PB453E      Half Unit
Corporate Behaviour and Decision Making

This information is for the 2025/26 session.

Course Convenor

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This course delivers insights from cutting edge research in behavioural science, psychology, economics, and management and guides students in their application to decision making within corporate companies in high stake settings.   The course covers search and hiring, circumventing groupthink, feedback, compensation and promotions decisions, the role of bias in equity markets, skills and the future of work, C-Suite decision making, conduct and motivating workers. Real world class case studies are used during the course to reinforce lessons learned, and allow students visualise scenarios in which the theory and insights covered in the course can be applied.

The assessment is designed to give students the opportunity to apply the theory and insights they learned on the course to a real-world case study.

This course is delivered through a combination of lectures and seminars totalling a minimum of 20 hours in the WT.

Students will be expected to produce answers to one case study in the WT.

Case study with short questions that matches the style of the summative assessment 

Bono, J. E., Foldes, H. J., Vinson, G., & Muros, J. P. (2007). Workplace emotions: The role of supervision and leadership. Journal of applied Psychology, 92(5), 1357.

Gneezy, Uri, Kenneth L. Leonard, and John A. List. "Gender differences in competition: Evidence from a matrilineal and a patriarchal society." Econometrica 77.5 (2009): 1637-1664.

Guenther, Benno and Lordan, Grace (2023) When the disposition effect proves to be rational: experimental evidence from professional traders. Frontiers in Psychology, 14. ISSN 1664-1078

Hamilton, O. S., & Lordan, G. (2022). Ability or luck: A systematic review of interpersonal attributions of success. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1035012.

Hamilton, O. S., Jolles, D., & Lordan, G. (2023). Does the Tendency for 'Quiet Quitting' Differ Across Generations? Evidence from the UK. IZA Discussion Paper No. 16240. Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

Johnston, David W. and Lordan, Grace (2016) Racial prejudice and labour market penalties during economic downturns European Economic Review, 84. 57-75

Josten C, Lordan G (2022) Automation and the changing nature of work. PLoS ONE 17(5): e0266326. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0266326

Kandasamy, Narayanan, et al. "Cortisol shifts financial risk preferences." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 111.9 (2014): 3608-3613.

Lordan, G. (2021). Think Big: Take Small Steps and Build the Future You Want. Penguin Life.

Riordan, D., & Riordan, M. (2013). Guarding against groupthink in the professional work environment: a checklist. Journal of Academic and Business Ethics, 7, 1.

Will, P., Krpan, D., & Lordan, G. (2022). People versus machines: Introducing the HIRE framework. Artificial Intelligence Review, 56(2), 1071–1100.

Presentation (10%) in January

This component of assessment includes an element of group work.

Presentation (50%) in April

Essay (40%) in April

10 per cent: case study group presentation. Timing - Day 5 of the course. – January 2026

40 per cent: written assessment that is linked to the online presentation. Timing: April 2026

50 per cent: online presentation of written assessment with Q&A. Timing: 14-19 days after submission of written assessment. April 2026