Did you realize that it's possible to learn how to make money in the stock market even when the market is not going up? That concept probably socks a lot of people between the eyes, since everyone grows up with the same idea stuck in their brains, that the market must be trending higher in order for investors to make a profit. Actually it's quite possible – and very profitable – to make money in the stock market when things aren't looking very rosy. Decisions in the market are generally driven by greed and by fear, with fear (and its stepbrother "panic") able to really move the market.

Options strategies for bearish markets are centered around the sale and purchase of puts, a type of option that gives the buying the right to sell an underlying asset at a specific price on a specific date. A put option increases in value when the price of the underlying asset goes down in value. This is the direct opposite of the call option, which increases in value as the price of the underlying stock goes up.

Since most bearish strategies are based on basic options moves, they reflect or mirror the same strategies used in bullish moves, only designed with a downtrending market in mind. Bearish strategies work when the market is going down on a regular basis, with underlying stocks losing their value on a regular basis. Many times an unprepared trader will go ahead and bail out of a trade when things get a little tough, rather than waiting for the stock to stop its plunge and turn around and head back the other way. This helps may help the bearish investors make more profits on their puts.

Sometimes a trader will use a put as an insurance policy, just in case their call position turns and reverses in the other direction. This enables them to potentially cut their losses in the event that their bullish trade turns and goes the wrong way. This is similar to purchasing automobile insurance; it helps mitigate a potentially big loss.

Buying a put is a bearish strategy, because the trader wants the underlying asset to decrease in value. But selling a put is a bullish strategy used when the trader wants the asset to increase in price,