Financial success is determined not only by knowledge and analytical ability but also by the quality of human judgment. Investors, executives, entrepreneurs, managers, and consumers make thousands of financial decisions influenced by emotions, cognitive shortcuts, social pressures, and psychological biases. Understanding these hidden forces is essential for leaders who seek to make rational decisions in environments characterized by uncertainty, complexity, and risk.
Behavioral Finance & Decision Biases is a practical, executive-oriented course designed to help Junior MBA students understand the psychology behind financial and business decision-making. Rather than focusing solely on traditional financial theories that assume perfectly rational behavior, this course explores how real people think, feel, perceive risk, and make decisions under pressure.
Students will examine cognitive biases, emotional influences, behavioral economics, investment psychology, organizational decision-making, market behavior, group dynamics, leadership judgment, and strategic thinking. Throughout the course, emphasis is placed on developing self-awareness, disciplined decision processes, and executive judgment that minimize costly errors and improve long-term business performance.
Course Objectives
By the conclusion of this course, students will be able to:
• Understand the psychological foundations of financial and business decision-making.
• Identify common cognitive biases that affect executives, investors, and organizations.
• Recognize how emotions influence investment and management decisions.
• Analyze behavioral patterns that contribute to market cycles and financial crises.
• Develop structured decision-making frameworks that reduce bias.
• Improve leadership judgment through greater self-awareness and critical thinking.
• Understand group decision dynamics and organizational biases.
• Apply behavioral finance principles to investing, entrepreneurship, and corporate strategy.
• Build long-term decision discipline under conditions of uncertainty.
• Integrate psychology and finance into effective executive leadership.
