Tree ensembles, such as random forest and boosted trees, are renowned for their high prediction performance, whereas their interpretability is critically limited. In this paper, we propose a post processing method that improves the model interpretability of tree ensembles. After learning a complex tree ensembles in a s…
Shallow trees in ensemble models make models more interpretable and sometimes better.
problem Lack of transparency in high-performing tree ensemble models.
method Developed an interpretation algorithm to convert tree ensembles into functional ANOVA representations. Proposed strategies to enhance interpretability.
result Shallow trees in ensemble models can lead to better generalization performance and improved interpretability.
Multistage Defer Trees improve model accuracy while maintaining interpretability.
problem Balancing model accuracy and interpretability, especially in noisy domains.
method A sequence of sparse decision trees that defer predictions to the next tree or a black box.
result Matches the performance of complex tree-based ensembles while using only one or a few sparse trees.
A new method creates simpler, more interpretable decision trees from complex ensembles.
problem Complex tree ensembles reduce interpretability and control over machine learning models.
method Dynamic-programming based algorithm for finding a minimum-size decision tree.
result Optimal born-again trees are simpler and more interpretable than original ensembles.
The paper connects decision tree interpretability and robustness through separation.
problem Empirical observation of a connection between robustness and interpretability in decision trees.
method Investigation of the connection through decision trees and l∞-perturbation robustness, proving bounds on tree size. result First algorithm with guarantees on robustness, interpretability, and accuracy for decision trees.
Meta-learning interpretable decision trees with synthetic data.
problem Lack of efficient, scalable methods for generating synthetic data for decision tree meta-learning.
method Synthetic generation of near-optimal decision trees using the MetaTree transformer architecture.
result Meta-learning of decision trees achieves performance comparable to real-world data or optimal decision trees, with significant computational cost reduction.
TRUST improves tree models' accuracy while maintaining interpretability.
problem Piecewise-constant regression trees lack in predictive accuracy compared to black-box models.
method Combines Random Forest accuracy with interpretability of shallow trees and sparsity of linear models, using LLMs for explanations.
result TRUST outperforms other interpretable models in predictive accuracy and matches Random Forest's accuracy.
Develops fair feature importance scores for tree-based models to interpret fairness.
problem Ensuring fairness in machine learning models, especially tree-based ones.
method Inspired by decision trees, proposes a novel fair feature importance score based on mean decrease in group bias.
result Valid interpretations of fairness for tree-based ensembles and surrogates of other ML systems.
Tree ensembles, such as random forests and boosted trees, are renowned for their high prediction performance. However, their interpretability is critically limited due to the enormous complexity. In this study, we present a method to make a complex tree ensemble interpretable by simplifying the model. Specifically, we …
Transform ANNs into interpretable decision trees.
problem Lack of interpretability in ANNs.
method Developed two MDT algorithms: EC-DT and Extended C-Net.
result Extended C-Net generates the most compact and effective trees.
We propose to use boosted regression trees as a way to compute human-interpretable solutions to reinforcement learning problems. Boosting combines several regression trees to improve their accuracy without significantly reducing their inherent interpretability. Prior work has focused independently on reinforcement lear…
The paper uses model-based trees to create interpretable surrogate models for complex machine learning models.
problem Interpreting complex machine learning models.
method Using model-based trees to partition feature space and create interpretable models.
result Model-based trees generate optimal surrogate models that balance interpretability and performance.
Ensembles of decision trees perform well on many problems, but are not interpretable. In contrast to existing approaches in interpretability that focus on explaining relationships between features and predictions, we propose an alternative approach to interpret tree ensemble classifiers by surfacing representative poin…
The paper improves decision tree stability for health care applications.
problem Stability of decision trees in health care applications.
method Introducing a new distance metric to determine tree stability and proposing a novel training methodology.
result On average, a 4.6% decrease in predictive power yields a 38% increase in model stability.
Decision trees are ubiquitous in machine learning for their ease of use and interpretability. Yet, these models are not typically employed in reinforcement learning as they cannot be updated online via stochastic gradient descent. We overcome this limitation by allowing for a gradient update over the entire tree that i…
Hidden tree Markov models allow learning distributions for tree structured data while being interpretable as nondeterministic automata. We provide a concise summary of the main approaches in literature, focusing in particular on the causality assumptions introduced by the choice of a specific tree visit direction. We w…
The paper proposes a method for interpretable mixture density estimation using a tree structure.
problem Complex probability distributions in machine learning models.
method Interpretable tree structure for mixture density estimation with fast inference.
result The method achieves both high speed and interpretability for mixture density estimation.
