<![CDATA[Institutional documentation such as the Plantation Business Registration Letter for Cultivation (STD-B) is often treated as a proxy for smallholder readiness to meet sustainability standards, yet administrative registration does not guarantee uniform managerial and cognitive readiness. This study examined whether independent oil palm farmers who shared identical administrative status differed in their understanding of, and attitude toward, STD-B and the Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) certification system. A quantitative, comparative census was conducted among all 51 registered independent farmers in Halimaung Jaya Village (n = 18) and Mekar Indah Village (n = 33), Seruyan Regency, Central Kalimantan, using a five-point Likert questionnaire, interviews, observation, and documentation; data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the Mann-Whitney U test. Farmers' average knowledge score was 3.33 in Halimaung Jaya and 3.52 in Mekar Indah, a statistically significant difference (U = 122.000; Z = -3.472; p < 0.001; r = 0.486). Attitude scores were 3.69 and 3.75, with no significant difference (U = 258.500; Z = -0.773; p = 0.440; r = 0.108). The findings revealed a genuine knowledge gap alongside a convergence of positive attitudes, suggesting that document-based governance requires complementary, village-specific knowledge-management strategies to build substantive institutional capacity.]]>
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