Ranking Socially Responsible Mutual Funds

2012 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 59-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blanca Pérez-Gladish ◽  
Paz Méndez ◽  
Bouchra M’Zali

Socially Responsible Investing (SRI), also known as sustainable or ethical investing, corresponds to an investment practice that takes into account not only the usual return-risk criteria, but also other non-financial dimensions, namely in terms of environmental, social and governance concerns. Recently, given the causes of the 2008 financial crisis, these concerns became even more relevant. However, while a diverse set of models have been developed to support investment decision-making based on financial criteria, models including also socially responsible criteria are rather scarce. The main objective of this paper is to contribute to try fulfilling this gap on the financial literature, suggesting a Multicriteria Decision Making tool which allows individual investors to analyze and rank socially responsible mutual funds based on their environmental, social and governance performance and taking into account the individual, subjective, personal preferences of each investor.

Author(s):  
Sumiyati Sumiyati ◽  
Suhaidar Suhaidar

This study was conducted to examine the importance of sustainability reporting for investment decision making by prospective investors using  belief-action-outcome (BAO) theory. This study is a rational investor behavior study in deciding the use of their  assets by explaining it using  Rational Decision Making Model (RDMM) theory.This study used  an online quasi-experimental approach. The respondents of this research were prospective individual investors who understand the use of financial statements to make investments. This research was conducted with two tests. First, test the construct of variables. Second, test the subject's behavior with experiments. As for the experiments carried out two steps namely first, the subjects were given a questionnaire without any sustainability reporting. Second, subjects were given a questionnaire with instructions to read sustainability reporting first.The expected outcome is that investors  tend to choose to buy shares of companies that also attach sustainability reports compared to companies without sustainability reports. Investors also tend to be rational in making decisions. This result showed  the importance of sustainability report in rational decision making.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geetika Madaan ◽  
Sanjeet Singh

Individual investor’s behavior is extensively influenced by various biases that highlighted in the growing discipline of behavior finance. Therefore, this study is also one of another effort to assess the impact of behavioral biases in investment decision-making in National Stock Exchange. A questionnaire is designed and through survey responses collected from 243 investors. The present research has applied inferential statistics and descriptive statistics. In the existing study, four behavioral biases have been reviewed namely, overconfidence, anchoring, disposition effect and herding behavior. The results show that overconfidence and herding bias have significant positive impact on investment decision. Overall results conclude that individual investors have limited knowledge and more prone towards making psychological errors. The findings of the study also indicate the existence of these four behavioral biases on individual investment decisions. This study will be helpful to financial intermediaries to advice their clients. Further, study can be elaborated to study other behavioral biases on investment decisions.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ritika ◽  
Nawal Kishor

PurposeThis paper attempts to identify the biases in decision-making of individual investors. The paper aims to develop and validate a higher-order behavioral biases scale.Design/methodology/approachScale development is done by identifying the relevant items of the scale through existing literature and then, adding new items for some biases. In phase 1, using a structured questionnaire, data was collected from 274 investors who invest in financial markets. The major dimensions of the scale have been pruned by using exploratory factor analysis administered on data collected in phase 1. Higher-order CFA is used to analyze the data and to validate the scale on another set of data (collected in phase 2) containing 576 investors.FindingsThe study reveals that the scale for measuring behavioral biases has many dimensions. It has two second-order factors and 13 zero-order constructs. Two second-order constructs have been modeled on the basis of cause of errors in investment decision-making, that is, biases caused due to cognition, biases caused due to emotions.Originality/valueBehavioral biases are yet to receive a due attention, especially, in the Indian context. The present research is focusing on providing an empirically tested scale to test the behavioral biases. Some of the biases, which have been analyzed using secondary data in previous studies, have been tested with the help of statements in this study.


2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. González Bueno ◽  
J. Núñez Rodríguez

The concern of investors for environmental, social and corporate governance issues is giving rise to certain changes in the investment decision-making process. Given this situation, socially responsible investment has received the attention of practitioners and academics, and has reached a significant level of development in financial community in recent years. The main goal of this paper is to examine social rating methodologies developed by the two most renowned agencies worldwide: MSCI ESG STATS and Vigeo-Eiris.


2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Atikah Zulaikha Ahmad Zaidi ◽  
Nor Suziwana Hj Tahir

Individual investments behaviour is concerned with choices about purchases of small amounts of securities for his or her own account. Decision tools often support investment decisions. It is assumed that information structure and the factors in the market systematically influence individuals’ investment decisions as well as market outcomes. Decision tools often support investment decisions. It is assumed that information structure and the factors in the market systematically influence individuals’ investment decisions as well as market outcomes. Investor market behaviour derives from psychological principles of decision making to explain why people buy or sell stocks. These factors will focus upon how investors interpret and act on information to make investment decisions. The purpose of the study was to identify the factors that influence investment decision making among potential individual investors in Malaysia. Three behavioural factors might influence investment decision making which are accounting-information, firm-image coincidence and personal-financial-needs. A set of questionnaire was distributed to 384 potential investors in Malaysia specifically in housing area of Klang Valley as population of this study. Based on the findings, it showed that there is positive relationship between accounting-information, firm-image-coincidence and personal-financial-needs in investment decision making. Hence, between these three behavioural factors, accounting-information, firm-image coincidence and personal-financial-needs, the main influential factor is accounting-information. This study also proposed a future research for investment decision making and give implications to the potential investors, community, organization, policy makers and investment practitioners.


