Safety

Today's society seems to function very well on an economy of secrets and lies. People don't like hard truths, and they are often terrified of being exposed. Simultaneously, we seek safety in others, people we can trust and connect with on deep levels; we seek people who can save us from being alone. Quite a conflict of interests, isn't it?

'Home'

Loving couples form because they feel a deep interpersonal connection. They feel like the other person understands them, cares about them, and accepts them. In short, they feel safe, and they embrace the comfort that comes with it. Those we feel safest around feel like 'home,' the place we can relax, breathe, and be ourselves. Yet this is such a fragile treasure.

It takes very little to feel unsafe. Being yelled at, struck, or any other perceived form of punishment from someone we care about can make us withdraw. We become unsure. We start to close up or tell lies for fear of damaging the relationship, or ourselves, further. This silence is easily felt, and can quickly lead to both parties avoiding contact or conflict out of pure fear. 'Home' crumbles, and the relationship dies, if nothing is done to try and reinstate safety.

As a side note, though, there is a difference between being safe enough to divulge sensitive things, and outright announcing them under wrong time/place circumstances. Same goes for sharing information needlessly.

Nothing to Lose

I hate planes, but I love a good conversational partner on a long flight. These are people I've never met before, and who I'll likely never see again, in a danger-free environment, and both of us are aware of these facts. As a result, both of us will readily and merrily speak with complete honesty about ourselves. I once sat next to a mother and her deaf daughter, and had a very enjoyable talk with both of them. I was able to ask questions of a sensitive nature without fear of offending, and they were happy to answer.

When there's no relationship between people, and they have absolutely nothing to lose, they will commonly feel very safe. This is very unlike friendships and couples, where the complete truth can damage or destroy them.

Yet if you can make friends and loved ones truly feel like there is nothing to lose in being honest with you, then you will be able to see who they really are, for better or worse. If you accept them, show them their safety matters to you, and be there for them, it's easy to find a completely different person than you thought they were. But the most important thing you'll find...is a real person.

Abuse

Smart people know how much they can get out of somebody by fabricating safety. They'll be accepting and 'understanding' so long as the information they get in return serves their purposes. The goal may be  embarrassing truths, trust over monetary situations, or what have you. These cutthroats can do scores of psychological damage to those they use, and can make it a challenge for some to ever fully trust another human being again. The only help I can offer, is to try and seek open safety from those who seek yours. If they refuse to return your trust, then the reason why will probably be important to know.

Unless they're a professional therapist/psychologist/etc., then that's kind of their job.