The current body of individual risk behavior research has been mainly driven by two streams of literature. Stable risk researchers propose individuals tend to display similar risk behaviors across time and situations due to individuals' underlying propensity to either engage in risk averse or risk seeking behaviors. Changeable risk researchers have sought out to examine variability in risk behaviors due to factors such as personality and contextual characteristics. However, might it be the case that there are subgroups of individuals who may be more prone to display static risk behaviors and other subgroup whose risk behaviors are more amendable? To better address this question, the current study integrates literature on risk behavior, psychological safety, and personality to investigate the existence of these potential risk behavior classes. Furthermore, supervisor rated performance is captured in order to better understand the potential organizational value of these various risk behavioral classes. Latent class growth modeling revealed five different risk classes: stable risk seeking, stable risk averse, highly adaptive, moderately adaptive, and mixed risk behaviors. Individual personality traits were shown to be significant predictors of class membership, although the pattern of results was somewhat in contrast to predicted relationships. Furthermore, in support of proposed hypothesis, individuals in the highly adaptive risk behavior class received the highest ratings of supervisor rated performance. I discuss results in terms of risk research and organizational practice, and specifically advocate for the increased examination of risk behavior within organizational research.

The concept Enviromental, Social and Governance (ESG) has become an issue of growing importance and relevance, with sustainability-related investments soaring in the recent decade. In Sweden, private equity represents a large portion of the capital markets. As a result, private equity is an intriguing case study in developing ESG investments. This thesis analyzes how different Nordic private equity companies work with ESG within the investing process. The fundamental causes of ESG's ascent and the momentum of the investing theme were found via a qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews with eight private equity associates and seven with traditional- and investment banks. According to the findings, the current incentive is driven by more significant knowledge of ESG-related risks and possibilities, altering personal beliefs and legislative expectations. Given the sector's possibility to influence change inside their investment firms via governance-, operational-, financial-, and ESG-methods, the respondents found a point of agreement in their confidence that ESG would have a substantial long-term influenceon the private equity industry. Even though the private equity industry is aware of sustainability, stakeholders have yet to agree on definitions and the most effective ways to incorporate it into investment operations. ESG is virtually entirely evaluated for typical private equity firms during the pre-investment process, often known as the screening phase. While specialized sustainability and impact partners are integrated across the investment process, their peers may learn from them since they have successfully done so. The disparity among stakeholders illustrates that private equity sustainability is still a work in progress, driven by the varied stakeholders' specific interests and aspirations. / Konceptet Enviromental, Social and Governance (ESG) har blivit en fråga av växande betydelse och relevans, med hållbarhets-relaterade investeringar som skjutit i höjden under det senaste decenniet. I Sverige utgör private equity en stor del av kapitalmarknaderna. Detta gör private equity till en spännande fallstudie av utvecklingen av ESG i investeringsprocesser. Detta examensarbete analyserar hur olika nordiska private equity-bolag arbetar med ESG inom investeringsprocessen. De grundläggande orsakerna till ESG:s uppgång och den snabba utvecklingen inom den här typen av investeringar hittades via en kvalitativ studie baserad på semistrukturerade intervjuer med åtta private equity-bolag och sju med traditionella- och investeringsbanker. Enligt resultaten drivs det nuvarande incitamentet av mer betydande kunskap om ESGrelateraderisker och möjligheter, vilket förändrar personliga övertygelser och lagstiftande förväntningar. Med tanke på sektorns möjlighet att påverka förändringar inom sina företag via styrning-, operationella-, finansiella- och ESG-metoder, fann de intervjuade en gemensam syn till sitt förtroende att ESG kommer ha ett betydande långsiktigt inflytande på private equity-industrin. Även om private equity-branschen är medveten om hållbarhet, har intressenterna ännu inte kommit överens om definitioner och de mest effektiva sätten att införliva det i investeringsverksamheten. ESG utvärderas praktiskt taget helt för typiska private equity-företag under förinvesteringsprocessen, ofta känd som screeningsfasen. Även om specialiserade hållbarhets- och påverkanspartners är integrerade i investerings-processen, kan deras konkurrenter lära av dem, eftersom de har lyckats med det. Skillnaden mellan intressenter illustrerar att hållbarhet inom private equity fortfarande är ett pågående arbete, driven av de olika intressenternas specifika intressen och ambitioner.

The Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change was used to assess change in investing behavior among Investing For Your Future home-study course participants. The goal of Investing For Your Future is to help people improve their personal finance behaviors leading to financial security in later life. On average, after course participation fourteen of the fifteen investing behaviors were identified in the desired stages of established behavior. The study was based on Prochaska's Transtheoretical Model of Change (1979), including five different stages of behavior. This study investigated at what stage of change course participants are in for certain investing behaviors since completing Investing For Your Future (O'Neill et al., 2000). The stages of behavior are: precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action and maintenance. The desired stage was either the action or maintenance stage, which indicated that the investing behavior has been established. A person in the precontemplation stage is not thinking of future needs, not taking any actions to prepare for investing. Someone in the contemplation stage has set investing goals, but is not otherwise preparing to do the investing behavior. Someone in the preparation stage has both set goals and actively sought after information about the investing behavior. An individual in the action stage has not only done the preparatory actions, but has also engaged in the investing behavior. Finally, an individual in the maintenance stage has met the investing behavior action over an ongoing period of time. The quantitative survey design of this study was adapted from Dillman's Mail and Internet Surveys (2002). A survey questionnaire was created online using multiple choice and open-ended questions and was sent to the sample as a link in an email. The population consisted of Investing For Your Future (O'Neill et al., 2000) online course participants from April 1, 2001 through April 11, 2005. The initial sample consisted of 1,123, however at least 415 members of the sample never received the survey, reducing the sample to 708 people. Upon sending out the email, many error reports were received stating that the recipient did not receive the email. Response rates for the survey were very low, and can be attributed to multiple problems. / Master of Science

This paper analyzes the difference in yield to maturity between two types of ESG-fixed income instruments, and aims to answer the research question "Is there a yield difference between sustainable-linked bonds and green bonds issued in Europe?". The sample consists of a total of 1499 bonds, issued between the time period 2019-2023, where the databases Bloomberg and Refinitive Eikon have been used to collect and filter the data. The null hypothesis is that there is no significant difference between the two bond types, the alternative hypothesis states that one of them has a premium towards the other. For the methodology, the sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs) are matched with green bonds, creating pairs based on similar characteristics. This procedure, which corresponds to previous work by Kölbel & Lambillon (2022), alongside an OLS regression, are used to answer the research question. The results show that there is no significant yield difference between the bond types. This conclusion is drawn from using a Wilcoxon test on the paired bond sample. The result from the regression implies that the yield on green bonds is explained by the defined independent variables to a greater extent than the yield on SLBs. There are amble number of prior studies which have found a present premium on the ESG instruments green bonds (Fatica et al., 2019; Baker et al., 2018; MacAskill et al. 2021; Kapraun, 2021; Löffler et al., 2021; and Zerbib, 2018) and SLBs (Kölbel & Lambillon, 2022; Feldhütter et al., 2023). This essay aspires to use previous research findings as reference for comparing bond types against each other rather than their performance against conventional bonds. Additionally, the SLB instrument is still considered relatively novel and hence this essay aims to contribute to existing knowledge with new inputs and findings.

Investing has become increasingly popular among individuals in recent years,this has led to multiple investing strategies formalizing. One of them being factorinvesting, a strategy where investors search for companies with certain strongfirm specific financial metrics through screening. Many researchers try to findwhich these metrics are, and which of them has an effect on the cross-sections ofstock returns. This study examines the relationship between the three metrics,earnings-to-price, dividend yield, debt over equity and the European stock marketbetween January 2010 to December 2022. This is done by using the two-stageregression model suggested by Fama and Macbeth (1973). Our results show thatthere is an anomaly in the European stock market and that there is a firmcharacteristic risk associated with these metrics. This suggests that when lookingat individual firms, investors are willing to pay a premium for the metrics studiedin this paper and it is therefore important to take them into account whenscreening for individual companies. As the previous research is mainly focusedon the American stock market and emerging markets in Europe, our thesis fills agap by providing a view on factor premiums in the European market as a whole.

