The COVID-19 Outbreak and Its Emotional Consequences: A Web-Based Cross-Sectional Survey at the Peak of the Pandemic in Iran

Background: Since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, which has exponentially spread across the world, the number of cases and deaths in Iran has been higher than in other Middle Eastern countries. This has brought about and will lead to unprecedented psychological and emotional consequences. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the psychological impacts of COVID-19 on the general public's emotional state in Iran. Methods: An online survey was conducted from March 24-26. Participants were selected using a snowball sampling technique. The online survey collected information on demographic data. The Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) were used to collect data. Results: In total, 428 respondents from 62 cities participated in this study. The linear regression analysis showed a significant association between the COVID-19 outbreak and the negative general public's emotional state in Iran, indicating that the COVID-19 outbreak increased negative states (P < 0.05). Conclusions: The COVID-19 outbreak has caused a direct and effective impact on all aspects of life. Negative emotions are the main consequence of the outbreak. So mental health teams should be formed in the media to improve the emotions of the general public by providing online or in-person psychological services with complete and updated treatment information and programs.