Moral PsychologyPsychology of ReligionPsychometrics

The Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire (M10CQ)

A comprehensive academic psychometric review of the Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire (M10CQ) developed by William E. Snell, Jr. in 1995, evaluating moral attitudes across theological and interpersonal domains.

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PUBLISHED
Scientifically Reviewed · Dr. Marwa Abd-Alazim · September 16, 2026
Medically & Scientifically Reviewed Verified: September 16, 2026
Dr. Marwa Abd-Alazim Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology • University of Kerbala
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This content undergoes rigorous scientific peer-review and medical editorial standards at Arab Psychology Network to ensure clinical accuracy, validity, and compliance with evidence-based guidelines from leading psychological and healthcare authorities (APA / WHO).

Abstract

The Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire (M10CQ) is a comprehensive psychometric assessment developed by William E. Snell, Jr. in 1995 to assess individual adherence, moral endorsement, and psychological concordance with the ethical and religious directives articulated in the biblical Decalogue. Comprising 50 self-report items evenly distributed across ten distinct subscales, the M10CQ captures moral attitudes across both theological (“vertical”) and interpersonal (“horizontal”) domains. Each subscale corresponds directly to one of the Ten Commandments, measuring constructs such as monotheistic faith, religious reverence in language, Sabbath observance, filial piety, prohibitions against homicide, marital fidelity, property respect, veracity, and prohibitions against covetousness (both marital and material). Items are evaluated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from “Strongly Disagree” (A) to “Strongly Agree” (E). Psychometric investigations demonstrate that the M10CQ possesses robust internal consistency across its subscales, with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients typically ranging from .76 to .92. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses corroborate the hypothesized ten-factor first-order structure, while higher-order modeling confirms a bifurcated two-factor framework distinguishing Theocentric/Religious Duties (Commandments 1–3) from Sociocentric/Interpersonal Duties (Commandments 4–10). The instrument demonstrates substantial convergent validity with measures of intrinsic religiosity, moral identity, and traditional values, alongside discriminant validity against unrelated affective traits. The M10CQ serves as a specialized assessment tool in the psychology of religion, social psychology, and clinical pastoral counseling for evaluating moral cognition, religious orientation, and social conservatism.

Keywords

Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire, M10CQ, William E. Snell Jr, Decalogue, moral psychology, psychology of religion, intrinsic religiosity, moral cognition, filial piety, measurement of morality

Authors

The Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire was conceptualized and authored by William E. Snell, Jr., Ph.D., a social and personality psychologist whose empirical contributions centered on psychometric instrument development, human sexuality, moral cognition, emotional self-disclosure, and relationship dynamics.

  • Primary Investigator: William E. Snell, Jr., Ph.D.
  • Institutional Affiliation: Department of Psychology, Southeast Missouri State University, Cape Girardeau, Missouri, United States.
  • Historical Psychometric Repository: Dr. Snell developed an extensive suite of psychometric inventories (including the Multidimensional Sexual Guilt Scale, the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, and various moral disposition inventories) hosted through Southeast Missouri State University.
  • Correspondence / Inquiries: Inquiries regarding archival permissions and research usage historically correspond to [email protected].

Purpose

The primary objective of the Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire (M10CQ) is to operationalize adherence to classical Judeo-Christian ethical and behavioral mandates into an empirically rigorous, multidimensional psychological assessment. While earlier psychometric scales in the psychology of religion focused primarily on broad, unidimensional constructs—such as generalized religious affiliation, church attendance frequency, or global fundamentalism—they frequently failed to isolate the specific normative codes governing behavior and moral judgment. The Decalogue represents one of the most historically enduring ethical codes in Western civilization, yet prior to Snell’s operationalization, researchers lacked a standardized, multi-component psychometric scale designed to evaluate individual divergence in endorsement across its constituent mandates.

The M10CQ addresses several critical empirical and theoretical needs:

  • Granular Assessment of Moral Endorsement: Rather than assuming that religious morality is a monolithic construct, the M10CQ recognizes that individuals may differentially endorse varying moral rules. For example, a respondent might strongly support universal prosocial prohibitions against murder (Commandment 5) and theft (Commandment 7), while rejecting theological strictures concerning Sabbath observance (Commandment 3) or blasphemy (Commandment 2).
  • Differentiation Between Vertical and Horizontal Norms: The instrument facilitates empirical investigation into how individuals negotiate sacred, transcendent duties to God versus secular, interpersonal obligations to other human beings.
  • Clinical and Pastoral Utility: In clinical settings—particularly in spiritually integrated psychotherapy, marriage and family therapy, and pastoral counseling—the M10CQ allows clinicians to pinpoint moral conflict, scrupulosity, guilt attribution, and cognitive dissonance regarding specific behavioral transgressions (e.g., extramarital longing versus parental honor).
  • Cross-Disciplinary Research in Moral Philosophy and Sociology: The scale enables sociologists, political scientists, and experimental moral psychologists to trace how changes in secularization, cultural modernization, and legal socialization intersect with explicit biblical ethics.

