by Brian Y. An, Simon Porcher, & Shui-Yan Tang
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, governments worldwide have grappled with the adoption of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), offering a unique opportunity to study policy diffusion dynamics. As the pandemic unfolded globally, leaders were faced with the dual challenges of responding to the pace of disease development while navigating socio-economic circumstances unique to their countries. With limited international coordination, each nation independently established its policy approaches, making the study of horizontal diffusion within global governance feasible.
This study seeks to address critical questions regarding the diffusion of COVID-19 policies:
- Do government leaders draw cues from other countries’ policy behaviors?
- If so, which countries do they benchmark their policymaking against in terms of geographic, cultural, and institutional similarities?
- How do these diffusion dynamics evolve over time, and do certain cues become more prominent as policy learning progresses?
By analyzing worldwide government responses from January 1, 2020, to June 1, 2021, this study employs event history and time fixed-effects ordered logistic regression models. The analysis focuses on nine universal NPIs, including domestic lockdowns, travel bans, and mask mandates. The findings suggest that leaders indeed draw policy cues from geographic, cultural, and institutional peers, with significant temporal nuances. While geographic and institutional influences wane over time, cultural cues become increasingly prominent in shaping policy adoptions.
These empirical findings offer novel insights into policy diffusion dynamics during crises. The study reaffirms the relevance of geographic clustering in policy adoption, although its influence diminishes over time as more information becomes available. Similarly, the declining role of institutional proximity highlights the evolving nature of policy learning. Notably, the growing influence of cultural cues underscores the significance of cultural considerations in crisis management policymaking. This finding emphasizes the importance of policy-culture fit, where successful interventions are closely linked to public cooperation and compliance.
In conclusion, the study sheds light on the dynamic processes of global policy diffusion during the COVID-19 pandemic. By unraveling the evolving role of geographic, cultural, and institutional similarities, it offers valuable insights for policymakers and practitioners. Understanding these dynamics is essential for effective crisis management and policy design in an interconnected world.
You can read the original article in Policy Studies Journal at
An, Brian Y., Simon Porcher and Shui-Yan Tang. 2024. “ Global Diffusion of COVID-19 Policies: The Role of Geographic, Institutional, and Cultural Cues.” Policy Studies Journal 52(1): 169–198. https://doi.org/10.1111/psj.12514.
About the Authors
Brian An is an assistant professor, Director of Master of Science in Public Policy (MSPP) program, and Co-Director of Center for Urban Research in the School of Public Policy at Georgia Institute of Technology.
Dr. Simon Porcher is a full professor of Strategy and Public Management at Université Paris Panthéon-Assas. He studies how cross-sector partnerships create value and respond to grand challenges.
Check out his personal website here: https://sites.google.com/site/simporcher/?pli=1
Shui-Yan Tang is Frances R. and John J. Duggan Professor of Public Administration and Chair of the Department of Public Policy and Management in Sol Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California.
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