Traceable Group-Wise Self-Optimizing Feature Transformation Learning: A
  Dual Optimization Perspective
Meng Xiao Dongjie Wang Min Wu Kunpeng Liu Hui Xiong Yuanchun Zhou Yanjie Fu
Feature transformation aims to reconstruct an effective representation space
by mathematically refining the existing features. It serves as a pivotal
approach to combat the curse of dimensionality, enhance model generalization,
mitigate data sparsity, and extend the applicability of classical models.
Existing research predominantly focuses on domain knowledge-based feature
engineering or learning latent representations. However, these methods, while
insightful, lack full automation and fail to yield a traceable and optimal
representation space. An indispensable question arises: Can we concurrently
address these limitations when reconstructing a feature space for a
machine-learning task? Our initial work took a pioneering step towards this
challenge by introducing a novel self-optimizing framework. This framework
leverages the power of three cascading reinforced agents to automatically
select candidate features and operations for generating improved feature
transformation combinations. Despite the impressive strides made, there was
room for enhancing its effectiveness and generalization capability. In this
extended journal version, we advance our initial work from two distinct yet
interconnected perspectives: 1) We propose a refinement of the original
framework, which integrates a graph-based state representation method to
capture the feature interactions more effectively and develop different
Q-learning strategies to alleviate Q-value overestimation further. 2) We
utilize a new optimization technique (actor-critic) to train the entire
self-optimizing framework in order to accelerate the model convergence and
improve the feature transformation performance. Finally, to validate the
improved effectiveness and generalization capability of our framework, we
perform extensive experiments and conduct comprehensive analyses.