Associate Professor Xiaohang Ren, a researcher of the Base, has published a collaborative paper titled "Robust portfolio strategies based on reference points for personal experience and upward pacesetters" in Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting.

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Abstract: This study explores the concept of reference dependence in decision-making behavior, particularly in the realm of investment portfolios. Previous research has established that an individual’s own circumstances and societal surroundings play a pivotal role in shaping their perception of risk. However, there has been limited exploration into the dynamic nature of reference points in investment decision-making. To address this gap in the literature, the current study is aimed at investigating the performances of relevant dynamic reference points in investment portfolios. In doing so, the personal experience and upward pacesetter reference points are established, and a comparative robust portfolio model incorporating the CVaR measure is utilized. The impacts of different reference behaviors on the proposed portfolio model’s performance are also examined. Furthermore, to enhance the portfolio model’s out-of-sample performance, a scenario formation method that leverages clustering techniques is proposed. The performances of several clustering methods, including classic hierarchical and spectral clustering, as well as reciprocal-nearest-neighbors supported clustering, are compared. The empirical results indicate that the positive behavior of the personal experience reference point yields a better expected return, while the negative behavior exhibits a lower level of risk. Moreover, the results suggest that the utilization of spectral clustering can significantly improve the out-of-sample performance of the proposed robust portfolio model.

Keywords: Reference dependence, Investment decision, Portfolio optimization, Clustering techniques

Link：https://doi.org/10.1007/s11156-024-01273-5

Teacher profile

Xiaohang Ren is a specially appointed associate professor at the Business School of Central South University, a highly cited Chinese scholar of Elsevier, and a top 2% scientist in the world. He mainly focuses on research in energy finance, financial risks, and financial measurement. He has published more than 100 papers in authoritative domestic and foreign journals such as Journal of the American Statistical Association, Transportation Research Part A, Energy Economics, Quantitative Finance, Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, International Review of Financial Analysis, Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Business Strategy and the Environment, Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Applied Energy, Resources Policy, Renewable & Sustainable Energy Review, Energy, Journal of Management Sciences in China (English Edition), Systems Engineering - Theory & Practice, and Chinese Journal of Management Science. Among them, more than 30 papers are ESI hot articles or highly cited papers. He serves as the lead editor of Sustainable Communities (Taylor & Francis), associate editor of Humanities & Social Sciences Communications (the only social science and humanities journal affiliated with Nature), and guest editor of SSCI journals such as Climate Change Economics, Economic Change and Restructuring.