Information, Beliefs, And Common Learning

Information is central to our economy - a relationship enshrined in the oft-heard phrase “information economy.” However, an effectively functioning economy requires not just information, but common information. This talk will examine the difference between information and beliefs about information, and common information or common beliefs. We will see that the coordinated activity that provides the foundation for a healthy economy requires the full strength of common information, while any shortfall can be crippling.

Lawrence (Larry) Samuelson is the A. Douglas Melamed Professor of Economics at Yale University. He is currently co-editor of the American Economic Review and former co-editor of Econometrica. Larry is an economic theorist who has written on an incredibly broad range of topics from the theory of multinationals, through contributions to growth theory to—perhaps most importantly—information economics and game theory.