MARST Description

Colombia: 1964, 1973, 1985, 1993
France: 1962, 1968, 1975, 1982, 1990
Kenya: 1989, 1999
Mexico: 1960, 1970, 1990, 2000
United States: 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990
Vietnam: 1989, 1999

All persons.

Note: The lowest age at which a person can be anything but "never married" varies among samples.

MARST describes the person's current marital status according to law or custom. Individuals who remarry report the status relevant to their most recent marriage. Census instructions rarely explicitly limit marital status to strictly legal unions.

The first digit of MARST is comparable across all samples. The second digit delineates consensual unions from other forms of marriage and distinguishes among the categories separated, divorced, and married-spouse-absent. The final digit provides additional detail within the married and married-spouse-absent categories.

There is some variability in the detailed categories available in the various samples. The most important differences include: 1) the explicit recognition of consensual unions in Colombia and Mexico; 2) the absence of a distinction between customary and legal marriage in Kenya and Vietnam; 3) the grouping together of separated and divorced in Colombia; and 4) the identification of polygamous marriages in Kenya.

Many consensual unions in France and the United States (1990) can be inferred, but they pertain only to unions that include the head of household.

In Kenya and Vietnam unions that are not recognized by the state are identified as marriages, but they cannot be separately identified.

NOTE: "Married, spouse absent" will be constructed consistently for all samples, but has not been implemented at this time.

Married, polygamous. Marital union consisting of a husband with multiple wives, all of whom may not live together.

Separated. Married, but separated. In countries where consensual unions are common, there is no stated rule for describing individuals who have separated from this type of union.

"Married, spouse absent." The person claimed to be married, but no spouse was present in the household. Married-spouse-absent is consistently imposed via programming for all possible samples using the SPLOC variable.

Divorced. Last marriage ended in divorce and individual has not remarried. Generally refers to a legal divorce from a legal marriage.

Widowed. Last marriage ended with death of spouse and individual has not remarried. Generally refers to a legal marriage.

The Colombian census explicitly identifies consensual unions (union libre) in all years. These are permanent unions that lack religious or civil recognition.

In 1964 divorce was not recognized in the census; in subsequent years separated and divorced are combined and cannot be disentangled.

In 1964 the category for separated has a different meaning than in other samples, Colombian or otherwise. Whereas "separated" normally means a permanent marital disruption, in 1964 Colombia it essentially indicates a temporary residential separation due to travel, business, etc. These cases are therefore given the same general code as "married, spouse absent."

All persons under the following ages are coded "never married/single": age 13 in 1964, age 13 in 1973, age 10 in 1985, age 12 in 1993.

In 1990, the census for the first time stipulated that the marital status question applied only to legal marital status. We have coded the 1990 marriage responses identically to other years on the assumption that those earlier responses also overwhelmingly refer to legal status, although that was not made explicit in the questionnaires.

Consensual unions can be inferred using the RELATE variable, but only pertain to unions that include the head of household.

The census instructions state that the enumerator should accept what people say about their marital status, and that the census is not trying to determine who is legally married. Even the category for divorce does not necessarily imply a particular legal status.

Kenya recognizes polygamous marriages, and they receive a distinct code. Monogamous marriages are coded with the more general category "married, not specified."

In the case of polygamous marriages, "married, spouse absent" may not mean the same thing as it does for other unions. The husband may simply have resided in another wife's household the night before the census.

The Mexican census explicitly identifies consensual unions (union libre) in all years. These are permanent unions that lack religious or civil recognition. The marital status question differentiates among persons married in civil or religious ceremonies, or both.

In 1960, divorce is strictly legal divorce from a civil marriage. The instructions in 1970, 1990, and 2000 imply that it is a matter of law ("estado civil") -- that "divorciada" means a legal divorce from a legal marriage.

The category "separated" was added in 1950, at which time "single" was renamed "never married." Beginning in 1980, couples who lived together but were unmarried were allowed to report the marital status they considered most appropriate. Persons in common-law marriages were to be considered married in all years.

In 1990, consensual unions can be inferred using the RELATE variable, but would only pertain to unions that include the head of household. Such unions cannot be identified in earlier years.

All persons under the following ages are coded "never married/single": age 12 in 1880-1920, age 14 in 1940-1970; age 15 in 1980-1990.

The census instructions concerning married status are liberal. They state that married persons include those joined by custom or law, as well as those living together as husband and wife. Nevertheless, divorce refers strictly to a legal status of marital dissolution.