re: Are kids who take Karate more or less likely to get into a fight?

It could go either way, really. I knew one guy who was a 2nd degree BB at age 18 and nobody ever wanted to fight him just because of the perception. Most of his schoolmates, including me always yearned for the showdown fight between him and one of the billy bad asses of the school but he was really such a well rounded and liked guy that he was always able to avoid that showdown by being polite and offering a hand in friendship to those who might have challenged him. He had the respect of the few guys notorious for being "good" fighters.

I will say that I did see him go Steven Segal on 3 guys in a club in Atlanta 3 years after HS. It was really quite impressive. Looked like Jason Bourne type of crap.

Then, we had several kids who let everybody know they took karate and bragged about it a bit. They always drew the attention of challengers and usually got beat down with a quickness.

In sum, I think it has to do with how a kid views and respects the discipline. Keep it on the down low and don't invite attention to yourself and he will learn a valuable skill that he can use for both physical and mental training his whole life. Or, be a douchebag about it and invite not only arse beatings but ridicule and scorn from his peers.

Just have that talk with him and teach him about the right way to respect the discipline. Help him understand the crap he will bring on himself if he doesn't. Also, I suggest BJJ or even Judo before karate. As mentioned, every fight usually ends up on the ground within a matter of seconds and it's far more advantageous for someone trained to utilize leverage and an arsenal of holds to keep it on the ground.