This paper considers psycholinguistic aspects of bilingualism from two perspectives: the psychology of the individual and social psychology. The linguistic development of children is described and research is presented that compares bilingual and monolingual children with respect to cognitive development. The emotional consequences of parents' decision to speak or not to speak their own language with their children after they have arrived in a new country is discussed as well as social factors that influence the levels of proficiency that bilingual speakers attain. The future of bilingualism in Australia is a function of people's attitudes to languages and varieties of language; social identity theory frames the discussion of Australian research on language attitudes. Recommendations focus on encouraging bilingualism at the family and community levels. (JP)