Self-condensing vinyl polymerization was used to produce dendritic polymers with both highly branched structures and numerous reactive groups. A vinyl monomer will undergo self-polymerization if it contains a pendant group that can be transformed into an initialing moiety by the action of an external stimulus. The self-polymerization combines features of a classical vinyl polymerization process with those of a polycondensation because growth is accomplished by the coupling of reactive oligomers. Highly branched, irregular dendritic structures with a multiplicity of reactive functionalities are obtained by polymerization of 3-(1-chloroethyl)-ethenylbenzene.