Since September, much of my time has been spent talking to investors, getting a handle on their sentiment.Of late, many advisors have asked how investors are feeling. Here are the answers to five common questions on how investors are feeling and what they're doing.Overall mood:

It's worth noting first that the majority of investors are much less depressed and anxious about markets than advisors - in large measures because they're having the difficult conversations all day, every day that advisors find themselves in.

Also of note is that what started as market concerns early last fall has changed today to broadbased and more fundamental concerns about the health and direction of the overall economy.

Most investors, especially younger ones under 50, are generally accepting of the downturn - no one's happy about what's happened to markets but most take the view they can't do anything about this at this point except wait for a recovery; there is a stoic acceptance of "we're all in this together" and a broad playing back of "markets go up and markets go down and always come back."

The older the investor, the higher the level of anxiety and stress - some investors are starting to pick up on the negative media commentary about the possibility of another depression or a replay of Japan, off 75% from 20 years ago. Note that until recently, some investors were in "statement denial", where they didn't open or look at their statements, although year end statements are bringing reality home.

Cashing money out of the market

There's been a general desensitization towards market moves - a 300 point move is no longer noteworthy for either the media or investors. Few investors appear to have withdrawn their money from the markets ("it's too late") but the majority seem to be leaving any new money on the sidelines until they see a market turnaround - this is the same pattern as 2002/2003. Note that there are a small number of investors saying "Is it time to buy yet?"

Confidence in advisors and financial institutions

There has been significant erosion of confidence in and trust towards financial institutions and financial advisors. Some investors are angry at their advisors / firms - in some cases about what's seen as overselling the ability to predict markets, in others about what investors consider poor advice ("I was told owning bank and life company stocks was safe for conservative investors") and in some instances because of unrealistic expectations ("Why wasn't I told to get out? Firms must have known").

Other investors are upset about lack of contact from their advisor or impersonal communication ("A form letter doesn't cut it").

Attitudes to advice from advisors

There is a growing backlash against passive, "buy and hold" strategies and advisors who fail to provide direction- a significant number of investors talk about wanting more proactive advice.

There's lots of confusion about how the current problems developed, the money that governments are throwing at banks, the auto industry bailout and what this all means .... many investors report that they are getting limited assistance from their advisors in understanding the background to what's happened to markets and the economy.

Changing advisors

A few investors either have changed advisors or have decided to change advisors - but most are going to stick with "the devil they know" for now at least; it may not be great where they are but they're not going to be move unless they're confident another advisor will be better. In some cases, investors say that they're waiting for their investments to come back before making a change. Note that there has been a shift among some investors in both Canada and the United States towards "do it yourself" online brokers - this is a significant difference from what happened after the tech crash.

The bottom line

The market turmoil since last fall has caused many investors to reassess their relationships with advisors. While the level of investor movement from one advisor to another has been relatively minor to this point, market events have created a dramatic opportunity for advisors who are able to demonstrate value and tell their story to prospects in credible fashion.