Positive mood and investment decisions: Evidence from comedy movie attendance in the U.S

Gabriele M. Lepori

Research in International Business and Finance, 2015, vol. 34, issue C, 142-163

Abstract: Positive mood has been repeatedly shown to affect decision-making under risk. In this study I exploit the time-series variation in the domestic theatrical release of comedy movies as a natural experiment for testing the impact that happy mood (proxied by weekend comedy movie attendance) has on the demand for risky assets (proxied by the performance of the U.S. stock market). Using a sample of data from 1994 to 2010, I estimate that an increase in comedy attendance on a given weekend is followed by a decrease in equity returns on the subsequent Monday, which is consistent with the mood-maintenance hypothesis.

Keywords: Positive mood; Risk propensity; Comedy movies; U.S. stock market; Abnormal returns (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:riibaf:v:34:y:2015:i:c:p:142-163

DOI: 10.1016/j.ribaf.2015.02.001

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