ECONOMICS 4455 (webpage): myweb.fsu.edu/misaac

Fall 2016 (email): misaac@fsu.edu

Prof. Isaac

SYLLABUS

Introduction to Experimental Economics

This course is an introduction to the use of laboratory experimental economics, a relatively new method of economics research in which the classic model of laboratory experimentation is applied to microeconomics. The innovation of experimental economics was the basis of Prof. Vernon L. Smith’s sharing of the 2002 Nobel Prize in Economic Science. (Students may wish to find in their Principles of Economics textbook whether the authors declared that it was impossible to run experiments in economics). The objectives of the course are 1) to familiarize undergraduate students with a broad range of research which has been conducted using experimental methods, and, 2) in the process, guide the student to rethink the methodological connections among economic theory, economic institutions, and the data which economists can collect. Topics include: the “law” of supply and demand, public goods, signaling phenomena, voting models (yes, in an economics course) and asset pricing. There will be sample exercises conducted in class, so that students will receive a “hands on” experience of experimental economics. Along the way students will be subjected to my assertion that great economic ideas populate the plots of great movies. The course assumes that each potential student has completed a Principles of Economics sequence.

Books

Davis and Holt, Experimental Economics. This is the first undergraduate textbook in experimental economics. The book is keyed to topical areas in experimentation, and most of those areas are ones which we will cover in this class. I will assign parts of Davis and Holt chapters as we go along.

The Art of Scientific Investigation, by Beveridge, an awesome little book about science and, especially, experiments.

In addition, there will be other readings from scholarly economics journals and books. I have compiled them into a reading list (to be distributed).

Finally, I am going to be doing some test-runs of an app-based modality for conducting experiments in the classroom. It is called MobLab and I will be giving everyone the sign-in key shortly. For this year alone, MobLab is being provided free of charge. I will likely engage in a separate feedback evaluation just on the MobLab experience.

Course Requirements: Two midterm exams, one final exam, and one final project, each worth one-fourth of the total course grade.

The project will be due the day of the final exam. It will be an exercise in writing a research proposal for a hypothetical series of economics experiments. I will give more details on a rubric for the proposal after the first mid-term exam.

Your Attendance: I do not take attendance, except, as required by the University, on day one. You are adults and are capable of making your own decision about attending class. I realize that people get sick and have job interviews; you are not required to engage in documentation. Having said this, the most important components of this course take place in the classroom, and that is reflected on all exams. In particular, a key element of this class is your hands-on participation in sample sessions of very simple versions of economics experiments. If you are randomly called upon to participate, your decisions will not affect your grade. But whether you are participating in or observing any particular exercise, the lessons about experimental economics that I will elicit and discuss from these sample sessions will be fair game for the exams. You can be 100% certain that you will be questioned about these sessions on the exams, so this is yet another reason why it is in your interest to maintain regular attendance.

In addition, one thing that really ticks me off is wandering in and out of class. If you must be late, please cause as little disruption as possible. If you have an early appointment, please inform me and sit near the door.

Final Exam Date: According to my reading of the schedule, our final exam is scheduled for Thursday, December 15th, 2015 at 7:30 – 9:30 a.m.. (I know; I hate this as much as you do, but my hands are tied). Please let me know ASAP if your reading of the schedule is different. This will become set in stone at the end of the first week of class. FSU does not allow reschedules for the final exam for family cruises, weddings, early-discount airline tickets home, etc. Please re-read the previous sentence.

Policy On Missing Exams: I do not give make-up exams. Students who miss an exam receive a grade of "zero" for that exam unless they provide me, in a timely fashion, a written, signed explanation of their absence. Health, family emergencies, out of town job interviews, etc. are standard, acceptable excuses for a missing a midterm. Students who miss an exam with an acceptable excuse have their 25 percent exam score component reweighted on the remaining exams. You may not be excused from both midterms. Final exams are rescheduled only on the FSU-approved circumstances, for example: death (your own or that of a close family member) or the overall limits set in the Bulletin. To reiterate, supersaver airline tickets, weddings, etc. are not an acceptable reason to reschedule a final exam.

