<P> In 2013, Pope Francis referred to trickle - down theories (plural) in his apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium with the following statement (No. 54): </P> <P> Some people continue to defend trickle - down theories which assume that economic growth, encouraged by a free market, will inevitably succeed in bringing about greater justice and inclusiveness in the world . This opinion, which has never been confirmed by the facts, expresses a crude and naïve trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power and in the sacralized workings of the prevailing economic system . </P> <P> A 2015 paper by researchers for the International Monetary Fund argues that there is no trickle - down effect as the rich get richer: </P> <P> (I) f the income share of the top 20 percent (the rich) increases, then GDP growth actually declines over the medium term, suggesting that the benefits do not trickle down . In contrast, an increase in the income share of the bottom 20 percent (the poor) is associated with higher GDP growth . </P>

The level of economic prosperity is referred to as the