Counterfactual data augmentations may not ensure OOD robustness if performed by a context-guessing machine.
problem Deep learning models lack out-of-distribution robustness due to reliance on spurious features.
method Theoretical analysis and demonstration of counterfactual data augmentations performed by a context-guessing machine.
result Counterfactual data augmentations by a context-guessing machine do not lead to robust OOD classifiers.
This paper tackles confounding biases in data augmentation.
problem Mitigating spurious correlations and confounding variables in training data.
method Formal analysis and counterfactual data augmentation.
result Removing confounding biases leads to invariant features and better generalization.
CoDA augments data with counterfactuals from local causal structures.
problem Improving sample efficiency in RL with complex dynamic processes.
method Local causal models (LCMs) and Counterfactual Data Augmentation (CoDA).
result CoDA significantly improves RL agent performance in locally factored tasks.
CEA augments reinforcement learning by generating counterfactual experiences.
problem Challenges in reinforcement learning, especially out-of-distribution and inefficient exploration.
method CEA uses variational autoencoders to model state transitions and introduces randomness for non-stationarity. It expands learning data through counterfactual inference.
result CEA outperforms SOTA algorithms in diverse environments.
New RL method learns policies from few data using causal models.
problem Limited interaction data and heterogeneous patient responses.
method Exploits structural causal models to model state dynamics and counterfactual reasoning.
result Counterfactual RL algorithms converge to optimal value function.
New model predicts energy prices under different scenarios.
problem Complex causal relationships in energy markets with continuous regime changes.
method Augmented Time Series Structural Causal Models (ATSCM) integrating neural causal discovery.
result Enables novel counterfactual queries in energy markets.
The use of machine learning systems to support decision making in healthcare raises questions as to what extent these systems may introduce or exacerbate disparities in care for historically underrepresented and mistreated groups, due to biases implicitly embedded in observational data in electronic health records. To …
Researchers use human-in-the-loop to create counterfactually augmented data, improving model performance.
problem Creating ML models less reliant on spurious patterns in NLP datasets.
method A human-in-the-loop process to curate counterfactually augmented data (CAD), prohibiting unnecessary edits.
result Models trained on CAD appear to rely less on semantically irrelevant words and generalize better out of domain.
Proposes a new model to identify unknown counterfactual outcomes for continuous variables.
problem Counterfactual inference for continuous outcomes with strong assumptions.
method Curvature Sensitivity Model to relax assumptions and provide informative bounds.
result Demonstrates effectiveness of the Curvature Sensitivity Model in identifying counterfactual outcomes.
Learning representations for counterfactual inference from observational data is of high practical relevance for many domains, such as healthcare, public policy and economics. Counterfactual inference enables one to answer "What if...?" questions, such as "What would be the outcome if we gave this patient treatment $t_…
Proposes a method to improve treatment policies in data-scarce clinical settings.
problem Improving treatment policies in data-scarce clinical settings with unobserved confounding.
method Uses a causal mechanism to model the underlying generative process and augments counterfactual trajectories with source domain priors.
result Significantly improves treatment policy performance in a simulated sepsis treatment task.
In this paper, we study counterfactual fairness in text classification, which asks the question: How would the prediction change if the sensitive attribute referenced in the example were different? Toxicity classifiers demonstrate a counterfactual fairness issue by predicting that "Some people are gay" is toxic while "…
The paper introduces CPICFs for better counterfactual explanations in high-dimensional spaces.
problem Creating useful counterfactual explanations for complex machine learning models.
method Modeling individual knowledge and using conformal prediction intervals to identify informative counterfactuals.
result CPICFs provide more informative counterfactuals by considering individual knowledge and prediction uncertainty.
Work proposes CLAIRE to achieve counterfactual fairness from observational data without causal models.
problem Achieving counterfactual fairness from observational data without prior causal models.
method Proposes CLAIRE, a representation learning framework based on counterfactual data augmentation and an invariant penalty.
result CLAIRE effectively mitigates biases from the sensitive attribute and improves counterfactual fairness and prediction performance.
Study shows refugee matching gains are robust to different evaluation methods.
problem Stability of refugee matching gains under various evaluation methods.
method Used multiple off-policy evaluation methods including IPW and AIPW.
result Impact estimates remain consistent in magnitude and statistically significant.
TSC improves causal effect estimation in panel data.
problem Estimating causal effects in panel data with a single treated unit.
method Targeted synthetic control method that refines initial weights through a one-dimensional targeted update.
result TSC consistently improves estimation accuracy over state-of-the-art SCM baselines.
Estimates individual treatment effects using gradient interpolation and kernel smoothing.
problem Estimating individualized continuous treatment effects in observational data.
method Augment training data with independently sampled treatments and inferred counterfactual outcomes using gradient interpolation and kernel smoothing.
result Our method outperforms state-of-the-art methods on counterfactual estimation error.
