Ronald R. Mellen, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Department of Criminal Justice
Jacksonville State University

Mailing Address

Class information website

Current Research Interest

    The application of the Quantitative Electroencephalogram and Neurofeedback Therapy to violence-prone inmates.

Selected Publications

    2009, "Reducing Sheriff's Symptoms of Depression using Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation (CES): a controlled experimental study", The Correctional Psychologist, Oct, Vol 40, No 1, pp 9-16. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D. and Wade Mackey Ph.D.  

    2008, "Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation (CES) and the Reduction of Stress Symptoms in a Sheriff's Jail Security and Patrol Officer Population", American Jails, Nov/Dec, pp 32-38. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D. and Wade Mackey Ph.D.  

    2008, "Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation: a case study", The Correctional Psychologist, Oct, Vol 40, No 4, pp 4-8. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D. and Stephanie Mitchell M.A.  

    2008, "Brain Dysfunctions Associated with Antisocial and Violent Behavior", Corrections Compendium, Sept/Oct, Vol 33, No 5, pp 6-11. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D.  

    2008, "Sheriff's Deputies and Stress", American Jail Association and Academe, Sept, Vol 2, No 1, pp 2. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D. and Celia Engle.  

    2007, "A survey of Sex Offender Treatment Programs in the Southern States Correctional Association's Departments of Corrections", Southern Concourse, Winter, pp 39-40. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D. and Celest Smith.  

    2007, "Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation (CES): An Effective Treatment in a Jail Setting", American Jail Association and Academe, Dec, Vol 1, Issue 2, pp 3. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D. and Stephanie Mitchell M.A.  

    2006, "Inmates with Methamphetamine Addictions", Southern Concourse, Spring, pp 12-13. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D. and Stephanie Mitchell.  

    2005, "The Chronic Non-premeditated Violent Inmate", Southern Concourse, Winter, pp 9. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D., Nancy B. Mellen M.A. and Charmaine V. Ronnie.  

    2005, "Neurotransmitters and the Impulsively Violent Inmate", Southern Concourse, Fall, pp 12-13. Ronald R. Mellen Ph.D. and Robert C. Evans Ph.D.  

    "Neurotransmitters and the Impulsively Violent Inmate," published in The Southern Concourse, Southern States Correctional Association, Fall 2005, p. 12-13.  Ronald R. Mellen and Robert C. Evans.  

    "Potential Utilization of QEEG & Neurofeedback Therapy in the Correctional Setting,"  accepted, Feb. 2005, for publication in the Journal of Correctional Psychology.  Ronald R. Mellen, Nancy B. Mellen.

    "The Chronic Non-Premeditated Violent Inmate," published in The Southern Concourse, Southern States Correctional Association, Winter 2005, p. 9.  Ronald R. Mellen, Nancy B. Mellen, and Charmaine Ronney.

    "Manifest Content in the Dreams of Clinical Populations,"  The Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 1993, Vol. 15, No. 2, April.  Ronald R. Mellen, Thelma Duffy, and Suzanne M. Craig. 

    "Differences in the Manifest Content of Mexican, Mexican American and Anglo American Women, A Research Note,"  in the Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 1993, Vol. 15, No. 1, Connie M. Kane, Ronald R. Mellen, Pamela Patten, and Italo Samano. 

    "Dreams:  An Opaque Language" in Communitas, 1990, No. 5, April.  Ronald R. Mellen 

    "A Preliminary Investigation of Clairvoyance During Hypnotic Age Regression," in the European Journal of Parapsychology, 1979, Vol. 2, Number 1, May. William Braud and Ronald Mellen.

Biographical Sketch

    Dr. Mellen has a Masters Degree in Criminology from Sam Houston State University, 1972.  Thesis: “The  Sensation Seeking Scale as a Predictor of Pre-Delinquents with a Predisposition to Acting-Out” 

    He earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Counseling Psychology from Texas A&M University, 1976.   Dissertation:  “The Impact of Highly Positive and Highly Negative Affective Stimuli on the Learning of Paired-Associates within a Male Juvenile Delinquent Population.” 

    Dr. Mellen worked with the Arkansas Department of Correction from 1996 to 2002.  For three years he was the Clinical Director of the ADC mental health unit.  This was a 72-bed unit that housed psychotic and suicidal inmates who had not responded to psychotropic and anti-depressant medications.  He supervised seven mental health staff members.  The following three years he was Staff Psychologist at the Tucker Maximum Security Unit and the Varner SuperMax Unit. 

    His work experience includes two years as the Director of Dorm Parents at a facility for adjudicated adolescents.  He was also a Juvenile Probation Officer in Houston, Texas.

    Dr. Mellen has also worked as a consultant for the Bexar County Jail, San Antonio, Texas, the Median County Sheriff’s Department in Hondo, Texas and taught for the University of Arkansas-Little Rock’s Criminal Justice Institute.

    Prior to joining the Arkansas Department of Correction Dr. Mellen taught at St. Mary’s University, San Antonio, Texas.  In 1984 he received the Distinguished Graduate Faculty Award.  For nine years he was chairman of the Department of Counseling and Human Services.  During that time he and the Graduate Dean designed and implemented the Ph.D. program in Counseling.

Favorite Quote

    “All the darkness in the universe cannot extinguish the light of a single candle, nor does it cost that candle anything to give light to another candle.”