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Poor programming instruction (or insufficient self-teaching) leading to..., bad coding practices, etc...

It's more complicated than that. Many operating system features (ie. web browsing, file download/upload, etc) have now been componentized which means that developers don't have to reinvent the wheel: They can simply call an operating system API. However, there is no telling how many DLLs that that particular component pulls in. Here's a good example. When you use COMDLG32 under Windows NT and later, it pulls in a bunch of different DLLs from the Shell. These DLLs make it possible to view various types of content. Unless the developer is aware of how many DLLs are getting loaded, he or she has contributed (in some small way) to bloat; however, it's not at all obvious that it is happening. After all, my code only calls one line of OS code in order to bring up the dialog, right? I would argue that componentization of software naturally results in code bloat. Dependencies are very hard to track -- and they only get harder to track year after year. Granted, you could argue that any developer worth his or her salt would write these routines themselves; however, most developers aren't in business to waste time. They want to accomplish an objective. So, as I see it, software bloat is much more complex than simply blaming an individual developer for writing poor code.

So, as I see it, software bloat is much more complex than simply blaming an individual developer for writing poor code.

I know you're a coder - but I did not blame the individual developer or coder.
As a matter of fact, what I wrote was that it begins with the 'instruction', however that 'developer' obtained the instruction:

I wrote:
It has everything to do with Programming Design or the lack of it. This lack is a result of:

Poor programming instruction (or insufficient self-teaching) leading to... etc. etc.

If you are not taught to code properly; if the manager/supervisor does not instruct you otherwise; if you manage to sell your code and people don't complain or have no alternative, you will continue to code poorly, and, perhaps, heavens forbid, churn out Crapware and Bloatware.

You did say software bloat is a complex issue - I agree - but for a different reason: because we have not defined it precisely.