An extended complex system is a large scale hierarchical system controlled by two or more teams of decision-makers. The teams may have different objective functions, and often can be in direct conflict with each other. Within each team, the decision-makers must cooperate for the collective...

My dissertation contains three chapters. Chapter one proposes a nonparametric method to evaluate the performance of a conditional factor model in explaining the cross section of stock returns. There are two tests: one is based on the individual pricing error of a conditional model and the other...