Description

MARST reports the person's current marital status.

This variable was deprecated in 2019. Users looking for a current measure of marital status should use MARSTCUR or MARSTLEG.

Comparability

This variable is largely comparable over time, with three exceptions:

First, the universe for marital status changed in 1982 Prior to 1982, information on marital status was collected only for individuals 17 and older. Beginning in 1982 and continuing through 2018, information on marital status was collected for individuals 14 and older.

Second, information about whether the spouse of married respondents was present in the household was collected starting in 1973.

Third, the values of MARST changed in 2004. For the 1963-2003 samples, the values of this variable are identical to those in MARSTAT. However, from 2004 forward, the National Health Interview Survey stopped including categories for "Married - spouse present," "Married - spouse absent," and "Married - spouse in household unknown." For 2004 forward, MARST draws on information from MARSTCOHAB..

Universe

Availability

• 1963-2018

Weights

• 1963-2018 : PERWEIGHT