Multidimensional Measure of Comfort With Sexuality

Abstract

The Multidimensional Measure of Comfort With Sexuality (MMCS1) is a comprehensive psychometric scale designed to assess an individual’s level of comfort regarding various facets of sexuality. Developed by Philip Tromovitch, the instrument consists of 32 items, each rated on a six-point agreement scale. Crucially, the MMCS1 measures comfort—the ease with which one can engage with sexual topics or behaviors—rather than the acceptance or positive endorsement of those behaviors.

The MMCS1 yields scores across four distinct subscales: Comfort discussing sexuality (TS), Comfort with one’s own sexual life (AP), Comfort with the sexual activities of others (AO), and Comfort with the taboo sexual activities of others (AT). A nine-item short form, the MMCS1-S, was also developed, demonstrating a high correlation (r = .93) and good internal consistency ($alpha$ = .80) with the full scale total score.

Keywords

Sexuality comfort, MMCS1, sexual attitudes, sexuality education, psychometric assessment, college students, sexual activities, taboo sexuality.

Authors

Philip Tromovitch

Purpose

The primary purpose of the MMCS1 is to provide a reliable and multidimensional measure of comfort with sexuality, particularly for use in college-level sexuality education and research settings. The scale was designed to capture nuances in comfort levels that were previously overlooked by simpler measures.

A secondary purpose was to develop a scale where subscale items were relatively position- or context-independent. This robust development process involved using data from three semirandom orderings of items, ensuring that researchers could confidently extract and use individual subscales without compromising the validity of the resulting scores, a common misuse observed in other scaling practices.

Construct

The MMCS1 measures the construct of Comfort with Sexuality, which is explicitly defined as distinct from acceptance of sexuality. It is operationalized across four independent, yet related, dimensions:

• TS (Talking, Sexuality): Measures comfort discussing sexual issues, encompassing both personal and nonpersonal topics (although statistical analysis did not support separating these two discussion types).
• AP (Activities, Personal): Measures comfort regarding one’s own past and present sexual life and activities.
• AO (Activities, Others): Measures comfort interacting with people who engage in a wide variety of sexual activities.
• AT (Activities, Taboo): Measures comfort interacting with people who engage in specific, culturally defined taboo sexual activities (e.g., sibling incest, bestiality).

A total comfort score is calculated by summing the TS, AP, and AO subscales. The AT subscale is typically excluded from the total score calculation because statistical analysis (image analysis) indicated it operates relatively independently of the other three constructs.

Validity

Rigorous procedures were employed to ensure the validity of the MMCS1. For Face and Content Validity, an initial pool of items was reviewed by two separate expert panels. The first panel included professionals with expertise in sexuality education, medicine (MD), and psychological scaling (PhD). The second panel consisted of the author and two other individuals holding PhDs in sexuality.

To establish robust Construct Validity, over 400 factor analyses were performed. These analyses utilized various methods, including principal components analysis, common factor analysis, and image analysis, across multiple rotational techniques (varimax, equamax, promax). Analyses were conducted on the full derivation dataset and various subgroups (e.g., males, females, specific age ranges, race/ethnicity, and different item orderings) to confirm the stability and reproducibility of the factor structure.

The resulting four factors defining the subscales accounted for over 40% of the variance in the 32 items, a value suggesting that the subscales effectively explain response variance related to comfort with sexuality. Further support for construct validity was provided by a final confirmatory analysis using oblique principal components cluster analysis.

Reliability

The internal consistency of the MMCS1 was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha ($alpha$). Overall, the scale demonstrated excellent reliability for the majority of its subscales:

• TS (Talking, Sexuality): $alpha = .89$
• AP (Activities, Personal): $alpha = .84$
• AO (Activities, Others): $alpha = .83$
• AT (Activities, Taboo): $alpha = .62$

While the AT subscale exhibited lower reliability ($alpha = .62$), it was deemed acceptable, although caution is recommended during interpretation due to the small number of items (four) and the constantly shifting definition of what constitutes “taboo.” All 32 items in the MMCS1 showed acceptable item-total correlations, falling within the recommended range of .2 to .8.

Factor Analysis

The MMCS1 development relied heavily on extensive factor analysis (over 400 calculations) to ensure the independence and clarity of the subscale structure. The consistent findings across different methods (principal components, common factor, image analysis) and rotations (varimax, equamax, promax) confirmed that the 32 retained items possess a clear, reproducible four-factor structure.

