A Bayesian Dynamic Latent Space Model for Weighted Networks

Fuente: arXiv
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Autores principales: Casarin, Roberto, Iacopini, Matteo, Peruzzi, Antonio
Formato: Preprint
Publicado: 2026
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author Casarin, Roberto
Iacopini, Matteo
Peruzzi, Antonio
author_facet Casarin, Roberto
Iacopini, Matteo
Peruzzi, Antonio
contents A new dynamic latent space eigenmodel (LSM) is proposed for weighted temporal networks. The model accommodates integer-valued weights, excess of zeros, time-varying node positions (features), and time-varying network sparsity. The latent positions evolve according to a vector autoregressive process that accounts for lagged and contemporaneous dependence across nodes and features, a characteristic neglected in the LSM literature. A Bayesian approach is used to address two of the primary sources of inference intractability in dynamic LSMs: latent feature estimation and the choice of latent space dimension. We employ an efficient auxiliary-mixture sampler that performs data augmentation and supports conditionally conjugate prior distributions. A point-process representation of the network weights and the finite-dimensional distribution of the latent processes are used to derive a multi-move sampler in which each feature trajectory is drawn in a single block, without recursions. This sampling strategy is new to the network literature and can significantly reduce computational time while improving chain mixing. To avoid trans-dimensional samplers, a Laplace approximation of the partial marginal likelihood is used to design a partially collapsed Gibbs sampler. Overall, our procedure is general, as it can be easily adapted to static and dynamic settings, as well as to other discrete or continuous weight distributions.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_24201
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle A Bayesian Dynamic Latent Space Model for Weighted Networks
Casarin, Roberto
Iacopini, Matteo
Peruzzi, Antonio
Methodology
Computation
A new dynamic latent space eigenmodel (LSM) is proposed for weighted temporal networks. The model accommodates integer-valued weights, excess of zeros, time-varying node positions (features), and time-varying network sparsity. The latent positions evolve according to a vector autoregressive process that accounts for lagged and contemporaneous dependence across nodes and features, a characteristic neglected in the LSM literature. A Bayesian approach is used to address two of the primary sources of inference intractability in dynamic LSMs: latent feature estimation and the choice of latent space dimension. We employ an efficient auxiliary-mixture sampler that performs data augmentation and supports conditionally conjugate prior distributions. A point-process representation of the network weights and the finite-dimensional distribution of the latent processes are used to derive a multi-move sampler in which each feature trajectory is drawn in a single block, without recursions. This sampling strategy is new to the network literature and can significantly reduce computational time while improving chain mixing. To avoid trans-dimensional samplers, a Laplace approximation of the partial marginal likelihood is used to design a partially collapsed Gibbs sampler. Overall, our procedure is general, as it can be easily adapted to static and dynamic settings, as well as to other discrete or continuous weight distributions.
title A Bayesian Dynamic Latent Space Model for Weighted Networks
topic Methodology
Computation
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.24201