Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

As the United States looks for examples of healthcare policies to emulate, the question arises, does success of a healthcare policy in one country guarantee success in another? Can policies be interchangeable from country to country? Are there unique and deeply embedded cultural norms in other countries that would prevent successful adoption of similar policies in countries that do not share similar cultural norms?

In Scandinavia, there appears to be a historical “buy-in” of the cultural norms that enables successful implementation of more socialist-oriented healthcare policies at a national level. Can that “buy-in” occur if cultural norms change – either by transporting policies to a different country, or relocating people with different cultural norms and values into a country where neither side desires to change or accommodate new values at a fundamental level?

In Scandinavia, we identified two little-known aspects of their culture that may provide a key to understanding the cultural impacts on Scandinavian healthcare policy: The Law of Jante and Lagom. These two cultural norms are significantly different from cultural norms in the United States and other nations, providing a powerful means of policy comparison. The qualitative, ethnographic research is using a combination of interviews, document analysis, and observations to determine Scandinavian attitudes that may impact the success of policies. The research is exploring the connection between cultural norms and the impact on healthcare policies; developing concepts for adjusting healthcare policies for a changing society; and comparing cultural international cultural norms to those of the United States.