What is model interpretability in supervised learning?

Updated May 17, 2026

Short answer

Model interpretability refers to understanding how and why a model makes predictions.

Deep explanation

Interpretability helps explain model decisions to humans. It can be global (overall feature influence) or local (individual prediction explanation). Interpretable models include linear regression and decision trees, while complex models like neural networks require tools like SHAP or LIME for explanation.

Real-world example

Explaining loan rejection reasons in banking systems.

Common mistakes

  • Assuming high accuracy models are automatically interpretable.

Follow-up questions

  • What is LIME?
  • Why is interpretability important?

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