How Do Behavioral Aspects Affect the Financial Decisions of Managers and the Competitiveness of Enterprises?

Abstract

Decisions of financial managers can improve the competitiveness of the enterprise. Decisions are affected not only by knowledge and experience but also by emotional and cognitive deviations in behavior. Considering the role of competitiveness, this paper investigated whether an effect of behavioral factors on the financial decision-making of managers can be shown, and if so, to what degree. The aim of the paper is to propose a concept, the essence of which is to determine the key systematically-occurring errors in the financial decision-making process of managers rising from the effect of the human factor as a basis of prevention of incorrect financial decisions. The issue was mapped in the territory of the Visegrad Four (V4) by means of an empirical survey by the method of a questionnaire. By evaluating the research, the methodology of statistical hypotheses testing by measures of association was used (contingency coefficients - Cramer’s contingency coefficient V and Pearson’s contingency coefficient C) and Pearson’s chi-square test. The results of the research allow the formulation of conclusions that expand current knowledge in the field of research. The main results of the conducted research are that the key behavioral aspects (cognitive, psychological and emotional) that influence the financial decision-making process of business managers in the V4 countries are love, sadness and hate. A concept was created from the achieved results, the application of which in the enterprises of the V4 countries can help managers avoid making improper financial decisions which could have a negative impact on the financial health and competitiveness of an enterprise.