Bitemporal width ratio

The cheekbones can look more prominent when the temples above them narrow, even if cheekbone width stays unchanged. The outline moves outward as it descends into the cheeks. Broader temples reduce that contrast and make the upper sides of the face straighter.

A low ratio can also come from especially broad cheekbones beneath temples of ordinary width. This may create a smooth widening into the cheeks rather than a hollow at the temples. The curve of the outline helps distinguish a narrow upper face from a local indentation.

A tall forehead with broad temples has height and width across the upper face. The same central forehead height with narrower temples creates a more elongated upper outline. Hairline shape adds another boundary, especially where the sides recede or expose more skin above the temples.

Salinas, Liu and Sharaf found that central forehead height and lateral hairline contours showed different sex-related patterns in their celebrity sample. A centreline measurement alone missed some of the visible variation.

A naturally narrow upper face can resemble an outline that has changed through hairline recession or temple hollowing. Earlier photographs help establish whether the shape has changed; a current width ratio describes the present boundary.

Narrow temples and a narrow jaw make the cheeks stand out between them. If the chin narrows too, the face contracts above and below its widest point, creating a diamond-like outline. The cheekbones can appear pronounced through this contrast even without exceptional width.

A broad jaw beneath narrow temples creates a different shape. The face widens into the cheeks and retains more of that width below them. A broad chin continues the lower breadth, while a narrow chin produces a stronger final taper.

At a high temple ratio, a broad jaw can create straighter sides across much of the face. A narrow jaw below broad temples instead gives a more continuous downward taper. Overall facial height determines whether either outline looks compact or elongated.

The upper outline reflects head shape and the tissues at the temples. These regions develop at different rates from the cheeks and jaw.

Later soft-tissue changes can make the temples more hollow, while hairline changes alter how the forehead is framed. A hairstyle can change the visible impression without moving the skin landmarks. Compare the skin contour separately from the hair boundary, especially when assessing a change in temple width.

The 0.85–0.95 reference describes temples that retain most of the cheekbone width while allowing the outline to widen into the cheeks. That gentle transition can look quite different depending on forehead height and the jaw below it.

More narrowing emphasises the cheekbones but may also make an existing indentation more visible. Greater temple width reduces that contrast and gives a tall forehead more breadth. Direct preference research for this exact ratio is limited, so the interval is most useful as a comparison of these visible shapes.