A major problem in urban areas is anonymity. Kids, teenagers and adults are more likely to try to get away with immoral behavior if they believe they can hide behind a mask (figuratively and not literally) and not be identified by witnesses.

In a small town, school, subdivision or canton, people know each other. If my kid steals your apples, you’ll let me know and I can correct his moral lapse. If your kids are annoying the neighborhood with loud music, we’ll talk. Knowing from the get go that their actions can affect other people - a knowledge enforced by both parents and the entire community - helps kids learn to empathize with others.

When I taught in Baltimore (and with the afternoon program in Harrisonburg), I saw a many, many kids who really did not perceive other people to be human beings - they saw other people as instruments to be callously used, manipulated, taken advantage of, or harmed. I haven’t seen many kids who live in attentive communities suffering under this delusion.