A Study on Investment Awareness in The Indian Stock Market: Evidence from Dhanbad, Jharkhand

Abstract

Investment awareness is very important to enable individual investors to make financial decisions and increase their active participation in the stock market. The purpose of this study is to examines the level of investment awareness among individual investors in Dhanbad City, with a special focus on the influence of gender, age, and income. A sample of 100 respondents was collected using a well-structured questionnaire, and the data was analysed using Chi-square tests, Independent Samples T-tests, and ANOVA with the help of statistical software. The finding shown that gender, age, and income significantly impact investment awareness levels of individual investors of Dhanbad city. Male individual investors, with age of 31–60 years, and individuals with high income tend to exhibit better awareness and stock market engagement. 55% of respondents said that they are well-aware of the stock market, but still a significant knowledge gap persists, particularly in women and low-income groups. The study also finds Most investors chose traditional investment options above financial instruments as their preference which demonstrates their tendency to be risk-averse concerning investments. This study recommends that financial literacy programs must target specific demographics, tier 2 and tier 3 region to increase participation in financial markets. The research delivers essential knowledge to policy-makers who seek improved investor training systems alongside an investment collection that includes everyone.