Despite alarm over the reliance of machine learning systems on so-called spurious patterns, the term lacks coherent meaning in standard statistical frameworks. However, the language of causality offers clarity: spurious associations are due to confounding (e.g., a common cause), but not direct or indirect causal effect…
δ-CLUE generates diverse explanations for model uncertainty.
problem Lack of constraints in generating explanations for uncertainty estimates.
method Augmenting CLUE approach to provide a set of plausible explanations.
result Returns a set of diverse inputs that yield confident predictions.
Bayesian method estimates QTEs from observational data.
problem Estimating nuanced characteristics of counterfactual distributions.
method Bayesian semiparametric conditional distribution regression model with double balancing score.
result Proposed method provides more accurate QTE estimates than other methods.
RIA method improves OoD generalization for covariate shift.
problem Improving out-of-distribution generalization under covariate shift.
method Adversarial label invariant graph data augmentations for OoD generalization.
result RIA method achieves high accuracy compared to OoD baselines.
We establish a foundation for multivariate counterfactual identification using dynamic optimal transport.
problem Addressing the open question of counterfactual identification for high-dimensional multivariate outcomes from observational data.
method Establish a foundation for multivariate counterfactual identification using continuous-time flows, including non-Markovian settings, with tools from dynamic optimal transport.
result Characterise the conditions under which flow matching yields a unique, monotone, and rank-preserving counterfactual transport map, ensuring consistent inference.
CDVAE estimates treatment effects over time by accounting for unobserved variables.
problem Estimating treatment effects over time in the presence of unobserved confounders.
method Causal Dynamic Variational Autoencoder (CDVAE) that addresses unconfoundedness and unobserved heterogeneity.
result CDVAE outperforms existing methods in estimating Conditional Average Treatment Effects (CATEs).
Counterfactual explanations can be obtained by identifying the smallest change made to a feature vector to qualitatively influence a prediction; for example, from 'loan rejected' to 'awarded' or from 'high risk of cardiovascular disease' to 'low risk'. Previous approaches often emphasized that counterfactuals should be…
CVIB uses information theory to learn counterfactuals from MNAR data without RCTs.
problem Debiasing learning from missing-not-at-random (MNAR) data in recommendation systems.
method CVIB, a variational information bottleneck, separates task-aware mutual information into factual and counterfactual parts.
result CVIB significantly enhances both shallow and deep models in recommendation systems.
New method debiases counterfactual distributions using observational data.
problem Estimating counterfactual distributions under interventions without relying on observational data.
method Flow-matching approach to learn counterfactual distributions from observational data.
result Deconfounding flows outperform existing debiased counterfactual distribution estimators.
Counterfactual evaluation of novel treatment assignment functions (e.g., advertising algorithms and recommender systems) is one of the most crucial causal inference problems for practitioners. Traditionally, randomized controlled trials (A/B tests) are performed to evaluate treatment assignment functions. However, such…
Develops algorithm to make fair decisions from biased data.
problem Ethical concerns in machine learning fairness.
method Fair Learning through Data Preprocessing (FLAP) algorithm.
result Counterfactual fairness equivalent to conditional independence.
The paper connects counterfactual fairness to robust prediction and group fairness using causal context.
problem The challenge of ensuring fairness in AI systems when counterfactuals cannot be directly observed.
method Using causal context to bridge counterfactual fairness, robust prediction, and group fairness.
result Counterfactual fairness is equivalent to group fairness metrics in specific contexts.
ARFs generate plausible counterfactuals for models, improving model understanding.
problem Creating realistic counterfactuals for model analysis.
method Adversarial Random Forests (ARFs) for generating plausible counterfactuals.
result ARFs efficiently generate plausible counterfactuals in a model-agnostic way.
The paper tackles spurious correlations in machine learning models and introduces counterfactual invariance.
problem Spurious correlations in machine learning models that depend on irrelevant parts of input data.
method The paper uses causal inference to stress test models and introduces counterfactual invariance as a formal requirement.
result Counterfactual invariance is a requirement for models to be robust to irrelevant perturbations in input data.
Sayer uses implicit feedback to optimize system policies.
problem Leveraging implicit feedback to improve system policies is difficult due to bias and incompleteness.
method Sayer combines randomized exploration and unbiased counterfactual estimators to evaluate and train new policies using implicit feedback.
result Sayer can accurately evaluate and train new policies that outperform existing ones.
CFRecs uses counterfactual reasoning to improve graph-based recommendations in real estate.
problem Improving model interpretability and actionable insights in graph-based recommender systems.
method A two-stage architecture combining GNN and Graph-VAE to propose minimal yet impactful changes in graph structure and node attributes.
result Demonstrates effectiveness in delivering actionable recommendations for home buyers and sellers.
