Trust men and they will be true to you; treat them greatly, and they will show themselves great.

People often rise to how they are treated, and being handled as though you are competent and honest tends to produce more of both. The effect is real and it is not universal; some will take what is offered and give nothing back, and pretending otherwise is a good way to be badly used. The skill lies in choosing where to extend the benefit rather than extending it everywhere.

With someone whose behaviour is genuinely unsettled, try assuming the better version and watch what happens. Keep what you risk in proportion to what you actually know about them.