The book I' ve Had lt by Robert Hopkins published some years ago by Henry Holt and Company, New York, quoted migration specialist Professor Everett Lee of the University of Georgia regarding his studies on migration and I've added others of my own:This expert indicated four kinds of reasons why people migrate:1) motives associated with the country of origin, 2) those with the country of destination, 3) several strong physical obstacles, and 4) a number of other powerful personal considerations. But he asserted that it isn't always the reality of factors at home and abroad that induces people to emigrate, but rather what people perceive these factors to be.
If a person feels that his country is presenting many obstacles to his living a happy life there, that country in reality is exerting a "pushing" effect on him to look elsewhere for something better. Meanwhile, a country about which he has heard many nice things as the quality of life, good climate, low cost of living, friendliness of its people, and so on, is actually exerting a "pulling" effect on him. It's the interaction between these two forces, (push and pull) that determines whether he stays at home or goes abroad.
Pushed or Pulled?
Most of the retirees who have emigrated to Costa Rica, have been "pulled" by the country rather than "pushed" out of their homeland. Only in very few cases has the "push" been greater than the "pull". I cite Colombia because of its guerrilla warfare and Nicaragua because of its greatly deteriorated economy and the enormous poverty prevailing there. Salvadorans have emigrated because of the earthquakes. Some Americans have been "pushed" because of government policies, high taxation, cost of living, and after September 11th, fear resulting from the tragic New York-Washington D.C. terrorist event, deaths due to the anthrax disease, or the possibility of future death-dealing intrusions by other terrorists.
Sociologists who have studied immigrants indicate that many of those who left their country to escape what mainly were personal problems seldom found success in their new environment. By taking their problems with them, whether they went to a most beautiful country or to one they perceived as a perfect destination, leaving their homeland solved nothing.
In searching for a good place to retire, the older retiree generally looks for: 1) a quieter surrounding, 2) a lower cost of living, 3) good medical facilities, 4) a friendly local population, 5) political stability so he can live in peace, and 6) a good stable climate where he won't have to withstand extreme changes of temperature. He wants an altitude high enough to feel cool yet not require heating; low enough for a healthy heart yet not require air conditioning. To many retirees who have gone to live in Costa Rica, this country seems to fill these requirements.
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