The relevance of the study is due to the fact that the importance of human social activity, which is considered as a valuable resource for the sustainable innovative development of Russian society, is increasingly recognized in the dynamically changing world. In this context, identifi cation of mechanisms and determinants of socially signifi cant human initiatives requires specifying the sources and root causes of human activity in various spheres of social life. The research purpose is to identify the role of the attributes of a person’s psychological readiness in determining their social activity. The study hypothesizes that the higher the degree of social activity of young people is, the more it is determined by the characteristics of psychological readiness at the levels of emotional response, self-effi cacy and personality traits. Participants: students (N = 206) aged 16 to 25 (M = 20.4 ± 2.43; 68% of females) who are studying in the secondary vocational educational institutions (n = 62), as well as those obtaining their bachelor’s degree in Saratov universities (Saratov State University, Gagarin State Technical University, Vavilov University) (n = 144). Methods (tools): the technique “Assessment of the Person’s Emotional Orientation” (by B. I. Dodonov, verifi cation by N. A. Belskaya) was applied to fi x the parameters of emotional readiness; the General Self- Effi cacy Scale (by R. Schwarzer, M. Yerusalem, adaptation by V. G. Romek) was used to study a person’s readiness to overcome diffi culties; the “PCRS (Personal Change Readiness Survey)” (by A. Rolnik, S. Heather, M. Gold and K. Hull, adapted by N. A. Bazhanova and G. L. Bardier) was used to identify personal characteristics of readiness for accepting changes; the parameters of social activity were studied in the course of a questionnaire survey developed by a team of authors (R. M. Shamionov and co-authors). Results: regardless of the manifestation level of the youth’s social activity, the main predictors of its determination are such characteristics of psychological readiness as the hedonic orientation of a personality and the pronounced courage and entrepreneurship; the pugnacious orientation is a negative predictor of social activity. Main conclusions: regardless of the degree of its manifestation, the social activity of students is largely determined by the emotional characteristics of psychological readiness. Practical signifi cance: the results can be implemented in the development of psychological programs which are aimed at optimizing the personal readiness of young people for socially transformative activities.