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    • Behavioral Economics

    Behavioral Economics Courses Online

    Explore behavioral economics to understand how psychological factors influence economic decisions. Learn about biases, heuristics, and consumer behavior.

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    Explore the Behavioral Economics Course Catalog

    • E

      ESSEC Business School

      L'avenir de la décision : connaître et agir en complexité

      Skills you'll gain: Socioeconomics, Organizational Effectiveness, Complex Problem Solving, Organizational Change, Organizational Strategy, Economics, Policy, and Social Studies, Systems Thinking, Strategic Decision-Making, Education and Training, Global Marketing, Decision Making, Forecasting, Digital Transformation, Innovation, Technology Strategies

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      382 reviews

      Mixed · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • Status: Free
      Free
      U

      University of Geneva

      Climate Change and Water in Mountains: A Global Concern

      Skills you'll gain: Water Resources, Risk Management, Natural Resource Management, Environment, Environment and Resource Management, Environmental Policy, Social Sciences, Systems Thinking, Governance, Economics, Policy, and Social Studies, Environmental Science

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      318 reviews

      Intermediate · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • U

      Universidad de Chile

      Criterios para la Gestión y el Aseguramiento de la Calidad en la Educación Superior

      Skills you'll gain: Higher Education, Teaching, Education and Training, Program Evaluation, Human Learning, Student Services, Policy Development, Research

      4.2
      Rating, 4.2 out of 5 stars
      ·
      88 reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • Status: Free
      Free
      T

      Tel Aviv University

      Economic Growth and Distributive Justice Part I - The Role of the State

      Skills you'll gain: Social Justice, Economics, Policy, and Social Studies, Tax, Economics, Public Policies, Income Tax, Ethical Standards And Conduct, Policy Analysis, Technology Strategies, Environmental Policy, Innovation

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      381 reviews

      Mixed · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    • U

      University of Minnesota

      Engineering Practices for Building Quality Software

      Skills you'll gain: Software Design Patterns, Software Design, Engineering Software, Software Quality Assurance, Software Engineering, Program Development, Application Security, Object Oriented Design, Software Architecture, Software Quality (SQA/SQC), Development Testing, Threat Modeling, Maintainability, Development Environment, Code Review, Application Deployment, Test Tools, Continuous Deployment, Quality Assurance, Continuous Delivery

      4.5
      Rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars
      ·
      432 reviews

      Intermediate · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • A

      Arizona State University

      Inglés Empresarial: Finanzas y Economía

      Skills you'll gain: Business Ethics, Negotiation, Purchasing, Business Writing, Business Communication, Forecasting, Auditing, Communication, Budgeting, Technical Communication, Vocabulary, English Language, Verbal Communication Skills, Leadership, Presentations, Financial Data, Business Economics

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      411 reviews

      Mixed · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • A

      Amazon Web Services

      Exam Prep: AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Foundations

      Skills you'll gain: Amazon Web Services, AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM), Cloud Computing Architecture, Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud, Cloud Infrastructure, Cloud Security, Cloud Services, Amazon S3, Cloud Computing, Infrastructure As A Service (IaaS), Scalability

      4.6
      Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
      ·
      105 reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    • Status: Free
      Free
      U

      University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

      Race and Cultural Diversity in American Life and History

      Skills you'll gain: Cultural Diversity, Diversity Awareness, Social Studies, Social Sciences, Culture, Sociology, Social Justice, Economics, Policy, and Social Studies, World History, Research, Immigration Law, Demography, Policy Analysis, Political Sciences

      4.6
      Rating, 4.6 out of 5 stars
      ·
      299 reviews

      Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    • U

      University of London

      Quantitative Foundations for International Business

      Skills you'll gain: Business Mathematics, Linear Algebra, Mathematical Modeling, Calculus, Financial Modeling, Algebra, Business Economics, Graphing

      4.1
      Rating, 4.1 out of 5 stars
      ·
      420 reviews

      Mixed · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    • Status: Free
      Free
      É

      École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

      Economie du sol et de l'immobilier II

      Skills you'll gain: Property and Real Estate, Real Estate, Land Management, Economic Development, Market Dynamics, Supply And Demand, Commercial Real Estate, Financial Market, Market Data, Economics, Price Negotiation, Market Analysis, Construction Estimating

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      53 reviews

      Intermediate · Course · 1 - 3 Months

    • Status: New
      New
      S

      Simplilearn

      Social Media Marketing and Brand Advocacy

      Skills you'll gain: Social Media Marketing, Customer Retention, Social Media Campaigns, Marketing Strategies, Content Performance Analysis, Social Media Strategy, Instagram, Marketing, Digital Marketing, Growth Strategies, Customer Acquisition Management, Customer Relationship Management, UI/UX Strategy, Digital Advertising, Marketing Strategy and Techniques, Facebook, E-Commerce, Digital Media Strategy, Marketing Effectiveness, Customer Engagement

      4.5
      Rating, 4.5 out of 5 stars
      ·
      14 reviews

      Beginner · Specialization · 1 - 3 Months

    • M

      McMaster University

      Finance for Everyone: Decisions

      Skills you'll gain: Finance, Financial Market, Peer Review, Project Design, Business Mathematics, Market Dynamics, Financial Analysis, Financial Planning, Economics, Return On Investment, Cash Flows, Decision Making

