Abstract

This study investigates the interplay between teacher feedback, students' growth mindset, and metacognitive awareness in shaping feedback literacy among Indonesian EFL graduate students in the context of research writing. While feedback literacy has become increasingly vital for academic development, its relationship with learner dispositions and instructional input remains underexplored. Using a quantitative design, data were collected from 205 graduate students across 12 universities and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results revealed that growth mindset significantly predicted metacognitive awareness (β = 0.724, p < 0.001, f² = 1.104), and also directly influenced feedback literacy (β = 0.476, p < 0.001, f² = 0.258). Metacognitive awareness was found to significantly predict both teacher feedback (β = 0.597, p < 0.001, f² = 0.334) and feedback literacy (β = 0.193, p = 0.035, f² = 0.032). Teacher feedback also significantly influenced feedback literacy (β = 0.193, p = 0.004, f² = 0.046). However, the path from growth mindset to teacher feedback was not statistically significant (β = 0.137, p = 0.076, f² = 0.018). These results highlight the importance of developing students' metacognitive awareness and ensuring high-quality, formative teacher feedback. The study offers implications for EFL academic writing pedagogy, suggesting the integration of metacognitive training and feedback-responsive strategies. Future research should employ longitudinal or mixed-method approaches to explore how these constructs evolve across time and contexts.