Table 1.
Emotional response highlights.
| Emotion | Highlight Date | COVID-19 Event |
|---|---|---|
| Joy | 22/03 | Deployment of field hospitals, highlighting IFEMA in Madrid to avoid the collapse of the medical system. |
| 14/04 | Some of the countries most affected by COVID-19 experienced a decrease in infection rates, e.g., Germany, and others; that started to implement some measures in order to lessen the impact of isolation in the economy. | |
| 18/04 | A new procedure to count the COVID-19 cases was implemented and suggested a possible decline in the number of real cases reported. | |
| 26/04 | Children under 14 years of age were allowed to play outside for one hour per day. | |
| Sadness | 14/03 | The Spanish government declared a national state of alarm and launched an advertising campaign on social media using the hashtag #estevirusloparamosunidos (that means “we will stop this virus together”) Massive applause to recognize the contribution and courage of medical staff. |
| 26/03 | International media harshly criticized the Spanish government for their management of the health crisis. | |
| 10/04 | The daily death toll is estimated to be around 700 deceased. | |
| 22/04 | Slight increase of daily death toll. | |
| Anger | 12/03 | The Spanish government considered the declaration of a state of alarm due to the death toll and spread of the virus. Some Spanish regions, such as Catalonia, declared local isolation measures. |
| 24/03 | Death toll reached alarming figures. People were highly concerned about the infection rate. | |
| 14/04 | Wuhan added 1290 deceased to official figures, 50% more than first announced. | |
| Disgust | 25/03 | Spain, with 3434 deceased, exceeded the death toll in China. One of the most lethal days (734 deceased). |
| 18/04 | The death toll in Spain rose again, triggering discussion and discrepancies with the case counting method. | |
| Fear | 24/03 | The infection rate and death toll had been increasing steadily since March 16, and no changes in this trend were visible. |
| 26/04 | Children under 14 years old were allowed to play outside for one hour per day. | |
| 01/05 | Beginning of Phase 1 of the de-escalation process in a large part of the Spanish territory. |