The mediating role of information searches in risky investment preferences: Does more digital information search have a stronger effect?

Purchasing higher risk financial investments have been a means to maximize individual wealth. This phenomenon is seen while there is a high uncertainty about the higher risk financial investments. Facing uncertainty, an individual may assess psychological or economic loss, and then develop risk-reducing strategies. Viewing information searches as risk-reducing strategies in this study, we attempted to propose a mediated model of the determinants of higher risk investment decision making where theorizing that the effect of risk aversion on higher risk investment decisions was mediated by information searches. Moreover, heuristics, a simplified information research method, is proposed to extend information searches. 500 investors with investment experiment from financial holding companies were surveyed and structural equation modeling was employed. We expected that the results could provide empirical support for (1) greatly expanding our understanding for the heuristics reliance in information search, and (2) validating the usefulness of the mediated model which views information search as a mediator of effects on higher risk investment preferences, especially in the mediating role of professional advice and heuristics. Thus, the practical implications for professional advisors or governments could be addressed.