Contrarian

An investment style that goes against prevailing market sentiment -- buying when others are selling and selling when others are buying. Legendary contrarians include Sir John Templeton, who bought heavily during World War II when pessimism was at its peak, and David Dreman, who systematized contrarian strategies based on low P/E ratios. The psychological difficulty of acting against the crowd is what gives contrarian strategies their edge -- most people simply cannot pull the trigger when everything feels hopeless.