Whether a Young Carefree or an Above Average Joe, the life and role of the American male in the 21st century is being redefined.

Social Technologies sketches out 5 American Male personas that also include the Good Ol’ Boys, Mac Daddies, and Worry Warriors--each with a different take on where they feel they are in life and where they may be headed.

clipped from www.socialtechnologies.com

What are guys’ lives like today? What is important to them and how can we better relate to them? That was what Spike TV asked the Washington DC-based futurist research and consulting firm Social Technologies to help the network find out.

As the home of everything "men," Spike TV commissioned the study to gain a deeper understanding of the many facets of men, according to Kimberly Maxwell, senior director of brand and consumer research. "We wanted to check the pulse of American guys to be better able to understand their lifestyles, their daily habits, and values," she says, noting that the research builds upon Spike’s 2004 "Guy's State of the Union," which delivered a wide-ranging overview of guy's lives.

Social Technologies analyzed the segmentation data to create descriptions and composite personas, used by Spike to better understand different types of men and how their lifestyle and consumer habits may change in the near future. So what are these five types of American guys?

[PHOTO: Matt Andrews]