SHANGHAI - Cooking, cleaning, and caring for the kids during the day, Chen Hualiang takes on household tasks many Chinese fathers tend to leave to their wives, bucking a deep-rooted patriarchal tradition and even inspiring a hit TV show. The former project manager gave up the rat race to join a growing number of “full-time dads”, as they are known in China. “When you work, you dream of a great career and that this money will help your family,” he told AFP from a villa in the suburbs of Shanghai, his four-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son playing nearby. “But nothing is certain, and a salary is not necessarily what your family needs the most.” Social norms in China have for centuries dictated that men are the breadwinners, while women take care of the household and children. “My father was just a father. I never felt like he could help me, except financially,” said Chen. “I want to be like a friend to my children, so they can share things with me.” Over half of the Chinese men now say they would agree to become a stay-at-home dad, a 2019 survey cited by state media suggested -- up from just 17 percent in 2007. That has coincided with a broader recognition of women’s rights and their access to higher education, though they are still under-represented in senior roles. “The increase in the number of stay-at-home dads is due to the fact that women have a higher status today,” Pan Xingzhi, founder of an online psychological counselling platform, told AFP. People also see “value for money” -- for a couple, foregoing a salary and taking care of their baby themselves is often less expensive than hiring a nanny or a childminder, Pan said.