Investment habits of women in terms of behavioral finance: Case of Manisa

Traditional finance has been developed on the basis of the assumptions that people can always make rational decisions, that there is no bias in future predictions, and that markets are efficient. Therefore, traditional financial theories assume that people act rationally and ignore psychological factors. In empirical studies, findings showing that these assumptions are wrong have been determined, and it has been observed that people under uncertainty and risk do not constantly act rationally. Studies carried out with the contributions of sociology and especially psychology to explain these irrational behaviors in individuals have brought behavioral finance to the literature. Behavioral finance, which is a modern phenomenon of financial behavior, affects investment decisions in positive or negative ways, especially by directing people's feelings and thoughts. Since women dominate the financial transactions of the house, they have more opportunities to direct their savings to investment. At this point, the need arises to determine to what extent and in what direction behavioral finance is effective in directing women's large and small investments. In this context, the aim of this study is to determine the financial behavior patterns of business women. Within the scope of the study, 314 working women were interviewed and their saving, spending and investment habits were questioned. As a result of the study, it was observed that while the familiarity level of working women with investment products was low, almost none of them had private pensions although they had knowledge. It has been determined that more than half of the participants have the habit of saving, but they keep their savings in instruments other than the financial system, and they draw a profile that prefers low risk. In summary, in terms of behavioral finance, it has been concluded that women should be trained to improve their investment habits to increase the amount they save, especially to increase their savings habits, and to evaluate them in the right financial instruments. Keywords: Behavioral Finance, Individual Investor, Financial Decision, Risk and Uncertainty, Behavioral Finance Tendency.