It is a part of the tradition of Catholic social teaching. The letter was written at a time when the Reagan administration was implementing libertarian policies of laissez-faire capitalism, and it may be interpreted as a reaction to what was seen as hostility towards the Catholic Church's teachings on social justice, subsidiarity, corporatism and distributism.
It is a component of Catholic social doctrine. The letter was penned during an era when the Reagan administration promoted free-market capitalism, and it could be viewed as a response to perceived opposition to the Church's views on social justice, decentralization, corporatism, and distributism.