Glenn L. Johnson

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Professor Emeritus, and Distinguished Professor
Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics

Degrees:
Ph.D., 1949. University of Chicago
M.S., 1942. Michigan State University
B.S., 1940. University of Illinois

Bio-Info

G.L. Johnson - AAEA Trust Appreciation Club

Professor Emeritus, Glenn L. Johnson, was born in 1918 in Redwood Falls, Minnesota and grew up on farms in Minnesota and Northwestern Illinois. Following Navy Service in World War II, and employment as an agricultural economist statistician in the Bureau of Agricultural Economics of the USDA, he earned a Ph.D. degree from the University of Chicago where his advisors were D. Gale Johnson and T. W. Schultz.

Following service on the faculty of the University of Kentucky from 1949 to 1952, Glenn joined the faculty at Michigan State University where he retired in 1988 having mentored more than 100 M.S. and PhD students. He continued to actively mentor and support many of these former students after they completed their academic programs. Glenn was an excellent teacher and researcher who devoted his creative and intensive efforts to farm management, production economics, managerial theory, research methodology and agricultural development.

In 1959, he was on sabbatical leave for study of philosophic value theory at Cambridge University, England, and served as Simon visiting professor at the University of Manchester. In 1956, he was on leave as a visiting professor at the University of California. In 1955, he was on leave as a consultant in Norway for the Norwegian Institute of Agricultural Economics.

Professor Johnson followed a multidisciplinary approach in evaluating practical problems and policies while questioning and modifying existing theories when appropriate. He drew on the philosophy of science and value theory to challenge the form of extreme empirical positivism which had become the methodology advocated by a number of economists. The literature on sector analysis, investment/disinvestment theory, human and institutional development and managerial theory are only some of the subject matter areas impacted by Glenn’s creative work. A consultant to many national and international institutions, Glenn provided major professional leadership to the Economic Development Institute at the University of Nigeria. His roles as Director of Nigeria’s Rural Development and Korean Agricultural Sector Studies highlighted his numerous involvements in agricultural development. In recent years, Glenn was active in assembling scholars under the title “Science, Religion and Society” nourishing dialogue between scientists, theologians and the public on ethical issues raised by new technologies and their interactions with institutions and power structures.

In summary, Professor Johnson stands a giant in the agricultural economics profession.

Honors: American Farm Economics Association outstanding research in 1952 and 1959; M.S.U. Distinguished Professor Award, 1966; Vice-President American Farm Economic Association, 1962.

Publications: Co-author with L. A. Bradfield of Farm Management Analysis, John Wiley and Sons, 1953. Co-editor of nine books. Contributor of chapters in twenty-four books. Author of numerous bulletins and journal articles.

Students

Student Mentoring

View list of advisees and respective theses/dissertations topics

Teaching Experience

Glenn was an excellent teacher and researcher who devoted his creative and intensive efforts to farm management, production economics, managerial theory, research methodology and agricultural development.

Pubs Online

G.L.Johnson - Selected Bibliography from Schmid book
Selected publications, many downloadable

Notable Docs/Pres

Beyond Agriculture and Economics. 1997. Management, Investment, Policy and Methodology. A. Allan Schmid, editor. (A book organized around four papers presented at a symposium sponsored by MSU’s Department of Agricultural Economics on the occasion of Glenn L. Johnson’s retirement.
An Executive Summary of Social Science Agricultural Agendas and Strategies. 1991. A book produced to challenge rural and basic social scientists and their administrators. By Glenn L. Johnson, et al.
Academia Needs a New Covenant for Serving Agriculture. 1984. by Glenn L. Johnson
Agricultural Technology Until 2030: Prospects, Priorities, & Policies. 1984. Johnson, Glenn L., and Sylvan H. Wittwer. MSU Extension Service Bulletin. Michigan State University
Agro Ethics, Extension, Research and Teaching. 1982. by Glenn L. Johnson. (Note this is a large file for downloading)
What Economists Do About Values. 1972. By Glenn L. Johnsona and Lewis K. Zerby. Monograph Book. Department of Agricultural Economics, Center for Rural Manpower, Michigan State University. (Note, slow download)
The Overproduction Trap in U.S. Agriculture: A Study of Resource Allocation. 1972. By Glenn Johnson and C. Leroy Quance. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press for Resources for the Future, Inc.
End of Tour Report. 1964. MSU Archive. Nigeria Project. by Glenn L. Johnson.
Stress on Production Economics. 1963. by Glenn L. Johnson. Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics,Volume 7, Issue 1.
Decision Making in Farm Management. 1953. By Glenn L. Johnson and Cecil B. Haver. Bulletin - Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station - 593
Farm Management Analysis. 1953.by Lawrence A. Bradford and Glenn L. Johnson

MSU and Related Publication Series Which Professor Johnson Helped Develop at MSU
- Agricultural Sector Analysis and Simulation Projects Publications. 1978.Seoul, Korea. Agricultural Economics and Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, East Lansing, Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Michigan State University [1972].