No easy exit: Negotiating affects and researcher self‐care in car ride‐alongs

Journal article

This paper explores the affective realities of car ride‐alongs by examining the ways in which researchers might be affected in the process of doing such methods. While there is an ethic of care for research participants, which often emerges from the assumption that participants are vulnerable or can be made vulnerable by participating in research, we consider the implications where researchers might similarly experience situational risks. Drawing from two vignettes of ride‐alongs in Lahore, Pakistan and Singapore, this paper highlights the tenuous atmospheres that can emerge for researchers and the complex directionalities of affect. We therefore advocate for an ethos of self‐care alongside care for participants, and put forth recommendations for managing researcher well‐being in the field, particularly inside the car, during the ride‐along, as well as after the ride‐along. We urge future research avenues to reflect on various researcher vulnerabilities in other contexts and/or mobile methods.

Authors: Liu, YF; Altaf, M; Lee, S

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Wiley
• Journal: Area
• Article number: e70040
• Publication date: 2025-07-29
• Acceptance date: 2025-07-14
• DOI: 10.1111/area.70040
• EISSN: 1475-4762
• ISSN: 0004-0894
• Language: English
• Keywords: car; affect; ride‐along; mobile method; researcher self‐care