INDIVIDUAL COUNTRIES REPORT ON INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENTS, NEW LAWS RELATING TO PHYSICAL AND ECONOMIC PROTECTION OF CONSUMERS, AND PROCEDURES DESIGNED TO INFORM AND EDUCATE CONSUMERS. GENERAL TRENDS IN CONSUMER POLICY ARE SUMMARIZED, AND INNOVATIVE MEASURES DEVELOPED BY INDIVIDUAL COUNTRIES ARE NOTED. NO NEW CONSUMER INSTITUTIONS WERE ESTABLISHED IN 1977, BUT COUNTRIES CONCENTRATED ON IMPROVING THE ADMINISTRATION AND SCOPE OF EXISTING AGENCIES. MOST NEW REGULATIONS REGARDING PRODUCT SAFETY CONCERNED ADDITIVES AND PRESERVATIVES IN FOODSTUFFS. MANY OECD MEMBERS SHOWED CONSIDERABLE INTEREST IN REGULATING CONSUMER CREDIT MATTERS AND EXERTING CONTROL OVER UNDESIRABLE MARKETING PRACTICES. SURVEYS INDICATED THAT CONSUMER REVIEWS AND TEST MAGAZINES HAD INCREASED IN POPULARITY, BUT THE USE OF VOLUNTARY LABELING TO INFORM CONSUMERS HAD DEVELOPED SLOWLY. THE CREATION AND EXTENSION OF FACILITIES TO REGISTER AND ARBITRATE CONSUMER COMPLAINTS CONTINUED TO BE A MAJOR CONCERN OF MOST MEMBERS. CONSUMER EDUCATION AND INFORMATION PLAYED AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN ENERGY CONSERVATION CAMPAIGNS, ILLUSTRATING THE INCREASING RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CONSUMER CONCERNS AND OTHER POLICY AREAS, SUCH AS ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES. THE APPENDIX CONTAINS THE RECOMMENDATION ADOPTED BY THE OECD IN 1978 CONCERNING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF DATA COLLECTION SYSTEMS RELATED TO INJURIES INVOLVING CONSUMER PRODUCTS. AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--MJM)