Generally, theory x style managers believe their employees are. According to mcgregor, the function of motivating people involves certain assumptions about human nature. Theory x and theory y of management represent two fundamental approaches to employee engagement. Therefore, managers must direct employees, control them through close supervision, and coerce. Theory x, theory y, and theory z introduction to business. Douglas mcgregors theory x and theory y of motivation. Comparative analysis of theory x, theory y, theory z, and. In contrast to the principles of conventional management mentioned as theory x, the advocated theory y illuminated a cluster of new or redefined concepts such as selffulfilling prophecy and responsibility. May 05, 2018 so, xtheory may say to be a negative and pessimistic one and ytheory may say to be positive and optimistic.
Theory x and theory y, introduced in the book and are known for management and human motivation. The relationship between mcgregors xy theory management. Douglas mcgregor has developed a theory of motivation of the basis of hypotheses relating to human behaviour. If theoryy holds, an organization can apply these principles of scientific management to improve employee motivation. I knew instinctively that mcgregors assessment of the traditional view management, which he names theory x, was true because i had worked in x environments for years, trying to run y. Theory x and theory y assumptions, merits and demerits. The idea that a managers attitude has an impact on employee motivation was originally proposed by douglas mcgregor, a management professor at the massachusetts institute of technology during the 1950s and 1960s. In this article, we are going to talk about the major differences between theory x and theory y. This theory was developed by douglas mcgregor in 1950s at mit.
Management style and controlin a theory x organization, management is authoritarian, and centralized control is retained, while in theory y, the management style involves employees in decision making, but retains power to implement decisions. These theories are based on the premise that management has to assemble all the factors of production, including human beings, to get the work done. They were created by douglas mcgregor while he was working at the mit sloan school of management in the 1950s, and developed further in the 1960s. A theorist who argued two sets of assumptions theory x and theory y pdf free download ebook, handbook, textbook, user guide pdf files on the internet quickly and easily. Douglas mcgregor believed that there were two types of managers. Theory x is based on the assumption that the average person has an inherent dislike of work physical and mental effort, does not want responsibility, and lacks ambition. In 1960, douglas mcgregor developed a leadership theory mcgregor theory x and theory y about organization and management in which he represented two opposing perceptions about people.
In 1960, douglas mcgregor formulated theory x and theory y suggesting two aspects of human behaviour at work, or in other words, two different views of individuals employees. Theory x and theory y framework proposed by mcgregor in his classic book the human side of enterprise 1960 consists of two alternative set of assumptions. The hard approach relies on coercion, implicit threats, close supervision, and tight controls, essentially an environment of command and control. Since their style of directing is encouraging, it only becomes a problem when its noticeably disingenuous or ineffective with the team as a whole. In actual practice, most managers today practice a combination of theory x and theory y styles of management.
Many managers tend towards theory x, and generally get poor results. The theory x and theory y are the theories of motivation given by douglas mcgregor in 1960s. Mar 21, 20 theory x and theory y framework proposed by mcgregor in his classic book the human side of enterprise 1960 consists of two alternative set of assumptions. Mcgregors ideas suggest that there are two fundamental approaches to managing people. Management involves employees in decision making, but retains. Theory x and y were created and developed by douglas mcgregor at the mit sloan school of management in the 1960s 2. Comparative analysis of theory x, theory y, theory z, and theory. Many theorists support that mcgregors theory considers the field of management from a new angle, indicating a strong influential value. However, he found that an organisation driven solely by theory y could not succeed, as some sense of. Theory y management style is suited to knowledge work and professional services. The influence of theory x and y management style on the perception of ethical behavior in organizations. Differences between theory x and theory y difference between. Douglas mcgregor is the one who constructed theory x and y in the 1960s. These are two opposing perceptions about how people view human behaviour at work and organisational life.
To start off with, heres a brief definition of mcgregors theory x and theory y. Theory x and theory y are part of motivational theories. You might, for instance, have a tendency to micromanage or, conversely, you may prefer to take a more handsoff approach. Theory y management style supposes that people in the work force are internally motivated, enjoy their labor in the company, and work to better themselves without a direct reward in return. Jan 28, 2017 douglas mcgregor introduced two theories called as theory x and theory y based on the distinct views of human beings. Mcgregors theoryx and theoryy what is human resource. Theory x management style generally get poor results compare with managers use theory y, which produces better performance and results, and allows people to grow and develop. You may, however, find that you naturally favor one over the other. Management assumes employees may be ambitious and selfmotivatedand exercise selfcontrol.
Theory y put forward the idea that management by objectives and involving workers in the decisionmaking process would lead to the creation of a satisfied and more productive workforce. Theory x the theory leads to mistrust, highly restrictive supervision, a punitive atmosphere, threat and coercion to gain employees compliance theory x managers feel the sole purpose of the employees interest in the job is money they will blame the person, without questioning whether it may be the system. Mcgregor promoted theory y as the basis of good management practice, pioneering the argument that workers are not merely cogs in the company machinery, as theory x type organizations seemed to believe. Mcgregors theoryx and theoryy human resource management.
