01
Strategic Reasoning
& Sophistication
How do people anticipate the actions of others, perform iterative reasoning, and adapt their strategies in social and competitive environments?
Related publications ↗Bogen Department of Economics · The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The JerusalemNeuroeconomicsLab
Understanding the cognitive foundations of economic decision-making.
The Jerusalem Neuroeconomics Lab studies the cognitive and neural processes underlying economic decision-making. We combine economic models, behavioral experiments, and cognitive neuroscience methods to investigate strategic reasoning, valuation, risk, social adaptation, and the cognitive processes that support complex choice.
01 What we do
How are economic decisions constructed?
We study the processes that connect information, reasoning, and choice.
Economic decisions emerge from a sequence of cognitive operations. People identify relevant information, compare possible outcomes, anticipate the behavior of others, perform calculations, and adapt to uncertainty.
By connecting economic models with behavioral and neural measurements, we aim to explain not only what people choose, but how those choices are produced.
02 Research
CURRENT RESEARCH
Research areas
We examine economic behavior at multiple levels, from formal models and observable choices to the cognitive and neural mechanisms that generate them.
Strategic Reasoning
02
The Cognitive
Architecture of Choice
Which cognitive resources support risk preferences, and how do expectations modify decisions?
Related publications ↗03
Choice
Inconsistency
Why do preferences vary across time and context, and what cognitive and neural mechanisms contribute to inconsistency in choice?
Related publications ↗04
Evolutionary Sources of
Risk-Sensitive Behavior
How do risk-sensitive behaviors emerge from evolution? In a joint project with the Zaslaver Lab, we use C. elegans to examine the neural and evolutionary origins of risk preferences.
Visit the Zaslaver Lab ↗03 Methods
METHODS
Methods and approaches
Our work combines methods from economics, psychology, and neuroscience. The choice of method is guided by the research question.
- 01Economic theoryFormal questions and testable structure
- 02Behavioral experimentsChoices, beliefs, and strategic performance
- 03Process tracingAttention, trajectories, and deliberation
- 04NeuroimagingNeural systems supporting computation
- 05Computational modelingLinking theory, process, and behavior
04 People
LAB MEMBERS
Team
The lab includes researchers and students with backgrounds in economics, cognitive science, neuroscience, and experimental methods.
Lab Director
01
Principal Investigator
Vered
Kurtz-David
Vered is a Senior Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in the Bogen Family Department of Economics and the PPE Program at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where she is also a Visiting Fellow at the Federmann Center for the Study of Rationality and the founder and principal investigator of the Jerusalem Neuroeconomics Lab. She received her PhD from Tel Aviv University, where she studied the neural foundations of irrational choice behavior in Dino Levy's lab, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship in Paul Glimcher's lab at NYU, where she focused on cognitive aspects of bounded rationality in strategic choice. Her research has been recognized with the Society for Neuroeconomics’ Best Dissertation Award, an Israel Science Foundation Fellowship for Outstanding Postdoctoral Scholars, the Golda Meir Fellowship for Outstanding New Faculty, the Tel Aviv University President’s Fellowship for Women Scholars, and additional competitive awards from the Dan David and Sigal Foundations.
Lab Members
02
M.A. Student in Cognitive Science
Shahar Frenkel
Roichman
Shahar is a student in the accelerated M.A. program in Cognitive Science, with a dual background in Cognitive Science and Economics. Her graduate research focuses on neuroeconomics, with a particular emphasis on strategic decision-making and the neural and cognitive mechanisms driving complex strategies. Outside the lab, she enjoys swimming in open waters, traveling, and exploring nature and new cities.
03
M.A. Student in Economics
Ronnie
Rieger
Ronnie graduated from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev with a B.A. in Economics and Psychology and is currently pursuing a research-track M.A. in Economics at the Hebrew University. Her research interests lie at the intersection of psychology and economics, particularly in how individual differences in cognitive and emotional regulation shape economic decision-making under risk. During her undergraduate studies, she worked as a research assistant in Prof. Yoella Bereby-Meyer's Decision-Making Laboratory at Ben-Gurion University, conducting quantitative analyses of behavioral research data. Alongside her academic work, she worked as a student economist at the Prime Minister's Office, contributing quantitative and qualitative analyses for evidence-based policy recommendations.
04
Research Assistant
Yanai
Rubin
Yanai is an undergraduate student studying Economics and Statistics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Drawn to mathematics and quantitative modeling, Yanai enjoys figuring out how things work. Beyond numbers, interests include art, philosophy, and pretty much anything that makes you think twice.
05
Undergraduate Student
Jude (Yehuda)
Green
Jude (Yehuda) Green is an undergraduate student pursuing a double major in Psychology and Business Administration. His primary academic interests lie at the intersection of neuropsychology and economics. He is particularly fascinated by human decision-making and the underlying neural mechanisms that drive behavioral and economic choices.
06
Undergraduate Student
Sara Ramirez
Zuluaga
Originally from Cali, Colombia, Sara is an undergraduate student at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, pursuing a double major in Psychology and Business Administration. Her experience adapting to a new culture has broadened her perspective and deepened her interest in human behavior, decision-making, and the cognitive processes that shape our choices. Outside the lab, she enjoys reading, learning new things, and spending time in nature.
07
Research Assistant
Gefen
Ganor
Bio and photo coming soon.
Additional profiles will be added as the lab grows.
Join the lab ↗05 Join
Join the lab
If you are curious about how people make decisions and want to study them from multiple perspectives, we would be glad to hear from you. We welcome researchers from economics, psychology, cognitive science, neuroscience, data science, management, and related fields. Open positions are available for undergraduates, graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and research assistants.
Get in touch ↗06 Contact
Contact and location
LAB
Bogen Department of Economics (Gush 2), 5th floorFaculty of Social Sciences
Mt. Scopus, Jerusalem 91905, Israel
VERED'S OFFICE
Office 22-510, 5th floorFaculty of Social Sciences
Mt. Scopus, Jerusalem 91905, Israel
HEBREW UNIVERSITY OF JERUSALEM
Bogen Department of Economics
The Jerusalem Neuroeconomics Lab is based in the Bogen Department of Economics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The lab combines formal models of economic choice with behavioral and neuroscientific evidence.