Studying Economics at Kenyon
Why are buffalo almost extinct but cattle so plentiful? Do government deficits mortgage our children’s future? Does an increase in the minimum wage help unskilled workers? These are some of the questions economists try to answer.
Economics students learn to build, test and revise models of behavior — of consumers, firms, workers and the government — and examine how these agents interact in markets, both at the individual level in microeconomic analysis and at the economy-wide level in macroeconomic analysis.
By integrating theory, analytical models, data, quantitative research methods and public policy issues, the economics professors at Kenyon help students understand and predict social behavior in the world around them. Students then are able to analyze important social problems like unemployment, pollution, race and gender discrimination, and inflation. This analysis allows them to intelligently evaluate public-policy proposals that are offered as solutions to these problems.
Featured Courses
Principles of Microeconomics
What do people mean when they say “supply and demand,” “free trade” or “opportunity cost”? What’s the difference between price and cost? This course presents theories of consumer and producer behavior and shows how these theories can be used to predict the consequences of individual, business and government actions.
Environmental Economics
This course uses economic analysis to better understand the nature of environmental issues such as pollution and the allocation of natural resources. The relative strengths of alternative policies will be discussed using a series of case studies focusing on actual policies aimed at correcting environmental problems.
Game Theory
Game theory is the study of strategic interactions between parties. In this class, we discuss dominant strategies, Nash equilibria and more, as well as applications to decision-making, bargaining and negotiation, and politics. We’ll demonstrate many of these applications using in-class games with real cash incentives.
Sports Economics
This seminar explores professional and amateur sports from an economic perspective. Aside from recreational and entertainment appeal, the sporting world provides a wealth of applications to several fields in economics such as industrial organization, public finance and labor economics, among others.
From Game Theory to Board Game
“Sitting in Professor Jay Corrigan’s ‘Game Theory’ class, I found the ‘Repeated Prisoner’s Dilemma’ to be a compelling concept, and I was struck with a board game idea. This game would put our greed for immediate satisfaction at odds with our need to make prudent choices. It would require players to weigh their cold, strategic calculations against the social pressure to be honest. This game would become Risky Chicken.”
Ben Reingold ’20
Economics major and entrepreneur
Ascension Hall
Kenyon College
Gambier, Ohio 43022