Introduction
Success in educational institutions is attributed to successful leadership. This entails stressing the importance of group work rather than individual efforts. In this article, Douglas McGregor’s Theory X and Y is addressed as an underlying framework leading to better management of educational institutions in the light of its successful applications in business contexts. When compared to other styles of leadership, this theory represents a breakthrough. Instead of focusing on the task to be fulfilled by weak leaders, human beings represent a main component that should be taken into consideration in the managerial process.
Definition of Douglas McGregor’s theory X and Y:
This theory depends on two main pillars, i.e. X and Y, based on the way of handling the needs of employees. According to Bobic & Davis (2003), in Theory X, employees are considered to be demotivated. So, they need to be instructed by managers. As well, they need to be monitored to get the task done. This theory is based on the traditional concepts of management that used to exist in the twentieth century. This scenario applies to educational institutions, as well.
According to Carson (2005), Theory Y, however, adopts the self-motivated version of employees in educational institutions, e.g. schools, universities…, etc. Here, managers empower employees to fulfill their tasks. Employees are self-controlled. They normally tend to be ambitious. They shoulder the responsibility of generating more creative ideas for improving the performance of the educational organization. Hence, the two theories are opposites. They explain the practices of managers in the light of their visions. It is quite predictable that employees have more tendency to act more positively under the umbrella of Theory Y rather than Theory X. Employees’ engagement becomes a basic part of the managerial process when adopting Theory Y.
Culture of engagement in educational contexts:
If employees in educational institutions, especially teachers, are considered important contributors to the production process, their engagement should be taken seriously. According to Fox et al. (2000), when adopting positive and supportive leadership styles, enjoyment of physical activities increases. This means that supportive leadership affects the engagement of teachers positively. Wiley (2010) lists aspects that make employees believe that their leaders are effective. Praising employees when getting a job done well is one of these aspects. In addition, putting their opinion into consideration when making decisions is crucial to them. Even when making mistakes, they need to feel that they have all the support of their leaders.
The needs of employees and emotional intelligence accelerate the process of engaging them. Team members should have direct professional communication with their leaders. One of the successful leadership styles that can be followed is “Leadership WalkRounds”, in which leaders walk informally within the organization to talk to staff about several issues in the organization and show their support whenever needed.
Deeper implications of the theory in educational contexts:
Theory X and theory Y presented by Douglas McGregor can be used as the basis leading to better understanding and further improvement of motivation in business contexts. Therefore, this implies that the same theories can be applied to educational businesses. This can occur on two levels, i.e. learners’ level and teachers’ level.
The main concern here is the second level, i.e. teachers’ level; namely managerial behavior towards teachers as main contributors to the educational process. This reveals the importance of engaging teachers in the process via granting them a feeling of ownership that leads to their feeling of safety. For motivated teachers, this is rewarding while being inspiring to demotivated ones. As for learners, they can be motivated in the same manner used with teachers when introducing various activities.
Conclusion:
Principles of Douglas McGregor’s Theory X and Y can be beneficial to the educational context in various ways. They foster reliability and interpersonal relationships while highlighting ownership as a main factor for better job satisfaction and security. Meanwhile, it increases productivity.
