4. What could you say to Jim to help him and his parents reach a shared perspective on his academic work? Apply what you’ve learned in this chapter by analyzing the following case study, using the accompanying questions as a guide. These questions and a video of the case study are also available online at your CourseMate for Communication Mosaics.

Your friend Jim tells you about a problem he’s having with his parents. According to Jim, his parents have unrealistic expectations of him. He tends to be an average student, usually making C’s, a few B’s, and an occasional D in his courses. His parents are angry that his grades aren’t better. Jim tells you that when he went home last month, his father said this:

© Cengage Learning Jim’s father: I’m not paying for you to go to school so you can party with your friends. I paid my own way and still made Phi Beta Kappa. You have a free ride, and you’re still just pulling C’s. You just have to study harder.

Jim [to you]: I mean, I like to hang out with my friends, but that’s got nothing to do with my grades. My dad’s this brilliant guy, I mean, he just cruised through college; he thinks it’s easy. I don’t know how it was back then, but all my classes are hard. I mean, no matter how much studying I do, I’m not gonna get all A’s. What should I do? I mean, how do I convince them that I’m doing everything I can?