Theory X and theory Y

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Theory X and theory Y are theories of human motivation created and developed by Douglas McGregor at the MIT Sloan School of Management in the 1960s that have been used in human resource management, organizational behavior, and organizational development. They describe two very different attitudes toward workforce motivation. McGregor felt that companies followed either one or the other approach.

Contents

[hide] 1 Theory X 2 Theory Y 3 Theory X and Theory Y combined 4 McGregor and Maslow's hierarchy 5 Criticisms

6 See also

[edit] Theory X

In this theory, management assumes employees are inherently lazy and will avoid work if they can. Because of this, workers need to be closely supervised and comprehensive systems of controls developed. A hierarchical structure is needed with narrow span of control at each level. According to this theory, employees will show little ambition without an enticing incentive program and will avoid responsibility whenever they can.

The Theory X manager tends to believe that everything must end in blaming someone. He or she thinks all prospective employees are only out for themselves. Usually these managers feel the sole purpose of the employees interest in the job is money. They will blame the person first in most situations, without questioning whether it may be the system, policy, or lack of training that deserves the blame.

Furthermore, Theory X supervisors cannot trust any employee, and they reveal this to their support staff via their communications constantly. A Theory X manager can be said to be an impediment to employee morale and productivity.

Managers that subscribe to Theory X, tend to take a rather pessimistic view of their employees. A Theory X manager believes that his or her employees do not really want to

work, that they would rather avoid responsibility and that it is the manager's job to structure the work and energize the employee. The result of this line of thought is that Theory X managers naturally adopt a more authoritarian style based on the threat of punishment.

One major flaw of this management style is it is much more likely to cause Diseconomies of Scale in large businesses. Theory Y allows a business to expand while making more profit because factory-floor workers have their own responsibilities.

[edit] Theory Y

In this theory management assumes employees may be ambitious, self-motivated, anxious to accept greater responsibility, and exercise self-control, self-direction, autonomy and empowerment. It is believed that employees enjoy their mental and physical work duties. It is also believed that if given the chance employees have the desire to be creative and forward thinking in the workplace. There is a chance for greater productivity by giving employees the freedom to perform at the best of their abilities without being bogged down by rules.

A Theory Y manager believes that, given the right conditions, most people will want to do well at work and that there is a pool of unused creativity in the workforce. They believe that the satisfaction of doing a good job is a strong motivation in and of itself. A Theory Y manager will try to remove the barriers that prevent workers from fully actualizing themselves .

Many people interpret Theory Y as a positive set of assumptions about workers. A close reading of The Human Side of Enterprise reveals that McGregor simply argues for managers to be open to a more positive view of workers and the possibilities that this creates.

[edit] Theory X and Theory Y combined

Per McGregor, Theory X and Y are not different ends of the same continuum. Rather they are two different continuum's in themselves. Thus, if a manager needs to apply Theory Y principles, that does not preclude him from being a part of Theory X.

[edit] McGregor and Maslow's hierarchy

McGregor's work was based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs. He grouped Maslow's hierarchy into "lower order" (Theory X) needs and "higher order" (Theory Y) needs. He suggested that management could use either set of needs to motivate employees.

[edit] Criticisms

Today the theories are seldom used explicitly, largely because the insights they provided have influenced and been incorporated by further generations of management theorists and practitioners. More commonly, workplaces are described as "hard" versus "soft." Taken too literally any such dichotomy including Theory X and Y seem to represent unrealistic extremes. Most employees (and managers) fall somewhere in between these poles. Naturally, McGregor was well aware of the heuristic as opposed to literal way in which such distinctions are useful. Theory X and Theory Y are still important terms in the field of management and motivation. Recent studies have questioned the rigidity of the model, but McGregor's X-Y Theory remains a guiding principle of positive approaches to management, to organizational development, and to improving organizational culture.

Comparison Theory X and Y?

Douglas McGregor, an American social psychologist, proposed his famous Theory X and Theory Y models in his book 'The Human Side Of Enterprise' (1960).  

  Theory X Theory Y

AssumptionsHumans inherently dislike working and

will try to avoid it if they can.

People view work as being as natural as play

and rest. Humans expend the same amount of

physical and mental effort in their work as in

their private lives.

 

Because people dislike work they

have to be coerced or controlled by

management and threatened so they

work hard enough.

Provided people are motivated, they will be

self-directing to the aims of the organization.

Control and punishment are not the only

mechanisms to let people perform.

 Average employees want to be

directed.

Job satisfaction is key to engaging employees

and ensuring their commitment.

  People don't like responsibility.

People learn to accept responsibility and seek

responsibility. Average humans, under the

proper conditions, will not only accept, but

even naturally seek responsibility.

 

Average humans are clear and

unambiguous and want to feel secure

at work.

People are imaginative and creative. Their

ingenuity should be used to solve problems at

work.

ApplicationShop Floor, Mass Manufacturing.

Production workers.

Professional Services, Knowledge Workers.

Managers and Professionals.

Conducive to Large scale efficient operations.Management of Professionals, Participative

Complex Problem Solving.

Management Style

Authoritarian, Hard Management. Participative, Soft Management.

 

McGregor sees Theory Y as the preferable model and management method, however he thought Theory Y was difficult to use in large-scale operations.

 

Theory Z - Ouchi

In 1981, William Ouchi came up with a variant that combined American and Japanese management practices together to form Theory Z, having the following characteristics: long-term employment - collective decision-making - individual responsibility - slow evaluation & promotion - implicit, informal control with explicit, formalized measures - moderately specialized career paths - and a holistic concern for the employee, including family.