A special interest group (SIG) is a community within a larger organization with a shared interest in advancing a specific area of knowledge, learning or technology where members cooperate to effect or to produce solutions within their particular field, and may communicate, meet, and organize
conferences. The term was used in 1961 by the
Association for Computing Machinery
The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) is a US-based international learned society for computing. It was founded in 1947 and is the world's largest scientific and educational computing society. The ACM is a non-profit professional membe ...
(ACM), an academic and professional computer society. SIG was later popularized on
CompuServe
CompuServe, Inc. (CompuServe Information Service, Inc., also known by its initialism CIS or later CSi) was an American Internet company that provided the first major commercial online service provider, online service. It opened in 1969 as a times ...
, an early
online service provider, where SIGs were a section of the service devoted to particular interests.
Technical SIGs
The ACM includes many
SIGs, some starting as smaller "Special Interest Committees" and formed the first group in 1961. ACM supports further subdivision within SIGs for more impromptu informal discussion groups at conferences which are called
Birds of a Feather (BoF).
ACM's Special Interest Groups (SIGs) represent major areas of computing, addressing the interests of technical communities that drive innovation. SIGs offer a wealth of conferences, publications and activities focused on specific computing sub-disciplines. They enable members to share expertise, discovery and best practices.
The
Mathematical Association of America
The Mathematical Association of America (MAA) is a professional society that focuses on mathematics accessible at the undergraduate level. Members include university
A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary edu ...
has 14 SIGs ranging from the Arts to the Web (for instruction).
The
Association for Information Science and Technology calls its organizational divisions special interest groups.
Non-technical SIGs
Organizations that are not technical may also have Special Interest Groups, which are normally focused on a mutual interest
[The Community Discovered Special Interest Groups](_blank)
groups for specific interests within an educational organization. or shared characteristic of a subset of members of the organization.
[Friends General Conference Summer Gathering Adult Young Friends Program](_blank)
a young adult-focused SIG in a Quaker organization. An important example for this are
trade unions
A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
. For identity-based advocacy groups, see
identity politics
Identity politics is politics based on a particular identity, such as ethnicity, Race (human categorization), race, nationality, religion, Religious denomination, denomination, gender, sexual orientation, Socioeconomic status, social background ...
. The
Japan Association for Language Teaching has several SIGs. Together they organize a Pan-SIG conference each year.
Mensa International
Mensa International is the largest and oldest high-IQ society in the world. It is a non-profit organization open to people who score at the 98th percentile or higher on a standardised, supervised IQ or other approved intelligence test. Mensa ...
has over a hundred SIGs.
Political interest groups
These interest groups support and
lobby for areas of special need. For example, the
Sierra Club focuses on protecting the environment as well as the wild places on earth. They also promote education on preservation of the environment. Similar
advocacy group
Advocacy groups, also known as lobby groups, interest groups, special interest groups, pressure groups, or public associations, use various forms of advocacy or lobbying to influence public opinion and ultimately public policy. They play an impor ...
s promote their special interests and organize to help them with their issue. These political "entrepreneurs" are the classic view of the policy maker. Such groups need a patron to provide capital and support, so the cause has to be one that many will support, in competition with other causes that similarly seek support. Many of these dominant groups have subgroups that lobby for more specific issues, but assist in the overall cause.
See also
*
Issue advocacy ads
*
Linux User Group
*
Organizational structure
An organizational structure defines how activities such as task allocation, coordination, and supervision are directed toward the achievement of organizational aims.
Organizational structure affects organizational action and provides the found ...
References
{{Reflist, 30em
External links
ACM: Special Interest GroupsMAA: Special Interest Groups
Types of communities