choice

6. Social Preferences

7. Role of Social Identities in Decision Making

8. Behavioural Game Theory

9. Nudging

Student Effort Hours: 
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

24
Autonomous Student Learning

100
Total

124
Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
The module is driven by the recent research in behavioural economics. Students are given a survey of the key topics in the field. Students are encouraged to engage with a range of materials and to take a hands-on approach, learning through problem solving, critical discussion, and essay writing, among others.
 
Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 
Assessment Strategy  
Description Timing Open Book Exam Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade
Essay: Critical discussion of a question/topic suggested by the lecturer. No more than 1000 words.
Contributes 1/3 of final grade.		 Unspecified n/a Standard conversion grade scale 40% No

33
Continuous Assessment: Assignment 1. Problem solving and/or answering questions. Contributes 1/3 of final grade.

Assignment 2. Problem solving and/or answering questions. Contributes 1/3 of final grade.		 Unspecified n/a Standard conversion grade scale 40% No

67

Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 
Resit In Terminal Exam
Spring No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 
Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

- Students will be given their individual feedback in the form of grades for their assignments. - Afterwards there will be group/class feedback post-assessment for the assignments. - Feedback on the essay will be in the form of grades and comments.

There is no single textbook for the course and much of the material will be based on scientific articles. An extensive Reading List will be provided for each topic during the lecture. Some parts of the following two textbooks may be helpful in addition to the Reading List. Exact recommendations will be given for each topic.

Erik Angner. 2016. A Course in Behavioral Economics. 2nd edition. Palgrave McMillan.

Nick Wilkinson and Matthias Klaes. 2018. An Introduction to Behavioral Economics. 3rd edition. Red Globe Press.