FIN-620 / 3 credits

Teacher: Dimopoulos Theodosios

Language: English

Remark: If you would like to attend this course, please send an email to: edfi@epfl.ch to register


Summary

Game theory deals with multiperson strategic decision making. Major fields of Economics, such as Microeconomics, Corporate Finance, Market Microstructure, Monetary Economics, Industrial Organization, International Trade Theory all build on game theoretic foundations.

Content

Keywords

Game Theory
Contract Theory

Learning Prerequisites

Required courses

Bachelor-level Calculus and Probability Theory

Recommended courses

Intermediate-level Microeconomics

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, the student must be able to:

  • Define alternative notions of Equilibria
  • Derive game equilibria and select among them
  • Design games and incentive schemes to induce desired targets

Assessment methods

  • The course is accompanied by 8 problem sets. They are excellent preparation for the exam, but do not count as part of the final grade.
  • The final grade for the course is:

Grade=100%*Final Exam

Resources

Bibliography

No single textbook covers the entirety of the topics that we will consider.

The required textbooks for the course are:

Fundenberg, Drew and Jean Tirole, 1991, Game Theory, 7th Edition, MIT Press ISBN-13: 978-0262061414

Bolton, Patrick and Mathias Dewatripont, 2004, Contract Theory, MIT Press, ISBN-13: 978-0262025768

 

Students with no prior exposure to Game Theory, are highly recommended to accompany their study with the following introductory text:

  • Gibbons, Robert, 1992, A primer in Game Theory, Prentice Hall, ISBN-13: 978-0745011592

Additional readings will be provided in class or electronically.

The following textbooks may also be helpful on some of the topics covered:

  • Mas-Colel, Andreu, Michael Whinston and Jerry Green, 1995, Microeconomic Theory, Oxford University Press, ISBN-13: 978-0195073409
  • Binmore, Kenneth, 1992, Fun and Games: A Text on Game Theory, D.C. Heath, ISBN-13: 978-0195073409
  • Salanie, Bernard, 1992, The Economics of Contracts: A primer, 2nd Edition, MIT Press, ISBN-13: 978-0195073409
  • Krishna, Vijay, 2009, Auction Theory, 2nd Edition, Academic Press, ISBN-13: 978-0195073409
  • Tirole, Jean, 2005, The Theory of Corporate Finance, Princeton University Press, ISBN-13: 978-0691125565
  • Tirole, Jean, 1988, The Theory of Industrial Organization, MIT Press, ISBN-13: 978-0262200714
  • Laffont, Jean-Jacques and Jean Tirole, 1993, A Theory of Incentives in Procurement and Regulation, MIT Press, ISBN-13: 978-0262121743

Ressources en bibliothèque

Notes/Handbook

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

Students are required to adhere to the following rules:

  • Any material handed out in class is not to be distributed to any other students without permission from the instructor. Do not consult past editions of the Game Theory course.
  • Any communication between students in different sections concerning the content of the class discussion of group assignments is prohibited.

 

In the programs

  • Exam form: Written (session free)
  • Subject examined: Game Theory
  • Lecture: 28 Hour(s)

Reference week

Related courses

Results from graphsearch.epfl.ch.