Dynamic Optimization & Economic Applications (Recursive Methods)
MIT OpenCourseWare graduate course built around Nancy Stokey and Robert Lucas's textbook Recursive Methods in Economic Dynamics. The course covers deterministic and stochastic dynamic optimization through dynamic programming, then examines the properties of the dynamic systems these methods generate. It closes with a recursive approach to repeated games, a technique widely used in contract theory and macroeconomics. Applications and worked examples run throughout, connecting the mathematical machinery to economic problems such as growth models and strategic interaction over time. Materials include lecture notes, problem sets, and readings from MIT's economics curriculum, free to access with no certificate offered. The course assumes strong preparation in mathematical economics and is aimed at graduate students working through formal dynamic optimization tools rather than newcomers to economics.