Bachelor 2022/2023

Introduction to Neuroeconomics: How the Brain Makes Decisions

Type: Elective course (Joint Bachelor's Programme with the Centre for Teaching Excellence)

Area of studies: Mathematics

Delivered by: Faculty of Mathematics

Where: Faculty of Mathematics

When: 4 year, 4 module

Mode of studies: distance learning

Online hours: 111

Open to: students of one campus

Instructors: Natalia Pokhodnya

Language: English

ECTS credits: 6

Contact hours: 6

Course Syllabus

Abstract

Economics, psychology, and neuroscience are converging today into a unified discipline of Neuroeconomics with the ultimate aim of providing a single, general theory of human decision making. Neuroeconomics provides economists and social scientists with a deeper understanding of how they make their own decisions, and how others decide. Are we hard-wired to be risk-averse or risk seeking? How is a “fair decision” evaluated by the brain? Is it possible today to predict the purchasing intentions of a consumer? Can we modulate economic behaviour affecting the brain? Neuroscience allied to psychology and economics have powerful models and evidence to explain why we make a decision. Decision-making in financial markets, trust and cooperation in teams, consumer persuasion, will be central issues in this course in neuroeconomics. You will be provided with the most recent evidence from brain-imaging techniques (PET, fMRI and TMS), and you will be introduced to the explanatory models behind them.