Unified view of improving tree model interpretability and debiasing feature importance.
problem Improving interpretability and debiasing feature importance in tree-based models.
method Demonstrates a common thread among bias correction methods and local explanations for trees.
result Points out a bias in explainable AI for trees algorithms due to inbag data inclusion.
Rectified decision trees improve machine learning interpretability and effectiveness.
problem Combining interpretability and effectiveness in machine learning models.
method Knowledge distillation and modified decision tree splitting criteria.
result Soft labels improve model performance and reduce model size.
Convex polytope trees expand decision trees with interpretable boundaries.
problem High accuracy often requires many nodes in decision trees, reducing interpretability.
method CPT uses logical disjunction of weighted linear decision-makers, geometrically a convex polytope.
result CPT achieves high accuracy with fewer nodes compared to existing methods.
Tree ensembles such as random forests and boosted trees are accurate but difficult to understand, debug and deploy. In this work, we provide the inTrees (interpretable trees) framework that extracts, measures, prunes and selects rules from a tree ensemble, and calculates frequent variable interactions. An rule-based le…
Two algorithms for interpreting and boosting tree-based models using rule covering.
problem Interpreting and boosting tree-based ensemble methods.
method Mathematical programming models constructed from decision tree rules.
result Selects a few rules that closely match the accuracy of the model.
Enhances interpretability of functional survival models.
problem Lack of interpretability in functional survival models limits practical use.
method Introduces novel methods to enhance interpretability of FST and explainability of FRSF.
result Proposed methods yield efficient, easy-to-understand decision trees.
How to obtain a model with good interpretability and performance has always been an important research topic. In this paper, we propose rectified decision trees (ReDT), a knowledge distillation based decision trees rectification with high interpretability, small model size, and empirical soundness. Specifically, we ext…
NSOTree combines neural networks and trees for better survival analysis interpretability.
problem Survival analysis event prediction with interpretability.
method Proposes NSOTree integrating neural networks and trees for better interpretability.
result NSOTree improves both performance and interpretability in survival analysis.
Dynamic Model Tree improves online learning for evolving data streams.
problem Effective and transparent machine learning on data streams is challenging.
method Revisit Model Trees for data stream applications, introducing Dynamic Model Tree.
result Dynamic Model Tree reduces the number of splits and outperforms state-of-the-art models.
The paper studies how neural policies can be interpreted using decision trees.
problem Understanding how machine learning controllers make decisions in complex environments.
method The approach involves disentangled representation using decision trees to interpret neural policies.
result The paper shows that disentanglement of learned neural dynamics improves interpretability.
Deep models have advanced prediction in many domains, but their lack of interpretability remains a key barrier to the adoption in many real world applications. There exists a large body of work aiming to help humans understand these black box functions to varying levels of granularity -- for example, through distillati…
HS improves tree-based models' accuracy and interpretability without changing their structure.
problem Overfitting in tree-based models.
method Hierarchical Shrinkage (HS) post-hoc algorithm that shrinks tree predictions towards ancestor means.
result HS significantly improves predictive performance and interpretability of decision trees and RFs.
FIGS improves prediction performance while maintaining interpretability, especially in medical domains.
problem Lack of interpretability in machine learning models, particularly in high-stakes domains like medicine.
method Generalizes CART algorithm to grow multiple trees in summation, combining logical rules with addition.
result FIGS achieves state-of-the-art prediction performance and derives interpretable clinical decision instruments (CDIs).
Deep neural networks have been proven powerful at processing perceptual data, such as images and audio. However for tabular data, tree-based models are more popular. A nice property of tree-based models is their natural interpretability. In this work, we present Deep Neural Decision Trees (DNDT) -- tree models realised…
Boosted tree method improves MTL in heterogeneous domains.
problem Improving MTL in diverse, domain-specific tasks.
method Two-stage approach: common model for shared features, specific models for task-specific instances.
result Enhanced multi-task learning performance with interpretability.
