London School of Economics

This course examines modern developments in macroeconomic theory and offers fresh perspectives on current macroeconomic challenges. The course is structured around key questions: What are the forces that drive long-term prosperity? What are the features of labor markets that make them special, and why does unemployment occur? How should households and firms make plans for the future? What are the consequences of high levels of government debt? What are central banks and how do they control interest rates? What are the functions of financial markets, and why are financial crises so violent? Why does economic activity fluctuate and what does austerity have to do with recessions? Can fiscal and monetary policy fine-tune the economy? 

In this course, students analyze the debates concerning the nature, causes, and effects of, and the alternative solutions to, the key natural environmental degradation and pollution problems faced by human societies. The course provides essential information, first, about the scientific foundations for much environmental concern and, secondly, a social-science perspective on that science, identifying how it is communicated and employed in areas of environmental governance. The course provides both a grounded discussion of physical changes underlying some key environmental debates, and an introduction to approaches from social science concerning the governance implications of environmental science. Students explore the role of science in environmental understanding and governance through a combination of lectures, classes, and practical environmental monitoring.

The course poses questions about the importance of human rights relative to other good and values; the supposed "universality" of human rights; the troubled relationship between international human rights law and national law; the effectiveness of the regional and global protection of human rights; and the relevance of human rights in a world of stark global inequalities, mass migration, and rapid climate change.

This is an introductory course on statistics and how it can help us answer the kind of questions that arise when we want to better understand the world. We will use real-world examples from the social and natural sciences to establish the foundations of probability and distribution theory, and introduce important statistical skills, from descriptive statistics to sampling and inference. In addition to these examples, students conduct interactive experiments in the classroom to demonstrate the use of key techniques.

This course provides a philosophical discussion of the methods and the normative commitments of contemporary economics. The course focuses on economic methodology and the foundations of utility theory, with an eye to important current debates in economics. The second area of focus is on welfare economics, and the ethical assumptions and implications of economics.

The course introduces students to the principles and methods of behavioral economics in relation to individuals, firms, and institutions. Addressing behavioral economics both at the macroeconomic and microeconomic levels, students engage in topics such as heuristics, biases, nudging strategies, and rational expectations. Students learn how to apply these tools in a variety of economic settings both in the private and public sectors. Using these tools, students incorporate psychologically-motivated assumptions into economic models, and interpret the implications of these assumptions for policy development and business strategy.

Is the West in decline and what are the main emerging powers? Are we heading toward a new world order or even great power conflict? These are some of the big questions students seek to answer in this course.