The Underdog Effect and the impact of ethnocentrism on financial investment decisions

Abstract

Objective of the Study: The main purpose of the study is to investigate the "underdog" effect, which is expressed as sympathy for the disadvantaged on financial behavior. Ethnocentrism positioned as the moderator variable in the established research model. -- Methodology of the Study: The study was conducted with two different participant groups and each group was faced with the same questionnaire. The difference between the two participant groups was only the companies to choose for investing. In the control group, two different foreign company names were given regarding whether the "underdog" effect has an impact on financial investment decisions. Limited information about companies has been provided for "underdog" effect manipulation. Ethnocentrism scale was used for control purposes. In the experimental group, only the company names were changed in the questionnaire form, which was exactly the same as in the control group, and a Turkish company name of a foreign origin was given. The applied ethnocentrism scale used as a moderator variable role in the research model of this group. -- Findings of the Study: The results show that the participants in both groups are exposed to the "underdog" effect when making financial investment choices. According to the results of multiple regression analysis performed for the experimental group, the effect of ethnocentrism could only be mentioned in the first stage of the questionnaire form. -- Significance of the Study: The study is important in terms of presenting a different perspective on the functioning of decision-making behavior in financial investments, which is discussed in almost every field of social sciences. Additionally, it is important that the study examines the underdog effect, which is a phenomenon belonging to the field of psychology, together with the topic of ethnocentrism, which has recently started to be studied in the fields of marketing and business.

Calismanin Amaci: Calismada, dezavantajli tarafa sempati duyma seklinde aciklanan "underdog" etkisinin finansal davranislar uzerindeki etkisi tartisilmistir. Bu amacla kurulan modelde etnosentrizm moderator degisken olarak yer almistir. -- Calismanin Metodolojisi: Calismada iki farkli katilimci grubu ile calisilmis ve her bir gruba ayni sorular sorulmus, ancak yatirim yapacaklari firmalar farkli sekilde sunulmustur. Kontrol grubunda "underdog" etkisinin finansal yatirim kararlari uzerinde etkisi olup olmadigina yonelik olarak iki farkli yabanci menseili firma ismi verilmistir. "underdog" etkisi manipulasyonu icin firmalar hakkinda kisitli bilgiler sunulmustur. Etnosentrizm olcegi ise kontrol amacli kullanilmistir. Deney grubunda ise kontrol grubundaki ile tumuyle ayni olan anket formunda sadece firma isimleri degistirilmis ve bir yabanci menseili bir de Turk firma ismi verilmistir. Uygulanan etnosentrizm olcegi, arastirma modelindeki moderator degisken rolunu bu grupta gerceklestirmistir. -- Calismanin Bulgulari: Elde edilen sonuclar her iki gruptaki katilimcilarin finansal yatirim tercihi yaparken "underdog" etkisine maruz kaldiklarini gostermektedir. Deney grubunda yapilan coklu regresyon analizi sonuclarina gore etnosentrizmin sadece anket formunun ilk asamasinda moderator etkisinden soz edilebilmektedir. -- Calismanin Onemi: Calisma, sosyal bilimlerin hemen her alaninda tartisilan karar verme davranisinin, finansal yatirimlarda isleyisine farkli bir bakis acisi sunmasi acisindan onem arz eder. Ayrica cogunlukla psikoloji literaturunde yer alan "underdog" etkisi ile pazarlama ve isletme literaturunde gormeye basladigimiz etnosentrizm kavramlarini finansal yatirim kararlari acisindan ele almistir.