Retail investors - Behavioural science report 2026

Messages that talk about the potential benefits of investing in monetary or material terms, and that make investing ‘seem normal’, can lead to a significant positive shift in consumer behaviour and appetite to invest.

This is particularly pronounced among younger consumers. Six in 10 adults (58%) aged 18 to 34 report feeling more comfortable investing after seeing clear and informative investment messaging. This compares to 38% across all age groups.

These are the findings of a new report: “Shifting behaviours to create a new wave of investors”, published today by St. James’s Place.

The research, carried out with Ipsos, explored how nearly 6,000 adults across the UK think and feel about investing.  Participants, drawn at random to reflect the wider population, were shown different types of investment messages to see which ones cut through best.

Research participants were split into four groups:

• Future self: consumers were asked to think about the future benefits to them of investing.
• Social norms: messaging that makes investing feel normal, something that everyone does.
• Identity motivation: framing messages so they align with someone’s sense of self and their values.
• Shame reduction: aimed at reducing the consumer’s fear of making a mistake or being judged (which can lead to inaction).

Participants within each group were shown different messages. The messages varied widely in tone and style, aligned to one of these four behaviours.

There was further differentiation tested focusing on the role of making messages more tangible (using pounds and pence to show what investing could mean in real terms). Others took a more emotive approach, highlighting either the risks of doing nothing or the positive potential benefits of investment. A final set used neutral, less emotive language.

Participants’ responses and attitudes were recorded before and after they viewed the various styles of message. This was done to see what impact the different types of messages had on investor behaviour.

The analysis was also reinforced with an ethnographic study. This involved Ipsos spending time in the homes of nine of the study’s participants. This provided deeper insight into the emotional, cultural, and practical factors that shape financial attitudes and behaviour.

Tangible, concrete, and numerical

Messaging that was highly tangible, concrete and easy to understand was found to have the biggest impact on behaviour. The use of real-life and numerical examples was most successful in encouraging people to invest more and for longer.

For example, the investment message which caused the biggest positive shift towards investing was the following statement**: ‘If you invested £100 a month, then in 20 years you’d have about £45,000, not £24,000 if you did nothing with your cash. That’s the power of compounding: your money earns money.’

However, the effectiveness of different styles of message depended on the participants’ age.

Younger consumers are the most receptive to the ‘highly tangible’ messaging. In contrast, those aged 55+ responded more positively to language that makes investing feel ‘normal’. This age group was also less responsive to more attention-grabbing or negative messaging.

The report also identified gender-based differences. Behavioural messages had a greater impact on women than men in younger age groups (under 45). Women aged 25 to 34 showed a stronger response to future-self visualisation, compared to men of the same age. They were also influenced by messages designed to align with their personal identity.

In contrast, for men under 45 investment messaging around social norms (investing being something normal for their peer group) was more effective than future-self visualisation.

Closing the investment gap

The UK faces a serious long-term financial security challenge. Outside of money held in pensions, the UK lags many of its European peers when it comes to retail investing. Anecdotally people in the UK hold far less of their wealth in investments than in the US.  

But this is not always due to a lack of funds to invest. Around seven million adults have £10,000 or more in cash savings². They are missing out on the potential benefits of investing. This includes compounding – earning interest on the re-invested investment income and growth over the long term. 

Compounding can significantly increase the value of investments over time.

Through the Advice Guidance Boundary Review (AGBR) the Financial Conduct Authority has found that people often recognise the importance of long-term financial planning. However, behavioural barriers such as perceived risks and a lack of confidence prevent them taking action.

Mark FitzPatrick, chief executive at St. James’s Place, said: “The interest in investing is there. But the gap between intention and action is still far too wide.

“When investing feels normal, personal, and connected to your future self, people are far more willing to take action. That’s a huge opportunity to build a new wave of UK investors. But to get there, we need to rethink not just what we say about investing, but how we help people engage with it.”

The value of an investment with St. James’s Place will be directly linked to the performance of the funds you select and the value can therefore go down as well as up.

*On behalf of SJP, Ipsos interviewed a nationally representative sample of 5,916 adults aged 18+ across Great Britain. The survey was conducted online between October 17th and November 20th 2025. Quotas were applied and data are weighed to match the profile of the population.

**This question was presented as an illustrative example only, for the purposes of the experiment.

Sources
¹Financial Lives Survey 2022, Financial Conduct Authority
²Financial Lives Survey 2024, Financial Conduct Authority