Introduction to Neuroeconomics: How the Brain Makes Decisions

Neuroeconomics provides biologists, economists, psychologists and social scientists with a deeper understanding of how they make their own decisions and how others decide. Neuroscience, when allied with psychology and economics, creates powerful new models to explain why we make decisions. Neurobiological mechanisms of decision-making, decisions under risk, trust and cooperation will be central issues in this course.

Economics, psychology, and neuroscience are converging today into a unified discipline of Neuroeconomics with the ultimate aim of creating a single, general theory of human decision-making.

The course structure is as follows: During each video, you will have to answer some relevant questions. Your answers will not affect your final grade. At the end of each module, you must complete a quiz consisting of 15 questions. To pass the course, you must reach a satisfactory standard in all the course modules by completing all graded quizzes and the final exam. In addition to watching video lectures and taking quizzes, you will receive an invitation to join our forum. We plan to join the discussions in the forum on a weekly basis.

There are 9 modules with video lectures and additional materials in this course. The course uses immersive assignments and multi-directional evaluation instruments, which places it at the innovative forefront of active learning techniques. The video lectures of the first two weeks are open access, the rest of the materials will be available after you pay for the course.

Neuroeconomics: decision making and the brain, 2014

Neuroeconomics 2nd Edition Decision Making and the Brain Academic Press; 2nd edition (October 11, 2013)

Decisions, ucertainty, and the brain: the science of neuroeconomics, Glimcher, P. W., 2004

Selected chapters from the handbook of “Neuroeconomics: Decision Making and the Brain” by Paul Glimcher et al. (2008 or 2013). Students with no neuroscience background can also refer to "Foundations of Neuroeconomic Analysis" by Paul W. Glimcher.

Selected chapters from the handbook of “Cognitive Neuroscience: The Biology of the Mind” by Michael Gazzaniga et al. (2013): Chapters 1-3, 12-14. Overall, I strongly recommend this book as an excellent introduction to cognitive neuroscience.

The course does not require any prior study of economics and neuroscience; however, it might require you to study novel interdisciplinary materials. The course provides an introduction to the methodology, assumptions, and main findings of Neuroeconomics. Our students have different backgrounds; therefore, I have adapted and simplified the course to allow all students to understand the interdisciplinary content. This course will help you to start your progress in the field of Neuroeconomics and to further develop your skills during other more advanced courses and trainings in the future. For some topics, the course will also provide supplementary videos to reveal the opinions of leading experts in the field. Each module provides optional reading material

Week 1. INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE

Week 2. INTRODUCTION AND SCOPE OF NEUROECONOMICS

WEEK 3. NEUROANATOMY, NEUROPHYSIOLOGY, AND NEUROIMAGING: TOOLS OF NEUROECONOMICS

WEEK 4. INTRODUCING BRAIN MODELS OF DECISION-MAKING AND CHOICE

WEEK 5. NEURAL REPRESENTATION OF SUBJECTIVE VALUE

WEEK 6. AFFECTIVE MECHANISMS OF DECISION-MAKING

WEEK 7. DUAL PROCESS THEORY OF DECISION-MAKING: TOWARD A NEUROECONOMICS PERSPECTIVE

WEEK 8. DECISION-MAKING UNDER RISK: TOWARD A NEUROECONOMICS MECHANISM

WEEK 9. THE SOCIAL BRAIN: GAMES IN THE BRAIN

1. Neuroeconomics
2. Biology
3. Education
4. Neurobiology and Brain

ПК-14 – Able to develop and implement comprehensive programmes of psychological services for individual, family and group psychological counselling in accordance with the needs and goals of the client

Course Objectives:

- Obtain a deeper understanding of how humans make their own decisions

- Learn about the most recent evidence from brain-imaging techniques (fMRI, TMS, etc.)

- Introduce yourself to the explanatory models and theories