The Role of Self-Efficacy in Stock-Market Participation and Financial Information-Seeking

This study of self-efficacy's (Bandura, 1977) effects on an individual's likelihood to invest in the stock market and seek financial information attempts to uncover some of the factors that contribute to or hinder stock-market participation in individuals. Study participants are from a racially and ethnically diverse sample population of males and females of various socio-economic statuses who are 18 years of age or older. When tested, the GSE scale (Jerusalem & Schwarzer, 1977) yielded a Cronbach's alpha measurement of .83, which suggests that its internal reliability is high. When tested, the financial self-efficacy (FSE) scale yielded a Cronbach's alpha measurement of .74, which suggests that its internal reliability is also high. The data suggest that GSE is a correlate of FSE, and that FSE is a statistically significant predictor of stock-market participation intention and financial information-seeking. The data that GSE is positively related to FSE, and that FSE is, in turn, positively related to stock-market participation intention and financial information-seeking. The data suggest that there is not a direct relationship between GSE and stock-market participation, but that there is a direct relationship between FSE and stock-market participation. The data also suggest that there is a direct relationship between GSE and financial information-seeking, a direct relationship between FSE and financial information-seeking, and a direct relationship between financial information-seeking and stock-market participation. The majority of survey participants reported that they were "familiar with" the stock market, "somewhat comfortable" about investing a portion of their income in the stock market, and "somewhat positive" or "optimistic" in their outlook of stock-market strength and stability. However, a little over half of all survey participants reported that they were "somewhat fearful or anxious" about investing a portion of their income in the stock market. Though somewhat fearful or anxious, however, the majority of survey participants listed that they plan to invest in the stock market now or in the future, which suggests that fear or anxiety are not (strong) deterrents of stock-market participation intention and subsequent investing.