Game Theory: The Economics of Thinking Strategically

Catalog description

The term "game theory" refers to the set of tools economists use to think about strategic interactions among small groups of individuals and firms. The primary purpose of this course is to introduce students to the basic concepts of game theory and its applications. The class will stress the use of game theory as a tool for building models of important economic phenomena. The class will also include a number of experiments designed to illustrate the game theoretic results, and to highlight how reality may depart from the theory. The course will stress the value of thinking strategically and provide students with a framework for thinking strategically in their everyday lives. Rather than approaching each strategic situation they encounter as a unique problem, students will be taught to recognize patterns in the situations they face and to generalize from specific experiences. A paper on an application of game theory will be required for graduate students. Recommended preparation: MATH 121 or MATH 125 . Offered as ECON 329 and ECON 429 . Prereq: ECON 102 .