Structure Learning of Bayesian Networks by Estimation of Distribution Algorithms with Transpose Mutation

Estimation of distribution algorithms (EDAs) constitute a new branch of evolutionary optimization algorithms that were developed as a natural alternative to genetic algorithms (GAs). Several studies have demonstrated that the heuristic scheme of EDAs is effective and efficient for many optimization problems. Recently, it has been reported that the incorporation of mutation into EDAs increases the diversity of genetic information in the population, thereby avoiding premature convergence into a suboptimal solution. In this study, we propose a new mutation operator, a transpose mutation, designed for Bayesian structure learning. It enhances the diversity of the offspring and it increases the possibility of inferring the correct arc direction by considering the arc directions in candidate solutions as bi-directional, using the matrix transpose operator. As compared to the conventional EDAs, the transpose mutation-adopted EDAs are superior and effective algorithms for learning Bayesian networks.