My girlfriend grew up in that general area (a little south and west) and I’ve been there a few times.
It’s like going back in time. People leave their car unlocked with the window down and the key in the ignition all night and think nothing of it. It will be there in the morning, because they’re good people who don’t mess with something that doesn’t belong to them.
Respect is what it comes down to. Respect for their fellow man (who earns that respect by being worthy of it), and respect for law and order. They think in the old way, and they know there is no way to run a society without some rules, and without honoring your your fellow man.
My mom had a good friend who lived there and we visited a number of times when I was growing up. More recently, my grand daughter and her husband used to go down there and camp out with their horses for a week or so—they were into trail rides. So it’s what I would expect. Once you get a lot of outsiders moving in-it changes things a bit.
My home town in SW Mo. has about 4 times the population it had when I was growing up and it does change the culture a bit-still pretty conservative/bible belt oriented for the most part, though.