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Journal of Financial Economics Vol. 117 No. 3 2015

Social interaction at work

Hans K. Hvide1,2,3; Per Östberg4,5

1 University of Bergen · 2 University of Aberdeen · 3 Centre for Economic Policy Research · 4 University of Zurich · 5 Swiss Finance Institute

open access

Abstract

Stock market investment decisions of individuals are positively correlated with those of coworkers. Sorting of unobservably similar individuals to the same workplaces is unlikely to explain this pattern, as evidenced by the investment behavior of individuals who move between plants. Purchases made under stronger coworker purchase activity are not associated with higher returns. Moreover, social interaction appears to drive the purchase of within-industry stocks. Overall, we find a strong influence of coworkers on investment choices, but not an influence that improves the quality of investment decisions.

DOI
10.1016/j.jfineco.2015.06.004
Volume
117
Issue
3
Pages
628-652
Language
en
Sources
bibtex:phds-export.bib openalex crossref

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