Mind on My Money

Cognitive Dissonance

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on January 8, 2015

How you feel about a losing investment depends on who you can blame. Regret is strong when there is no one to blame but yourself. Cognitive dissonance plays a role too. Whether you need to avoid regret then drives what you do with the investment: buy, sell, or hold.

Bias

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on December 30, 2014

A rose by any other name is not so sweet to investors. Investors like fluency in the name of their stocks and mutual funds. Fluently named stocks are valued higher and have broader ownership.

Genetics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on December 5, 2014

What is the major source of your investment mistakes; socioeconomic characteristics, genetics, environment, or personal experience?

Anxiety

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on October 4, 2014

The chances of catching and dying of Ebola in the U.S. are minuscule. Far less than dying from lightning or a ladder. Yet some people are feeling anxious and a few may even panic over Ebola. I describe why Ebola seems scarier than your bath tub.

Aging

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on September 3, 2014

10,000 baby boomers are retiring per day. The social insurance programs already have a deficit. Can the bond markets absorb the trillions of dollars of new debt to fund these programs over the next two decades and beyond? How will it impact interest rates and our economy?

Optimism

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on July 17, 2014

Is Rupert Murdoch’s bid of $80 billion to buy Time Warner a signal of the fourth horseman in a stock market apocalypse?

Depression

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on July 4, 2014

Soccer sentiment in many countries is so strong it impacts their stock market. Get eliminated from the World Cup, see a decline in the stock market the next day. Has US soccer sentiment risen to that level?

Attention

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on July 3, 2014

Your investor type describes the behavioral sources of your errors, your investment characteristics, and ultimately your overall success.

Anger

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on November 28, 2010

 Meir tells fascinating tales of the trials and tribulations that people do in order to avoid or even evade paying taxes...including planning the timing of their own death!

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on March 6, 2010

 What does a trillion dollars really mean to you? How much are the debt and unfunded liabilities of all levels of government? What is your portion?

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on September 1, 2009

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on August 31, 2009

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on August 29, 2009

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on August 29, 2009

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on July 3, 2009

After witnessing the tech stock bubble and the real estate bubble, what is next? It is the US Treasury security market bubble. When will it burst and skyrocket interest rates?

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on June 13, 2009

The layoffs in the public sector are about to impact the unemployment figures. July is likely to be a bad month for state and local workers.

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on June 11, 2009

 The news is full of economists concerned about either upcoming inflation or the current deflation. So which is right?

Anxiety

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on May 24, 2009

Can the rich really pay for all this government spending. Numbers from the IRS and Congressional Budget Office explore the possibility.

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on March 27, 2009

Behavioral Economics

John Nofsinger Ph.D. on March 5, 2009

 President Obama's proposed budget includes an increase in taxes on capital. That won't be very useful in generating tax revenue in the short-run. But it will also make fixing the broken economy even harder.