Factors affecting the investment decision in Vietnam stock market of students in Ho Chi Minh City

Abstract

After nearly 22 years of development, the Vietnamese stock market has shown a remarkable growth, demonstrating its attractiveness and potential growth in terms of both quality and scale, clearly indicating its role as an effective mobilization capital channel for the economy and maintaining an equivalent position with other countries in the region. In addition, the outstanding increase of individual investors in the stock market has contributed to the development of the stock market. However, this has also led to the engagement of young individual investors. Most of them are inexperienced, even that a large number of students are still sitting in lecture halls - the generation that will inherit the achievements of the previous generation and develop the country in the future. Investment is an opportunity for them to learn, improve personal finances, and contribute to the nation's economy. Nowadays, the stock market investment is becoming extremely popular among young people. However, making investment decisions in the stock market is not easy, requiring a high awareness of their actions and decisions in order to make investment decisions and minimize risks. For that reason, authors conducted an experiment and surveyed students in Ho Chi Minh City which using a 5-point Likert scale to assess the factors that influence their investment decisions. We also evaluated the reliability of these scales and tested the accuracy of the model using SPSS 20.0 software. The results of the study showed that factors including overconfidence, herd behavior, risk attitude, firm image, accounting information, neutral information, advocate information and personal financial needs had a positive impact on the investment decisions of Vietnamese students in the stock market. The research also indicates the level of investment and the intentions of students in investing in the Vietnamese stock market. Although there are still several limitations, basing on the research results, authors expect this topic will have practical contributions in both academic and practical aspects, especially for individual investors who are still students, businesses, and government agencies. In addition, authors also studied and proposed practical solutions based on the objectivity of the Vietnamese economy, in general, the stock exchange, and the psychology of investors in particular, in order to improve investment decisions towards efficiency, market stability, and attracting investment for listed companies on the stock exchange.