My Attendance: You deserve the same respect from me. Part of my responsibility as a Professor at Florida State University involves occasional attendance at academic conferences which overlap with the normal class schedule. I attempt to make these overlaps as harmless as possible to the course (using guest lectures, experimental sessions, or additionally provided review times). I will provide you with my anticipated schedule for any absence. If I should ever be so sick as to not be able to teach, I will do everything possible to have that posted in class before the class begins.

Honor Code: Students are expected to uphold the Academic Honor Code published in the Florida State University Bulletin and the Student Handbook.

Office Hours: My office hours are Tuesday and Thursday from 2:00-3:15, p.m., and by appointment (644-7081). My office is 288A Bellamy. My e-mail address is misaac@fsu.edu.

Note: Students entitled to special academic accommodations are encouraged to come to my office and present a letter from the Student Disability Resource Center describing the nature of the accommodations required.

Final Note: Anyone who answers or places a (non-emergency) cell phone call in the classroom during class will lose two points on the next subsequent exam. If you are expecting a “life or death” page or phone call, please let me know before class starts and try to sit as close to the doors as possible. My basic policy is that laptops should not be operational during the class. If you have a formal accommodation or an informal but compelling need to take notes with a laptop, please contact me privately. You should be aware that there is research that notes taken by hand are more useful than notes taken by transcription. If you must take notes on a laptop I will require that you sit near the front of the classroom. If I observe that you are using the computer for anything else other than note-taking, consequences will follow.

I find that it is impolite all the way around to be referring to text messages, etc. during a class, but it is almost as disruptive to try to enforce to total ban on these devices. Therefore, I am going to try something different this semester. The first group assignment for this class on the first day of class is for you to recommend to me our class policy on texting. Some sample policies are: 1 ) a complete ban, no excuses, you will lose points on your next exam; 2 ) designated texting time (for example, when I am firing up displays on the computer); or 3 ) the Wild, Wild West (every study that I have seen is that concentration is disrupted when someone tries to pay attention to two things at a time; but you are adults, it’s your grade, it’s your call --- with the proviso that I do NOT repeat my class lectures in my office hours, especially for people with bad attendance records or who are serial texters).

Florida State University requires that the following information be reproduced verbatim on all syllabi:

University Attendance Policy:
Excused absences include documented illness, deaths in the family and other documented crises, call to active military duty or jury duty, religious holy days, and official University activities. These absences will be accommodated in a way that does not arbitrarily penalize students who have a valid excuse. Consideration will also be given to students whose dependent children experience serious illness.

Academic Honor Policy:
The Florida State University Academic Honor Policy outlines the University’s expectations for the integrity of students’ academic work, the procedures for resolving alleged violations of those expectations, and the rights and responsibilities of students and faculty members throughout the process. Students are responsible for reading the Academic Honor Policy and for living up to their pledge to “. . . be honest and truthful and . . . [to] strive for personal and institutional integrity at Florida State University.” (Florida State University Academic Honor Policy, found at http://dof.fsu.edu/honorpolicy.htm.)

Americans With Disabilities Act:
Students with disabilities needing academic accommodation should:
(1) register with and provide documentation to the Student Disability Resource Center; and
(2) bring a letter to the instructor indicating the need for accommodation and what type. This should be done during the first week of class.

This syllabus and other class materials are available in alternative format upon request.

For more information about services available to FSU students with disabilities, contact the:

Student Disability Resource Center
874 Traditions Way
108 Student Services Building
Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL 32306-4167
(850) 644-9566 (voice)
(850) 644-8504 (TDD)
sdrc@admin.fsu.edu
http://www.disabilitycenter.fsu.edu/

Syllabus Change Policy

"Except for changes that substantially affect implementation of the evaluation (grading) statement, this syllabus is a guide for the course and is subject to change with advance notice.”