Dr-You and I actually seem to be saying the same thing in respect to the cause of continuing VFR into IMC. You said:
The basic issue with these continuing VFR into IMC accidents is poor decision making.
and I said:
.... it was your decisions and therefore your decision making processes that led you out of trouble..... They are not intuitive to all but they are the sort of skills that can be taught, trained and practised. Its not a case of intellectualising the situation but being taught and then developing the Non-Technical Skills that can help get you out of a situation like you found yourself in.
As to the rest, well we will just have to disagree about the benefits of minimal IF training at the PPL stage. Suffice to say in some circumstances it was better than none at all, as in your story. In other circumstances it is not enough, and that people are still losing their lives when entering IMC is evidence of that.