The psychometric properties of the French version of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) were studied in a population of 85 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia in accordance with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III-R) criteria. The results of the study of the properties (internal consistency and principal-component analysis) of the initial structure with 3 scales (positive, negative, and general psychopathology) led us to investigate other factorial structures. We thus isolated a 5-factor structure (negative, hostility, positive, disorganization, and anxiety), explaining 54.7% of the total variance. The internal consistency of the 5 factors isolated was good (0.79, negative factor; 0.71, hostility factor; 0.77, positive factor; 0.66, disorganization factor; and 0.61, anxiety factor). The 3-subscale structure of the PANSS is discussed.