Researcher: Most Americans subjected to mass market experimentation

Most Americans at one time or another are subjected to mass-market experimentation, a researcher says.

Marshall Shapo, a professor at the Law School, Northwestern University, says in his newly published book "Experimenting with the Consumer: The Mass Testing of Risky Products on the American Public" that all too often Americans are unwittingly subjected to mass market experimentation.

Innovation through experimentation can and does make our lives better, he says. But even when companies strive to produce products of quality, hidden risks may lie in wait for consumers.

"While most people might think of experimentation as occurring in a laboratory supervised by researchers in white coats, the truth is that as consumers, we are experimental vehicles," Shapo says.

"Researchers continue to discover risks involved with new products even after they hit the market. You have to view new products and processes with a certain degree of healthy skepticism, and that can include even drugs prescribed by your doctor," he says.

The case of Viagra exhibits several features of mass-market experimentation that affect consumers. One reason behind the success of Viagra, for example, is the relatively new phenomenon of direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertising.

Viagra is also an example of how perceptions of risk are affected by cultural changes. With the evolution of sexual culture, the line has blurred between medical need and consumer demand.

It is widely agreed that agencies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) need more resources and independence from the people and industries being regulated. But mixing science and politics can be tricky, Shapo says.

"You've got scientists arguing with each other on the data of risk, scientists arguing with doctors
on what's best for patients and companies arguing with politicians about regulation. Some people even argue that the FDA doesn't let them take enough chances with products they would like to use," he says.

Shapo hopes his book will lead readers to be cautious about the products they choose and press their elected officials for more oversight and regulation of consumer and workplace products.

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