The Ticos (Culture and Social Change in Costa Rica)

Understanding Tico Culture

     There is an old saying that opinions are like navels: everyone has one. And it seems that every person in Costa Rica, Ticos and ex-pats alike, have their own take on “the Tico way”. I’ve just finished reading “The Ticos: Culture and Social Change in Costa Rica”, by Mavis, Karen and Richard Biesanz. The authors are a little like referees in that they try to present the different viewpoints or explanations for Costa Rican’s mannerisms and tendencies. In my opinion, the book is a good insight to the country’s social behaviors; but then again, like the authors’, this is only my opinion…

     The book starts with a brief history of Costa Rica, focused mainly on the culture since the Spanish colonization. Even early on, the country gained a reputation for independent thinking and being spread out, rural and being a terrain of a variety of microclimates only aided this mindset. The second chapter delves in the history of the economic climate, from coffee to bananas and finally ecotourism. Along with the third chapter on the history of politics here, the authors establish a trend or foundation in their presentation, a country in permanent flux where social mores prevail, remedies are patched together to keep all party’s pride intact. The book is full of interesting bits of information. For example, I had not been aware that President Calderon, elected in 1940, had a secret agreement with then U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt to defend the Panama Canal in the event of an attack and that this alliance resulted in funding for the construction of what would be the Pan-American Highway.

     The next chapters deal more with the social aspects of the country, from “Class and Ethnicity” and “Community” to chapters on “Family”, “Education” and “Religion” and I believe these five chapters are the real core of the book and of Costa Rican culture; indeed, family, community and religion, specifically Catholicism, seem to be enmeshed. I did find it interesting to read about the growing population of Protestants here.

     Understanding some of the traditions and their roots helps define a people and Ticos are no exception. It’s more than a little sad to read in this book how some of the mannerisms, rituals and respects of the culture are vanishing so rapidly as the Twenty-First Century invades Costa Rica and families, generations, neighbors and communities become more detached, literally with the aid of cars, computers and Cellphones. The final chapter on how Ticos prefer to spend their leisure time was something of a summary for the entire book. It included a look back at how much more family-oriented leisure time was in the past and how fractured and singular it has become.

     Another interesting aspect of the book was in clarifying dreamy myths about the country with hard facts and numbers about how much money the government here actually spends per capita on things like public health and education. It takes a little shine off the glorified personae. Far and away, though, the backbone of Tico culture seems to be “para quedar bien”, to get along with everyone which, in a single stroke, explains why issues have historically never been completely resolved. Embracing and understanding this concept will help an outsider go a long way toward persevering here.
     All comments concerning thhis article are gladly welcomed.