In earlier times, people had a tendency to live in tiny villages where everyone knew each other. In modern times, most people live in big cities where they know very few people in surrounded area. In the past, there were both advantages and disadvantages to living in a small community.
I believe that there were three main benefits. Firstly, in small villages, everyone knew everyone else and this created a supportive environment. If someone needed help, there were plenty of people ready to help. Secondly, residents of small villages spent the majority of their time together. Young learned the secrets of life and gained experience from elders. In addition, in small communities, there was no traffic. As a consequence they were quiet and peaceful. This definitely fostered lower stress levels.
In my view, most disadvantages were related to services and distance. Firstly, in small villages, lack of services was problem. There were not plenty of shops, restaurants, hospitals and schools. If they wanted to buy, they had to go another city. There were only few schools in the village, therefore children had to travel long distances to get to school if they wanted to study. In my opinion, main problem was access of healthcare. When someone experienced sudden severe medical disease, they had to travel distant clinic. Another disadvantage was limited job opportunities. There were not a lot of job vacancies. People had to commute to another city for work. And it cost a lot of money.
In conclusion, being the part of small village was the great opportunity to build strong relationships with surrounded people and lead a life in a relaxed way.