In this article, we explore methodological considerations of using the car as space for ethnographic research on police work. With a socio-material perspective, we are concerned about how the car’s particular materiality and mobility shapes social interaction that takes place within it. We argue that this affects the researcher role, and that the researcher’s spatial position in the car affects the researcher role further. The position’s impact on interaction is made evident when the researcher is ‘riding shotgun’, rather than being placed in the back seat. We argue that this front-seat role comes with increased reciprocity towards the driver/officer, demanding a more (inter) active research practice. Hence, the riding shotgun position potentially increases the empirical input with the closer interaction between the researched and the researcher. More generally, the case illustrates the very delicate considerations of researcher positioning within ethnography on the move.

在本文中，我们探讨了使用汽车作为警察工作人种学研究空间的方法论考虑。从社会物质的角度来看，我们关注汽车的特殊物质性和流动性如何影响其中发生的社会互动。我们认为这会影响研究人员的角色，研究人员在汽车中的空间位置会进一步影响研究人员的角色。当研究人员“骑着猎枪”而不是坐在后座上时，位置对交互的影响就变得很明显。我们认为，这种前座角色伴随着对司机/官员的互惠性增加，需要更多（相互）积极的研究实践。因此，骑猎枪的位置可能会增加经验输入，研究人员和研究人员之间的互动更密切。