Using longitudinal data from a national probability sample of persons married in 1980, we attempted to ascertain whether stability in marital quality ratings is due to the dyadic properties of the relationship or to the personality or social factors brought by individuals to marriage. An analysis of marital quality with two successive partners coupled with data on marital quality over time with the same partner suggests that stability in marital quality is due largely to the dyadic perception of the relationship. However, some individuals carry personal traits from one marriage to the next that bear on marital quality.