One of the more interesting ways to think about personal comparisons is through the lens of high and low "self-monitors."
High self-monitors are present. They pay attention to themselves and others in the flow of interaction. This kind of attention supports their ability to be adaptive and conscious, two prime indicators of presence.
Low self-monitors are assumptive. They act from scripts and agendas, relatively unresponsive to the actual contingencies of the moment. Their strength is consistency of character.
The distinction calls into question whether certain kinds of work seems to be more apt for one approach more than the other. And when it comes to education as character development, should we be equipping students more with one than the other as they enter an era of unprecedented connectivity, complexity and change.