*2.5. Procedures*

Initially, a rapid literature review was conducted regarding the psychological effects that other pandemics, and the protective measures implemented, had caused in the population. Based on these results, a preliminary version of the questionnaire was designed and assessed by a panel of experts composed of 10 professionals (three doctors, four nurses, and three psychologists, two of them specialists in clinical psychology). Once the tool had been refined and the relevant modifications had been made, a pilot study was carried out on a sample of 57 subjects, identified by non-probabilistic sampling, over 18 years of age, seeking a similar proportion between men and women (50.9% and 49.1%, respectively). The mean age of this sample of subjects was 41.87 years (SD = 11.86), 56.1% reported being married, and 57.9% reported having completed a master's or doctoral degree.

No subjects in the pilot study reported problems in understanding the items, and no problems were detected in the design and visualization of the survey on different devices (PC, tablet, or smartphone).

Qualtrics® XM platform was the software used for the creation, design, and dissemination of the survey in this study. For the field study, a non-probabilistic snowball sampling was also implemented, based on the dissemination of the link via email lists to universities and professional associations, who were asked to help in this dissemination process.
