Behavioral Finance

This course is based on the fundamental principle that the first step to successfully investing your money is to not lose it. Covering the theory and practice of behavioral finance, including a history of financial bubbles, scams, and a study of the heuristics (rules of thumb) and biases that drive human behavior. Other topics in this course include prospect theory, common investment mistakes, the role of randomness in finance, retirement planning and practical applications of behavioral finance. Also presented are basic principles of traditional portfolio theory and behavioral finance research that suggests there are persistent market traits that can generate excess returns.