Authors
Xun Zhao, Yanhong Wu, Dik Lun Lee, Weiwei Cui
Publication date
2019/1
Journal
IEEE transactions on visualization and computer graphics
Volume
25
Issue
1
Pages
407-416
Publisher
IEEE
Description
As an ensemble model that consists of many independent decision trees, random forests generate predictions by feeding the input to internal trees and summarizing their outputs. The ensemble nature of the model helps random forests outperform any individual decision tree. However, it also leads to a poor model interpretability, which significantly hinders the model from being used in fields that require transparent and explainable predictions, such as medical diagnosis and financial fraud detection. The interpretation challenges stem from the variety and complexity of the contained decision trees. Each decision tree has its unique structure and properties, such as the features used in the tree and the feature threshold in each tree node. Thus, a data input may lead to a variety of decision paths. To understand how a final prediction is achieved, it is desired to understand and compare all decision paths in the context …
Total citations
201920202021202220232024132644403621
Scholar articles
X Zhao, Y Wu, DL Lee, W Cui - IEEE transactions on visualization and computer …, 2018