Combating data scarcity in recommendation services: Integrating cognitive types of VARK and neural network technologies (LLM)

Abstract: Cold start scenarios present fundamental obstacles to effective recommendation generation, particularly when dealing with users lacking interaction history or items with sparse metadata. This research proposes an innovative hybrid framework that leverages LLMs for content semantic analysis and knowledge graph development, integrated with cognitive profiling based on VARK (Visual, Auditory, Reading/Writing, Kinesthetic) learning preferences. The proposed system tackles multiple cold start dimensions: enriching inadequate item descriptions through LLM processing, generating user profiles from minimal data, and dynamically adjusting presentation formats based on cognitive assessment. The framework comprises six integrated components: semantic metadata enhancement, dynamic graph construction, VARK-based profiling, mental state estimation, graph-enhanced retrieval with LLM-powered ranking, and adaptive interface design with iterative learning. Experimental validation on MovieLens-1M dataset demonstrates the system's capacity for personalized recommendation generation despite limited initial information. This work establishes groundwork for cognitively-aware recommendation systems capable of overcoming cold start limitations through semantic comprehension and psychological modeling, offering personalized, explainable recommendations from initial user contact.