Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Industrial Organisation
Other languages of instruction: Catalan, English
If the student is enrolled for the English track then classes for that subject will be taught in the same language.
Teaching staff
By appointment at slado@uic.es.
Introduction
Industrial Organisation is the field of economics that studies firms’ strategic behaviour, market structures, and how firms compete under conditions of imperfect competition. This course aims to provide students with the tools to understand how firms make decisions in non-competitive markets, the strategies they use to capture consumer surplus, and how and why they may collude to increase their market power.
This course is a compulsory component of the official curriculum for the degree in Business Administration and is taught primarily in English.
Pre-course requirements
A fundamental knowledge of Microeconomics is required. This course uses mathematical techniques with which students are expected to be familiar, including first- and second-degree equations, derivatives, and partial derivatives.
Additionally, as the working language of the course is English, students should have a sufficient command of English to follow the lectures and understand the course material.
Objectives
1. Define and identify different market structures.
2. Analyse how firms make decisions in non-competitive markets.
3. Identify how and when firms collude to increase their market power.
4. Use game theory to analyse strategic interactions.
5. Describe the social consequences of rising market power.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- 13 - To be familiar with and understand the terms and processes of company management.
- 21 - To be familiar with the main theories in the fields of microeconomics and macroeconomics.
- 22 - To be able to identify the nature and behaviour of producers, consumers and investors.
- 23 - To be familiar with and know how to use microeconomic and macroeconomic analysis terminology.
- 24 - To be able to carry out a financial, social and historical analysis of the environment in which a company operates.
- 31 - To develop the ability to identify and interpret numerical data.
- 32 - To acquire problem solving skills based on quantitative and qualitative information.
- 50 - To acquire the ability to relate concepts, analyse and synthesise.
- 53 - To acquire the skills necessary to learn autonomously.
- 58 - To be able to develop self-assessment exercises.
- 60 - To acquire knowledge that promotes respect for other cultures and habits.
Learning outcomes of the subject
After completing the course, students should be able to:
1. Define and identify different types of market structure: monopoly, oligopoly, and monopolistic competition.
2. Explain how firms maximise their profits in non-competitive markets.
3. Apply different models of firm behaviour in oligopolistic markets, including the Cournot, Stackelberg, and Bertrand models.
4. Identify circumstances in which firms may collude to increase their market power.
5. Apply game theory to analyse firms’ strategic behaviour.
6. Identify how asymmetric information arises and evaluate measures that can be used to address it.
Syllabus
A detailed course outline is provided below:
Topic 1: From perfect competition to market power
1.1. Profit maximization in perfectly competitive markets
1.2. Market structures
1.3. What Industrial Organization studies
Topic 2: Monopoly
2.1. Basics and pricing
2.2. Sources, costs, and structure
2.3. Price discrimination
Topic 3: Monopolistic competition and oligopoly
3.1. Monopolistic competition
3.2. Oligopoly
3.3. Cournot, Stackelberg and Bertrand
3.4. Collusion
Topic 4: Strategic behaviour and game theory
4.1. Nash equilibrium
4.2. Dynamics
Topic 5: Markets with asymmetric information
4.1. The problem
4.2. Consequences and solutions
The professor reserves the right to modify the course syllabus to meet students’ needs while ensuring that the core topics of the subject are covered.
Teaching and learning activities
In person
This course is primarily based on teacher-centred methods, including lectures, direct instruction and demonstrations. In addition, it incorporates student-centred methods, in which students play an active role in the learning process. Students are expected to participate actively in class, solve problems independently, prepare each topic autonomously and collaborate with their classmates.
| TRAINING ACTIVITY | COMPETENCES |
| Self-evaluation Lecture Classroom practicum (solving problems/videos/text commentary/sheets) Individual study Solving problems in the classroom | 18 19 20 21 22 23 27 31 50 53 55 58 |
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
The course is assessed through three components: continuous assessment (CA), the midterm exam (ME) and the final exam (FE). The course may be passed at either the first or second sitting, although the assessment conditions differ accordingly.
First sitting
The final grade is calculated using the following formula:
Grade = (CA × 0.10) + (ME × 0.30) + (FE × 0.60)
The final exam covers the entire course.
Second sitting
Students who obtain a grade below 5 in the first sitting must retake the final exam. In this case, the final grade is calculated using the following formula:
Grade = (CA × 0.10) + (FE × 0.90)
The final exam covers material from the entire course.
If the grade calculated using the formula is higher than 7, the final grade will be capped at 7.
Continuous Assessment
The continuous assessment consists of exercises assigned throughout the term. Regular attendance and active participation in class are essential for performing well in this component.
Bibliography and resources
Case, K., Fair, R., and Oster, S. (2017). Principles of Microeconomics (12th ed.). Pearson.
Pindyck, R. S., and Rubinfeld, D. L. (2018). Microeconomics (9th ed.). Pearson.