Return to the Farm, Virtually

Friends and family members keep inviting me to join them in the virtual game called Farmville. I receive regular invitations to join and updates on their progress in farming on my Facebook page. The purpose of Farmville is to "play, invest and express yourself by plowing, growing and harvesting a variety of crops for money and game points." In addition to these activities, you can invest in your farm by buying fruit trees, pigs and cows and you can add barns, windmills and greenhouses. The developer of this game claims that it is the fastest growing social game ever. Thus, I must ask, "why the popularity?"

Perhaps the great migration of Americans in the last century from rural to urban life has left a void in our collective lives. Author, Richard Louv, popularized the term, nature-deficit disorder. This psychological disorder is the result of inadequate time spent connecting with nature. In his book, Last Child in the Woods, he wrote, "Nature-deficit disorder describes the human costs of alienation from nature, among them: diminished use of the senses, attention difficulties, and higher rates of physical and emotional illnesses." Perhaps the virtual experience of Farmville gaming is yet another indicator of our basic need to get back to nature.