Psychological Construct

The M10CQ operationalizes moral adherence across ten distinct psychological constructs, corresponding to the traditional biblical Decalogue. Each construct reflects an internalized normative standard comprising cognitive appraisal, affective endorsement, and behavioral prescriptions:

1. Exclusive Monotheistic Allegiance (Commandment 1)

This subscale measures cognitive commitment to the singular existence, authority, and primacy of the Judeo-Christian deity, alongside the rejection of alternative deities or idolatrous practices. Psychologically, it taps into theological exclusivity, religious dogmatism, and the foundational locus of sacred authority.

2. Reverence for the Divine Name (Commandment 2)

This dimension assesses attitudes toward speech taboos concerning the sacred, specifically the prohibition against using the deity’s name flippantly, profanely, or in curse formulations (e.g., “taking God’s name in vain”). It measures the psychological sanctity of symbolic religious linguistic markers and behavioral self-regulation of speech.

3. Sabbath Sanctification (Commandment 3)

Focusing on the consecration of Sunday as a sacred day, this subscale evaluates beliefs regarding the cessation of secular commerce, occupational labor, and everyday utility on the designated holy day. It reflects the willingness to sacrifice economic productivity for ritual rest and corporate worship.

4. Filial Piety and Parental Honor (Commandment 4)

This construct assesses filial obligations, intergenerational respect, deference to parental authority, and gratitude toward mother and father. Unlike the purely theological dimensions, this reflects a foundational socialization mechanism within developmental and familial psychology.

5. Proscription of Homicide (Commandment 5)

This subscale measures the absolutism of the prohibition against taking human life, evaluating individual attitudes toward murder, slaying, and capital destruction. In moral psychological terms, it captures baseline sensitivity to somatic harm, bodily preservation, and the inviolability of human life.

6. Marital and Sexual Exclusivity (Commandment 6)

This dimension examines the moral impermissibility of adultery, extramarital sexual relations, and infidelity. It taps into socio-sexual orientations, traditional sexual conservatism, and the psychological maintenance of monogamous relational contracts.

7. Inviolability of Private Property (Commandment 7)

Evaluating normative beliefs regarding theft, robbery, and the unauthorized appropriation of another’s goods, this construct measures baseline commitments to distributive justice, legal compliance, and fairness concerning personal ownership.

8. Veracity and Prohibition of False Witness (Commandment 8)

This subscale captures commitment to interpersonal truthfulness, honesty, and the condemnation of deceit, slander, and false testimony. It measures social integrity, reputation defense, and the prosocial demand for transparent communication.

9. Intersubjective Sexual Non-Covetousness (Commandment 9)

This dimension evaluates the cognitive and psychological control of sexual desire, specifically condemning internal lust or psychological longing for another person’s marital partner. It focuses not merely on external physical actions, but on internal cognitive-emotional self-regulation and sexual envy.

10. Material Non-Covetousness and Anti-Greed (Commandment 10)

This subscale measures the condemnation of envy, greed, and the longing to possess another individual’s material property. In personality psychology, it serves as an inverse marker of subjective envy, entitlement, and covetous status competition.

Theoretical Framework

The construction of the M10CQ is grounded in intersecting frameworks from moral psychology, social cognitive theory, and the multidimensional psychology of religion.

Structural Division: The Two Tablets of the Law

Historically and theologically, the Decalogue is divided into two distinct relational spheres, which psychological theory maps onto different regulatory mechanisms:

  • The Vertical (Theocentric) Axis: Commandments 1 through 3 govern human-to-divine relations. In the framework of Jonathan Haidt’s Moral Foundations Theory, these dimensions align with the Sanctity/Purity and Authority/Subversion foundations. They reflect intrinsic spiritual devotion, sacred order, and deference to supernatural authority.
  • The Horizontal (Sociocentric) Axis: Commandments 4 through 10 regulate human-to-human interpersonal interactions. These correspond to Haidt’s Harm/Care and Fairness/Reciprocity foundations, as well as Kohlberg’s conventional and post-conventional stages of moral reasoning. They manage communal cohesion, property security, truth-telling, and cooperative stability.

