Dr. Croson received her Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University, and has spent
the past 23 years doing research in experimental and behavioral economics. Some of her areas of focus include how individuals make financial decisions, what influences charitable and philanthropic giving, and bargaining and negotiation. She currently serves as the Dean of the College of Social Science at Michigan State University, and an MSU Foundation Professor of Economics.

Behavioral economics uses psychology to help explain and predict economic decisions. The impact of this area has been recognized in a series of recent Nobel prizes (Thaler 2017, Roth 2012, Ostrom 2009, Kahneman 2002, Smith 2002).
This lecture will describe the foundations of behavioral economics, and will illustrate
the principles involved using examples of research on charitable giving and
environmentally-conscious behaviors.

This is the second in a six-lecture series. The subject is Behavioral and Social Sciences: Real World Applications. The next lecture will be March 22, 2018. The title is Looking Into The Minds of Managers and Consumers.