IntroductionWith the growing integration of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) into higher education, research attention must shift from the frequency of tool use to how these tools are used by learners. This study examines how GenAI literacy is related to learners' patterns of GenAI use and cognitive engagement during GenAI interactions.MethodsDrawing on questionnaire data from a large, diverse international sample of academic learners (N = 848), hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between dimensions of GenAI literacy and actual usage behaviors. Cluster analysis was then used to identify learner profiles based on patterns of GenAI use, literacy, monitoring, and reliance.ResultsThe findings indicate a dual role for critical-ethical awareness, a dimension of GenAI literacy that is associated with both monitoring GenAI outputs and using GenAI as a cognitive shortcut. Cluster analysis identified three learner profiles: Engaged and Literate users, who integrate monitoring and reliance; Uncritical Reliant users, who show high reliance but limited monitoring; and Skeptical Minimal users, who have low GenAI use but high reliance when they do engage. These patterns point to an “illusion of cognitive independence,” in which learners report high levels of independent thinking while engaging in cognitive offloading by relying on GenAI outputs without sufficient monitoring, particularly among Uncritical Reliant users.DiscussionCollectively, these findings suggest that GenAI literacy does not necessarily reduce reliance on GenAI but instead shapes how learners combine monitoring with reliance. Conceptually, this positions GenAI literacy as a regulatory mechanism of human–AI interaction, extending self-regulated learning to contexts in which cognitive processes are distributed between learners and systems. These results highlight the importance of developing GenAI literacy as a practice of reflective and regulated use rather than focusing solely on increasing technology adoption.