arXiv:2602.15863cs.CLcs.AI2026-02

让大模型自己生成解题过程,比直接用生成的例子更有效。

Not the Example, but the Process: How Self-Generated Examples Enhance LLM Reasoning

  • 通过让模型在统一提示中自动生成并解答问题来提升推理能力。
  • 在五种主流模型上,统一生成策略显著优于零样本和分步生成策略。
  • 注意力分析显示生成过程本身影响模型思考方式,适合优化提示设计。

近期研究表明,大语言模型可通过自动生成少样本示例来提升推理性能,达到与人工精心设计示例相当的效果。然而,这种提升的内在机制仍不明确,难以判断何时何地适用该技术。本文提出,关键优势并非来自生成的示例本身,而是生成过程。我们在多种架构的大型语言模型上系统评估了三种提示策略:(1) 零样本提示;(2) 整合提示,即模型在单一统一提示中完成示例生成与求解;(3) 解耦提示,将自生成示例作为上下文使用,但排除其生成过程。实验涵盖五种广泛使用的模型架构,结果表明整合提示始终显著优于零样本和解耦提示。而解耦提示仅带来微弱增益。进一步注意力分析显示,整合与解耦提示在注意力模式上存在显著差异。这说明自生成提示的优势源于问题构建过程本身,而非示例内容,为设计更有效的提示策略提供了重要启示。

原文摘要 · Abstract (English)

Recent studies have shown that Large Language Models (LLMs) can improve their reasoning performance through self-generated few-shot examples, achieving results comparable to manually curated in-context examples. However, the underlying mechanism behind these gains remains unclear, making it hard to decide when and how to apply the technique effectively. In this work, we argue that the key benefit arises not from the generated examples themselves but from the act of creating them. To validate this, on reasoning-intensive tasks across diverse LLM architectures, we systematically evaluate three prompting strategies for in-context learning: (1) Zero-shot prompting; (2) Integrated prompting, where LLMs create and solve problems within a single, unified prompt; and (3) Decoupled prompting, where self-generated examples are reused as in-context examples, but the context of their creation itself is excluded. We conduct experiments across five widely used model architectures, demonstrating that Integrated prompting consistently outperforms both Zero-shot and Decoupled prompting. In contrast, Decoupled prompting offers only marginal gains over Zero-shot. Further, for a more in-depth analysis, we conduct an attention analysis and observe significant differences in attention patterns between Integrated and Decoupled prompting. These findings suggest that the advantage of self-generation prompting comes from the process of problem creation, not the examples themselves, providing valuable insights for designing more effective prompting strategies.

大模型推理提示工程自生成示例

Thank you to arXiv for use of its open access interoperability. PaperDance 不是 arXiv 官方产品;中文卡片由大模型生成,请以原文为准。