ABSTRACT
Lesson drawing creates a comparative advantage from the empirical observation that countries deal with common problems differently and differ in the degree to which their policies are deemed successful. The object of lesson drawing is to adapt and adopt in one's own country a programme already successful in another, and thus reduce future differences in achievement. This chapter examines the tension between universalistic assumptions about the transferability of policies and contextual obstacles to lesson-drawing. It describes the role of political values as well as resource constraints as criteria for deciding under what circumstances and to what extent lessons can (or should) be drawn. Where a country looks for lessons reflects psychological proximity more than geographical proximity. Developing countries are prone to make the mistake of focusing on the current policies of developed countries, rather than looking back in time to see what they did in order to move from being a developing to a developed country.
