Introduction to Behavioural Finance

Behavioural Finance is not just another branch of finance. It is the study of the influence of psychology on the behavior of human beings in their financial decision-making. It helps us in studying its subsequent effects on the financial markets. It highlights the fact that human beings are not always rational, have limits to their self-control, and are influenced by their own biases. It is the study of how investors systematically make errors in judgement, or 'mental mistakes'. Behavioural finance is a relatively new field in economics and has become an interesting topic for investment professionals.