ABSTRACT
Rural places are described as having a singular culture and set of traditions and behaviors. The culture of rural places is believed to be different from urban places, resulting in real differences in lifestyles and attitudes, with concomitant implications for the older population. Whether there is a rural culture is an interesting question. Indeed, the US suburbs with their moats of green grass landscaping around each house are miniature reproductions of the open spaces of agriculture and rural America. For rural elders in population-loss counties, the culture tends to be less optimistic, for the very real reasons related to the economic and political circumstances of life in relatively deprived places. In both types of places, the sense of community and the likelihood of knowing and helping one’s neighbors is similar because the density of acquaintanceship is high—or, if one prefers, because everyone knows everyone else.
