McGregor, Douglas (1906–1964)

US social psychologist. He is known for his motivational theory of work and management based on the concept of ‘Theory X’ and ‘Theory Y’ set out in The Human Side of Enterprise 1960.

These two theories describe two different ways that managers view their workforces. Theory X managers assume that humans are naturally lazy, dislike work, and shun responsibility and so have to be coerced through a system of rewards, threats, and punishment to perform their allotted task. Theory Y, however, assumes that people want to work and take on responsibility, and indeed have an innate psychological need to do so. Work and responsibility provide not only financial but also emotional security and self-esteem, thereby satisfying many other higher-order needs than allowed by Theory X. Obviously each has implications for managerial practice across a broad spectrum of organizations.