Are French Individual Investors reluctant to realize their losses?

We analyze the presence of the disposition effect for 90 244 French individual investors based on a large brokerage account database between 1999 and 2006. Main results show that a) French investors demonstrate a strong preference for realizing their winning stocks rather than their losing ones (disposition effect).b) the behavioral bias is not eliminated for sophisticated individual investors (higher trading activity or international diversification) c) more originally, based on French account specificities, we demonstrate that the change of “fiscal account type” does not imply a change in investors’ behavior (at an individual level of the disposition effect).

Stock market investors' use of stop losses and the disposition effect

The disposition effect is an investment bias where investors hold stocks at a loss longer than stocks at a gain. This bias is associated with poorer investment performance and exhibited to a greater extent by investors with less experience and less sophistication. A method of managing susceptibility to the bias is through use of stop losses. Using the trading records of UK stock market individual investors from 2006 to 2009, this paper shows that stop losses used as part of investment decisions are an effective tool for inoculating against the disposition effect. We also show that investors who use stop losses have less experience and that, when not using stop losses, these investors are more reluctant to realise losses than other investors

The incidence of Crohn's disease in Cardiff over the last 75 years: an update for 1996-2005

Background The incidence of Crohn's disease rose rapidly in industralized countries over the past 50 years, but it is unclear whether the incidence is still rising or has reached a plateau. Aims  To update the long-term incidence study of Crohn’s disease in Cardiff for 1996–2005, to investigate whether incidence is still rising and to study changes in disease characteristics over time. Method  Crohn’s cases identified by retrospective analysis of hospital records as in previous studies in Cardiff. Results  Two hundred and twelve cases were identified. Corrected incidence for this decade was 66 × 106 per year (95% confidence interval: 58–76), showing a continuing rise compared to previous decades. The proportion with colonic disease at presentation continues to rise (43%) with a corresponding fall in those with terminal ileal disease. There remains a strong female preponderance (F:M 1.6:1) as in previous studies. The incidence in children under age 16 continues to rise, and the median age at diagnosis has fallen slightly. Conclusion  Crohn’s disease incidence continues to rise slowly in Cardiff with a continuing increase in those presenting with colonic disease, which is now the commonest disease pattern

Two-phase survey on the frequency of use and safety of MRI for hearing implant recipients.

PURPOSE Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is often used to visualize and diagnose soft tissues. Hearing implant (HI) recipients are likely to require at least one MRI scan during their lifetime. However, the MRI scanner can interact with the implant magnet, resulting in complications for the HI recipient. This survey, which was conducted in two phases, aimed to evaluate the safety and performance of MRI scans for individuals with a HI manufactured by MED-EL (MED-EL GmbH, Innsbruck, Austria). METHODS A survey was developed and distributed in two phases to HEARRING clinics to obtain information about the use of MRI for recipients of MED-EL devices. Phase 1 focused on how often MRI is used in diagnostic imaging of the head region of the cochlear implant (CI) recipients. Phase 2 collected safety information about MRI scans performed on HI recipients. RESULTS 106 of the 126 MRI scans reported in this survey were performed at a field strength of 1.5 T, on HI recipients who wore the SYNCHRONY CI or SYNCHRONY ABI. The head and spine were the most frequently imaged regions. 123 of the 126 scans were performed without any complications; two HI recipients experienced discomfort/pain. One recipient required reimplantation after an MRI was performed using a scanner that had not been approved for that implant. There was only one case that required surgical removal of the implant to reduce the imaging artefact. CONCLUSION Individuals with either a SYNCHRONY CI or SYNCHRONY ABI from MED-EL can safely undergo a 1.5 T MRI when it is performed according to the manufacturer's safety policies and procedures

Benchmarking on-line services industries

The Web Quality Analyser (WQA) is a new benchmarking tool for industry. It has been extensively tested across services industries. Forty five critical success features are presented as measures that capture the user’s perception of services industry websites. This tool differs to previous tools, in that it captures the information technology (IT) related driver sectors of website performance, along with the marketing-services related driver sectors. These driver sectors capture relevant structure, function and performance components.\ud An ‘on-off’ switch measurement approach determines each component. Relevant component measures scale into a relative presence of the applicable feature, with a feature block delivering one of the sector drivers. Although it houses both measurable and a few subjective components, the WQA offers a proven and useful means to compare relevant websites. The WQA defines website strengths and weaknesses, thereby allowing for corrections to the website structure of the specific business. WQA benchmarking against services related business competitors delivers a position on the WQA index, facilitates specific website driver rating comparisons, and demonstrates where key competitive advantage may reside. This paper reports on the marketing-services driver sectors of this new benchmarking WQA tool.\u