ECO0391 - BEHAVIORAL AND EXPERIMENTAL ECONOMICS

courses

ID:

ECO0391

Duration (hours):

52

CFU:

SSD:

ECONOMIA POLITICA

Year:

2025

Date/time interval

Primo Semestre (29/09/2025 - 19/12/2025)

Course Objectives

Behavioral and experimental economics are two flourishing research programs in recent economic analysis. Generally speaking, behavioral economics studies the effects on economic behavior of psychological factors that were neglected by traditional economic analysis, and advances a series of new models that capture those psychological factors. Experimental economics tests the validity of economic theories, traditional or behavioral they may be, by using experimental methods. Economic experiments may be conducted in artificially designed environments (laboratory experiments) or in natural settings (field experiments). In the Part 1 of the course (20 hours), Moscati introduces the main concepts, findings, and models of behavioral economics. In Part 2 (20 hours), Gamba introduces the methodology of experimental economics, discusses some important laboratory and field experiments, and teaches how to design a simple economic experiment. At the end of this course, the student will be able to: 1. Master the main concepts, findings, and models of behavioral economics. 2. Understand the basic principles and methodologies of experimental economics, discuss an experimental research study, and design a simple economic experiment.

Course Prerequisites

Basic knowledge of microeconomic theory and the key concepts of game theory.

Teaching Methods

Lectures, tutorials, and laboratory classes.

Assessment Methods

The exam consists of a written test and is divided into two parts, corresponding respectively to the topics covered by Moscati and Gamba. Structure of the exam: 2 open questions and exercises on the first part, 2 open questions on the second part; each question: 7.5 points; total points: 30; overall time: 75 minutes. The first general exam will take place in January 2026. The exact dates of the first and the following general exams will be posted shortly.

Part 1 (Moscati): Decision making: (i) in riskless situations; (ii) in situations of risk; (iii) over time; (iv) in strategic situations. For each type of decision-making, the lecturer first discusses the so-called neoclassical (aka mainstream) theory of decision-making, and then moves to the corresponding behavioral theories. Part 2 (Gamba): Experimental methodology: (i) overview of the experimental methods; (ii) the relationship between economic theory and experiments; (iii) advantages and limitations of the experimental method; (iv) review of some important laboratory and field experiments; (v) how to design a simple economic experiment.

Course Language

English

More information

Texts Part 1 (Moscati): • Instructor’s slides • Suggested but not compulsory: -Moscati, I., The History and Methodology of Expected Utility, Cambridge University Press, 2023; -Dhami, S., Principles of Behavioral Economics, Cambridge University Press, 2025. Part 2 (Gamba): • Instructor’s slides • Selected research papers available on E-learning