A salutogenic approach to physical education teacher education: the link between personality traits and sense of coherence in preservice teachers

Despite the importance of salutogenic frameworks for developing supportive educational environments, research on how personality factors influence the sense of coherence (SoC) in preservice physical education (PE) teachers remains limited. A sample of 294 preservice PE teachers (50.3% male, 49.7% female; mean age 22.46 years) completed the Big Five Inventory and the Orientation to Life Questionnaire, along with questions about demographic and professional characteristics. Participants demonstrated high agreeableness, openness, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and moderate SoC. Neuroticism and openness emerged as the strongest predictors of SoC, followed by conscientiousness and extraversion. Together, the Big Five traits accounted for 27% of the variance in SoC. This study offers an innovative perspective by integrating personality theory and salutogenic pedagogy to inform the professional development of preservice PE teachers. Incorporating personality assessments into physical education teacher education (PETE) programs may help foster resilience in future educators, enhancing their capacity to implement a salutogenic approach in teaching.