Attribute First, then Generate: Locally-attributable Grounded Text Generation

A Slobodkin, E Hirsch, A Cattan, T Schuster… - arXiv preprint arXiv …, 2024 - arxiv.org
arXiv preprint arXiv:2403.17104, 2024arxiv.org
Recent efforts to address hallucinations in Large Language Models (LLMs) have focused on
attributed text generation, which supplements generated texts with citations of supporting
sources for post-generation fact-checking and corrections. Yet, these citations often point to
entire documents or paragraphs, burdening users with extensive verification work. In this
paper, we introduce a locally-attributable text generation approach, prioritizing concise
attributions. Our method, named``Attribute First, then Generate'', breaks down the …
Recent efforts to address hallucinations in Large Language Models (LLMs) have focused on attributed text generation, which supplements generated texts with citations of supporting sources for post-generation fact-checking and corrections. Yet, these citations often point to entire documents or paragraphs, burdening users with extensive verification work. In this paper, we introduce a locally-attributable text generation approach, prioritizing concise attributions. Our method, named ``Attribute First, then Generate'', breaks down the conventional end-to-end generation process into three intuitive steps: content selection, sentence planning, and sequential sentence generation. By initially identifying relevant source segments (``select first'') and then conditioning the generation process on them (``then generate''), we ensure these segments also act as the output's fine-grained attributions (``select'' becomes ``attribute''). Tested on Multi-document Summarization and Long-form Question-answering, our method not only yields more concise citations than the baselines but also maintains - and in some cases enhances - both generation quality and attribution accuracy. Furthermore, it significantly reduces the time required for fact verification by human assessors.
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