The Chemistry between X and Y

In the corporate world, two distinct categories of managers' leadership styles were defined in the 1960s as the X-Y Theories of Douglas McGregor at the MIT Sloan School of Management. Theory X defined autocratic managers, whose directive, even dictatorial styles were based on the belief that workers are lazy by nature, and need to have the manager watch them closely and crack the whip to make them work. Theory Y defined a more democratic, inclusive style, which was more respectful of employees, and assumed that under the right conditions, workers are self-motivated, enjoy their work for its own sake, and intrinsically desire to do a good job.

 Let us understand Theory X and Theory Y in terms of student-teacher relationship.

Consider this scenario:

In an experienced teacher's classroom: It is the first period of the day in a 9th grade English class. The students are subdued (research suggests that adolescent brains do not fully "wake up" until mid-morning). As the class shuffles to their seats, one student shouts out, "Dude! Stop jabbing me in the butt with that pencil!"

There is an outbreak of giggles, and the teacher slams down her books, shouting, "Sam! To the office! Take this and get out of here!" She shoves a paper slip at the student, who loudly tries to explain that his friend, walking behind him with objects protruding from his backpack had unknowingly been bumping him. The teacher is incensed at the interruption as class is just beginning, and berates Sam all the way to the door, where he finally stomps off down the hall.

She turns to the giggling class demanding, "And who's next?" The giggles die down, and as the teacher begins her lesson on Romeo and Juliet, she simply cannot get the class to engage in the discussion.

As the class ends and the students file out, she remarks, "I hate teaching ninth graders. It's like pulling teeth."

An alternative scenario:

Imagine that in the room next door, an identical incident occurs. It is the first period of the day in a 9th grade English class with an equally-experienced English teacher. The students are subdued, their brains not fully awake. As the class shuffles to their seats, one student shouts out, "Dude! Stop jabbing me in the butt with that pencil!"

There is an outbreak of giggles, and the teacher shakes her head trying to hide a smile. She wordlessly motions to the student, Sam, to come up to her, and as he approaches with his loud explanations she whispers, "Sh! Sh! Sam, I can hear you!" He immediately drops his voice to mirror hers, and she lets him go on for a few more seconds as she looks past him to the class, shaking her head at those that obviously want to participate in the fracas.

Then she wordlessly puts up her hand and whispers, "How about you sit down now?"

"Oh," is Sam's response, and he makes his way to his seat.

The teacher says, "Who can tell me what part of Romeo and Juliet involved something a little like what just happened here?" Instead of dissolving into chaos, the class is fully engaged, still giggling, with about half the hands waving. The teacher capitalizes on the unexpected opportunity to engage her class of normally half-awake teenage brains.

The first teacher is an obviously extreme example of Theory X. X-style teachers kill engagement. Their own style triggers a fight-or-flight response in their students. The daily, ordinary silly behaviors of children and adolescents are either escalated into needless confrontation when a student feels put on the spot in front of peers (fight), while other students shut down and withdraw out of fear of embarrassment (flight).

On the other hand the second example is of Theory Y. Theory Y works on the principle of respect of the students. This is how our POM professor Dr. Mandi teaches us the various principles of management and this is how he also taught us the differences between Theory X and Theory Y.