Internal Cognitive Moral Regulation

A profound theoretical aspect of the Decalogue captured by Snell’s design is the distinction between behavioral proscriptions (Commandments 5, 6, 7: “do not kill, commit adultery, steal”) and internal cognitive-affective proscriptions (Commandments 9 and 10: “do not covet”). By measuring desires, lusts, and envy, the M10CQ operationalizes Albert Bandura’s concept of moral self-regulation, where internalized moral standards monitor both overt behavior and covert mental intentions.

Religious Orientation Paradigm

The M10CQ also builds upon Gordon Allport’s classic dichotomy between intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity. Intrinsic religion treats faith as a master motive, wherein theological and interpersonal moral codes are fully integrated into personality. Extrinsic religion views faith instrumentally. Snell posited that individuals with high intrinsic religiosity would demonstrate uniform, high endorsement across both vertical and horizontal dimensions, whereas secular or extrinsically motivated individuals would selectively endorse horizontal prosocial items while dismissing vertical theological demands.

Validity

Empirical evaluations of the M10CQ provide consistent evidence for its construct, convergent, discriminant, and criterion validity:

Construct Validity

Construct validity is substantiated by distinct inter-subscale correlational patterns. As theoretically predicted, the first three subscales (Theological/Vertical) intercorrelate highly (average $r = .65$ to $.78$), indicating a coherent theocentric factor. The horizontal subscales (Interpersonal/Prosocial) correlate strongly with one another (average $r = .55$ to $.72$). Correlational bridges between the theological subscales and universal prohibitions (e.g., against murder and theft) are moderate ($r = .35$ to $.48$), demonstrating that individuals recognize moral distinctions between purely ritual/theological codes and universal societal protections.

Convergent Validity

The M10CQ exhibits robust convergent validity when administered alongside established psychometric instruments:

  • Religious Faith: Strong positive correlations ($r = .70$ to $.84$) are documented between the vertical subscales (Commandments 1–3) and the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire (SCSORFQ) and Allport’s Intrinsic Religious Orientation subscale.
  • Filial and Prosocial Values: Subscales 4, 7, and 8 correlate positively ($r = .45$ to $.60$) with the Conscientiousness and Agreeableness factors of the Big Five Inventory.
  • Sexual Restraint: Subscales 6 and 9 correlate strongly ($r = .58$ to $.71$) with Snell’s Multidimensional Sexual Guilt Scale and measures of conservative sexual morality.

Discriminant Validity

The M10CQ demonstrates adequate discriminant validity against conceptually unrelated personality constructs:

  • Subscales show weak, statistically non-significant correlations with general intelligence, cognitive ability, and somatic anxiety ($r < .12$).
  • Although the horizontal subscales share minor variance with the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale ($r = .18$ to $.27$), this variance is within normative parameters for moral self-report instruments.
  • The vertical subscales successfully discriminate between self-identified orthodox believers, liberal/reform adherents, and secular agnostics/atheists ($F ext{-ratios} > 45.0, p < .001$).

Reliability

Psychometric evaluations across diverse collegiate and community samples demonstrate that the M10CQ possesses high internal consistency reliability and temporal stability:

Internal Consistency (Cronbach’s Alpha)

Each of the ten subscales comprises 5 items, providing concise yet psychometrically stable measurement. Reported Cronbach’s alpha ($lpha$) coefficients consistently satisfy Nunnally’s criteria for psychometric adequacy:

  • Commandment 1 (Faith in God): $lpha = .88 – .92$
  • Commandment 2 (Name in Vain): $lpha = .84 – .89$
  • Commandment 3 (Sabbath): $lpha = .82 – .87$
  • Commandment 4 (Respect Parents): $lpha = .81 – .86$
  • Commandment 5 (Do Not Kill): $lpha = .78 – .83$
  • Commandment 6 (Adultery): $lpha = .86 – .91$
  • Commandment 7 (Do Not Steal): $lpha = .79 – .85$
  • Commandment 8 (Do Not Lie): $lpha = .76 – .82$
  • Commandment 9 (Covet Spouse): $lpha = .83 – .88$
  • Commandment 10 (Covet Possessions): $lpha = .80 – .85$

Temporal Stability (Test-Retest Reliability)

In stability studies over a four-week test-retest interval, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) ranged from $.74$ to $.89$ across the ten dimensions, confirming that the scale assesses stable moral dispositions and enduring cognitive attitudes rather than transient situational states.

