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Main Authors: Arad, Alon, Rosset, Saharon
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.09054
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author Arad, Alon
Rosset, Saharon
author_facet Arad, Alon
Rosset, Saharon
contents Accurate and reliable probability predictions are essential for multi-class supervised learning tasks, where well-calibrated models enable rational decision-making. While isotonic regression has proven effective for binary calibration, its extension to multi-class problems via one-vs-rest calibration produced suboptimal results when compared to parametric methods, limiting its practical adoption. In this work, we propose novel isotonic normalization-aware techniques for multiclass calibration, grounded in natural and intuitive assumptions expected by practitioners. Unlike prior approaches, our methods inherently account for probability normalization by either incorporating normalization directly into the optimization process (NA-FIR) or modeling the problem as a cumulative bivariate isotonic regression (SCIR). Empirical evaluation on a variety of text and image classification datasets across different model architectures reveals that our approach consistently improves negative log-likelihood (NLL) and expected calibration error (ECE) metrics.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2512_09054
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Improving Multi-Class Calibration through Normalization-Aware Isotonic Techniques
Arad, Alon
Rosset, Saharon
Machine Learning
Accurate and reliable probability predictions are essential for multi-class supervised learning tasks, where well-calibrated models enable rational decision-making. While isotonic regression has proven effective for binary calibration, its extension to multi-class problems via one-vs-rest calibration produced suboptimal results when compared to parametric methods, limiting its practical adoption. In this work, we propose novel isotonic normalization-aware techniques for multiclass calibration, grounded in natural and intuitive assumptions expected by practitioners. Unlike prior approaches, our methods inherently account for probability normalization by either incorporating normalization directly into the optimization process (NA-FIR) or modeling the problem as a cumulative bivariate isotonic regression (SCIR). Empirical evaluation on a variety of text and image classification datasets across different model architectures reveals that our approach consistently improves negative log-likelihood (NLL) and expected calibration error (ECE) metrics.
title Improving Multi-Class Calibration through Normalization-Aware Isotonic Techniques
topic Machine Learning
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.09054