Readings are assigned from the following two textbooks. See suggested additional readings.
[EK] = David Easley and Jon Kleinberg, Networks, Crowds, and Markets: Reasoning about a Highly Connected World, Cambridge University Press. ISBN: 9780521195331.
An excellent textbook at about the level of our course; we will however go somewhat deeper on some topics. View the full text online.
[Jackson] = Matthew Jackson, Social and Economic Networks, Princeton University Press. ISBN: 9780691148205.
An excellent textbook at a somewhat more advanced level.
Lecture 1
Topic: Introduction to social and economic networks
Reading: [EK] Chapter 1; [Jackson] Chapter 1
Lecture 2
Topic: Describing and measuring networks
Reading: [EK] Chapters 2, 3, 4, and 13; [Jackson] Chapters 2 and 3
Lecture 3
Topic: Eigenvector-based centrality measures
Reading: [EK] Chapter 14
Lecture 4
Topic: Production networks
Optional Reading: “Production Networks: A Primer,” Carvalho and Tahbaz-Salehi, Annual Review of Economics, 11:635-663, 2019.
Note: This reading is a bit too advanced. You can skim it as you wish.
Lecture 5
Topic: Social learning on networks 1: DeGroot learning
Reading: [Jackson] Chapter 8.3
Lectures 6–8
Topic: Random graphs
Reading: [Jackson] Chapter 4
Lecture 9
Topic: Diffusion models
Reading: [EK] Chapter 21; [Jackson] Chapters 7.1-7.2
Lecture 10
Topic: Diffusion models and the Covid-19 Pandemic (guest lecture by Sara Ellison)
Reading: “An Economist’s Guide to Epidemiology Models of Infectious Disease,” Ellison et al., Journal of Economic Perspectives, 34(4) 79-104, 2020.
Lectures 11–12
Topic: Strategic aspects of diffusion and cascading behavior
Reading: [EK] Chapter 19; [Jackson] Chapter 9.6
Lecture 13
Topic: Introduction to game theory
Reading: [EK] Chapter 6
Lecture 14
Topic: Network traffic and congestion
Reading: [EK] Chapter 8
Lectures 15–16
Topic: Network effects in markets
Reading: [EK] Chapter 17; [Jackson] Section 9.7 and 10.1-10.2
Lecture 17
Topic: Competitive pricing in networks
Reading: [EK] Chapter 10
Lecture 18
Topic: Bargaining and intermediation in networks
Reading: [EK] Chapters 11 and 12; [Jackson] Section 10.3
Lecture 19
Topic: Trust and cooperation in networks
No assigned readings
Lecture 20 (Guest lecture by Asuman Ozdaglar)
Topic: Advanced topics in network game theory
No assigned readings
Lecture 21
Topic: Auctions
Reading: [EK] Chapters 9 and 15
Lecture 22
Topic: Information aggregation
Reading: [EK] Chapters 22 and 23
Lecture 23
Topic: Social learning on networks 2: Bayesian learning
Reading: [EK] Chapter 16; [Jackson] Chapter 8.1-8.2
Lecture 25 (Guest lecture by James Siderius)
Topic: Social networks, misinformation, and polarization
No assigned readings
