Addressing the Collaboration Dilemma in Low-Data Federated Learning via Transient Sparsity

Fuente: arXiv
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Auteurs principaux: Xiao, Qiao, Wu, Boqian, Poddubnyy, Andrey, Mocanu, Elena, Nguyen, Phuong H., Pechenizkiy, Mykola, Mocanu, Decebal Constantin
Format: Preprint
Publié: 2025
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author Xiao, Qiao
Wu, Boqian
Poddubnyy, Andrey
Mocanu, Elena
Nguyen, Phuong H.
Pechenizkiy, Mykola
Mocanu, Decebal Constantin
author_facet Xiao, Qiao
Wu, Boqian
Poddubnyy, Andrey
Mocanu, Elena
Nguyen, Phuong H.
Pechenizkiy, Mykola
Mocanu, Decebal Constantin
contents Federated learning (FL) enables collaborative model training across decentralized clients while preserving data privacy, leveraging aggregated updates to build robust global models. However, this training paradigm faces significant challenges due to data heterogeneity and limited local datasets, which often impede effective collaboration. In such scenarios, we identify the Layer-wise Inertia Phenomenon in FL, wherein the middle layers of global model undergo minimal updates after early communication rounds, ultimately limiting the effectiveness of global aggregation. We demonstrate the presence of this phenomenon across a wide range of federated settings, spanning diverse datasets and architectures. To address this issue, we propose LIPS (Layer-wise Inertia Phenomenon with Sparsity), a simple yet effective method that periodically introduces transient sparsity to stimulate meaningful updates and empower global aggregation. Experiments demonstrate that LIPS effectively mitigates layer-wise inertia, enhances aggregation effectiveness, and improves overall performance in various FL scenarios. This work not only deepens the understanding of layer-wise learning dynamics in FL but also paves the way for more effective collaboration strategies in resource-constrained environments. Our code is publicly available at: https://github.com/QiaoXiao7282/LIPS.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2506_00932
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Addressing the Collaboration Dilemma in Low-Data Federated Learning via Transient Sparsity
Xiao, Qiao
Wu, Boqian
Poddubnyy, Andrey
Mocanu, Elena
Nguyen, Phuong H.
Pechenizkiy, Mykola
Mocanu, Decebal Constantin
Machine Learning
Federated learning (FL) enables collaborative model training across decentralized clients while preserving data privacy, leveraging aggregated updates to build robust global models. However, this training paradigm faces significant challenges due to data heterogeneity and limited local datasets, which often impede effective collaboration. In such scenarios, we identify the Layer-wise Inertia Phenomenon in FL, wherein the middle layers of global model undergo minimal updates after early communication rounds, ultimately limiting the effectiveness of global aggregation. We demonstrate the presence of this phenomenon across a wide range of federated settings, spanning diverse datasets and architectures. To address this issue, we propose LIPS (Layer-wise Inertia Phenomenon with Sparsity), a simple yet effective method that periodically introduces transient sparsity to stimulate meaningful updates and empower global aggregation. Experiments demonstrate that LIPS effectively mitigates layer-wise inertia, enhances aggregation effectiveness, and improves overall performance in various FL scenarios. This work not only deepens the understanding of layer-wise learning dynamics in FL but also paves the way for more effective collaboration strategies in resource-constrained environments. Our code is publicly available at: https://github.com/QiaoXiao7282/LIPS.
title Addressing the Collaboration Dilemma in Low-Data Federated Learning via Transient Sparsity
topic Machine Learning
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.00932