arXiv:2509.23750cs.LG2025-09

批归一化在离策略强化学习中可加速训练并提升稳定性,但需注意使用方式。

An Investigation of Batch Normalization in Off-Policy Actor-Critic Algorithms

  • 提出针对强化学习特性的模式感知批归一化方法
  • 实验证明可扩大有效学习率范围并提升探索能力
  • 适合希望稳定训练、加快收敛的RL研究者

批归一化(BN)在深度学习中通过提升训练稳定性、缓解过拟合和促进优化而发挥关键作用。然而,由于强化学习数据具有非独立同分布特性,且代理学习过程导致数据分布动态变化,其在深度强化学习(DRL)中的应用受限。本文认为,尽管存在挑战,BN在DRL中仍具备独特优势,尤其体现在其随机性和对训练的促进作用。恰当使用时,BN能适应不断变化的数据分布,提升收敛速度与最终性能。为此,我们对离策略演员-评论家算法中的BN进行了系统性实证研究,分析不同训练与评估模式对性能的影响。识别出导致不稳定或发散的失败模式,并剖析其根源,提出模式感知批归一化(MA-BN)方法及可操作建议,实现稳健集成。实证表明,MA-BN在强化学习环境中可加速训练、增强稳定性、拓宽有效学习率范围、改善探索能力,降低整体优化难度。代码已公开:https://github.com/monster476/ma-bn.git。

原文摘要 · Abstract (English)

Batch Normalization (BN) has played a pivotal role in the success of deep learning by improving training stability, mitigating overfitting, and enabling more effective optimization. However, its adoption in deep reinforcement learning (DRL) has been limited due to the inherent non-i.i.d. nature of data and the dynamically shifting distributions induced by the agent's learning process. In this paper, we argue that, despite these challenges, BN retains unique advantages in DRL settings, particularly through its stochasticity and its ability to ease training. When applied appropriately, BN can adapt to evolving data distributions and enhance both convergence speed and final performance. To this end, we conduct a comprehensive empirical study on the use of BN in off-policy actor-critic algorithms, systematically analyzing how different training and evaluation modes impact performance. We further identify failure modes that lead to instability or divergence, analyze their underlying causes, and propose the Mode-Aware Batch Normalization (MA-BN) method with practical actionable recommendations for robust BN integration in DRL pipelines. We also empirically validate that, in RL settings, MA-BN accelerates and stabilizes training, broadens the effective learning rate range, enhances exploration, and reduces overall optimization difficulty. Our code is available at: https://github.com/monster476/ma-bn.git.

强化学习批归一化训练稳定

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