GECO 6190 -

Institution:

The New School

Subject:

Description:

Graduate Microeconomics Spring 2009. Three credits. Lopamudra Banerjee This course covers the fundamental aspects of microeconomic theory that are required to read contemporary economics journals and to create new models to explain the behavior of firms, households, and markets and to evaluate economic policies. Some of the material overlaps with a high-level undergraduate intermediate microeconomics course, but it is treated from a more critical and methodological point of view. Students who have had a strong undergraduate intermediate microeconomics course should consult the instructor to decide between this course and Advanced Microeconomic Theory. The first part of the course focuses on modeling households, firms, and markets under the assumption of full information about the commodities being produced and exchanged. This section of the course reviews supply and demand models and the theory of consumer surplus; the theory of consumer choice, particularly as applied to labor supply, saving, and risk-taking; the theory of the cost-minimizing and profitmaximizing competitive firm; cost functions and industry equilibrium; general equilibrium and market failure due to externalities, monopoly, and government intervention; the theory of the "second best," oligopoly;monopolistic competition; and basic concepts of game theory. The second part of the course considers the problem of incomplete and asymmetric information in market interactions, including the issues of moral hazard, adverse selection, and signaling. Theoretical concepts are illustrated by examples of applications to important social and policy problems, including environmental degradation, financial evolution, industrial regulation, market liberalization, and labor market discrimination. The critical evaluation of microeconomic theory as an analytical and policy tool is a major focus of class discussion. Prerequisite: GECO 6189 or permission of the instructor. Cross-listed as LECO 4500.

Credits:

3.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.newschool.edu

Phone Number:

(212) 229-5600

Regional Accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Calendar System:

Semester

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