Kailash Naghera, Jay Talati | International Journal of Housing and Human Settlement Planning | Vol 12, Issue 01 | pp. 36-45 | ISSN: 2455-8516
Abstract
Understanding how farmers make investment decisions is particularly important in regions where agriculture serves as the main source of livelihood. In areas, such as the Saurashtra region of Gujarat, farmers often deal with uncertain income due to factors like changing weather conditions, price fluctuations, and rising input costs. In such situations, the way they manage and invest their savings becomes an important part of their financial security. The present study attempts to explore how demographic and socioeconomic characteristics influence the investment behavior of farmers. It is based on primary data collected from 150 farmers across selected districts of Saurashtra through a structured questionnaire. The focus of the study is to examine how factors, such as age, education, occupation, and social background, are related to investment choices. The results indicate that most farmers tend to follow a cautious approach while making investment decisions. A clear preference can be seen for safer and more familiar options such as bank deposits, post office schemes, gold, and real estate. At the same time, participation in market-linked instruments like shares and mutual funds remains relatively low. This may be due to limited awareness, perceived risk, or simply a tendency to rely on traditional practices. Interestingly, education and social groups appear to influence investment decisions to some extent, especially when it comes to choosing modern financial options. On the other hand, factors like age and marital status do not show a strong or consistent relationship with investment behavior. Overall, this study offers some early insights into how farmers approach investment decisions.
Keywords: Farmers, investment behavior, demographic factors, social factors, economic factors, Saurashtra
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How to cite this article
@article{NagheraK2026,
author = {Kailash Naghera and Jay Talati},
title = {Demographic Determinants of Investment Behavior Among Farmers: Evidence from Saurashtra Region},
journal = {International Journal of Housing and Human Settlement Planning},
year = {2026},
volume = {12},
number = {01},
pages = {36--45},
issn = {2455-8516},
url = {https://journalspub.com/publication/ijhhsp/article=25237}
}