mlsanityData to 14 Oct 2026

Geometrical fairness in graph neural networks

arXiv 2606.17684 ↗First posted 16 Jun 2026stat.ML cs.CY cs.LGcited by 0

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Abstract (arXiv)

Graph-based learning methods have become increasingly prominent due to their strong performance across diverse applications. Among these, recent frameworks grounded in diffusion processes provide a unifying perspective that extends traditional graph neural network formulations while addressing limitations of standard message-passing mechanisms. Despite these advances, concerns remain regarding the fairness of such models, as they may propagate or amplify biases present in the data. In this work, we introduce a fairness-aware adaptation of graph-based diffusion by modifying the underlying Laplacian operator. Our approach incorporates multiple complementary transformations, including subspace projections, spectral adjustments, and frequency-based filtering, to mitigate bias-related components. Leveraging the intrinsic smoothing properties of graph diffusion, we provide a principled analysis of the resulting behavior and establish theoretical insights into fairness properties. We evaluate the proposed framework on both synthetic and real-world datasets, demonstrating that it achieves competitive performance while improving fairness metrics with limited additional computational cost.

Key facts. No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026). Builds on 35 of its 73 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 16 Jun 2026.

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35 of 73 references.

References · 35

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23 more
  1. 2022Neural Sheaf Diffusion: A Topological Perspective on Heterophily and Oversmoothing in GNNscited by 214
  2. 2022Revisiting Heterophily For Graph Neural Networkscited by 169
  3. 2020Say No to the Discrimination: Learning Fair Graph Neural Networks with Limited Sensitive Attribute Informationcited by 168
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  8. 2022Revisiting Over-smoothing and Over-squashing Using Ollivier-Ricci Curvaturecited by 98
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  10. 2021FairDrop: Biased Edge Dropout for Enhancing Fairness in Graph Representation Learningcited by 68
  11. 2021Fairness in Credit Scoring: Assessment, Implementation and Profit Implicationscited by 65
  12. 2020Fairness Metrics: A Comparative Analysiscited by 45
  13. 2023Over-Squashing in Graph Neural Networks: A Comprehensive surveycited by 23
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  15. 2024FairSIN: Achieving Fairness in Graph Neural Networks through Sensitive Information Neutralizationcited by 20
  16. 2022FairEdit: Preserving Fairness in Graph Neural Networks through Greedy Graph Editingcited by 15
  17. 2025Polynomial Neural Sheaf Diffusion: A Spectral Filtering Approach on Cellular Sheavescited by 9
  18. 2023Fairness-Aware Graph Filter Designcited by 8
  19. 2021EqGNN: Equalized Node Opportunity in Graphscited by 7
  20. 2022On Graph Neural Network Fairness in the Presence of Heterophilous Neighborhoodscited by 6
  21. 2024Unveiling the Impact of Local Homophily on GNN Fairness: In-Depth Analysis and New Benchmarkscited by 6
  22. 2025Benchmarking Fairness-aware Graph Neural Networks in Knowledge Graphscited by 2
  23. 2026On the use of graph models to achieve individual and group fairnesscited by 1

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