Fignting behavior in young children was investigated in a sample of 96 first- and second-grade children from 14 classrooms in two suburban schools. A fight (or "conflict episode") was defined as a sequence of interchanges between two children in which child A attempts to influence child B's behavior, child B resists, and child A persists. Six specific questions addressed in the study concerned possible correlates of a child's rate of participation in dyad fights during free play: that is to say, they related to how high-rate fighters differ from low-rate fighters in terms of number of children fought with, range of behavior exhibited during fights, relative success at fighting, and extent of popularity with peers. Once a week for 10 consecutive weeks, subjects divided into eight same-sex, grade-balanced groups met for 1 hour of free play with various age-appropriate toys. Their behavior was videorecorded and monitored by two graduate students. Dyadic conflict episodes were identified and the nature of the outcome, identity of the winner/loser, behaviors occurring during the course of each fight, and the type of issue fought over were coded. Before and after the playgroup experience, subjects were interviewed to determine the sociometric status of members in each group. Results of a correlational analysis are consistent with the hypotheses that a high level of fighting contributes to unpopularity and that unpopularity may contribute to the tendency to fight. (RH)