Mitigating Subgroup Unfairness in Machine Learning Classifiers: A Data-Driven Approach

Fairness in machine learning, particularly in classifiers, is receiving increasing attention. However, most studies on this topic focus on fairness metrics for a limited number of predefined groups and do not address fairness across intersectional subgroups. In this paper, we investigate ways to improve subgroup fairness where subgroups are defined by the intersection of protected attributes. Specifically, our paper reveals the correlation between the representation bias of training data and model fairness. We demonstrate that biased sample collection due to historical biases and a lack of control over data collection can lead to unfairness in learned models. We introduce the concept of an “Implicit Biased Set (IBS)”, which refers to regions in the intersectional attribute space where positive and negative examples are not proportionately represented. For example, if our training data set has a disproportionate representation of black male recidivists, then criminal risk assessment tools are more likely to discriminate against black males, even if they are innocent. We propose an efficient pre-processing approach that initially identifies IBS and then employs techniques to remedy the data collection within IBS. Our evaluation shows that our method effectively mitigates various subgroup biases regardless of the downstream machine learning models used.