Course Outline (additional readings may be added during the course):
1. Preferences and Utility (Chapter 1 JR and Chapter 1 MG)
1.1 Preference relations
1.2 Axioms of consumer choice
1.3 The utility function
1.4 Common utility functions used in Economics
1.5 Properties of utility functions and of preference relations
1.6 Existence of a utility function
1.7 The consumer problem
1.8 Indirect utility and expenditure
1.9 Properties of consumer demand
2. Topics in Consumer Theory (Chapter 2 JR and Chapter 2 MG)
2.1 Duality
2.2 Integrability
2.3 Choice based approach: the Weak Axiom of Revealed Preferences
3. Choice under Uncertainty (Chapter 5 MG)
3.1 Preferences over lotteries (Section 5.1 and 5.2)
3.2 Violations of the IA (Section 5.3)
3.3 Behavioral theories (Section 5.4)
3.4 Money lotteries (Section 5.5)
3.5 Measuring risk preferences (Section 5.6)
3.6 Arrow-Pratt coefficients (Section 5.7)
3.7 Prudence (Section 5.8)
3.8 Prospect-Theory and Reference-Dependent Utility (Section 5.9)
3.9 Comparison of Payoff Distributions (Section 5.10)
(Topics in italics will be covered conditional on enough time left to cover the next topics)
4. Game Theory (Chapter 7 JR)
4.1 Strategic Decision Making (Section 7.1)
4.2 Strategic Form Games (Section 7.2)
* Additional topics in Game Theory will be covered in Microeconomics (part II)
5. Contract Theory (Chapter 10 MG)
5.1 Moral Hazard (Section 10.1)
5.2 Moral Hazard with a continuum of Effort Levels (Section 10.2)
* Additional topics in Information Economics will be covered in Microeconomics II.