Proposes a method to generate realistic counterfactuals by learning relationships.
problem Counterfactual explanations often ignore intrinsic relationships between data attributes.
method Uses a variational auto-encoder to learn relationships and perturb the latent space.
result The model preserves relationships and generates realistic counterfactuals.
Develops methods to improve demand counterfactuals from imperfect proxies.
problem Imperfect proxies in demand models lead to biased counterfactuals and invalid inference.
method Practical toolkit for market-level and individual data, requiring minimal computation.
result Improves substitution prediction and counterfactual performance.
This paper introduces DCE for better counterfactual explanations using optimal transport.
problem Lack of nuanced distributional characteristics in existing counterfactual explanations.
method Formulates a chance-constrained optimization problem using optimal transport to derive counterfactual distributions.
result DCE provides deeper insights into decision-making models by aligning counterfactual distributions with factual ones.
This study analyzes counterfactual explanations for student success models.
problem Improving trust in machine learning models for student success prediction.
method Comparison of counterfactual generation methods (WhatIf, Multi-Objective, Nearest Instance) for student success prediction models.
result WhatIf Counterfactual Explanations are more effective for student success prediction models.
MCCE generates realistic counterfactual explanations for tabular data.
problem Creating valid and actionable counterfactual explanations for complex tabular data.
method MCCE models the joint distribution of features and decision using an autoregressive generative model with decision trees. It samples counterfactuals and removes invalid ones.
result MCCE outperforms state-of-the-art methods on various performance metrics and is faster.
DeepBC method computes backtracking counterfactuals in deep causal models.
problem Computing valid counterfactuals in complex causal models.
method DeepBC method using Langevin Monte Carlo or constrained optimization.
result DeepBC provides causally compliant, versatile, and modular counterfactuals.
We define and compute plausible counterfactual explanations using density constraints.
problem Efficiently compute plausible counterfactual explanations for machine learning models.
method Propose and study a formal definition of plausible counterfactual explanations, use density estimators, and introduce convex density constraints.
result Convex density constraints ensure plausible and feasible counterfactual explanations.
RCAV quantifies model sensitivity to semantic concepts, improving interpretability methods.
problem Lack of semantic interpretability in image classification models.
method RCAV calculates concept gradients and ascent steps to assess model sensitivity to semantic concepts.
result RCAV yields more accurate and robust interpretations of model behavior.
Counterfactuals help compare different scenarios in CI and XAI.
problem Comparing how counterfactuals are used in causal inference and explainable AI.
method Formal definition and comparison of counterfactuals in CI and XAI.
result Identified opportunities for cross-fertilization between CI and XAI.
New method warns of counterfactual non-identifiability in DSCMs.
problem Counterfactual inference from observational data is non-identifiable even without unobserved confounding.
method Prove counterfactual identifiability for monotonic generation mechanisms, provide impossibility result for general mechanisms, propose method for estimating worst-case errors.
result Non-identifiability of counterfactual inference from observational data, even in absence of unobserved confounding.
Recent developments in Neural Relation Extraction (NRE) have made significant strides towards Automated Knowledge Base Construction (AKBC). While much attention has been dedicated towards improvements in accuracy, there have been no attempts in the literature to our knowledge to evaluate social biases in NRE systems. W…
Develops methods for finding counterfactual explanations in sequential decision making.
problem Finding counterfactual explanations for sequential decision making processes.
method Formal characterization of sequential actions and states using Markov decision processes and Gumbel-Max structural causal model. Introduces a polynomial time algorithm based on dynamic programming.
result Algorithm finds optimal counterfactual explanations for sequential decision making.
New research challenges the idea that counterfactual explanations should be sparse.
problem Predictive multiplicity leads to multiple models giving almost equal solutions.
method Derive a general upper bound for counterfactual costs under multiplicity and compare sparse vs. data support approaches.
result Data support methods are more robust to multiplicity but have higher counterfactual costs.
New methods create counterfactuals for image regression models.
problem Creating interpretable explanations for regression models in images.
method Two methods using diffusion-based generative models to create counterfactuals.
result Diffusion-based methods produce realistic, semantic, and smooth counterfactuals.
Develops a Causal Transformer for estimating counterfactual outcomes from longitudinal data.
problem Estimating counterfactual outcomes over time from observational data is challenging due to complex, long-range dependencies.
method Combines three transformer subnetworks with separate inputs for time-varying covariates, previous treatments, and previous outcomes into a joint network with in-between cross-attentions. Uses a custom, end-to-end training procedure with a counterfactual domain confusion loss to address confounding bias.
result Achieves superior performance over current baselines in synthetic and real-world datasets.