Image analysis specifically confirmed that the TS, AO, and AP subscales shared common variance, justifying their summation to form a general “comfort with sexuality” total score. Conversely, the AT subscale was found to be statistically independent of these three, supporting its exclusion from the primary total comfort score.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report psychological scale (Multidimensional objective measure)

Format: 6-point Likert scale, ranging from Strongly Disagree (1) to Strongly Agree (6). The full scale (MMCS1) has 32 items; the short form (MMCS1-S) has 9 items.

Language Available: English (Original derivation language)

Population Group: General population, specifically validated for use in educational and research settings focused on sexuality.

Age Group: College-level students (primarily young adults).

Population Details: The scale was developed using a convenience sample of 463 college students, most of whom were recruited from sexuality education classrooms.

Test Methodology: Pen-and-paper or digital administration. Scoring involves calculating the arithmetic mean of responses for each subscale after adjusting for reverse-valence items (scored 6 for Strongly Disagree, decreasing to 1 for Strongly Agree). The full MMCS1 takes approximately 10 minutes to complete.

Keywords

Psychological measurement, MMCS1-S, sexual comfort, scale reliability, sex education, quantitative research, Philip Tromovitch.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source material.

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected]

Correspondence Address: Philip Tromovitch, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, 2-8-30 Konodai, Ichikawa, Chiba, 272-0827, Japan.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The MMCS1 was developed as part of doctoral work completed by Philip Tromovitch in 2000. For full details on the development and use of the instrument, consult the original dissertation. The original PDF can be downloaded here: Tromovitch (2000) Doctoral Dissertation (PDF).

Reference’s

Tromovitch, P. (2000). The Multidimensional Measure of Comfort With Sexuality (MMCS1): The development of a multidimensional objective measure of comfort with sexuality for use in sexuality education and research (Doctoral dissertation, University of Pennsylvania). Dissertation Abstracts International, 61, 2277.

Items of the Multidimensional Measure of Comfort With Sexuality‌

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

For each item please check (✓) the box that best represents your answer.

1. I am completely comfortable knowing and interacting with Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree people whose sexual activities significantly differ from my own.

2. I would be completely comfortable talking to a friend Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree about sexual problems I was having with my lover.

3. I have lived my sex life in a way that is consistent with Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree my moral beliefs.

4. I would be comfortable telling a good friend about sexual Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree experiences I have had which I consider to be out of the norm.

5. Talking about the details of my own sexual experiences Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree would be embarrassing, even with friends.

6. I could be comfortable interacting with a person who I Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree thought might be having a sexual relationship with their sibling.

7. Talking about my personal sexual views is as natural as Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree talking about current events.

8. I enjoy the opportunity to share my personal views Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree about sexuality.

9. My sexual experiences and explorations are a positive, Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree on-going part of who I am.

10. I am comfortable with my sexual activities, both past Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree and present.

11. Having a lot of sexually active bisexual friends would Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree make me feel uncomfortable.

12. I am ashamed of my past sexual conduct. Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree

13. I am comfortable talking about my sexual views, my Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree sexual fantasies, and sexual experiences that I have had.

14. My past sexual experiences and explorations have been Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree very worthwhile.

15. I would be comfortable talking about my sexual fantasies Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree in a small group.

16. It is disturbing for me to think about my past sexual experiences. Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree

17. I would be comfortable having a close friend who was Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree engaging in homosexual activities.

18. I could comfortably interact with an adult who I thought might Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree have had a sexual encounter with a pubescent 12-year-old.

19. I am comfortable talking about my sexual views with Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree people I do not know well.

20. I would never maintain a friendship with someone who Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree engaged in sexual activity with animals.

21. The sexual activities I have engaged in are completely Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree and perfectly natural.

22. I would be repulsed and appalled if a 21-year-old friend Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree told me they recently had oral sex with a 13-year-old.

23. It would not bother me if I knew that a good friend Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree enjoys anal stimulation during masturbation.

24. I am comfortable discussing my sexual fantasies with Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree close friends.

25. I would be perfectly comfortable working with a person who I Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree knew enjoys spanking during sexual activity with their sex partner.

26. A person can be a good friend of mine, even if they Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree enjoy sadomasochism with their sex partners.

27. I can freely discuss sexual topics in a small group of peers. Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree

28. I would find it awkward knowing that a friend’s favorite Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree sexual activity was anal sex.

29. If I had my life to live over, I would relive most of my Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree past sexual experiences.

30. I think it is good for people to experiment with a wide Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree range of sexual practices.

31. Talking to a sexuality researcher about my sexual Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree history would be easy for me.

32. I would continue to accept a 21-year-old friend who I Strongly Disagree D D D D D D Strongly Agree discovered was sexually involved with an elderly person.