2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (6) ◽  
pp. 1243-1263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajdeep Kumar Raut

PurposeThis study aims to explore the importance of past behaviour and financial literacy in the investment decision-making of individual investors and examines the validity of the theory of planned behaviour in this context.Design/methodology/approachThe study used a self-administered questionnaire and adopted the convenience sampling technique followed by a snowball sampling method for the survey to collect data from the individual investors covering the four distinct states of India. Collected data were analysed on AMOS 20.0 using two-step structural equation modelling (SEM).FindingsResults indicated a significant effect of all the predictive variables. Past behaviour showed no significant direct impact on investor's intention; however, it had an indirect significant relationship while mediated by the attitude of investors. The multiple squared correlation (R2) showed that the final model could explain 36% of the variance in investors' intention towards stock investment which signified a successful implementation of the TPB model along with external variables added to it. Moreover, Indian investors were found to be highly influenced, primarily, by social pressure which could be curbed through financial literacy.Practical implicationsA significant importance of subjective norms was found on stock market participation which could be a strategic theme for the government and the policymakers to educate investors through their opinion leaders for increasing their participation. Moreover, by doing so investors could control their behaviour and take rational decisions.Originality/valueThis study extended the understandings of investor's decision-making behaviour using TPB by incorporating the two external variables viz., Financial literacy and past behaviour. The addition of past behaviour is perhaps the novelty of this article since such examination has not been conducted empirically especially in the case of developing countries like India.


Market Forces ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 22
Author(s):  
Muhammad Rehan ◽  
Jahanzaib Alvi ◽  
Lubna Javed ◽  
Baber Saleem

Market irregularities and irrational behavior triggered investor’s changes in the stock market, and this has led to an investigation into the impact of various behavioral biases and factors affecting decision-making for individual investors. The quality of individual investor behavior in making stock investment decisions is very important to be understood as a reference of the movement of the capital market. This study investigated the role of behavioral finance and investor psychology in investment decision-making at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE). Using a sample of 147 individual investors, the study established that behavioral factors such as Herding, Heuristic, Market and Prospect that affected the decisions of the investors operating at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE). As there are a few studies in Pakistan related to behavioral finance, so this study mainly contributes to the field of behavioral finance in Pakistan. This study focusses on existing theories of behavioral finance which led to develop the hypothesis. The result of the analysis is that the four variables have greatly influenced the investment decision and return on investment. All behavioral variables have a significant impact on the decision-making process of investors, which led to the acceptance of all assumptions regarding the level of influence of behavioral factors in decision making for individual investors


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 1144-1163
Author(s):  
Fiona Sheenu Francis, Et. al.

Investment plays a vital role in a developing country such as India, as it provides the necessary funds for undertaking productive activities to be circulated in the economy. Savings are our country's largest source of investment. Investments are subject to the individual’s attitudes, beliefs and perceptions. As a result, the attitudes and expectations of investors have a major impact on their investment behaviour. Locus of Control is one of the most important factors that affect individual’s decision-making behaviour. Locus of Control is people's assumptions about what causes their lives to have good and bad outcomes (Rotter, 1966). It is said that there is internal and external LOC. Individuals with internal LOC assume they control their own destiny, whereas individuals with external LOC relate their experiences to destiny, luck or chance. Consequently, LOC has a great influence on an individual's investment decision-making behaviour. As a result, this study attempts to assess the LOC of an individual investors, segment them based on their level of internal and external LOC, and also to understand the impact of locus of control on the savings and investment behaviour of individual investors. The study revealed that most of the investors in Kerala were moderates and the locus of control of an individual investor affected their savings and investment behaviour                       


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-248
Author(s):  
Elkunny Dovir Siratan ◽  
Temy Setiawan

The investment decision-making process is influenced by various factors, including financial literacy and demographic factors. This research examines the impact of demographic factors and financial literacy with behavioral finance as a mediation on investment decision making.  This research using structural equation model (SEM) analysis. The result shows that demographic factors through gender, age, education, income, occupation and experience have an influence and cause a specific behavior in investment decision making. Then the financial literacy factor has an influence in reducing negative behavior. Likewise, demographic factors and financial literacy with behavioral finance as a mediation on investment decisions have a positive influence. The existence of behavior that is manages with planning, financial literacy support, and demographic factors owned by individual investors will create an opportunity for market momentum. Which help maximize profit, better investment and portfolio performance, avoid risks, better investment decision, and forming trading strategies.


2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 677-687
Author(s):  
Nariaki Nishino ◽  
◽  
Kaoru Kihara ◽  
Kenju Akai ◽  
Tomonori Honda ◽  
...  

Environmental problems must be solved urgently, and sustainable production activities are desired. This study focuses on environmental finance, which is a method of promoting sustainable corporation activities. Environmental finance allows socially responsible investment to directly contribute to corporate activities and sustainable production activities. To clarify the mechanism of eco-friendly investment decision making, 4,843 respondents took a questionnaire survey on investment decision making, based on the framework of prospect theory. The results showed that prospect theory did not always work for environment issues and that people’s attitudes when they decide on eco-friendly investments could be classified to four clusters.


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