Boltzmann Machines as Multidimensional Item Response Theory Models
Gunter Maris, Timo M. Bechger · 2021
We show that Boltzmann machines can formally be represented as multidimensional item response theory models. This relationship inspired a new learning principle and new ways to regularize Boltzmann machines to make them more interpretable. The core results carry over to a broader class of models including Gaussian-Bernoulli restricted Boltzmann machines.