Douglas McGregor- Administrative Thinkers

Douglas McGregor

He was a Humanistic Behavioural Organizational Psychiatrist and a Participative Management Theorist. He talked about the relationship between exercise of control and human behaviour. He was very much critical of the classical theories and their use of control or authority in the theories. Subsequently, he developed a humanistic explanation to the exercise of authority or control. This has been discussed through the “Theory X and Theory Y”.

He said that as it is impossible to control the physical nature, it is also impossible to control the human nature. Later on, he said that the prudence lies in adapting to the environment, in the similar manner, the prudence lies in adapting to the human nature.

He firmly believed that the human behaviour within the organization can be predicted. He said that this depends on the extent of control existing in the organization and understanding the assumptions on which the human behaviour is based.

Theory X

It is a type of managerial Philosophy. It depicts a mechanistic or directive managerial philosophy which has been developed by the classical theorists.

Assumptions under this theory

1.      Man by Nature is lazy or indolent, thereby; he does not like to work. Man by nature avoids work as the work appears to be painful.

2.      Man by nature does not like to take responsibility and thereby; he would not like to independent and would like somebody else to take decision and follow it. This naturally leads to another assumption.

3.      Manager is required to take the decision and through the use of Carrot and Stick Policy impose it over his subordinates.

Theory Y

It depicts the humanistic managerial philosophy. Under this, it is believed that:

1.    Man by nature loves work. Work is as pleasurable as play or rest.

2.    Individual by nature would like to remain independent, thereby; the individual like to take responsibility.

3.    Managers should create conducive environment at the job place which should be consistent with the human nature in order to induce the individual towards the work.

McGregor was a votary of the theory Y. The Coercive Control brings about a resistance in the human beings and thereby; undermining of the productivity. But, when there is exercise of self- control, the individual loves to work and integrates with the organizational goal, thereby; maximizing the organizational productivity.

He also discussed the concept of Transactional Influence. This concept refers to a working condition where each individual enjoys trust and confidence of the other. Coercive Control leads to mutual suspicion and unhealthy competition.

Rational Emotive Manager-

McGregor has emphasized on the managers which are required to manipulate the job environment as per the need or the requirement of the individuals or the workers in order to bring about individual growth and organizational development. They are basically Theory Y type Managers. Within the organization, there should be emotional rehabilitation of managers into the organization. The managers should always resist being vulnerable to the irrationalities. It creates Transactional Influence and promotes Theory Y type Managers.

He also discussed the concept of Conflict. He has been reminiscent of the Follet’s discussion on conflict. Conflict refers to difference of opinion and conflict can be beneficial to the organization. He discussed various strategies to manage conflict.

1.      Suppression of Differences

2.      Divide and Rule- The management deliberately creates or promotes an alternative view in order to impose its own view. Both 1 and 2 have been rejected by McGregor.

3.      Working through of Differences- It means considering and confronting conflict and coming out with solutions. This is the preferred strategy for McGregor.

Managerial Cosmology

It holds the key to the organizational reality. He is referring to the Managerial world view and belief system. He is explaining that manager’s beliefs explain his actions. A manager's actions define the individual and organizational behaviour. While recruiting a manager, one should try to understand the manager’s belief system. He has emphasized that more than the hard skill, one should try to understand his soft skills. In the background of contemporary changes in the nature of the organizational members, the theory Y is becoming increasingly relevant because the contemporary organizations are more complex, operating in an increasingly competitive environment and being manned by individuals who are skilled and educated. He also believed that in certain cases, Theory X might be useful.

There is a concept called Scanlon Plan. It refers to an experiment conducted by Fredrick, a close associate of McGregor. This theory discussed the influence of managerial control over the human behaviour. The managerial control induces positive behaviour if it is not based on coercive control.