1. What politeness strategies did Jason use with Seth? What politeness strategies did Seth use with Jason? Use politeness theory to explain why or why not these were appropriate.
2. Using social exchange theory, consider the friendship between Seth and Jason. Identify the rewards and costs for each person. Using the concept of comparison level and comparison level of alternatives, why did Jason end this friendship?
3. Identify the internal and external dialectics that appear in the story. What strategies were used to manage these tensions? What strategies might have been better?
4. What private information and privacy rules exist in this story? How was boundary coordination used by the various characters? Did anyone violate boundary ownership? If so, who and how did they do so?
5. What ethical issues emerge from this case? How might insight from any of the theories help navigate these challenges?
6. Do any of the interpersonal communication theories provide a "better" explanation than the others? Why do you believe this to be the case? What additional factors might have been included to make a different theory or combination of theories better at explaining the situation?