TITLE:
The Influence of Psychotropic Drugs on Investor Overconfidence
AUTHORS:
Marcia Zindel, Gabriel Ribeiro, Carlos H. Rocha, Sergio Da Silva
KEYWORDS:
Psychotropic Drugs, Investor Overconfidence, Behavioral Economics
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.6 No.6,
June
5,
2019
ABSTRACT: We study the effects of the self-reported intake of stimulants, depressants and hallucinogens on investor overconfidence. A total of 105 investors participated. We find that the frequency of drug use did not affect overcon-fidence. However, overconfidence was correlated with the use of psycho-tropic drugs in our sample; regardless of type, we find a positive correlation of 15 percent. Correlation of investor overconfidence with stimulants in particular was even stronger at 41 percent. We suggest that identifying the ways psychotropic drugs in general, and stimulants in particular, interfere with striatum activity, is key for understanding their effects on investor overconfidence.