Investor Behavior, 1st Edition

WINNER, Business: Personal Finance/Investing, 2015 USA Best Book Awards

FINALIST, Business: Reference, 2015 USA Best Book Awards

Investor Behavior provides readers with a comprehensive understanding and the latest research in the area of behavioral finance and investor decision making. Blending contributions from noted academics and experienced practitioners, this 30-chapter book will provide investment professionals with insights on how to understand and manage client behavior; a framework for interpreting financial market activity; and an in-depth understanding of this important new field of investment research. The book should also be of interest to academics, investors, and students.

The book will cover the major principles of investor psychology, including heuristics, bounded rationality, regret theory, mental accounting, framing, prospect theory, and loss aversion. Specific sections of the book will delve into the role of personality traits, financial therapy, retirement planning, financial coaching, and emotions in investment decisions. Other topics covered include risk perception and tolerance, asset allocation decisions under inertia and inattention bias; evidenced based financial planning, motivation and satisfaction, behavioral investment management, and neurofinance. Contributions will delve into the behavioral underpinnings of various trading and investment topics including trader psychology, stock momentum, earnings surprises, and anomalies. The final chapters of the book examine new research on socially responsible investing, mutual funds, and real estate investing from a behavioral perspective. Empirical evidence and current literature about each type of investment issue are featured. Cited research studies are presented in a straightforward manner focusing on the comprehension of study findings, rather than on the details of mathematical frameworks.

“"Baker and Ricciardi have done an excellent job of soliciting articles that blend academic research with real-world applications that can be used by financial planners. Investor Behavior is an excellent book for anyone who wishes to detour from the beaten path of behavioral finance and to implement what has been learned about investor psychology to better understand traders and assist clients." -- Financial Analysts Journal”

“Baker and Ricciardi have done an excellent job of soliciting articles that blend academic research with real-world applications that can be used by financial planners. Investor Behavior is an excellent book for anyone who wishes to detour from the beaten path of behavioral finance and to implement what has been learned about investor psychology to better understand traders and assist clients.” 
— Financial Analysts Journal

H. KENT BAKER is University Professor of Finance at American University's Kogod School of Business in Washington, DC. As one of the most prolific finance academics, he has authored or edited 21 books and published more than 150 refereed articles. He has consulting and training experience with more than 100 organizations, serves on multiple editorial boards, and is the Past President of the Southern Finance Association. Professor Baker holds eight earned degrees including three doctorates as well as CFA and CMA designations.

VICTOR RICCIARDI specializes in current trends in behavioral finance. As Assistant Professor of Financial Management at Goucher College in Baltimore, Maryland, he has made important contributions to understanding the psychology of investing. Professor Ricciardi also serves as Coordinator of Behavioral and Experimental Research for the Social Science Research Network (SSRN). He edits several SSRN eJournals related to behavioral finance, financial history, behavioral economics, risk-taking behavior, and behavioral accounting.

Why do investors behave as they do? Investor behavior often deviates from logic and reason. Emotional processes, mental mistakes, and individual personality traits complicate investment decisions and increase the difficulty of comprehending clients' judgments. Behavioral decision-making can also have a detrimental influence if investment professionals ignore or fail to grasp this aspect of decision-making. Investor Behavior: The Psychology of Financial Planning and Investing is a collection of must-read chapters by leading scholars and practitioners. This book edited by H. Kent Baker and Victor Ricciardi, two leading experts in the psychology of investing, is indispensable for anyone who works with individual clients and needs to manage those difficult-to-predict investment decisions. This comprehensive volume provides essential contributions to the field of behavioral finance and economics including mental mistakes (heuristics), emotional issues, bounded rationality, biases, and risk perception. Investor Behavior also goes beyond the basics, introducing new and cutting-edge research on individual behavior in areas including financial therapy, motivation and satisfaction, transpersonal economics, personality traits, financial coaching, money and happiness, retirement planning, neurofinance, and evidenced-based financial planning. The book concludes with an authoritative selection of developments in such behavioral topics as ethical and socially responsible investing, real estate investing, and mutual funds. Each chapter in Investor Behavior focuses on real-world examples that can be easily understood and applied. Readers learn how practitioners are converting new research on human psychology into measurable performance gains. Current best practices and concrete applications for understanding and managing client behavior are presented alongside clear, scholarly explanations of theoretical principles. Investor Behavior is more than just a collection of information about investing tendencies. Knowing what clients tend to do is important, but without an in-depth psychological perspective, financial planners and investment advisers cannot predict which strategies are in the client's best interests. Applying the behavioral principles--the why of financial decisions--gives investment professionals an edge when converting biases into performance. This book could revolutionize how to approach client management. For both professionals who are new to the psychology of investing and those who want to stay current on essential research findings, Investor Behavior is required reading. The book is also highly valuable for educational purposes and includes discussion questions and answers for each chapter. Investment professionals, investors, and others interested in investor behavior cannot afford to overlook this book.

Why do investors behave as they do? Investor behavior often deviates from logic and reason. Emotional processes, mental mistakes, and individual personality traits complicate investment decisions and increase the difficulty of comprehending clients judgments. Behavioral decision-making can also have a detrimental influence if investment professionals ignore or fail to grasp this aspect of decision-making. Investor Behavior: The Psychology of Financial Planning and Investing is a collection of must-read chapters by leading scholars and practitioners. This book edited by H. Kent Baker and Victor Ricciardi, two leading experts in the psychology of investing, is indispensable for anyone who works with individual clients and needs to manage those difficult-to-predict investment decisions. This comprehensive volume provides essential contributions to the field of behavioral finance and economics including mental mistakes (heuristics), emotional issues, bounded rationality, biases, and risk perception. Investor Behavior also goes beyond the basics, introducing new and cutting-edge research on individual behavior in areas including financial therapy, motivation and satisfaction, transpersonal economics, personality traits, financial coaching, money and happiness, retirement planning, neurofinance, and evidenced-based financial planning. The book concludes with an authoritative selection of developments in such behavioral topics as ethical and socially responsible investing, real estate investing, and mutual funds. Each chapter in Investor Behavior focuses on real-world examples that can be easily understood and applied. Readers learn how practitioners are converting new research on human psychology into measurable performance gains. Current best practices and concrete applications for understanding and managing client behavior are presented alongside clear, scholarly explanations of theoretical principles. Investor Behavior is more than just a collection of information about investing tendencies. Knowing what clients tend to do is important, but without an in-depth psychological perspective, financial planners and investment advisers cannot predict which strategies are in the clients best interests. Applying the behavioral principles the why of financial decisions gives investment professionals an edge when converting biases into performance. This book could revolutionize how to approach client management. For both professionals who are new to the psychology of investing and those who want to stay current on essential research findings, Investor Behavior is required reading. The book is also highly valuable for educational purposes and includes discussion questions and answers for each chapter. Investment professionals, investors, and others interested in investor behavior cannot afford to overlook this book.

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