Financial Crises
MIT's introduction to the economic theories behind financial crises, taught as part of 14.09 during MIT's Independent Activities Period. The course examines amplification mechanisms that turn shocks into full crises, including leverage, fire sales, bank runs, interconnections among institutions, and system complexity. It weighs competing explanations for why crises start, from mistaken beliefs to moral hazard, and applies these frameworks to real episodes, with heavy attention to the 2008 subprime crisis. Lectures build toward a discussion of how financial systems should be regulated to reduce future risk. Materials from MIT OpenCourseWare typically include lecture notes, readings, and assignments, free to access under a Creative Commons license, with no certificate offered through this channel.