fr echet regression
DFNN: A Deep Fréchet Neural Network Framework for Learning Metric-Space-Valued Responses
Kim, Kyum, Chen, Yaqing, Dubey, Paromita
Regression with non-Euclidean responses -- e.g., probability distributions, networks, symmetric positive-definite matrices, and compositions -- has become increasingly important in modern applications. In this paper, we propose deep Fréchet neural networks (DFNNs), an end-to-end deep learning framework for predicting non-Euclidean responses -- which are considered as random objects in a metric space -- from Euclidean predictors. Our method leverages the representation-learning power of deep neural networks (DNNs) to the task of approximating conditional Fréchet means of the response given the predictors, the metric-space analogue of conditional expectations, by minimizing a Fréchet risk. The framework is highly flexible, accommodating diverse metrics and high-dimensional predictors. We establish a universal approximation theorem for DFNNs, advancing the state-of-the-art of neural network approximation theory to general metric-space-valued responses without making model assumptions or relying on local smoothing. Empirical studies on synthetic distributional and network-valued responses, as well as a real-world application to predicting employment occupational compositions, demonstrate that DFNNs consistently outperform existing methods.
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End-to-End Deep Learning for Predicting Metric Space-Valued Outputs
Zhou, Yidong, Iao, Su I, Müller, Hans-Georg
Many modern applications involve predicting structured, non-Euclidean outputs such as probability distributions, networks, and symmetric positive-definite matrices. These outputs are naturally modeled as elements of general metric spaces, where classical regression techniques that rely on vector space structure no longer apply. We introduce E2M (End-to-End Metric regression), a deep learning framework for predicting metric space-valued outputs. E2M performs prediction via a weighted Fréchet means over training outputs, where the weights are learned by a neural network conditioned on the input. This construction provides a principled mechanism for geometry-aware prediction that avoids surrogate embeddings and restrictive parametric assumptions, while fully preserving the intrinsic geometry of the output space. We establish theoretical guarantees, including a universal approximation theorem that characterizes the expressive capacity of the model and a convergence analysis of the entropy-regularized training objective. Through extensive simulations involving probability distributions, networks, and symmetric positive-definite matrices, we show that E2M consistently achieves state-of-the-art performance, with its advantages becoming more pronounced at larger sample sizes. Applications to human mortality distributions and New York City taxi networks further demonstrate the flexibility and practical utility of the framework.
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Doubly robust estimation of causal effects for random object outcomes with continuous treatments
Bhattacharjee, Satarupa, Li, Bing, Wu, Xiao, Xue, Lingzhou
Causal inference is central to statistics and scientific discovery, enabling researchers to identify cause-and-effect relationships beyond associations. While traditionally studied within Euclidean spaces, contemporary applications increasingly involve complex, non-Euclidean data structures that reside in abstract metric spaces, known as random objects, such as images, shapes, networks, and distributions. This paper introduces a novel framework for causal inference with continuous treatments applied to non-Euclidean data. To address the challenges posed by the lack of linear structures, we leverage Hilbert space embeddings of the metric spaces to facilitate Fréchet mean estimation and causal effect mapping. Motivated by a study on the impact of exposure to fine particulate matter on age-at-death distributions across U.S. counties, we propose a nonparametric, doubly-debiased causal inference approach for outcomes as random objects with continuous treatments. Our framework can accommodate moderately high-dimensional vector-valued confounders and derive efficient influence functions for estimation to ensure both robustness and interpretability. We establish rigorous asymptotic properties of the cross-fitted estimators and employ conformal inference techniques for counterfactual outcome prediction. Validated through numerical experiments and applied to real-world environmental data, our framework extends causal inference methodologies to complex data structures, broadening its applicability across scientific disciplines.
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