Theory x and theory y published in the sage encyclopedia of management theories. Theory x and theory y type leadership behavior and its impact. Both the theories, which are very different from each other, are used by managers to motivate their employees. He was a strong supporter of theories x and y, and he put theory y that people want to work, achieve and take responsibility into practice in a californian electronics factory. Theory x and y were created and developed by douglas mcgregor in the 1960s. Theory x gives importance to supervision, while theory y stresses on rewards and recognition. Theory y maintains that human beings are active rather than passive shapers of themselves and of their. Most managers will likely use a mixture of theory x and theory y. It also suggests, by being a precursor to x and y in the alphabet, that we are talking about a theory. Motivation, theory x and y, classroom, management manager and organisation introduction douglas mcgregor, an american social psychologist, proposed his famous theory x and y in his book the human side of enterprise in 1960. Mcgregors theory x and theory y are theories about human behavior and motivation in the organization that was published in 1960 by douglas mcgregor.
Douglas mcgregor 1906 1964 was a lecturer at harvard university and became the first sloan fellows professor at mit his theory x and theory y was detailed in the human side of enterprise, published in 1960. The expenditure of physical and mental effort in work is as natural as play o restr. Theory x and theory y represents a dichotomous view of leadershipworker relations. Theory x and theory y are still referred to commonly in the field of management and motivation, and whilst more recent studies have questioned the rigidity of the model, mcgregors x y theory remains a valid basic principle from which to develop positive management style and techniques. Under theory x, management approaches can range from a hard approach to a soft approach. This theory leads to a conclusion of authoritarian management where employees need to be actively directed in their tasks and require significant supervision. External control threas an odft th punishmene t are not the only means for bringin abou effortg t toward organizational objectives. The theories attempt to show how a managers perception of his team affects the. It became very popular in the field of hr and it was a model that helped shift management from the negative paradigm to a positive spin. Social psychologist mcgregors theoryx and theoryyof mit expounded two contrasting theories on human motivation and management in the 1960s. It follows the same algebraicunknown nomenclature scheme of theory x and theory y that suggests that well never really know the whole answer. Theory x and theory y to pick the best management style.
Application of theory x and y in classroom management by. Developed in the 1960s by douglas mcgregor in his book, the human side of enterprise, theory x and theory y allocate the job of management into two styles. Theory y assumes that people are selfmotivated, and thrive on responsibility. I would like to apply the same theories in education describing teacherx and teachery. Critically evaluate mcgregors theroy x and theory y.
Leaders know best, and should closely direct actions taken by staff, with little room for independence and responsibility. Theory x and theory y are still referred to regularly in the fields of management and. Leadership style and organizational performance have been researched extensively. Theory y is based on a faulty conception of human nature. In theory xtype organization, management is authoritarian, and centralized control is maintained. This refers to an authoritarian management style, where reward and punishment is seen as the best way to motivate employees to meet objectives. Both theories x and y are proposed by mcgregor which describe the workforce models which are contrasting in nature and which are used by reporting managers in organizational behaviour and human resources at a typical workplace. Jul 08, 2017 on the other extreme, theory y is diametrically opposite to theory x which shows the modern and dynamic approach to individuals and relies on the assumptions that are practical in nature. Much more difficult to receive, from a feedback perspective, is a strictly theory x approach. Theoryx and theoryy management applicationbusiness implications for workforce motivation. Theory x assumes that employees are naturally motivated and dislike working 20. Professor douglas mcgregor highlighted that there is a significant relationship between motivation and leadership among people. Theory x and theory y were developed in the 1960s and describe two different, almost opposite, attitudes to motivation in the workplace.
Theory x says that the average human being is lazy and selfcentred, lacks ambition, dislikes change, and longs to. Merits i theory x and theory y are a good guide to management, to not only developing motivational techniques. Theory x and theory y are considered as theories of human motivation at the workplace. Mcgregor developed a philosophical view of humankind with his theory x and theory y in 1960.
Theory x percieves employees to be lazy, irresponsible and untrustworthy, while according to theory y employees are approached as one of the most valuable assets of the company. Theory x and theory y are theories of human work motivation and management. Social psychologist mcgregors theoryx and theory yof mit expounded two contrasting theories on human motivation and management in the 1960s. Theory w is a nice name for the theory of talent management i am starting to make up. And, just like your algebra class, x and y dont work totally independently, although you can manage in a style that is mostly a theory x or theory y management style. While, theory y considers that people are selfmotivated, and sportingly take responsibilities.
