• Ana Carolina Paludo, Michael Pereira Silva, Jaqueline Puqueves de Souza, Marcus Peikriszwili Tartaruga, Deoclecio Gruppi, and Timothy Cavazzotto.
• Universidade Estadual do Centro-Oeste, Departamento de Educação Física - Guarapuava (PR), Brazil.
• Rev Assoc Med Bras (1992). 2021 Jun 1; 67 (5): 741-746.

ObjectiveThe study evaluates psychological responses to the COVID-19 outbreak in the students, professors, and staff due to the social distancing and transition of the classroom activities through online learning.Methods518 participants from a University community in Brazil answered an online survey with questions related to demographic data, psychological responses, and preventive measures. Absolute and relative frequencies described the sample, Chi-square and z-test tested associations between the variables, adopting p<0.05.ResultsFemale (71.20%), young age -18 to 35 years (82.60%), students (76.10%), living in a family with 1 to 3 members during quarantine (55.40%) were more prevalent respondents. Women, young age, and students had a significantly higher rate of negative feelings in all psychological questions. Curiously, negative feelings during social distances affect the participants, independent of living quarantine alone or with family/friends during the COVID-19 outbreak.ConclusionsOur findings demonstrated that the COVID-19 outbreak affected the psychological responses in the Brazilian academic community, also, women, young age, and students appear to be a risk group to negative psychological responses. The long-term quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic may cause further worsening in the psychological responses, especially in those in the risk group.

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