About This Course
This course offers a research-based exploration of how empirical and experimental economics can help us understand human behavior and evaluate public policies. Building on the first MOOC "Data for Public Policy and Social Choices", this second MOOC focuses on how individuals react to environmental policies, how they interact with artificial intelligence systems, and how social scientists use the Synthetic Control Method to estimate causal effects in real-world settings.
Through case studies drawn from scientific papers, the course illustrates how behavioral insights and econometric tools can be combined to uncover the mechanisms behind sustainable choices, interactions with robots, and policy effectiveness. By the end of the course, participants will gain both conceptual and methodological skills on how to read and use data for better policy design."
The course is organized into four weeks, offering a structured exploration of key topics related to empirical and experimental approaches in economics, with applications to environmental policy, human–AI interactions, and causal inference for policy evaluation.
Each week includes several lessons consisting of video lectures and written materials, designed to guide participants through key concepts and applied case studies.
- Week 1 - Behavioral Economics for Environmental Sustainability
- Week 2 - Behavioral Responses to Environmental Policies
- Week 3 - Human–AI Interactions
- Week 4 - Synthetic Control Methods for Policy Evaluation
Each week includes a variety of lessons featuring videos, textual materials, and assessment quizzes.
Target
The course is designed for anyone interested in learning how data-driven methods can evaluate and inform policies, including undergraduate and graduate students, professionals in policy analysis and sustainability, etc. No formal background in econometrics is required, but curiosity about human behavior and data interpretation is encouraged.
Outcomes
By the end of this course, participants will have developed a strong understanding of how to use empirical evidence to inform and shape effective policy decisions. They will gain the skills to distinguish between simple correlations and robust causal relationships, applying these concepts to key issues such as tax compliance, corruption, and ethical leadership. Participants will also become familiar with key analytical methods used in social policy and intervention research, including experimental design and procedures, Machine Learning, Synthetic Control Groups, and Difference-in-Differences approaches.
Key Learning Outcomes:
By the end of this course, participants will:
- Understand how empirical and experimental data can be used to evaluate behavioral and policy interventions.
- Learn how behavioral economics explains environmental and technological decision-making.
- Analyze examples of policy research focused on criminal and dishonest behaviors.
- Explore the Synthetic Control Method as a powerful econometric tool for causal inference.
- Develop a critical understanding of how evidence informs effective and sustainable policy design.
- Strengthen awareness of the methodological and ethical challenges in evaluating human and algorithmic behavior.
Requirements
Not needed.
At the end of the entire course, there will be an optional open-ended question designed to inspire and encourage participants to consider developing their own empirical or experimental project. This could serve as a starting point for personal research, or a thesis project within a study program, with the possibility of further guidance and supervision from the course instructor.
Participants must correctly pass at least three out of four quizzes at the end of each week.
Open Badge
Participants who complete the course will be awarded an Open Badge from BESTR. Participants who log in to the platform with University of Bologna, EDUGAIN, CIE or Spid authentication and answer correctly at least 60% of the questions in total, will receive an email with instructions to download their Open Badge from the BESTR website the day after the completion of the course.
Subtitles
English subtitles available.
For better understanding, subtitles are available for each video and can be activated or not. If you want to revise some crucial passages you can move through the video content and click on the attached text.
ISCED-F
031 Social and behavioural sciences
Categories
- Transdisciplinarity
- Economics
- Political economics
- Cognitive science
- Gender studies
- Sociology
- Accounting and taxation
- Business, administration and law
- Statistics, applied
- Survey design
- Survey sampling
FAQ
For further information, see FAQ page.
Course Professor
Alice Guerra
Alice Guerra is an Associate Professor at the University of Bologna, and an Associate Editor at the International Review of Law and Economics. In 2015, she earned a European PhD in Law and Economics (Universities of Hamburg, Bologna, Rotterdam), and from 2016 to 2019, she was a Marie Curie Fellow and Assistant Professor at Copenhagen Business School. Her research spans several topics in the economic analysis of illegal behaviors and dishonesty. This includes research on tax evasion, corruption, financial fraud, addictive behaviors, sports tourism, civil and criminal liability. Webpage: https://sites.google.com/site/aliceguerrahome/.