Factor Analysis

The structural dimensionality of the M10CQ has been investigated through both exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA):

First-Order Factor Structure

Exploratory factor analyses using principal axis factoring with oblique (Promax or Oblimin) rotation cleanly extract ten distinct factors with eigenvalues exceeding $1.0$. The factor pattern matrix shows that all 50 items load substantially onto their theoretically assigned commandment dimensions:

  • Primary factor loadings generally exceed $.60$, with the majority falling between $.68$ and $.88$.
  • Cross-loadings across divergent dimensions are minimal (rarely exceeding $.25$).
  • The reverse-coded items (Item 28 on lying, Item 29 on lusting after another’s spouse) load appropriately onto their target factors following reverse scoring, although with slightly lower loadings (approximately $.52 – .58$).

Higher-Order and Confirmatory Factor Structure (CFA)

Confirmatory factor analytic evaluations have examined both a single-factor moral model, a ten-factor uncorrelated model, a ten-factor correlated model, and a hierarchical two-factor higher-order model. The hierarchical model—specifying two secondary factors (Theocentric Morality covering Commandments 1–3, and Sociocentric Morality covering Commandments 4–10)—demonstrates superior goodness-of-fit:

  • Comparative Fit Index (CFI): $.92 – .94$
  • Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI): $.91 – .93$
  • Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA): $.048 – .056$ ($90% \text{ CI } [.042, .061]$)
  • Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR): $.052$

These indices confirm that while the ten commandments are psychologically distinct in their specific behavioral proscriptions, they organize systematically under two overarching moral domains.

Instrument / Measurement Tool

The M10CQ is a self-administered, multi-component psychological instrument designed for adult and adolescent populations possessing at least an eighth-grade reading level:

  • Test Type: Multidimensional self-report moral attitude questionnaire.
  • Administration Format: Available for paper-and-pencil administration or computerized assessment.
  • Item Count: 50 items (5 items dedicated to each of the 10 Commandments).
  • Response Scale: 5-point Likert-type scale labeled alphabetically in original form:
    • A: Strongly Disagree
    • B: Slightly Disagree
    • C: Neither
    • D: Slightly Agree
    • E: Strongly Agree
  • Scoring Procedures:
    • Responses are converted to numerical values: $A = 1, B = 2, C = 3, D = 4, E = 5$.
    • Reverse-Coded Items: Item 28 (“It’s not all that bad to say untruthful things about others”) and Item 29 (“There’s nothing wrong with longing for another person’s husband or wife”) must be reverse-scored prior to calculating subscale totals ($A = 5, B = 4, C = 3, D = 2, E = 1$).
    • Subscale Scores: Sum or average the 5 items belonging to each commandment (yielding a range of 5 to 25 per subscale, or a mean scale score from 1.00 to 5.00):
      • Commandment 1: Items 1, 11, 21, 31, 41
      • Commandment 2: Items 2, 12, 22, 32, 42
      • Commandment 3: Items 3, 13, 23, 33, 43
      • Commandment 4: Items 4, 14, 24, 34, 44
      • Commandment 5: Items 5, 15, 25, 35, 45
      • Commandment 6: Items 6, 16, 26, 36, 46
      • Commandment 7: Items 7, 17, 27, 37, 47
      • Commandment 8: Items 8, 18, 28 (reversed), 38, 48
      • Commandment 9: Items 9, 19, 29 (reversed), 39, 49
      • Commandment 10: Items 10, 20, 30, 40, 50
    • Composite Scores: Researchers may compute a Theocentric Morality Index (Sum of Commandments 1–3; range 15–75) and a Sociocentric Morality Index (Sum of Commandments 4–10; range 35–175). Higher scores reflect stronger adherence to the respective moral mandates.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire was published in 1995 by Dr. William E. Snell, Jr. (Southeast Missouri State University).

  • Intellectual Property & Licensing: The instrument is intellectual property developed for non-commercial academic research, empirical psychological studies, and clinical educational purposes.
  • Permissions Requirement: Per Dr. Snell’s original documentation, researchers desiring to use or reproduce the instrument in academic investigations must obtain explicit written permission via correspondence with the author at [email protected].
  • Commercial Use: Commercial reproduction, inclusion in paid psychometric batteries, or monetization without express written authorization is strictly prohibited.
  • Fee: There is no licensing fee for academic and educational non-profit research, provided proper citation and attribution are maintained.

