FACTORS INFLUENCING INVESTORS DECISION-MAKING IN EQUITY MARKETS: A BEHAVIORAL ANALYSIS

Purpose:This study investigates the behavioral factors shaping equity investment decisions, focusing on seven perceptual dimensions: future prospects, trade dynamics, essential marketing, financial health, risk tolerance, psychological biases, and social media influence. Objective:The primary objective is to identify which factors most significantly impact investors choices, using a structural equation model (SEM) for analysis. Methods:Data were collected via purposive random sampling from 400 investors in Tamil Nadu, India.Results revealed that essential marketing (standardized beta = 0.398), social media (beta = 0.371), and financial factors (beta 0.366) were the strongest predictors of decision-making, collectively explaining 77% of the variance. The model demonstrated excellent fit (GFI = 0.996, RMSEA = 0.01), rejecting the null hypothesis of poor fit. Notably, psychological and risk-taking factors had weaker but significant effects (beta = 0.244 and 0.221, respectively).Key Findings: The study underscores the growing role of non-traditional factors like social media in investment behavior, alongside conventional financial metrics. Practical implications suggest that financial institutions should integrate targeted marketing campaigns and digital engagement strategies to align with investor psychology. This research contributes to behavioral finance literature by empirically validating multi-dimensional influences in an emerging market context.