Impact investing is an important theme in the financial industry because it seeks to achieve both financial returns and positive social and environmental impacts. The purpose of this study is to investigate the decision-making processes of impact investing firms in Europe and Brazil, focusing on asset allocation and the complexities of achieving dual returns. The study was based on multitask contract theory and followed a qualitative methodology, including interviews with key personnel from impact investing firms. Organizations can use these findings to improve decision-making, enhance business operations, and manage risks effectively.

Over the past decade, Social Impact Investing (SII) has garnered increasing attention among public policy makers as a solution for multigenerational, complex, intractable social and environmental problems, or as some advocates like to say, ‘wicked’ problems. The growing interest in SII aligns with the expansion, since the 1980s, of a set of public sector reforms that make use of new public policy instruments to achieve public objectives. Neoliberal economists and New Public Management (NPM) theorists have long argued for these reforms to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of government bureaucracies. These reforms have led to a paradigm shift that Lester M. Salamon has labeled ‘New Governance’, characterized by public policies that make use of market mechanisms, partnerships with new actors, networks and flexible rules. Public administration scholars have suggested focusing on public policy instruments instead of the traditional focus on programs and institutions to gain an understanding of the dynamics of the ‘New Governance’ paradigm and to address important questions that go beyond the dimensions of effectiveness and efficiency. This dissertation draws on Lester M. Salamon’s framework for analyzing public policy instruments combined with a conceptual framework developed by the Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation (OECD). The thesis uses this framework to assess the SII market by examining three cases of Canadian federal public policy instruments designed and implemented to achieve socio-economic objectives. These policy instruments provide either a cash transfer or a tax incentive to create investment funds mandated to invest with a purpose of making a return and achieving a positive social outcome. The dissertation employs a qualitative research approach and case study method to explore questions of equity and effectiveness to produce findings and recommendations useful to pubic administration scholars who focus their research on public policy instruments and to public policy makers who are considering policy options for structuring and growing the SII market. Data was collected through an extensive document review and 19 semistructured interviews. A dimensional analysis, SII analysis and discourse analysis of the data were undertaken. The researcher made the choice of undertaking a discourse analysis in order to fill a gap in the public policy instrument literature and inform the debate on SII. This dissertation contributes to the body of knowledge on public policy instruments and SII by presenting the results of a comparative analysis of three public policy instruments that created investment funds mandated to produce socio-economic outcomes.

