Tobacco Control Policy Instruments in a Shrinking World: How Much Policy Learning?

Since the 1960s, a worldwide movement for tobacco control has developed, culminating in the 2003 Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), the first international public health treaty. This article analyzes tobacco control instruments, policy learning, and political processes in advanced industrial democracies. Despite scientific information, epistemic communities, and government reports, tobacco control legislation only “took off” in the 1980s and subsequently has accelerated. In addition to policy emulation across countries, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and international bodies such as the European Union (EU) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have facilitated convergence, which continues despite the opposition of economic interests, led by the tobacco industry.