The coded data of the study.

PurposeTo estimate the incidence of dry eye (DE) symptoms among university students in Jordan and to examine the relationship between behavioral and cultural risk factors and DE symptom severity.MethodsA cross-sectional study involving 788 university students was conducted in Jordan. Participants’ mean age was 21.87 years (SD = 3.824; range: 18–45 years). The incidence and severity of DE symptom were assessed using the validated Arabic version of the Ocular Surface Disease Index (ARB-OSDI) questionnaire, administered through Google Forms. The survey included demographic questions and behavioral-cultural risk factors (smoking and eye cosmetic use). One-Way ANOVA and multi-regression analyses were used to investigate the association between OSDI mean scores and behavioral-cultural risk factors.ResultsThe incidence of DE symptoms, defined as an OSDI score ≥ 13, was 74.2% among university students. Higher DE symptom severity was statistically associated with females’ gender (p ConclusionDry eye symptoms are highly prevalent among university students in Jordan and are significantly associated with factors such as age, gender, contact lens use, cosmetic application, and tobacco consumption.