The Effect of Perceived past Returns on Investor's Financial Behavior and Psychological Biases as Mediate

This study survey and tests the underlying psychological mechanisms on how investors’ past perceived portfolio returns affect their trading and risk-taking, and is these psychological mechanisms are significant mediators. This study by use of structural equation modelling –partial least squares look into the relationship between past return and financial behavior and use psychological biases as a mediate variable. The statistical population of the present study is real investors who have come to Tehran Stock Exchange or close brokers in January and December of the year 2017. The research tool is a Likert Scale questionnaire distributed among investors. In this research, we use psychological biases as multiple mediators for first in Iran. The results lead to the conclusion that the presence of psychological biases plays as a full variable mediator in this study. The relationship between investor’s behavior and past return is indirect by a variable mediate called psychological biases.The results lead to the conclusion that the presence of underlying biases deteriorates financial behaviors.