Aim In this study, the aim was to conduct an empirical study of the nature of defence mechanisms in a group of subjects with schizophrenia. Methods Forty-four clinically stable, medicated subjects with schizophrenia completed the Response Evaluation Measure (REM-71), a self-report measure used to assess defence mechanisms, and were rated with the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) to assess severity of psychopathology. Responses on the REM-71 were compared with 136 age and gender-matched control subjects. Results Subjects with schizophrenia were signifi cantly more likely to endorse the use of immature but not mature defence mechanisms when compared with control subjects (p < 0.001). There was no relationship between responses on the REM-71 and the BPRS. Test-retest reliability of the REM-71 was supported by fi ndings that responses by subjects with schizophrenia were unchanged when reassessed after a two-week time interval. Conclusions Clinically stable subjects with schizophrenia are found to endorse the use of immature defence mechanisms that have been found to have associations with negative outcomes, including in the area of mood, self-effi cacy and quality of life. Defence style may be an important mediator of psychosocial outcomes, and knowledge of specifi c defence patterns may have important clinical implications for both prognosis and treatment.