New series of associating polymers were synthesised in order to investigate opposite behaviours of hydrophobically modified water-soluble polymers and thermoresponsive water-soluble polymers carrying LCST stickers. On the basis of a poly(acrylic acid) backbone, amino-terminated poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), poly(ethylene oxide-co-propylene oxide) and/or dodecyl chains were grafted following a reaction of condensation activated by carbodiimide. Two homologous series of well-defined single grafted and double grafted copolymers were obtained, with double grafted chains containing both C12 and LCST grafts. The dilute solution properties of these copolymers were carefully studied by capillary viscometry. At low salt concentration and below the LCST of the grafts, the swelling properties of macromolecular chains are controlled either by intramolecular associations between hydrophobes, excluded volume effect exerted by hydrophilic grafts or by a balance between these opposite interactions. The deswelling of macromolecular chains, induced by hydrophobic interactions, is amplified at higher ionic strength and more particularly above the transition temperature of the side chains. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.