Social media use and anxiety levels among school adolescents: a cross-sectional study in Kathmandu, Nepal

Introduction Excessive social media (SM) usage is the foremost factor contributing to anxiety. While these platforms facilitate connection and entertainment, their overuse can negatively impact adolescents' mental well-being. The study aimed to evaluate both SM usage and levels of anxiety while assessing potential associations between the two.Methods A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted among 401 school-age adolescents (14–17 years) in grades 9 and 10 through self-administered questionnaires. Kruskal-Wallis test was used as a non-parametric test to compare the groups, and ordinal logistic regression was used to model the relationship between ordinal dependent and independent variables.Results The study reported high SM usage (43.6% spent 4–8 hours daily). Females and grade 9 students were more prone to severe anxiety (45.2% and 34.3%, respectively). Despite privacy concerns (93.3%), 37.9% shared their accounts. Severe anxiety was prevalent (35.4%), with males exhibiting less odds of severe anxiety compared with females (OR=0.37, p value