Adaptive Learning and Expectational Stability: An Introduction - (Now published as Ch.4 in 'Learning Rationality in Economics', A Kirman and M Salmon (eds), 1995, Basil Blackwell, Oxford), pp.102-126.)

Rational expectations as the standard solution concept for dynamic economic models leaves open two fundamental questions: (1) how can RE be attained if agents do not actually begin with RE?, and (2) which RE solution will the economy follow hen there are multiple RE solutions? Expectational stability and adaptive learning rules provide closely related approaches which have been used to answer these questions. In this paper we provide an introduction to the main results and techniques used in the analysis of adaptive learning behaviour. A variety of applications which include linear macroeconomic models and nonlinear models of overlapping generations are also discussed.