Harriet Martineau's Sociological Framework Over the past twenty years, sociology has gone through a process of self-evaluation, as researchers and observers in the field express distrust of the empty universalism of speculative systems and look for ways in which to ensure empirical foundations that trigger meaningful application in a pluralistic, postmodern world. The survival of sociology as a critical theoretical discipline is a concern expressed by many, such as contemporary social analyst George Ritzer, who are forging new paths of application that represent a paradigm shift in this classical social legacy. Within the framework of classical sociological theory, numerous sources, including Ritzer, investigate this new world of unified science and empirical foundation. They are moving into the “theoretical park” of speculative philosophical systems in sociology and yet are turning to theoretical applications such as elementaryist, holistic, and interactionist approaches. This technique is used to make classical social theory more meaningful and to better engage the theory with useful research (Sandywell, p. 607). An analysis of the work of 19th-century author and social analyst Harriet Martineau, simultaneously evaluating the Contemporary application of social theory indicates that Martineau was well ahead of her time in this sense. Meanwhile, Rizter and others like him are beginning to reap the benefits of his landmark work in interactionist social theory. Martineau in the early 19th century was therefore the first to offer this interactionist approach to socio-scientific thinking which is not dissimilar to the approach applied in contemporary efforts to engage classical sociology. : A Critique of the Global Credit Card Society." International Journal of Comparative Sociology 38:1 June 1997, 77-82.Cooper, Lawrence, Cary Murphy. Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Chicago: Taylor & Francis, 1996Hutcheon, P. D. Leaving the Cave: Evolutionary Naturalism in Social Scientific Thought Ithaca: Wilfrid Laurier University Press, 1996.Mischel, Walter and Yuichi Shoda 1998. “Reconciling Processing Dynamics.” Valerie Harriet Martineau: The Woman and Her Work 1802-1876 University of Michigan Press,. 1980. Ritzer, George. The McDonaldization of Society: An Inquiry into the Changing Character of Contemporary Social Life, Rev. Ed Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press, 1996.Sandywell, Barry " Sociology 32:3. August 1998, 607-613.