I agree that ignorance is less of a valid excuse for poor decision making these days, but inexperience I think still is. Inexperience is what causes me not to listen to people or take advice or causes me to listen to the wrong people. I think that responsibility is something that needs to be learned.
Awhile back there was a thread on "Is ignorance bliss?", where it was discussed that some people actively choose to not research their options. For some, this worked out fine. For others, choosing not to find about options before an event (ie birth) led them to accept events that they may not have had they had time to consider all the possibilities.

There are people i have met in real life, and on-line, who choose not to read or research and i have been criticised by some (not here!) for 'reading too much'.

I then wonder if I am talking to someone who chose not to inform themselves on options, and later had regrets on how things have turned out, should i have the same degree of empathy or concern as i would have for someone who didn't have the opportunity to research and was experiencing sadness over how things turned out?

I guess it's hard to work out sometimes what is (chosen) ignorance, and what is inexperience in knowing where to seek info....

still thinking