Cognitive psychology and other factors have been used to explained and analyze financial behavior and personal portfolio management. Professor Utpal BHATTACHARYA and Professor Philip CHENG of the Department of Finance will share their research findings and thoughts on the co-relation between psychology and finance as well as the key to portfolio management.

Psychology and Finance

Standard models of financial markets assume people behave rationally. Behavioral finance builds on this foundation by taking insights from cognitive psychology to explain puzzling observations in asset prices that cannot be explained by reason. To illustrate, Professor Utpal BHATTACHARYA will give three examples from his research on behavioral finance: supersitious traders in Taiwan, haunted houses in Hong Kong and left-digit fixated traders in the United States.

Success Factors in Investing for Personal Portfolio Management

Unlike professional investment managers, an individual investor usually is at a disadvantage in managing a personal portfolio, as one does not have enough experience, time or focus to deal with the complexities of the stock market. Yet certain investment principles have been proven to reduce losses and maximize gains.
Adjunct Associate Professor Philip CHENG will highlight basic recommendations in this seminar, beneficial to both finance and non-finance folks to take charge of their own investments.