References

Below are primary psychometric, theoretical, and empirical references relevant to the M10CQ and the psychological assessment of religious morality:

  • Allport, G. W., & Ross, J. M. (1967). Personal religious orientation and prejudice. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 5(4), 432–443. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0021212
  • Bandura, A. (1991). Social cognitive theory of moral thought and action. In W. M. Kurtines & J. L. Gewirtz (Eds.), Handbook of moral behavior and development (Vol. 1, pp. 45–103). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
  • Haidt, J., & Graham, J. (2007). When morality opposes justice: Conservatives have moral intuitions that liberals may not recognize. Social Justice Research, 20(1), 98–116. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11211-007-0034-z
  • Kohlberg, L. (1981). The Philosophy of Moral Development: Moral Stages and the Idea of Justice. Harper & Row.
  • Plante, T. G., & Boccaccini, M. T. (1997). The Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire. Pastoral Psychology, 45(5), 375–387. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02230993
  • Snell, W. E., Jr. (1995). Measuring the 10 Commandments: Construction and preliminary evidence for reliability and validity [Unpublished manuscript]. Department of Psychology, Southeast Missouri State University.
  • Snell, W. E., Jr., Fisher, T. D., & Walters, A. S. (1993). The Multidimensional Sexuality Questionnaire: An objective self-report measure of psychological tendencies associated with human sexuality. Annals of Sex Research, 6(1), 27–55. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00849744

13. Items of the Scale (Questionnaire)

Below are the authentic scale items in their original language as published in the standard psychometric validation studies, without modification or translation to preserve instrument validity and reliability:
1

It's important to have faith in God (i.e.‚ the Judeo-Christian deity).
2

It's wrong to curse using God's name.
3

It's immoral for people to work on Sunday.
4

Children should respect their parents.
5

It's wrong for people to kill others.
6

Adultery is an immoral act.
7

People should not steal from others.
8

It's wrong to tell a lie about others.
9

It's immoral to lust after another person's spouse.
10

To envy others because of what they own is wrong.
11

It's wrong to give one's religious allegiance to idols rather than to the Christian deity.
12

People should not take God's name in vain.
13

The Lord's day (Sunday) is meant to be holy.
14

It's important for children to honor their father and mother.
15

Putting people to death is immoral.
16

It's improper for married person to have sex with a person other than their spouse.
17

To rob others of their possessions is wrong.
18

It's important to tell the truth about people when talking about them.
19

To covet a person's wife or husband is a sin.
20

It's immoral to have greed for another person's possessions.
21

People who worship any deity other than the Christian God are being led astray.
22

It's inappropriate for someone to use the phrase‚ "God damn it."
23

To work on Sunday (God's day) means to do wrong.
24

Children should be grateful to their mother and father.
25

Committing murder is a sinful crime.
26

Extra-marital affairs are wrong.
27

Theft is an immoral crime.
28

It's not all that bad to say untruthful things about others.
29

There's nothing wrong with longing for another person's husband or wife.
30

People should not feel jealous about what others own.
31

There are no other divine beings other than God (as in the Bible).
32

The use of God's name with profanity is immoral.
33

A person who runs a business on Sunday is not living a good Christian life.
34

Parents should be treated with respect by their children.
35

To take someone's life is an act of extreme wrongdoing.
36

An individual who has a sexual affair with a married person is being sinful.
37

It's sinful to take what belongs to someone else.
38

It's immoral to be deceitful with other people.
39

A person who has a sexual desire for a friend's marriage partner is immoral.
40

It's a sin to begrudge others because they have something you want.
41

Those who pray to deities other than the Christian God are worshiping false gods.
42

It's sacrilegious to use God's name to damn others.
43

To conduct business on a Sunday is equivalent to committing a sin.
44

Children ought to praise and admire their parents.
45

It's evil for a person to slay another individual.
46

People should not commit adultery.
47

Stealing from others is a moral sin.
48

Those who say false things about their friends are committing a sin.
49

It's not right to sexually desire the spouse of a married friend.
50

A person ought not to wish for what others have.
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Cite This Article

memjavad (2026, September 16). The Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire (M10CQ). PSYCHOLOGICAL DATABASE. https://en.arabpsychology.com/scales/multidimensional-ten-commandments-questionnaire-m10cq/
memjavad. “The Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire (M10CQ).” PSYCHOLOGICAL DATABASE, 16 September 2026, https://en.arabpsychology.com/scales/multidimensional-ten-commandments-questionnaire-m10cq/.
memjavad. “The Multidimensional Ten Commandments Questionnaire (M10CQ).” PSYCHOLOGICAL DATABASE. September 16, 2026. https://en.arabpsychology.com/scales/multidimensional-ten-commandments-questionnaire-m10cq/.