Explore publications.

The literature laments college students’ lack of financial literacy and their lackadaisical interest in learning. However, our research demonstrates that students can be enticed such that they get interested in acquiring financial skills. Generally, college students live hand-to-mouth and are happy to learn about money-making opportunities (not necessarily financial management). Students were informed that qualified faculty will conduct a series of workshops whereby they will learn financial tools and skills and will also get an opportunity to trade stocks and options first-hand. Literature on pedagogy confirms that experiential learning is the best way to learn. Students also prefer practical, hands-on learning more than listening to a lecture or reading a book. Moreover, if workshops (for which professionals charge exorbitant sums) are offered for free, students’ interest soars, and they enrol in hordes. This is confirmed by our workshops which proved successful in enhancing student interest and imparting financial skills. The workshops were innovative and unique as they were online, interactive, tutored, and free. They were open to students from all majors, faculty, and staff. Students are excited about stock trading but are generally apprehensive of and intimidated by financial options. This was true of our sample of students as well, but the faculty-led, friendly, and riskless environment of hands-on learning provided a great opportunity, and over 100 individuals enrolled in our workshops. A comparison of pre- and post-survey quizzes shows that participants’ interest in, and knowledge of options trading increased significantly due to the workshops.  

This paper investigates whether false confidence, as characterized by a high level of personal mastery and a low level of intelligence (IQ), results in frequent investor trading and subsequent investor wealth erosion across time. Using the National Longitudinal Survey (NLSY79), change in wealth and asset allocation across time is modeled as a function of various behavioral, socio-economic and demographic variables drawn from prior literature. Findings of this research reveal that false confidence is indeed a predictor of trading activity in individual investment assets, and it also has a negative impact on individual wealth creation across time.

<p>This paper investigates whether false confidence, as characterized by a high level of personal mastery and a low level of intelligence (IQ), results in frequent investor trading and subsequent investor wealth erosion across time. Using the National Longitudinal Survey (NLSY79), change in wealth and asset allocation across time is modeled as a function of various behavioral, socio-economic and demographic variables drawn from prior literature. Findings of this research reveal that false confidence is indeed a predictor of trading activity in individual investment assets, and it also has a negative impact on individual wealth creation across time.</p>

An individual’s attitude toward financial risk tolerance (FRT) is an important preference that influences financial decision-making under uncertainty. FRT involves inter-temporal resource allocation. Accurate and reliable measures of FRT are essential for professionals advising consumers as well as researchers who are trying to predict, and understand consumer behavior. This study explores cross-cultural risk tolerance by comparing random samples from Turkey, and the United States. Similar and distinctive attitudes and patterns regarding FRT are identified. Three subjective measures of FRT are employed in this study: Grable and Lytton (1999), Hanna, Gutter and Fan’s (2001) improved version of Barsky, Juster, Kimball and Shapiro (1997), and the Survey of Consumer Finance’s item on risk tolerance. Data was collected via an online survey that used the above-mentioned FRT measures. There were two versions: the original American English version, and a culturally translated Turkish version. To explore the correlation of FRT among measures, we use bivariate analysis by individually employing Pearson Chi-square test of independence, and cross tabulations analysis to each sample. In addition, by pooling both samples, we conduct cumulative logistic regression. We delineate FRT differences and consistencies between countries across subjective financial risk tolerance measures.