Theory X and Theory Y

Maslow's work on his Hierarchy of Needs was transferred from psychology to management, where "Douglas McGregor [..] encountered it in 1944 and drew on it in developing his famous Theory X and Theory Y concept" (Bridgman et al., 2019, p. 84).

The basis of the theory is that Theory X managers takes an authoritarian approach, assuming their staff dislike work, are inherently lazy, requiring strict supervision and monitoring; while Theory Y managers are participatory, thinking their people love their work, are self-motivated and will thrive in a supportive, team environment (Daft, 2022).

• Theory X: Staff inherently dislike of work and will avoid it if they can; because staff don’t like work, most need coercion, controlling, directing, or the threat of punishment to make them deliver what the organisation needs; and staff prefer being told, don’t want responsibility, are not ambitious, and seek security more than anything else (Daft, 2022).
• Theory Y: Most staff like working: it’s as normal as rest or play; control and threatening punishment are not necessary to have staff work hard to meet organisational goals; staff can self-manage if they care about the goals they’re working on; most staff, if supported well, will take on, and seek responsibility; most staff are innovative and can problem-solve with imagination, ingenuity, and creativity if asked; and most staff talents “are only partially utilized” (Daft, 2022, p. 140).

This assumption - a philosophy of management, if we will - colours the approaches and decisions these managers take with their staff in a myriad of ways. A Theory X manager will manage staff with high control, low trust approach. They are likely to be more detailed about punctuality, breaks, and following the rules. A Theory Y manager is more likely operate a low control, high trust model. They will be more big picture about making the right product for the customer, and once targets are met, everyone celebrates.

We can find that a Theory X manager might be appropriate for new staff: a "telling" approach like the 1969 Hersey Blanchard life cycle theory of leadership (Blanchard & Hersey, 1996). However, once staff become more experienced, a manager who is between the X and Y types will allow more "participation" and can increase or relax control to suit the employee (Blanchard & Hersey, 1996). Then, once staff are very experienced, a manager can move to a Theory Y style: a "delegating" approach (Blanchard & Hersey, 1996). Perhaps we could think of McGregor's work less like two styles, and more like a continuum in shades of grey.

What I also find interesting is that Douglas McGregor took 16 years to formalise his thoughts from encountering Maslow's work in 1944, to formalising his theory in 1960 (Bridgman et al., 2019; Daft, 2022).

Sam

References:

Bridgman, T., Cummings, S., & Ballard, J. A. (2019). Who Built Maslow’s Pyramid? A History of the Creation of Management Studies’ Most Famous Symbol and Its Implications for Management Education. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 18(1), 81–98. https://doi.org/10.5465/amle.2017.0351

Blanchard, K. H., & Hersey, P. (1996). Great ideas revisited. Training & Development, 50(1), 42-48.

Daft, R. L. (2022). The Leadership Experience (8th ed.). Cengage Learning.

McGregor, D. (1960). The Human Side of Enterprise (1st ed.). McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc.