Equitable recourse under competition

Characterize what it means for an algorithmic recourse policy to be equitable in a competitive setting and provide equitable recourse policies for such settings.

Background

The paper studies algorithmic recourse when individuals compete for a capacity-constrained resource. Recourse recommendations can alter the applicant population, change the acceptance threshold, and distribute acceptance opportunities unevenly across individuals or subpopulations. Although the proposed objective balances aggregate recourse cost and post-shift validity, the authors explicitly note that these aggregate improvements do not ensure equitable outcomes. The unresolved problem is therefore to define equity for recourse policies under competition and develop policies that satisfy the resulting equity criteria.