Definition
Structured induction is a method of applying machine learning in which a model for a task is learned using a representation where some of the components are themselves the outputs of learned models for specified sub-tasks. The idea was inspired by structured programming (Dahl, Dijkstra and Hoare, 1972), in which a complex task is solved by repeated decomposition into simpler sub-tasks that can be easily analyzed and implemented. The approach was first developed by Alen Shapiro (1987) in the context of constructing expert systems by decision tree learning, but in principle it could be applied using other learning methods.
Motivation and Background
Structured induction is designed to solve complex learning tasks for which it is difficult a priori to obtain a set of attributes or features in which it is possible to represent an accurate approximation of the target hypothesis reasonably concisely. In Shapiro’s approach, a hierarchy of decision treesis learned, where in each...
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Bain, M. (2011). Structured Induction. In: Sammut, C., Webb, G.I. (eds) Encyclopedia of Machine Learning. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-30164-8_796
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-30164-8_796
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