Behavioral Economics: Week 8

Topic: Discounting, Intertemporal Choice, Willpower and Non-Cognitive Skills

Week 8 Required Readings and Videos:

Before coming to Class, you should have read the following:

DAY I: Willpower and Non-Cognitive Skills

A few popular articles on Self Control:

Lehrer, Jonah. 2009. Don't! The Secret of Self Control. The New Yorker.

Marshmallow Test Points to Biological Basis for Delayed Gratification.

Review of the book: Willpower

Baumeister et al. "Ego Depletion: Is the Active Self a Limited Resource?"

Information about the Marshmallow Experiment

The Marshmallow Experiment

Videos: Kids and Marshmallows, another.

TED Talk about the Marshmallow Experiment

Information about how our brains work as related to self control

Separate Neural Systems

Powerpoint: Willpower

DAYII: Intertemporal Choice

Powerpoint: Intertemporal Choice 

Intertemporal Choice Primer 1

Intertemporal Choice Primer 2

Hyperbolic Discounting

Week 8 More Detailed Background Readings*

 


*Note: these readings are NOT required for the class, but are provided here for your own interests and/or for research projects etc. If, for example, you find a particular idea that you want to focus on (in your research or otherwise) you can come back to these articles.