Why Theory X And Theory Y Are Important for College Students

By Samantha Weller on July 15, 2016

We’ve all been in a position where we were doing a nearly insurmountable amount of work, and either realized we were at a loss and had no idea how to manage the workload, or felt shocked that we were handling it all better than we thought we would.

A few summers ago, I was babysitting four or fives times a week, working in retail part-time at 6 a.m., volunteering, and still managed to find time to do errands, work out, and have time for friends and family.

I quickly realized how challenging my schedule was, and I wasn’t even back at college. Yet, I didn’t feel overwhelmed or stressed, and felt genuinely happy. This is partially due to the fact that I’m part of the generation that is known as Theory Y.

As popularly stated everywhere today in reference to virtually any two contrasting lifestyles, “there are two types of people in the world,” there are two different people in the working world, categorized by Theory X and Theory Y.  These are two contrasting theories that label ideas of why people approach and handle work the way they do.

Theory X refers to those that are less motivated to work, do not naturally organize themselves well, don’t adhere to a schedule easily, and aren’t usually as obedient. These people don’t have as much motivation as they should to meet their goals, or sometimes believe their work will get disregarded, unnoticed, or that it won’t get them anywhere.

While it may seem that Theory X is the less desirable one to possess, realize that it’s rather an insightful chance and it simply means they haven’t found the right appreciation or approach to work yet. Theory X has just as much potential as Theory Y, and some might even have more to offer than meets the eye.

Theory X is said to be more effective in the consistency of work, and also allows employees “to specialize in a particular area,” according to Wikipedia. Thus, since Theory X is affiliated with a more individual, goal-oriented population, their way of handling work can still be utilized in unique ways.

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On the other hand, Theory Y defines those that enjoy working and having a schedule. These people are not necessarily what some people might deem as ‘overachievers,’ they just adjust well to the working aspect and lifestyle society enforces.

People of Theory Y prefer to be productive with their time, while people of Theory X don’t necessarily see free time as means to demonstrate proficiency. As someone of Theory Y, I have my own daily schedule I adhere to, and I feel odd when I don’t follow it. I feel strange and almost at a loss when I have absolutely no work to do job or school wise.

Being accustomed to such life standards, I find different challenges than people of Theory X.  Day by day, I set myself up for challenges from the workload I balance, and enjoy the growth I achieve from doing so.

Why Theory Y and Theory X are Important in College

College is the most promising place for people to figure out whether they adjust to a work-schedule well or not, as we are a lot more independent with ourselves work-wise. It was ultimately the place where I learned the most about my potential and thrill to work, whereas high school barely exposed that diligent side of me, not having as much freedom or as many choices.

Because college is the place that offers these, many discover that they thrive in it, even though the material is harder and requires more responsibilities with it. Those that do thrive should use their self-discovery of their true inner-worker to their advantage throughout college, as well as deciding a career path. This could also be the outcome of us taking more charge of our responsibilities. Nevertheless, we have the option of handling work our way, learn in different ways, and get to make choices on how we advance throughout college.

My whole outlook on life, as well as my skills, were both completely redefined after I learned about these two theories in a college course on leadership. However, I only briefly heard about them in the course, as we had extra time one day and my professor thought it useful to discuss the theories.

Learning about the two theories made me realize a lot more about myself as a student, and opened my mind up to new possibilities with better understandings of how I should change to benefit my college career. Theory X and Theory Y are usually more applicable to the workforce, but in a way it can be just as relevant towards students, whose abilities might be ambiguous at times, but preliminary in determining what kind of worker they are.

However, I wish the education system taught these theories in schools, as they help us realize why we approach work the way we do, and how to take on a different perspective on working if we’re at a loss of how to organize ourselves and work more efficiently. Many people, especially students, feel as though school determines and tests intelligence, when in fact: school actually tests our obedience and ability to work.

Theory Y people might have an easier, and thus, better time in school, whereas people of Theory X usually struggle more in school because they inevitably get distracted easier and have much less ambition to handle the workload. People of Theory Y should recognize their potential and what kind of high-demand job they should use their skills for, while people of Theory X should work on finding out what motivates them to take better charge of their life.

Ultimately, there should be two high schools based on behavior observed in secondary schools. If people already have excellent grades by high school, instead of continuing to be tested on their obedience, they should spend high school finding their strengths and interests, and using their intelligence to find college and future careers.

Those of Theory X should continue to be tested on obedience in new forms, as well as ways that teaches them the importance of it, and go to a high school that trains people how to work based on what works for them. High school may not always be the place where people discover their best abilities — some don’t discover their potential until college. If they still haven’t discovered it there, then they might not be the working type at all. However, this doesn’t mean that they can’t test their abilities and find what works for them.

Now there have been statements that say in employees, no one is 100 percent of either Theory X or Theory Y. Needless to say, everyone has some circumstances or times that change their motivation or diligence every so often, but the fact remains that people will lean more towards one over the other, as the two can’t easily come close to overlapping the other from time to time, given how vastly different they are.

All in all, we should embrace who we are in this way so we can understand how to change and be better prepared for what lies ahead for us in the future, greatly advance the path towards our goals, and as a result be able to envision potentially newer opportunities.

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