Article
https://doi.org/10.52710/mjble.806
ESG Awareness and Sustainable Investment Decisions among Retail Investors in Bangalore, India: Evidence from a Cross-Sectional Survey
Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations are increasingly relevant to individual investors, yet evidence on how ESG awareness translates into sustainable investment decisions in emerging-market retail settings remains limited. This study examines ESG awareness and sustainable investment decision-making among 200 retail investors in Bangalore (Bengaluru), India, and evaluates the roles of financial literacy, risk perception, social influence, and ethical values. A cross-sectional survey using five-point Likert-type measures was analysed through descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, factorability tests, correlations, and regression. The scales showed acceptable to strong internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = .776-.852), and factorability was supported by KMO = .871 and Bartlett's test, chi-square = 1452.36, p < .001. Mean ESG awareness was 3.82 (SD = .71), significantly above the neutral midpoint, t(199) = 16.33, p < .001, d = 1.15. ESG awareness correlated positively with environmental (r = .621), social (r = .584), and governance (r = .603) considerations and explained 46.8% of the variance in sustainable investment decisions (R = .684, R2 = .468, adjusted R2 = .462). Financial literacy (beta = .298), risk perception (beta = .214), social influence (beta = .256), and ethical values (beta = .331) were significant predictors of ESG-based investment behaviour, with ethical values showing the largest standardized effect. The findings suggest that sustainable retail investing is shaped by both ESG understanding and broader financial, social, risk, and moral considerations. The study contributes city-level evidence from an important Indian financial and technology hub and offers implications for regulators, fintech platforms, advisers, and investor education.