The Beechmont Crest Online Guide to Management Science
THEORY X AND THEORY Y MANAGERS
The influence of social needs on employee motivation was explicitly defined in Douglas McGregor’s 1960 book, The Human Side of Enterprise. McGregor asserted that social needs were just as important to workers as economics. In some cases, moreover, social factors could be the dominant motivational factor.
According to McGregor, workers whose social needs were satisfied on the job would work harder than those who were unsatisfied. McGregor expanded on this theme with the model of the Theory X and Theory Y managers. Theory X managers assume that employees dislike work, avoid responsibility, and must therefore be coerced into pursuing the organization’s goals. They have a Tayloristic view of employees and human nature.
Theory Y managers have a different set of assumptions. They assume that employees take a voluntary, active interest in their work. In this view, employees don’t regard work as a burden that is imposed on them, but as a normal and desirable aspect of human life. If employees perceive that they are rewarded fairly, then they will be motivated to pursue the organization’s goals.
According to McGregor, Theory Y managers also recognize that employees can be the source of valuable insights and innovations. However, most companies are mired in command-and-control, Tayloristic management paradigms. Therefore, they underutilize their employees.
Not surprisingly, McGregor advocated the Theory Y approach to management. After more than a generation of self-help publishing and endless public discussions about “fulfillment” and “self-realization,” McGregor’s ideas may seem to border on the obvious. However, they were quite revolutionary in the conservative world of 1960, that had yet to be changed by the “Me Generation” movement of the 1970s. McGregor’s concept of the Theory Y manager contributed to the development of a more psychologically sophisticated approach to human resources management.