This thesis provides an overview of the literature both in the field of academic anxiety and emotion regulation. The two research fields have proceeded independently in the literature at least until recently and the thesis highlights their integration. The thesis aims to answer: what happens in the brain during cognitive reappraisal and how can we use cognitive reappraisal as a strategy for dealing with academic anxiety. Brain-imaging studies show that cognitive reappraisal (an emotion regulation strategy) involves many different higher-order cognitive processes, such as emotion processing, manipulation of appraisals in working memory, inhibiting the old and selecting new appraisals. Different regions of the prefrontal cortex are believed to support these functions, moreover, the prefrontal cortex modulates amygdala activity and decreases negative emotions. Previous research in the lab and in the classroom suggests that cognitive reappraisal might be a strategy for dealing with academic anxiety. The arousal reappraisal intervention encourages students to reinterpret their increased arousal as beneficial to their performance. Only a small number of studies have tested the intervention in academic contexts, however the results are promising, e.g. students improved exam performance. The goal is to teach students that it is possible to perform well regardless of one’s anxiety. The findings presented in this thesis provide an initial glimpse into the fruitful integration of these two research fields.

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