ForestPrune optimizes tree ensemble pruning for compactness and speed.
problem Large tree ensembles in predictive models consume excessive memory and reduce interpretability.
method Developed a specialized optimization algorithm to efficiently prune tree ensembles by depth layers.
result ForestPrune produces compact, high-performing models that outperform existing post-processing methods.
Models obtained by decision tree induction techniques excel in being interpretable.However, they can be prone to overfitting, which results in a low predictive performance. Ensemble techniques are able to achieve a higher accuracy. However, this comes at a cost of losing interpretability of the resulting model. This ma…
In an attempt to gather a deeper understanding of how convolutional neural networks (CNNs) reason about human-understandable concepts, we present a method to infer labeled concept data from hidden layer activations and interpret the concepts through a shallow decision tree. The decision tree can provide information abo…
New techniques optimize decision trees for interpretable machine learning.
problem Optimizing decision trees for interpretable machine learning.
method General framework for decision tree optimization addressing imbalanced data and continuous variables.
result Proves optimal decision trees for various objectives.
A new method for decision tree selection in recommendation systems.
problem Feature-based selection of a single tree from an ensemble for dynamic interpretation.
method A multi-armed contextual bandit recommendation framework that trains a system on top of Random Forests to identify the most relevant tree.
result The dynamic method outperforms an independent CART tree and is comparable to Random Forest in predictive performance.
Interpretable surrogates of black-box predictors trained on high-dimensional tabular datasets can struggle to generate comprehensible explanations in the presence of correlated variables. We propose a model-agnostic interpretable surrogate that provides global and local explanations of black-box classifiers to address …
A cluster tree provides a highly-interpretable summary of a density function by representing the hierarchy of its high-density clusters. It is estimated using the empirical tree, which is the cluster tree constructed from a density estimator. This paper addresses the basic question of quantifying our uncertainty by ass…
Unified method for local GBDT feature contributions.
problem Need for local model interpretation for GBDT.
method Unified computation mechanism for instance-level feature contributions.
result Unified computation mechanism for GBDT feature contributions.
The paper certifies decision trees against evasion attacks using program analysis.
problem Vulnerability of decision tree models to evasion attacks by maliciously crafted perturbations.
method Transform decision trees into imperative programs for program analysis, leveraging abstract interpretation.
result Soundly verifies security guarantees of decision tree models, yielding minimal false positives.
FIRE extracts interpretable rules from tree ensembles.
problem Building sparse and interpretable rule sets from tree ensembles.
method Optimization-based framework with fusion regularization and sparsity-inducing penalties.
result FIRE outperforms state-of-the-art rule ensemble algorithms.
In this work, we propose a simple but effective method to interpret black-box machine learning models globally. That is, we use a compact binary tree, the interpretation tree, to explicitly represent the most important decision rules that are implicitly contained in the black-box machine learning models. This tree is l…
New framework optimizes classification trees with logistic loss and ℓ1 regularization.
problem Improving interpretability and generalization of classification trees.
method Developed a generalized framework for CTs, incorporating logistic loss and ℓ1 regularization. result Optimal Logistic Tree model outperforms state-of-the-art MIP-based approaches in terms of interpretability and generalization.
GAMI-Tree uses model-based trees to fit low-order fANOVA models.
problem Fitting interpretable fANOVA models with low-order interactions.
method GAMI-Tree uses model-based trees and a new interaction filtering method.
result GAMI-Tree outperforms EBM and GAMI-Net in predictive performance and interpretability.
Simultaneous Latent Budget Trees for stratified classification
problem Classification with stratification factors
method Probabilistic machine learning framework
result Interpretation of latent components and conditional split rule
DTE uses tree leaf means to embed data, balancing accuracy and speed.
problem High variance in decision tree splits and computational inefficiency of ensembles.
method DTE constructs an interpretable feature representation using leaf means of a trained tree.
result DTE strikes a balance between accuracy and computational efficiency, outperforming ensembles.
Random Planted Forest interprets tree-based models by keeping some splits, leading to more interpretable predictions.
problem Estimating the unknown regression function from lower-order interaction terms.
method Modifying the random forest algorithm by keeping certain leaves instead of deleting them, resulting in non-binary trees called planted trees.
result The random planted forest achieves asymptotically optimal convergence rates up to a logarithmic factor when the interaction bound is low.