Game Theory and Applications
Course Description
Summary
This course introduces game theory as a framework for understanding strategic decision-making in economics and beyond. It examines how individuals, firms, and institutions make choices when outcomes depend on the actions of others, and how incentives shape behavior in interdependent settings.
We study core concepts such as rationality, strategic interaction, and decision-making under uncertainty, and analyze standard game forms including static games, dynamic games, and games with incomplete information. These tools are used to interpret a wide range of real-world contexts, including economic competition, political strategy, international relations, diplomacy, and conflict.
The course integrates theory and application through close reading of texts, structured discussion, problem sets, and written work. Formal tools, including basic mathematical representations, are used to clarify ideas, but the primary emphasis is on developing intuition and the ability to reason strategically across contexts.
Course Requirements:
The course invites engagement with peers in a spirit of mutual respect, collaboration, and adventure. It is built around two core commitments: (a) active engagement with assigned readings through consistent class participation, and (b) completion of problem sets and related written assignments.
Each class session depends on your preparation. You are expected to engage carefully with the readings in advance and contribute thoughtfully to discussion. Attendance is essential, as readings, discussion, problem sets, and written work together form an integrated learning process. All problem sets must be completed and submitted on time for in-class discussion.
Learning Outcomes
- By the end of the course, you will understand the core principles of game theory and apply them to economic and social contexts. You will interpret strategic situations using both intuitive and formal approaches, including standard models of interaction under certainty and uncertainty.
- You will formulate and refine analytical questions through active, self-directed inquiry, using game theory as a framework for structured investigation. Through readings, discussion, problem sets, and written work, you will develop the ability to analyze economic behavior and communicate ideas with clarity and precision.
- More broadly, you will strengthen your capacity for inquiry, engagement with ideas across contexts, and effective presentation of analytical arguments.