Measuring Client Risk Tolerance: Psychometrics Versus Revealed Preferences

Last month a war (of sorts) was declared, pitting various risk tolerance companies against each other concerning their methodologies relating to portfolio risk assessment and analysis. The dispute appeared to be outside the realm of measuring a client’s appetite for risk. However, there is a very real and clear line of demarcation in the world of risk-tolerance assessment “advisortech” with respect to the method employed in assessing the investor’s so-called “risk tolerance,” particularly the …
On March 30th, the CFP Board announced changes to their Principal Knowledge Topics for educational programs for those seeking or with the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation. This change includes a new section representing 7% of the educational component, entitled “The Psychology of Financial Planning.” For those of us at DataPoints who have been writing about financial psychology and the psychology of building wealth for quite some time, we are delighted to hear that …
Financial psychology is the study and application of psychological theories, methods, and practices to the areas of personal finance and financial services. The field takes into account two areas. First, financial psychology includes how each of us relates to and makes decisions about money. In other words, financial psychology includes what psychologists refer to as “individual differences” in money-related behaviors and decisions. Second, financial psychology covers the client-advisor relationship, that is, the application of psychology …
If you have ever taken a quiz entitled “How to tell if your boyfriend is cheating on you” or “Answer these five questions to learn to see if you’re a good friend,” then you’ve probably taken something akin to what we call a “Cosmo test.” Your answers to just a few questions will result in a detailed analysis of your personality, along with a lengthy set of advice on improving your life (or a …
In his “Intelligent Investor” column in the September 7, 2019 print edition of the Wall Street Journal, Jason Zweig wrote about an idea that we’ve thought about a good deal in the recent past: the fact that not all risk tolerance assessments are created equal. In the piece, Mr. Zweig—himself an accomplished and noted author regarding topics related to the intersection of money and our brains—takes specific aim at what some have referred to …

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