C-HDNet: A Fast Hyperdimensional Computing Based Method for Causal Effect Estimation from Networked Observational Data

Abstract

We consider the problem of estimating causal effects from observational data in the presence of network confounding. In this context, an individual's treatment assignment and outcomes may be affected by their neighbors within the network. We propose a novel matching technique which leverages hyperdimensional computing to model network information and improve predictive performance. We present results of extensive experiments which show that the proposed method outperforms or is competitive with the state-of-the-art methods for causal effect estimation from network data, including advanced computationally demanding deep learning methods. Further, our technique benefits from simplicity and speed, with roughly an order of magnitude lower runtime compared to state-of-the-art methods, while offering similar causal effect estimation error rates.