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  • MJG January 2016
  • Ted January 2016
Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.

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The Confounding Bias for Investment Complexity

By Jason Hsu, Ph.D., and John West, CFA at Research Affiliates

“Simplicity is a great virtue but it requires hard work to achieve it and education to appreciate it. And to make matters worse: complexity sells better.” — Edsger W. Dijkstra

http://www.researchaffiliates.com/Production content library/The Confounding Bias for Investment Complexity_pdf.pdf

Comments

  • TedTed
    edited January 2016
    @Mark: Put the Linkster in the KISS school of investing. I don't believe one should invest in anything they don't understand.
    Regards,
    Ted
  • Hi Mark,

    Like Ted, I too advocate a KISS policy when investing. I guess Ted is not as dumb as Clint Eastwood looks, the dubious resemblance notwithstanding. I suppose I might be wrong here but that is unlikely. But, what do I know? Please don’t respond!

    Seriously, the marketplace has far too many levers, moving wheels and other parts that resemble a Rube Goldberg construction to confidently project outcomes. Just recall how poorly professional fund managers perform as a class.

    Simple low cost portfolios, held for long periods are the statistical winners. Here is a Link to a Vanguard study, one of many, that illustrates the futility of chasing performance:

    https://pressroom.vanguard.com/content/nonindexed/Quantifying_the_impact_of_chasing_fund_performance_July_2014.pdf

    You might not agree with the Vanguard strategy of selecting the active funds, but it is one of many reasonable approaches. Enjoy.

    Best Wishes.
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