The huge changes in fear levels this week inYouGovs 26-market COVID-19 trackerwere in Canada and Denmark. Both countries saw a 9-point drop in the range of people stating they are very or fairly afraid they will get hold of the disease, from 69% to 60% in Canada and from 53% to 44% in Denmark.

Figures are huge stable elsewhere. The biggest increase in fear levels took place in Sweden, rising from 47% to 53%.

Most notable behaviour changes

The most dramatic behavioral shift since the last week occurred in Singapore, where the ratio of people donning face masks in public increased from 37% to 73%. The last weeks 37% had already been an all-time high, with the public of the island nation now in line with the rest of Asia when it comes to masking in their faces.

There were also considerable increases in face mask usage in the UAE (up 25pts to 79%), the USA (up 20pts to 49%) and Mexico (up 11pts to 59%).

Several countries states remarkable differences in the numbers of people averting going to work compared with previous week. There were considerable increases in Singapore (up 16pts to 47%), the UAE (also up 16pts, to 49%), and Saudi Arabia (up 11pts to 54%). Meanwhile in Finland the proportion of people averting the office fell 12pts to 18%.

The other most remarkable changes occurred in Scandinavia. The proportion of Danes not eating raw meat fell 12pts to 7%, while the number averting touching public objects like lift buttons fell 12pts to 47%. The number of Norwegians avoiding tourists has fallen 13pts to 37%, and the level refraining from touching objects in public is decreased 11pts to 63%. The number of Finns enhancing their personal hygiene also fell 10pts to 72%.

How well have governments been handling the crisis?

Our tracker looking at how nations feel their government is dealing with the crisis find approval rates lowest in Spain (38%), France (38%) and Japan (39%). It is worth noticing, however, that this Japanese figure is up 8pts since previous week, whereas the French and Spanish figures have changed a little bit.

These are the only three countries in which the proportion of people who consider the government is doing a good job is lower than the number thinking it is doing a bad job, although public opinion in Mexico (48% well, 47% badly) and the USA (49% well, 45% badly) is closely split.

Everywhere else satisfaction far outweighs dissatisfaction. The most impressed are the people of Vietnam (95%) and India (92%), being the most likely to say their government is dealing with the crisis well.

Outside of Asia, the highest approval rates are in Australia (82%), Denmark (81%) and Norway (also 81%).

YouGov's global COVID-19 tracker will be running for the foreseeable future, interviewing more than 27,000 people a week throughout 26 markets, and with more still to come.

The following tracker results form part of a larger survey series looking at the impact of COVID-19 on everything from brands to politics. For more information on this research and how COVID-19 might affect your business, you can also see the results of further COVID-19 research in theUK,USA,France,GermanyandAPAC.