arXiv:2606.18103cs.CLcs.IR2026-06

将史学方法论融入RAG,让AI生成更符合历史研究逻辑。

HistoRAG: Embedding Historical Methodology in Retrieval-Augmented Generation Through Critical Technical Practice

论文配图:HistoRAG: Embedding Historical Methodology in Retrieval-Augmented Generation Through Critical Technical Practice
图 1 · 摘自论文原文
  • 分离检索与生成,按时间窗口平衡史料覆盖
  • 1950年代术语在70年代数据中召回率为零,凸显时间偏倚
  • 用LLM做评估裁判,使结论透明可争议,适合人文学科

检索增强生成(RAG)虽主流用于事实问答,但其默认设置与历史等解释性学科的研究实践相悖。本文提出HistoRAG框架,将史学方法论转化为具体架构设计:分离检索与生成以解耦史料发现与解释;时间窗口机制强制跨时期均衡呈现史料,回应历史研究的方法要求;采用LLM作为评判者进行相关性评估,使判断过程透明且可辩驳。基于德意志新闻周刊(Der Spiegel, 1950–1979)共102,189篇文章的SPIEGELragged实验表明:使用1970年代术语无法检索到1950年代内容,验证了时间偏倚的存在;向量相似度与LLM评估的相关性极低(斯皮尔曼等级相关系数=0.275),支持后检索评估必要性;关键词与语义检索覆盖不同文献池,提示双层检索应并行互补。同时提出Zwischentexte(中间文本)概念,作为由模型生成的解释性提案而非结论,推动负责任的学术整合。该架构为将领域知识论嵌入RAG提供了范例,可推广至其他解释性学科的大规模文本分析。

原文摘要 · Abstract (English)

Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) is the prevailing architecture for grounding language model outputs in external evidence, yet its dominant evaluation paradigms and default configurations remain oriented toward factual question-answering. For interpretive disciplines such as historical studies, RAG embeds assumptions that conflict with scholarly practice. We introduce HistoRAG, a framework that translates historiographical principles into concrete architectural interventions. Separated retrieval and generation decouples source discovery from interpretation, temporal windowing enforces balanced source representation across the research period as a methodological requirement of historical inquiry, and LLM-as-judge evaluation makes relevance judgments transparent and contestable. We evaluate these interventions using SPIEGELragged, applied to 102,189 articles from Der Spiegel (1950-1979). Each intervention addresses a measurable deficiency in standard RAG: era-specific vocabulary retrieves zero chunks from the 1950s when using 1970s terminology, evidence of the temporal skew that motivates windowing; vector similarity and LLM-assessed relevance correlate only weakly (Spearman rho = 0.275), motivating post-retrieval evaluation; and keyword-based and semantic retrieval surface largely disjoint source pools, motivating an architecture in which both operate as complementary retrieval layers under a shared LLM evaluation filter. We also introduce the concept of Zwischentexte (intermediate texts that function as interpretive proposals rather than findings) as a framework for responsible integration of LLM-generated text into scholarly practice. The architecture offers a model for how domain-specific epistemological commitments can be translated into RAG design decisions, and may transfer to other interpretive disciplines working with large corpora.

RAG历史学大模型可解释性

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