Utifrån den tidigare forskningen har det varit skiljaktigheter angående hur hållbara investeringar presterar i förhållande till avkastning och risk jämfört med konventionella investeringar. Samtidigt har intresset för hållbara investeringarna ökat vilket medför att det finns ett intresse att analysera hur hållbara investeringar förhåller sig inom avkastning och risk.Denna studie avser att beskriva och analysera hur hållbara aktiefonder förhåller sig i avkastning och risk jämfört med konventionella aktiefonder. Vidare studeras om det råder ett samband mellan hållbarhet och avkastning. I denna kvantitativa studie analyseras den svenska och irländska aktiefondmarknaden under 2016–2022 med totalt 310 slumpmässigt valda aktiefonder, både hållbara och konventionella, med måttet Jensens Alpha. Studiens resultat visade att ett statistiskt signifikant samband mellan hållbarhet och avkastning inte kan fastställas. Följaktligen visade det ingen statistisk signifikant skillnad i avkastning för det svenska aktiefonderna medan irländska hållbara aktiefonder hade en statistisk signifikant lägre avkastning jämfört med de konventionella motsvarigheterna. Vidare visade irländska hållbaraaktiefonder en lägre risk medan svenska hållbara aktiefonder innehade en högre risk jämfört med marknadernas konventionella aktiefonder. / There have been conflicting results from previous research regarding sustainable investing and its financial return compared to regular investment alternatives. Simultaneously, the trend towards sustainable investing has grown significantly in recent times, prompting a keen interest in understanding the effect of sustainable investing on investors, specifically in terms of returns and risks. This study aims to provide insights into sustainable investments in equity funds, specifically in terms of returns and risks, when compared to conventional equity funds. Using Jensen's Alpha methodology, a quantitative study was conducted on 310 randomly selectedequity funds, from both sustainable and conventional categories in Sweden and Ireland during the period of 2016-2022. The main findings showed that there is no strong statistical correlation between sustainability and financial returns. Furthermore, the study revealed that there was no statistically significant difference in returns for Swedish equity funds, whereas Irish sustainable equity funds exhibited statistically significantly lower returns in comparison to their conventional counterparts. Regarding risk, the study demonstrates that Irish sustainable equity funds carried lower risk, while Swedish sustainable equity funds performed with a higher risk when compared to their conventional counterparts.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Kristy L. Pederson-Archuleta / Martin C. Seay / This dissertation consists of three studies exploring the relationship between personality and wealth related variables. The psychological type theory was used as the theoretical framework for the first two studies, while the doctrine of interactionism was used in the third study. All three studies utilized data from the 2010 panel of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS). The first study examined the relationship between personality traits and net worth. Linear regression results identified the extroversion and conscientiousness traits as being positively associated with net worth. Furthermore, the agreeableness trait was negatively associated with net worth. The second study explored the relationship between personality preference and stock ownership. This study’s logistic regression results identified the preference for high openness and high neuroticism as significant and positively associated with stock ownership. A high agreeableness preference was significant and negatively associated with stock ownership. The focus of the third study examined how net worth and income mediated the association between personality and life satisfaction. Regression results from this study identified net worth as being a significant mediating variable in the association between the conscientiousness trait and life satisfaction levels. However, income, in addition to net worth, was also a significant mediating variable when the extroversion and neuroticism traits were used to represent personality trait variables. Results from the three studies identified significant associations between personality traits and components of net worth. These findings contribute to the financial planning field by providing useful information in regards to how mental preferences expressed outwardly though personality traits are related to wealth related variables and life satisfaction. Financial planning practitioners can apply these findings to formulate strategies to assist people grow their wealth levels.

近年來(2005-2014)，因子投資在市值、帳面市值比和動能在美國股市無法得到比大盤更好的表現，所以本研究以五因子亦即市值因子、帳面市值比因子、動能因子、低市場因子和品質因子，進行特定產業美國科技股研究，不同於大部分因子投資研究都以地區作為區分標準，期望可以得到不同的因子投資策略。研究結果發現無論是個別因子投資或是因子投資組合確實可以在美國科技股中提高夏普指標並擊敗那斯達克指數，此外檢視因子投資組合在不同時間的投資效益，發現因子投資組合在金融海嘯的壞時機期間，相對於投資那斯達克，更具有抗跌作用、投資的效益，在經濟穩定的好時機時，也能具備足夠的收益率並能夠提供投資者更好夏普指標，顯示因子投資在美國科技股中是一個可以成功的投資策略。 / Recently, factor investing in market value, book/market ratio and momentum had no outperformance comparing to the market index in terms of return and sharpe ratio. The research focus on technology stocks in U.S to construct 5 factors which are market value, book/market ratio, momentum, betting against beta, quality. Unlike other regional-based researches, this paper is industrial-based and aims to create a new factor investing strategy. The result shows that some factors and factory portfolios do outperform NASDAQ index with higher sharpe ratio. Moreover, analyses in timing for factor portfolios show that factor portfolios provide better return and sharpe ratio during financial crisis in U.S. On the other hand, under stable economy circumstance, factor portfolios still beat NASDAQ in terms of higher sharpe ratio.