However, the literature has a limited number of studies concerning organizational performance of small and medium businesses, even less research on the impact on organizational performance of theory x and theory y type leadership styles. Motivation theory x and theory y free management books. He summarized the findings of the hawthorn experiment by introducing both theory x and theory y. Management style and control in a theory x organization, management is authoritarian, and centralized control is retained, whilst in theory y, the management style is participative. It isnt as simple as just saying that either theory x or theory y is the right theory. Feedback from a theory x and theory y perspective design shack. So, x theory may say to be a negative and pessimistic one and y theory may say to be positive and optimistic. We should emphasize that we have labeled these assumptions as a step beyond theory y because of mcgregors own recognition that the theory y assumptions would probably be supplanted by new. Kopelman and others published theory x and theory y published in the sage encyclopedia of management theories find, read and cite all the research you need on. Theory x and theory y definition theory x and theory y, developed by mit management professor douglas murray mcgregor, are theories of human motivation that provide a framework for how managers use behaviours and tools in the workplace to encourage productivity. These people are generally uncomfortable in x theory situations and are unlikely to be productive, especially longterm, and are likely to seek alternative situations. While mcgregors theory y model has been widely adopted in management literature as the preferred model, theory x management still persists in practice. Mcgregor considered theory x and theory y as two perspectives of administration action. First, there has been a failure to distinguish between theory x y attitudes and theory x y behaviors.
However, he found that an organisation driven solely by theory y could not succeed, as some sense of direction and structure was required. Either theory x or theory y assumptions may be appropriate in a particular situation. Theory xy douglas mcgregor and theory z william ouichi. According to mcgregor, the perception of managers on the nature of individuals. In his 1960 book, the human side of enterprise, mcgregor proposed two theories by which managers perceive and address employee motivation. The role of the theory x manager is to coerce and control employees to work towards organizational goals. Mcgregor promoted theory y as the basis of good management practice, pioneering the argument that workers are not merely cogs in the company machinery, as theory xtype organizations seemed to believe. Theory x and theory y according to mcgregor 1969, theory x and theory y explain describe the differences in management styles and the behavior of leadership. The xy theory diagram and measurement tool below pdf and doc versions are. Organizational behaviour in the context of people management consists of several theories in which theory x, theory y, theory z are the newly introduced. Difference between theory x and theory y with comparison. Mcgregors work was rooted in motivation theory alongside the works of abraham maslow, who created the hierarchy of needs.
Theory x and y created by mcgregor has been a valid basic principle from which to develop positive management style and techniques. The three prior studies that have made this distinction were recently conducted solely to develop constructvalid measures of both. Theory xy douglas mcgregor and theory z william ouichi theory x an authoritarian style of management the average worker dislikes work. Sep 02, 2015 application theory x management style is widely accepted as inferior to others, it has its place in large scale production operation and unskilled production line work. There are two alternative sets of assumptions which mcgregor has described.
The climate in a theory x organisation tends to be impersonal and the theory suggests carrot and stick approach to motivation. On the other extreme, theory y is diametrically opposite to theory x which shows the modern and dynamic approach to individuals and relies on the assumptions that are practical in nature. Theory y principles to encourage knowledge sharing and continuous improvement. Theory x considers that people dislike work, they want to avoid it and do not take responsibilities willingly. This article describes the theory x and theory y of douglas mcgregor. Many years ago a professor named mcgregor dubbed these perspectives theory x and theory y. It is believed that employees enjoy their work as natural as play and rest. Douglas mcgregor 19061964 developed a philosophical view of humankind with his theory x and theory y. Theory x management style generally get poor results compare with managers use theory y, which produces better performance and results, and allows people to. Theory into practice abraham maslow viewed mcgregor as a mentor. In the 1960s, douglas mcgregor from mit came up with the theoryx and theoryy to describe styles of managers. His work is based upon maslows hierarchy of needs, where he grouped the hiera. An exploratory study of the relationships between theory x.
One psychologist, douglas mcgregor, categorized peoples motivations into two broad categories. Managers generally have one of two perspectives regarding their employees. In contrast to theory x, or the conventional approach to management, mcgregor. Theory x says that the average human being is lazy and self. He assumed that the leaders in organization have diverse views on the skills and motivation of the members of organization. Management theorist douglas mcgregor coined these terms to describe two fundamentally different approaches to managing people. Therefore most people must be motivated by forcedbribed with the threat of punishment or a reward to produce effort and work towards organizational objectives.
These people are generally uncomfortable in xtheory situations and are unlikely to be productive, especially longterm, and are likely to seek alternative situations. Pdf construct validation of a theory xy behavior scale. After reading you will understand the background and the practical basics of these leadership styles what is theory x and theory y. Theory y theory y managers role is to develop the potential in employees and help them to release that potential towards common goals. Theory y managers are obviously the easiest to handle. Mcgregors xy theory is a natural rule for managing people.
This theory divides workers and managers in the organization in two typical groups according to how managers lead their subordinates and respectively how subordinates behave. People have an inherent dislike for work and will avoid it whenever. Features of mcgregors theory x and theory y of motivation. In the 1960s, douglas murray mcgregor, a famous mit professor of management wrote a book named the human side of enterprise in which he analyzed the various behaviors of professionals at work. You may be theory n 65 theory y, on the other operate hand fro,s m opposite premises. X and consider using the techniques suggested by theory y. Mcgregor recognised certain needs that theory x fails to take into account. He has given two pairs of assumptions about human beings which were implied by the actions of managers in the organization. Theory x and theory y team management training from. A theorist who argued two sets of assumptions theory x and. If theory y holds, an organization can apply these principles of scientific management to improve employee motivation.
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