I think you're trying to pound a square peg into a round hole here. You're onto something in that rural people do tend to be more open and approachable -- havin

I think you're trying to pound a square peg into a round hole here. You're onto something in that rural people do tend to be more open and approachable -- having grown up in a rural community I'm in agreement with you on that. As to the cause -- in my experience, rural living is a retreat from what draws people to city life. City living (this is all just my experience) is about chasing opportunity and throwing yourself intensely into the pursuit of success. Out in the country, I see people who have earned enough to buy a house with some land, and are ready to drop into a lower gear. They're willing to forego the opportunity and experience in order to achieve some stability and a slower pace of life. So it's no wonder that, when you deliberately remove major sources of tension from people's lives, they are more easy going.