Uma análise dos gastos e da propensão ao endividamento frente a datas comemorativas e temáticas

Abstract

The field of Behavioural Finances shows that individuals are constantly influenced by their beliefs, past experiences and psychological factors. Such influences were described in the development of the Theory of Prospects which enabled the comprehension of how the effects, heuristics and biases affect the rationality of their financial decisions. When it comes to both commemorative days and celebrations there is a process of socialization in which individuals both consume and give presents, hence increasing the levels of expenses which may or may not lead to a process of indebtedness. The present study aimed at verifying, on the basis of Behavioural Finances, the heuristics and biases that lead the population of Paraíba to carry out expenses in commemorative days and how such decisions may contribute to indebtment. For that purpose, a descriptive empirical research was performed by data collection in the field with the application of six questionnaires for each commemorative day or celebration (Easter, Mother’s day, Father’s day, Children’s day, Black Friday and Christmas) divided in three sections: The first one was named “respondents’ profile”, the second one was “purchase intention”, and the third one was “financial control and planning”, a total sample of 1203 survey respondants. The results revealed the predominance of the female gender aged between 19 and 23, declared catholic, with an average income of minimum wage and a university degree level of education. The variables gender, age, religion, level of education and income, commonly present in the indebtment propensity, as they were analysed in commemorative days and celebrations, did not lead the majority of the respondents to indebtment. Concerning the studies in Behavioural Finances with emphasis on the Theory of Prospects, it was found the exclusion of the isolation effect as well as it was confirmed the heuristics of anchor adjustment with the bias of overconfidence and the heuristics of availability with the bias of facility of reminder, present in the purchase decisions in commemorative days