Student and faculty perceptions of humor in the pharmacy classroom

ObjectiveTo describe perceived effects of humor and preferred types and frequency of humor in didactic pharmacy instruction at one college of pharmacy.Material and methodsStudents and faculty at a college of pharmacy participated in a survey consisting of six research questions and seven demographic items. Research questions, formatted as 5-point Likert scales and multiple-choice items, were developed from studies assessing humor in other educational settings.ResultsA total 89 of 132 students and 20 of 27 faculty (response rate 67% and 74%) responded. Students and faculty agreed that there is a role for humor in didactic instruction (median: 4 and 5, respectively) and that humor could improve accessibility, learning, interest, attention, and enjoyment (median: 4 and 4, respectively, all items). Participants preferred relevant (median: 5 and 5) and self-deprecating (median: 4 and 4) humor. Students and faculty indicated one or two instances of humor per hour are optimal (52% and 50%) and typical (74% and 85%).ConclusionsStudents and faculty perceive a role for use of relevant humor (in moderation) in the pharmacy classroom based on improvements to the learning environment.