By now you may be wondering about the existence of a valid connection between sentiment and the market. Well, a connection does exist. Bullishess increases after the market has gone up; bearishness increases after the market has gone down. For the period 1972 through 1997, a 10 percent increase in the Dow has on average been followed by an 8.3 percent increase in the proportion of bulls. Even Michael Burke recognizes this. He is quoted in the april 13, 1998, issue of the Wall Street Journal as having said, “It’s hard to stay bearish when the market goes up all the time”.