Idea 31: McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y

In The Human Side of Enterprise (1960), McGregor demonstrated that the way in which managers manage depends on the assumptions they make about human behaviour. He famously grouped these assumptions into Theory X and Theory Y.

Theory X: The traditional view of direction and control

  • The average human being has an inherent dislike of work and will avoid it if possible.
  • Because of this dislike of work, most people must be coerced, controlled, directed, and threatened with punishment to get them to give adequate effort toward the achievement of organizational objectives.
  • The average human being prefers to be directed, wishes to avoid responsibility, has relatively little ambition and wants security above ...

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