Boosting Multi-Label Classification Performance Through Meta-Model
Abstract
Multi-label classification problem, where each instance can be associated with multiple labels, has received considerable attention from machine learning community. To address the inherent challenges of multi-label classification including data imbalance, label dependence, and high dimensionality, ensemble approaches have been developed, gaining popularity across various real-world applications. This paper proposes a novel ensemble method called ConfBoost that addresses these challenges and enhances the generalization ability of learning systems. ConfBoost which is a meta-model based on a weighted stacking paradigm using local confidence, combines heterogeneous and complementary ensembles of multi-label classifiers. The proposed approach achieves two main objectives: Firstly, by focusing on label weights based on their confidence scores, the model can generate more relevant predictions and enhance the accuracy at the base-level by mitigating the impact of irrelevant labels during the stacking process. Moreover, assigning higher weights to certain labels exhibits better discrimination and adaptability to capture complex label relationships. Second, applying adjusted thresholds enables the model to generate predictions adapted to the specific characteristics of each label, effectively addressing imbalanced label distributions. Extensive experiments on publicly available datasets demonstrate that ConfBoost outperforms conventional combination methods and consistently surpasses related state-of-the-art methods. These findings highlight the effectiveness and potential of ConfBoost as an advanced ensemble method for multi-label classification tasks.
