Strategic Classification is Causal Modeling in Disguise

Miller, Milli, and Hardt (2020) reveal a fundamental connection between strategic classification and causal inference, distinguishing between gaming (circumventing the system) and genuine improvement. Their central argument is that designing classifiers that incentivize improvement must inevitably solve a non-trivial causal inference problem, properly recognizing that incentivizing desirable behavior requires understanding causal relationships rather than merely observing correlations.