arXiv:2601.05866cs.CL2026-01中稿 · ECIR 2026被引 5

提出机制化检测长文本RAG引用幻觉的新框架,提升可信度

FACTUM: Mechanistic Detection of Citation Hallucination in Long-Form RAG

  • 通过四维机制评分揭示注意力与记忆路径的协同失效
  • 8B模型显示正确引用依赖路径分工而非统一协调
  • 相比最优基线,AUC提升最高达37.5%,适合可信生成研究者

检索增强生成(RAG)模型因引用幻觉而严重受损,即模型引用无法支持其主张的文献。现有工作将此归因于对参数化知识的过度依赖,我们重新将其视为注意力(阅读)与前馈网络(回忆)路径间随规模演化的协调失败。本文提出FACTUM(基于底层机制的引用可信度验证框架),包含四项机制评分:上下文对齐(CAS)、注意力池使用率(BAS)、参数力(PFS)和路径对齐(PAS)。分析发现,正确引用始终表现出更高的参数力(PFS)和更频繁的注意力池使用(BAS)。关键发现是:'一刀切'理论不足,正确性特征随模型规模演变——3B模型依赖高路径对齐(PAS),而最佳8B检测器识别出路径提供独立正交信息的专门策略。通过捕捉这种复杂交互,FACTUM在AUC上相较最先进基线最高提升37.5%。结果表明,当与注意力路径成功协同时,高参数力具有建设性作用,为更精细可靠的RAG系统铺平道路。

原文摘要 · Abstract (English)

Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) models are critically undermined by citation hallucinations, a deceptive failure where a model cites a source that fails to support its claim. While existing work attributes hallucination to a simple over-reliance on parametric knowledge, we reframe this failure as an evolving, scale-dependent coordination failure between the Attention (reading) and Feed-Forward Network (recalling) pathways. We introduce FACTUM (Framework for Attesting Citation Trustworthiness via Underlying Mechanisms), a framework of four mechanistic scores: Contextual Alignment (CAS), Attention Sink Usage (BAS), Parametric Force (PFS), and Pathway Alignment (PAS). Our analysis reveals that correct citations are consistently marked by higher parametric force (PFS) and greater use of the attention sink (BAS) for information synthesis. Crucially, we find that "one-size-fits-all" theories are insufficient as the signature of correctness evolves with scale: while the 3B model relies on high pathway alignment (PAS), our best-performing 8B detector identifies a shift toward a specialized strategy where pathways provide distinct, orthogonal information. By capturing this complex interplay, FACTUM outperforms state-of-the-art baselines by up to 37.5% in AUC. Our results demonstrate that high parametric force is constructive when successfully coordinated with the Attention pathway, paving the way for more nuanced and reliable RAG systems.

RAG引用幻觉机制分析

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