      4.7
      Rating, 4.7 out of 5 stars
      ·
      864 reviews

      Mixed · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

    Behavioral Economics learners also search

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    1…272829…73

    In summary, here are 10 of our most popular behavioral economics courses

    • L'avenir de la décision : connaître et agir en complexité: ESSEC Business School
    • Climate Change and Water in Mountains: A Global Concern: University of Geneva
    • Criterios para la Gestión y el Aseguramiento de la Calidad en la Educación Superior: Universidad de Chile
    • Economic Growth and Distributive Justice Part I - The Role of the State: Tel Aviv University
    • Engineering Practices for Building Quality Software: University of Minnesota
    • Inglés Empresarial: Finanzas y Economía: Arizona State University
    • Exam Prep: AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Foundations: Amazon Web Services
    • Race and Cultural Diversity in American Life and History: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
    • Quantitative Foundations for International Business: University of London
    • Economie du sol et de l'immobilier II: École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

    Skills you can learn in Finance

    Investment (23)
    Market (economics) (20)
    Stock (18)
    Financial Statement (14)
    Financial Accounting (13)
    Modeling (13)
    Corporate Finance (11)
    Financial Analysis (11)
    Trading (11)
    Evaluation (10)
    Financial Markets (10)
    Pricing (10)

    Frequently Asked Questions about Behavioral Economics

    Richard Thaler, the Nobel Prize-winning economist who is considered the founder of this influential field, defined behavioral economics as “the combination of psychology and economics that investigates what happens in markets in which some of the agents display human limitations and complications.” Whereas traditional economics (known as the “standard economic model”) assumes that people are rational actors whose decision-making in the market is based purely on calculations of costs and benefits in pursuing one’s preferences, behavioral economics identifies important ways that this theory is challenged in reality by cognitive biases.

    For example, individuals often lack the willpower to make choices in their long-run interest, even if they rationally understand the costs. People also often make altruistic sacrifices to help others, in contrast to purely rational actors that pursue only self-interest. These types of insights from psychology have been deepened in recent years by bringing in advances in our understanding of how the biology of the brain works, creating the closely related subfield of neuroeconomics.

    These insights may seem like common sense, but they have important implications for business. Behavioral finance has helped explain how the stock market is influenced by biases such as “loss aversion,” which leads investors to fear losing money more than they value gains. Consumer neuroscience has yielded marketing insights on how memorable branding builds associations in the brain that impact purchasing decisions.

    Behavioral economics and related fields can seem to some like an effort to “hack” the human mind for financial gain, particularly when used in marketing. However, leading theorists in this field such as Thaler have demonstrated that this experimental, science-based approach to economics can also help policymakers come up with policy interventions to “nudge” people towards making better long-term decisions such as eating healthier food and saving more of their money.‎

    A background in behavioral economics can give you an edge in many types of business and marketing careers, as it helps deepen your understanding of the biases that influence the choices of other investors and consumers - as well as your own economic decision-making. This field is also useful for public policy careers, as accounting for the real-world insights of behavioral economics in policymaking can help make legislation and regulation more effective in achieving its goals.

    If you want to dive deeper into this influential field and contribute to its fast-growing body of research, you can become an economist yourself. This career path typically requires an advanced degree such as a masters or even a PhD, but it can lead to work that is high paying as well as intellectually rewarding. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, economists earned a median wage of $105,020 per year in 2019, and these jobs are expected to grow faster than the average of the overall economy.‎

    Absolutely, Coursera offers courses in behavioral economics, behavioral finance, neuroeconomics, and related fields in business as well as psychology. By learning online, you can learn about behavioral economics topics remotely from great schools like Duke University and Copenhagen Business School at a significantly lower price than on-campus students.

    And, while your cognitive biases may predispose you to think that a lower price means lower quality, learners on Coursera get the same course materials and credits as on-campus counterparts, along with video lectures and live virtual office hours and collaborative projects. That means you don’t have to sacrifice the quality of your education to learn online, making this a very economically rational choice indeed.‎

    The skills and experience you might need to have before starting to learn about behavioral economics include an understanding of taxation, finance theory, and behavioral science. Work experience in product management or client management may be useful. Other skills include data analysis skills, such as interpreting data and statistical analysis. Some additional coursework in psychology can be helpful, especially classes about cognitive psychology or neuropsychology. Courses that include experimental design, statistical analysis, and programming languages like SQL can be advantageous. You also may find it beneficial to learn about brain function and the parts that play a role in the decision-making process.‎

    The people best suited for roles in behavioral economics are individuals who are passionate about understanding why people make economic decisions. They typically like to observe what others do, note trends in behavior, and develop hypotheses about why it’s happening. Behavior economists often enjoy applying their knowledge of experimental design to measure consumer behavior that organizations can use to inform decision making. For example, a company might want to know which features of a product are most important to its customers or why one particular model of a product does not sell as well as others.‎

    Learning behavioral economics might be right for you if you're interested in applied psychology and topics like game theory, ostrich effect, and anchoring bias. You may find that you like learning behavioral economics if you enjoy setting up experiments to identify why people make economic decisions and sharing your insights with companies and other groups like marketers and product managers who want to put their products in the hands of as many consumers as possible. Working as a behavioral economist may interest you if you enjoy working with data and applying your insights to develop policies and strategies that align with an organization’s mission, values, and financial goals.‎

    Online Behavioral Economics courses offer a convenient and flexible way to enhance your existing knowledge or learn new Behavioral Economics skills. With a wide range of Behavioral Economics classes, you can conveniently learn at your own pace to advance your Behavioral Economics career skills.‎

    When looking to enhance your workforce's skills in Behavioral Economics, it's crucial to select a course that aligns with their current abilities and learning objectives. Our Skills Dashboard is an invaluable tool for identifying skill gaps and choosing the most appropriate course for effective upskilling. For a comprehensive understanding of how our courses can benefit your employees, explore the enterprise solutions we offer. Discover more about our tailored programs at Coursera for Business here.‎

    This FAQ content has been made available for informational purposes only. Learners are advised to conduct additional research to ensure that courses and other credentials pursued meet their personal, professional, and financial goals.

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