Experimenting with the economy 2400-PL3SL249B
In the analysis of economic phenomena, the main challenge is not obtaining information but interpreting it.
The amount of economic information reaching an average citizen increases every day. Some of it is contradictory or unreliable, which creates informational noise. One of the most important skills for economics students is the critical analysis of collected information, which usually takes the form of statistical data. When writing a thesis, it is not required to master highly sophisticated econometric or statistical models. What is desirable is a critical attitude toward the analyzed issue and the ability to identify sources of inefficiency.
Preferred topics:
1. Applied microeconomics and mechanism design — for example, the impact of market structures on firm performance, pricing policies, efficiency analysis, information asymmetry, and the microeconomics of banking.
2. The use of experimental methods — in particular, controlled laboratory experiments and computational experiments in the Agent-Based Computational Economics approach.
The seminar also welcomes students interested in topics beyond the mainstream of economics and allows them to prepare theses aligned with their individual interests. These topics include:
1. Sociological and psychological approaches to economic behavior.
2. Research at the intersection of anthropology, psychology, sociology, and economics.
3. Open-source software as a research and teaching tool.
The instructor’s research interests include econophysics, information theory, narrative and attention economics, and heterodox economics. Topics combining these areas with applied microeconomics, experimental methods, and data analysis are especially welcome.
Organization:
• The most effective form of work is individual supervision.
• During scheduled office hours, each student can use consultations; online meetings are also available for students on international exchanges.
• Each month, seminar participants present short progress reports during the seminar sessions.
Szacunkowy nakład pracy studenta: 3ECTS x 25h = 75h
(K) - godziny kontaktowe (S) - godziny pracy samodzielnej
zajecia seminaryjne : 10h (K) 0h (S)
zajecia indywidualne na dyżurach off i online: 20h (K) 0h (S)
przygotowanie pracy : 0h (K) 35h (S)
praca z materiałami dodatkowymi umieszczanymi na platformie Moodle : 0h (K) 10h (S)
: 0h (K) 0h (S)
: 0h (K) 0h (S)
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Razem: 30h (K) + 45h (S) = 75h
Type of course
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
This subject should provide a methodological basis for writing a thesis. After graduation, the student:
KNOWLEDGE
• Knows the connections between economics, institutional and cultural and social determinants.
• Knows how to apply statistical and machine-learning methods to analyse different types of socio-economic data
SKILLS
• Is able to analyze basic economic texts independently and critically.
• Is able to carry out the entire research process: he can independently put a research hypothesis, economic theory, adequate to the goal set in research work, can verify the research hypothesis, can search for data, apply the description of statistical or econometric modelling, can present in writing and pass the whole process as a thesis.
SOCIAL COMPETENCE
• Is critical of present economic problems and strives to rationally explain surrounding economic and social phenomena, learns to think, speak and write in a logical and consistent manner
• Thanks to individual work with the supervisor, he/she can properly determine the priorities in conducting research and writing work.
• By strengthening the motivation of the promoter, the student does not treat the thesis as a formal requirement, but as an element of personal and professional self-development
Assessment criteria
Every two months, each student is required to present progress in the work: personally, during the online call or by e-mail.
Bibliography
Materials selected individually fitted to a selected topic.
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: