The concepts and roles of motivation and attitude in relation to second language learning are examined. Motivation can be characterized as primary or derivative, and intrinsic or extrinsic. Attitude is a motivational factor generated by context. Motivation and attitude play an important role in all situations which are not natural, such as school language instruction. Studies of situations involving two languages in the same area or school have been conducted. Those studies are described which investigated four types of situations: (1) a dialect versus the national language (Italian); (2) a minority language versus the national language; (3) a dialect, the national language, and a foreign language; and (4) Italian as a foreign language in an alien community. The empirical data indicate a social basis of attitude in second language learning and the importance of psychoeducational strategies aimed at developing appropriate attitudes toward the language to be studied. The development of positive attitudes toward the target language and culture is the first step toward bilingualism. (RW)