Preservice teachers’ attitudes toward pedagogical humour: the role of physical activity, sociodemographic factors, and academic discipline

Abstract Background Humour in educational contexts is not merely an element of entertainment but a powerful pedagogical tool that reduces anxiety, enhances motivation, strengthens classroom climate, and facilitates learning. While affiliative and anxiety-reducing functions of humour foster social bonds, it is well documented that hostile or aggressive humour can undermine students’ self-concept. For this reason, humour must be employed with careful consideration in pedagogical settings. Although recent research has increasingly examined the associations between humour, psychological resilience, cognitive flexibility, and social interaction, studies evaluating preservice teachers’ humour attitudes concerning lifestyle factors (e.g., physical activity) and socio-demographic variables remain limited. The present study seeks to address this gap by situating the multidimensional nature of humour at the intersection of pedagogy, lifestyle, and cultural context. Methods The study, conducted within a cross-sectional survey design, included 766 preservice teachers (397 male, 369 female) enrolled at various universities in Turkey during the 2023–2024 academic year. Participants were classified as physically active or inactive based on WHO and ACSM criteria. The Attitude Scale Toward the Use of Humour in Education (ASTUHE) was employed as the data collection instrument. The scale consists of 17 items grouped into three subscales: PHNE (Perceiving Humour as Necessary in Education), ELI (Effect on Language and Instruction), and CCM (Contribution to Classroom Management). In Balta’s (2016) original study, internal consistency was reported as α = 0.89, whereas in the present research, internal consistency was α = 0.887. For the analyses, independent-samples t-tests, one-way ANOVA, and post-hoc tests (LSD, Tukey HSD, Bonferroni) were conducted, with effect sizes (Cohen’s d, η², ηp²) also reported. Results Preservice teachers generally evaluated humour as a positive element in education. Students who engaged in regular physical activity reported significantly higher attitude scores than their inactive peers (M = 3.51 vs. 2.86; p < .001, d = 0.62). Female students exhibited more favourable attitudes than males (p < .05, d = 0.61–0.98). Likewise, students involved in team sports demonstrated significantly higher scores than those engaged in individual sports (p < .001, d = 0.60–0.96). Differences were also observed across academic discipline, class level, family humour climate, income level, and place of upbringing (p < .05, ηp² = 0.015–0.027). In particular, students raised in urban centres evaluated the functions of humour in education more positively, likely due to their exposure to broader cultural and social stimuli. These findings underscore that humour is not merely a pedagogical skill but a multidimensional phenomenon shaped by lifestyle, social environment, and cultural factors. Conclusions Regarding contribution to the literature, the study illuminates the relationship between humour and lifestyle factors, while simultaneously revealing the multilayered structure of humour through the combined examination of diverse socio-demographic variables. Moreover, the positive (affiliative, supportive) and negative (sarcastic, aggressive) aspects of humour are contextualised and discussed in light of the literature. Although the cross-sectional design and reliance on self-report data limit causal inference, the findings suggest that preservice teachers’ humour awareness and the availability of physical activity opportunities in university settings may enhance pedagogical skills and psychosocial resilience. Future longitudinal and experimental research could more clearly elucidate the causal mechanisms linking humour and lifestyle factors.