Partly this depends on what you're calling "lightweight" - as oppose to "ultra light", "mega light",
"uber light", etc. etc. etc.

I tend to consider myself a "lightweight" backpacker, but not ultralight. case in point, my bag with my food in it, but no water or wallet or cell phone weighted 18.5 pounds for my trip in the rockies on the weekend. Having said that, I'm relatively sure that with 10-20 minutes of instructions, all but a crack-addled rhesus monkey could use my gear and be just fine with it. You need to know how to find 4 inch or better diameter live trees. You need to know how to tie a knot. You need to know how to light my stove, and you need to know how to read instructions on things like Cl02 water purifier. that's about it. Replace my alcohol stove with my snow peak canister stove and probably even the crack-addled rhesus monkey could do fine.

On the other hand I have gone out with very much reduced kit. I know I can go, for example, without my hammock and 8x10 silnylon tarp, and instead take just my silponcho as an 8x5 overtop of me. I can sleep on the ground, wear my bug headnet, and be a lot less comfy at night, and save myself about 2.5 pounds of hammock and big tarp. This setup I don't necessarily think someone withhout experience should try - I have to be pretty careful about site selection and tarp pitching to stay dry under an 8x5 tarp in a storm. OTOH, as I've mentioned, a crack-addled rhesus monkey can manage it in a hammock under an 8x10 <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I do think there are some "ultra" or "uber" lightweight type setups that will require more experience to deal with. having said that probably the setups many of us like me use are not beginner hostile at all, and would probably halve the weight carried over walking into your favorite
big box store with your visa card and telling the helpful clerk "I'm going backpacking - gear me!".