The invention provides an active material, an electrode, a lithium secondary battery and a method for manufacture of the active material. The method for manufacturing an active material comprising: a hydrothermal synthesis step of heating under pressure, a mixture containing a lithium source, a vanadium source, a phosphoric acid source, water and a water-soluble polymer having a weight average molecular weight of from 200 to 100,000, wherein the ratio of the total mole number of repeating units of the whole water-soluble polymer to the mole number of the vanadium atoms is from 0.02 to 1.0, to produce a precursor of LiVOPO4 having a [beta]-type crystal structure; and a firing step of heating the precursor of LiVOPO4 having a [beta]-type crystal structure to obtain LiVOPO4 having a [beta]-type crystal structure.