Ensemble Machine Learning-Based Approach to Predict Human Mental States with Optimized Feature Selection and Data Balancing
摘要
The quality of life is greatly impacted by mental health illnesses worldwide, making sophisticated diagnostic instruments that strike a compromise between precision and interpretability necessary. This paper uses the DASS-42 dataset (n = 39,775) to predict stress, anxiety, and depression using a unique machine learning architecture that uses a stacking ensemble of k-Nearest Neighbors, Decision Trees, and Multi-Layer Perceptron. In order to solve class imbalance and guarantee robust feature scaling, the model incorporates Yeo-Johnson transformations, Min-Max normalization, and NRS Boundary-SMOTE for data balancing. Grid Search and Nested Cross-Validation are used to maximize hyperparameter tuning, resulting in 99.94% (depression), 99.92% (anxiety), and 99.92% (stress) accuracy. The framework bridges the gap between predictive capacity and transparency, making it a dependable tool for clinical mental health evaluations due to its high accuracy and interpretability. This method offers a scalable, reliable solution for mental health diagnostics and advances AI-driven psychological treatments, opening the door for early diagnosis and individualized therapy.