The Social Media Factor: Assessing Influencer Impact on Investment Risk Perception and Decision-Making

Emergence of social media platforms paved the way for financial influencers (finfluencers) to shape the investment decisions of investors. This study aims to examine the impact of these influencers on investors' attitudes and perceived risk towards investment decisions. The study collected sample data from 142 respondents through convenience sampling. The study utilized multiple regression analysis to test the hypothesized relationships between exposure to influencer content, follower engagement, influencer credibility, follower trust, and investor attitudes. Additionally, mediation analysis was conducted to explore the role of perceived risk in the relationship between follower trust and investor attitudes. The results demonstrate significant positive relationships along the proposed pathway from exposure to influencer content to investor attitudes. Importantly, the study found that risk perception of investors acts as a partial mediating factor between trust and investment decisions. This suggests that while trust in influencers directly affects investor attitudes, it also indirectly influences these attitudes by altering perceptions of risk.