The relationship between smartphone overuse, anxiety, and depression among middle school adolescents in the city of Kenitra, Morocco: a cross-sectional study

Abstract Background Adolescents face various addiction issues, including excessive smartphone use, which significantly impacts their mental health, leading to anxiety and depression. This study aimed to analyze the impact of smartphone use on the mental health of middle school adolescents in the city of Kenitra, Morocco, focusing particularly on the prevalence of depression and anxiety and to identify the factors influencing these behaviors. The present cross-sectional study included a sample of 341 middle school adolescents from Kenitra city, Morocco. Participants completed a comprehensive questionnaire covering various aspects, including sociodemographic information, smartphone addiction assessment using the Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS), and mental health assessment using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Descriptive statistics were performed, and Mann–Whitney U -test and chi-square test were both used for comparisons between the excessive and non-excessive group, respectively. A Spearman’s correlation analysis was performed to evaluate associations of smartphone overuse with depression and anxiety. Results Among 341 participants, 37.4% demonstrated smartphone overuse. Males exhibited nonsignificantly higher scores on the SAS than females ( p = 0.082). In addition, the mean psychological distress scores for the study participants were 7.62 ± 3.31 for anxiety and 7.75 ± 3.7 for depression. Males exhibited significantly lower scores on the HADS subscales in comparison with females ( p < 0.001). Interestingly, the results of the study showed a statistically significant positive correlation between anxiety ( r = 0.2441, p = 0.013) and depression ( r = 0.4035, p < 0.0001) subscales of HADS and SAS. Conclusions Our findings suggest that adolescent students exposed to smartphone overuse are vulnerable to mental disorders. The results will be useful in helping schools put in place efficient measures to prevent excessive use of smartphones.