As stock prices have slumped around the world over the past year, investors have been confronted with a barrage of grim news—falling home prices, rising costs for food and fuel, and worries over the fragile health of the banking system. Some have concluded that the current state of affairs bears little resemblance to the past and are questioning the wisdom of maintaining consistent exposure to equities at all.

We don’t know what the future for this business cycle looks like, but we do know that on many occasions in the past, investors were confronted with “unprecedented” events that tested their willingness to maintain a diversified approach. A few examples:

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