Management styles at work determine employee’s behavior. Douglas McGregor had assumptions on human nature through Theory X and Theory Y. Theory X is more traditional regarding workers' behavior while theory Y is based on scientific research outcomes (Morse and Lorsch, 2017). The components of McGregor's theory X assume that employees dislike work and, in most cases, they will try to avoid it. Theory X still asserts that the employees streamline behavior when coerced, controlled, and threatened by the management. Another assumption is that the employees avoid responsibilities and wait for a formal direction from their leaders. Employees place security above everything and show low ambition and motivation. The theory X managers area strict and use threats to monitor employees for results. Manager’s control, supervise and monitor every move of the employees to keep them on routine. McGregor likened theory X to Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory by asserting that human motivation will go down when under threat or strict supervision.
On the contrary, theory Y encourages growth. Once employees get motivated, it is easy to push the organization to a new level (Thinker, 2015). In this theory, McGregor’s says that employees perceive work naturally. The employee’s commitment to work without pressure encourages creativity. External control and force are not in Theory Y. Additionally, the employees learn to accept, seek and take extra responsibilities. The management in style Y allows employees to be free, innovative, creative and focused on problem solving ( Levin, 2012) . As such, the style boosts confidence and encourages innovativeness in the organization.
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I have worked under managers who use the theory X approach by setting tough rules and forcing them on employees. From experience, this style kills employee’s motivation. In my next teaching job, I worked under a manager who encouraged creativity. He used to appreciate and reward the effort employees had in bringing change to the school through innovation. Our school manager practiced theory Y to promote workers' creativity and encouraged growth in the institution.
In the education industry, managers who embrace theory Y promote a positive attitude in the employees who embrace challenges and work towards finding solutions. Workers take initiative and responsibility for the organizational outcomes whether positive or negative. It is through theory Y style that I regained my confidence in teaching and became more creative. Therefore, theory Y managers in the organization do not act authoritatively but support workers encouraging success.
Both Theory X and Y deliver results but theory Y is a more preferred approach to help workers build confidence in their abilities and enjoy what they do. Theory X has a traditional approach that relies on force to see results. This approach can lead to lack of initiative in workers.
References
Levin, B. (2012). Balance trust and accountability. Phi Delta Kappan , 94 (1), 74-75. https://doi.org/10.1177/003172171209400117
Morse, J. J., & Lorsch, J. W. (2017, May 1). Beyond Theory Y . Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/1970/05/beyond-theory-y#
Thinker. (2015). McGregor: Theory X and Theory Y , 1-5. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780080914602-37
