Is "just block the app" actually solving the algorithm problem, or just postponing it?

I've spent the last few weeks deep in build mode on a YouTube recommendation filter (launching on PH this Tuesday — more on that separately), and it's made me rethink something I used to take for granted: that blocking distracting apps outright is the strong move.

The more parents and students I talk to, the more I notice the same pattern: block an app, and the underlying pull doesn't go away — it just moves to whatever's still allowed. Kids get creative. Adults get creative. The recommendation algorithm was never really "the app." It was the incentive structure sitting underneath it.

Curious what this community's actual experience has been: for the focus or parental-control tools you've used, did blocking hold up long-term, or did you end up needing something closer to redirection — reshaping what shows up, rather than removing access to a whole platform?

Genuinely asking, not fishing for a specific answer. Would love to hear what worked, what didn't, and why.