Girl YouTubers and COVID-19: Emotional Expression and Engagement

What is this article about?

This article examines how six Spanish girl YouTubers created content during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, analyzing their videos for emotional cues, audience engagement, and thematic choices. According to the study by Gil-Quintana, Ruiz Galisteo, and Romero-Rodríguez, these young creators showed emotional resilience and increased productivity despite the national crisis.

Why is it important?

This article explains how confinement shaped digital content creation among minors, turning YouTube into a tool for coping, connection, and even viral influence. It offers insights into how children express emotions online and maintain engagement, even in uncertain times.

Key Findings: How lockdown shaped YouTuber content

1. More content, more followers

• All but one YouTuber increased their production during confinement.

• Las Ratitas saw the sharpest rise in followers during this period.

2. COVID-19 was a common theme

• 33% of videos addressed COVID-19 topics directly or indirectly.

• Common formats included practical jokes, reaction videos, TikTok trends, and makeup tutorials.

3. Emotional resilience

• Despite the social crisis, the dominant emotions were joy (93.7%) and surprise (82.5%).

• Fear and sadness appeared in less than 30% of videos, showing a disconnect between societal grief and digital expression.

Audience Insights

Gender and age

• Female followers outnumbered male ones across all channels.

• Most followers were between 18–24 years old, not minors—highlighting the adult interest in child content or the use of parent accounts.

Engagement metrics

• Engagement rates were high (around 90%), and audience interactions were overwhelmingly positive.

• Nearly all videos included shoutouts or references to followers, reinforcing a participatory culture.

FAQs

Q: Did girl YouTubers talk about COVID-19 in their videos?
A: Yes. One-third of their content was related to the pandemic or confinement.

Q: What emotions dominated their content?
A: Joy and surprise were the most visible emotions, indicating a resilient or performative emotional response.

Q: Who watches this content?
A: While the creators are under 14, their audience is mostly adults aged 18–24.

Q: Did the lockdown boost their influence?
A: Yes. Most channels gained followers, and content production increased significantly.