While I can see the convenience (these kids are right there all the time--perfect study subjects), I can also see the author's point when he finds this sort of creepy and questionable. The original article also talks about how having a child as a participant in a parent's studies can potentially affect the relationship in unforeseen ways.
On the other hand, everything anyone does with a child can potentially affect the relationship; every childhood is sort of one long, mostly undocumented, non-IRB-approved and unrepeatable experiment to determine what kind of person will result from the combination of x genes, y experiences and z environment. Is it that big a deal to toss in some documentation and some specific questions?
I really don't know. I definitely get that it's odd, and I have kind of an "ew, weird" reaction myself to the idea of experimenting on one's children, but as long as the studies are not abusive and you maintain a good relationship otherwise, I don't know if I really think it's bad.
I guess I just imagine these kids' lives, and figure things are probably no weirder for them than for any kid whose parents follow any sort of unorthodox child rearing practices (special diets, home schooling, non-mainstream religious beliefs, pathological hatred of noise-making plastic toys, etc.).
You could even say that all these unorthodox practices are experiments (again, mostly undocumented, not approved by any overseeing body, and unrepeatable), designed to see how effectively one can produce, say, grub-eating, public-school-fearing, gnome-worshipping, noise-abhorring adults by following certain steps. And while I certainly don't agree with everyone's take on food, education, religion or toys, I'm hesitant to condemn their practices, as long as they aren't abusive.
Still, an interesting question.
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