COGNITION AND DECISION MAKING

Computer Science and ICT, Data, AI

About this course

The course examines the way people make decisions and solve problems. Normative decision theory will be reviewed, and the cognitive basis of human decision processes will be discussed in the light of experimental results. Conditions under which suboptimal decisions are made (violations of the normative theory and social dilemmas) will be emphasized.

Class: Tuesday from 16:30-18:20

Tutorial: Tuesday from 18:30-19:20

Teaching Assistant: Eden Heilprin - edenheilprin@campus.technion.ac.il

Expected learning outcomes

Money makes the world go round, but it is not always easy to predict the direction of the spin. The current course reviews research that tries to clarify the impact of incentives on human behavior. It starts with a focus on research that demonstrates the value of models that assume rational choice. Next, it reviews behavioral research that highlights deviations from rational choice and explore the potential of cognitive models of human learning and decision processes. The final part of the course examines the practical implications of the research reviewed in the first parts. It considers the impact of nudges and behavioral mechanism design.